CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



with tartan and kilt. The other regiments wear 

 scarlet tunics, black shakocs or bear-skins, and 

 black, dark-blue, or white trousers, being dis- 

 tinguished from one another by the colour of the 

 facings that is, the collars, cuffs, and pocket- 

 lapels. Each regiment and battalion has also 

 two ensigns or colours : one the Queen's colour, 

 consisting of the Union-jack ; the other, the regi- 

 mental ensign, bearing the emblem of the corps, 

 and around it memorials of the different actions 

 in which it has distinguished itself. The arms of 

 the men are the rifle and bayonet ; non-com- 

 missioned officers use a sword-bayonet ; and the 

 sergeant-majors have swords ; while officers carry 

 the sword alone, except that in battle they usually 

 arm themselves with revolver-pistols. In dress, 

 the difference, except as regards fineness of mate- 

 rial, between officers and men, is as little con- 

 spicuous as possible : the officer wears a shoulder- 

 sash of crimson silk ; the sergeant also has a 

 shoulder-sash, but of crimson cotton. 



Cavalry, The British cavalry comprises thirty- 

 one regiments: Life Guards, two regiments; Horse 

 Guards, one regiment ; Dragoon Guards, seven 

 regiments ; Dragoons, three regiments ; Lancers, 

 five regiments ; Hussars, thirteen regiments. 



These are, as regards equipment and stature, 

 divided otherwise into Guards, three regiments ; 

 Heavy Cavalry, four ; Medium, eleven ; Light, 

 thirteen. Like infantry, cavalry is organised in 

 regiments, though the number in each is some- 

 what smaller. Each regiment comprises eight 

 troops, corresponding to the infantry companies. 

 The ranks are much the same as in the infantry ; 

 the lowest grade of officers, however, were, previous 

 to recent reforms, styled cornets. Each regiment 

 has on its staff a riding-master and a veterinary 

 surgeon, for whom no necessity arises in the 

 infantry. Also among the non-commissioned 

 officers, the principal of each troop is not called 

 a colour-sergeant, but a troop-sergeant-major. 

 The private soldiers are not spoken of as rank 

 and file, but commonly as ' troopers.' The drum- 

 mers of the infantry are represented in the cavalry 

 by trumpeters. 



Twelve regiments wear scarlet uniforms, nine- 

 teen blue. They are further distinguished by 

 their facings and ornamentation, which is far more 

 abundant than in the infantry. The Life Guards 

 and Horse Guards are adorned, rather than pro- 

 tected, by polished steel cuirasses and helmets. 

 The other regiments wear on their heads black 

 and brass helmets, bear-skin caps, busbies, and 

 leather shakoes ; these bear various plumes. The 

 regiments also carry colours, called guidons or 

 pennons, which are smaller than infantry colours. 



The arms of cavalry are the sabre for all, varying 

 from 40 to 34 inches in length ; a rifled carabine 

 (usually breech-loading) for all troopers except 

 lancers ; a rifled pistol in the holster for non- 

 commissioned officers of all cavalry, and for lancer 

 troopers, whose principal weapon is a lance 9 feet 

 3 inches in length, loaded and sharp at the point. 

 The small pennons on these lances give their gay 

 air to regiments of lancers. Officers carry swords 

 and their own pistols usually revolvers. 



The horses are bought at the different horse- 

 fairs, as four-year-olds of about 15 hands 2 inches 

 height, and at prices not exceeding ,35. Two 

 troops of cavalry constitute a squadron, and a 

 regiment may contain any number of squadrons ; 



196 



but the number is not often less than three nor 

 more than four. There are no battalions of 

 cavalry ; and if it is desired to augment a regi- 

 ment, one or more squadrons must be added. In 

 computing the force of cavalry with an army, the 

 calculation is made by squadrons. In battle, the 

 cavalry mode of fighting is by a charge in a deep 

 compact mass of thirty or sixty troopers wide, and 

 many deep. In such a charge the weight of man 

 and horse is an important ingredient, infantry 

 formed in square being alone able to resist heavy 

 cavalry charging in mass. So long as the weight 

 does not impair the speed or overcome the en- 

 durance of the horse, there can be no question 

 of the superiority of the heavy trooper, save for 

 the general duties of a campaign, where the light- 

 horse, well mounted, on small hardy animals, and 

 armed with the lance, possess advantages over all 

 other cavalry. 



Artillery. In the British army, the artillery 

 constitutes nominally one vast regiment, known 

 as the ' Royal Regiment of Artillery ; ' but except 

 as regards the promotion of officers, this unity is 

 only nominal. The regiment is divided into six 

 Horse Brigades, nine Field Brigades, thirteen 

 Garrison Brigades, three Mixed Brigades, one 

 Depot Brigade, and one Coast Brigade, each of 

 which, except the Depot and Coast Brigades, has 

 a colonel-commandant, who is a general officer, 

 holds a sinecure, and corresponds to the colonel 

 of an infantry regiment. The strength of a brigade 

 varies from 600 to 2500 men, according to the duty 

 required. 



Horse Artillery has all its officers and men 

 mounted either upon horses or the limbers and 

 ammunition wagons, to enable them to keep 

 pace with cavalry, that being the department 

 to which horse artillery is usually attached in the 

 field. 



Field Artillery, as its name implies, is ready 

 to march with an army and operate in the field. 

 It is only required to keep pace with infantry. 



Garrison Brigades are trained in precisely the 

 same manner as field brigades, and can be forth- 

 with converted into that formation ; but as their 

 duties are confined to the guns of fortresses, or of 

 batteries in a siege, they have no horses attached 

 to their establishment. 



The Depot Brigade has its headquarters at 

 Woolwich, and serves as a nursery in which 

 recruits are trained for duty in the other brigades, 

 and to which invalids from foreign service are sent 

 pending recovery. 



The Coast Brigade is a sort of veteran estab- 

 lishment, composed of old artillerymen selected 

 for good conduct and long service. The officers 

 are mostly promoted from the ranks of other 

 brigades. The duty is to take charge in small 

 detachments of the minor forts and towers which 

 guard the coast This is of the nature of a resi- 

 dent service, in which the men are able to have 

 their families with them, and forms an appropriate 

 reward and rest for deserving old soldiers. 



The brigades (except the Coast and Depot) are 

 divided into batteries, which form the unit in cal- 

 culating the force of artillery with an army. Each 

 battery consists usually of six guns Armstrong, 

 6-pounder, Q-pounder, or garrison and has for 

 officers one captain, one second captain, three 

 lieutenants, an assistant-surgeon, and a veterinary 

 surgeon ; with men and horses in proportion to 





