WARFARE OF MODERN TIMES. 53 



garrison artillery, mostly half invalids. Arms : sabre. Belts white. 

 Uniform dark brown with red ; one row of yellow buttons. The officers 

 have gold lace and cocked hats, while the privates have Corsican hats, 

 with black and yellow feather plumes. 



The engineer corps has : 1. One engineer-director, 2 lieutenant generals, 

 7 generals, 36 staff and 136 other officers, and 7 cadets. Uniform light 

 blue with cherry-red, yellow buttons, and hat with feathers. 2. Five com- 

 panies of miners of 152 men; with the staff, in all, 830 men. 3. Six com- 

 panies of sappers of 149 men, with the staff, 1058 men. Uniform for both 

 light blue and crimson; shakos black, with suitable emblems in brass-plate; 

 belts black. 4. Pioneers : 2 battalions of 4 companies ; in war, 3 bat- 

 talions. The corps has in peace 2004 men, in war, 3051. Arms : muskets 

 and fascine-knives. Uniform : pike-grey and green ; white buttons ; pike- 

 grey pantaloons ; shakos with horse-hair plume. 5. Pontoniers : 6 com- 

 panies of 150 men ; in all, 918 men who manage the Biragosche bridge-trains. 

 Arms : carbines and sabres ; black belts. Uniform : light blue with red ; 

 white buttons ; shakos with horse-hair plume. 



The French Military System. The Army of France belongs to the 

 oldest of standing armies, for King Charles VII. established in the 15th 

 century 5 compagnies d'ordonnance, each of 500 knights and 5000 light 

 horsemen, who wore uniform tabards. To these Louis XI. added 6000 

 Swiss and 10,000 French infantry. In 1610, Henry IV. had already 

 37,000 men, and after the peace of the Pyrenees, in 1659, the French 

 army amounted to 100,000 men. After the peace of Nimeguen, Louis XIV. 

 had 138,482 men, who during the war of the Spanish succession were 

 increased to 392,233, but were diminished again afterwards. Louis XV. 

 had in 1759, 33,000 men, subsequently 159,016, who were diminished under 

 Louis XVI. to 147,236. The army of the first republic, 139,500 men strong in 

 1792, had in 1794 increased to 1,169,144 men, of whom 749,545 were then 

 under arms. In the year 1825 the French army contained 182,385 men. 



At present the defence of France is intrusted to a standing army and to 

 the National Guard. The National Guard was organized on the very day 

 after the taking of the Bastlle, but after the Revolution of 1830 was 

 re-established and first attained its full splendor. With very few excep- 

 tions every independent man from 20 to 60 years of age, not disgraced by 

 crime, is liable for service. The organization is entirely military. In each 

 arrondissement the National Guard is arranged into companies, battalions, 

 and regiments ; each company has a small, each battalion a large color 

 (drapeau). The state provides the arms, the individual his uniform. The 

 officers, chiefs of battalion and squadron, and non-commissioned officers, 

 are chosen for three years by the guard themselves ; the higher officers are 

 designated by the government from ten candidates proposed to it. If the 

 service lasts longer than one day their pay and subsistence can be required 

 as in the line ; longer than two months the service cannot endure. On the 

 register are found 1,871,078 men of arrondissement infantry, 1,823,958 of 

 canton infantry, 10,415 cavalry, 19,015 artillery, 54,723 sappers, 2012 

 marines and laborers, in all 3,781,206 uniformed men, of whom, however 



ICONOGRAPHIC ENCYCLOPEDIA. VOL. IH. 34 529 



