Debunked: Left Oblique Aiming Over Right Shoulders

[CSchneider]

Re: Debunked: Left Oblique Aiming Over Right Shoulders

A postwar militia manual used by a local militia company in Utah has little relevance. And the article concludes that it is appropriate to play mix and match with the language from the wartime manuals and a postwar one to fit a theory. Adding motions not mentioned in the manual to raise the piece over and around the front rank man’s head to compensate for a new position of Ready is not the best way to follow the manual.

[john duffer]

Re: Debunked: Left Oblique Aiming Over Right Shoulders

A postwar militia manual used by a local militia company in Utah has little relevance. And the article concludes that it is appropriate to play mix and match with the language from the wartime manuals and a postwar one to fit a theory. Adding motions not mentioned in the manual to raise the piece over and around the front rank man’s head to compensate for a new position of Ready is not the best way to follow the manual.

Hear, hear!

In addition - HARDEE'S (1845 ORDONNANCE) is NOT an update, rewrite, addendum, etc, et al of SCOTTS'S (1831 ORDONNANCE). The 1845 ORDONNANCE is a new, standalone manual for an advance in light infantry thinking. I see several references in the article to 'the complete text' as evidence but you can't pull a random paragraph from an 1831 manaul written for line infantry normally formed in three ranks and say the 1845 left out most of it to save time. As for the 'if .... had meant ... they would have said ....' it falls under the same thing, they're not revising - they're breaking new ground. (not to mention it's rank speculation and not research at all to say we know exactly what a French writer was thinking 174 years ago). It's fine to study and develop theories but advising folks to add instructions to their manuals so they can do it the way you want and implying those who don't comply should be subject to ridicule is way beyond the pale.

[Ambrose Bierce]

Re: Debunked: Left Oblique Aiming Over Right Shoulders

Your argument should simply state that it is important to read where feet are moved. Therefore if you are doing an older style and stepping forward or to the left, then firing through the left interval is correct. If you are using a manual like Hardee's Revised or Casey's or Gilham's you must follow their foot placements which always have the soldier stepping 8 inches towards the right heel of the man to the RIGHT of their file partner. In these cases, firing is done in the usual way (over the right interval). The vast majority of reenactors use one of these manuals and therefore they are correct in firing over the usual interval instead of the left. You end up with something of an apples and oranges argument because the foot placement is so different for the left interval manuals. A final point to consider is when using using the Ready as seen in H. Revised or Casey's, a musket properly held at eye level would have to be lifted over the head of a file partner which is very inefficient when trying to aim at a 90 bpm pace. Awesome that you spent all this time with the early manuals, but like flintlocks, triple ranks, and readied muskets held vertically, many features of earlier manuals did not carry over to all CW manuals. At least you have inspired more people to read carefully.

Sam Cathey

Sam said it best. I am amazed this thread has energy, and, in fact, am encouraged it does for the simple fact of Sam's last line. Amen.