Occassionally, while doing some random research or reading on-line, I come across something completely unrelated to what I was looking for, but still fascinating for what it is. A couple of months ago, I was looking at some random military trivia and found a blurb about how George Washington might have been the first officer of the United States military to suggest a reading list for his officers. For those readers that currently or have recently served in the military, you know that its a common practice today for senior leadership to suggest a reading list for their men and women. The National Defense University offers a set of links to suggested reading lists covering a wide range of topics and military professions.
But back to General Washington. In a letter he wrote to Colonel William Woodford of the 2nd Virginia on 10 November 1775, Washington wrote -
As to the manual exercise, the evolutions and maneuvers of a regiment, with other knowledge necessary to a soldier, you will acquire them from those authors, who have treated upon these subjects, among whom Bland (the newest edition) stands foremost; also an Essay on the Art of War; Instructions for Officers, lately published at Philadelphia; the Partisan; Young; and others.
The entire letter, and more, can be found here.
According to an entry on Strategypage.com, the books General Washington were referring to were -
- Humphrey Bland, Treatise of Military Discipline: In Which Is Laid Down the Duties of the Officer and the Soldier (London: 1727)
- Turpin de Crisse, An Essay on the Art of War (English edition, London: 1755)
- Roger Stevenson, Military Instructions for Officers Detached in the Field (London: 1770/Philadelphia, 1775)
- Louis de Jeney, The Partisan: or, The Art of Making War in Detachment (First English edition, London: 1760)
- William Young, Essays on the Command of Small Detachments (London: 1771).
In following the example set by General Washington and the British officers of our time period, 4th Coy will occasionally provide a recommendation for reading material for members and others that are interested in our time period, or provide a review of a recently read book. This month’s edition of the Gazette includes a review of With Zeal and With Bayonets Only. As our own Ed Niven reports, “This book should be widely read by reenactors who wear the red coat”. Additional book reviews are available in prior editions of the Gazette. One of these days, we’ll attempt to consolidate the reviews, but until then, be sure to take the time to read With Zeal and With Bayonets Only and provide any other suggested books in the comments section below.
