A British army, as it was,--is,--and ought to be : $b illustrated by examples during the Peninsular War; with observations upon India; the United States of America; Canada; the boundary line; the navy; steam warfare, &c.Campbell, James
History
A British army, as it was,--is,--and ought to be : $b illustrated by examples during the Peninsular War; with observations upon India; the United States of America; Canada; the boundary line; the navy; steam warfare, &c.
Campbell, James
Great Britain. Army
I hope I shall be forgiven if I presume to observe, that if the manner
of carrying on war since the time of Julius Cæsar has been necessarily
changed, the spirit which a soldier should possess, and the attainments
requisite for rendering an officer fit to command-in-chief, or even to
be an able subordinate, are still the same.
The art of commanding, and of inspiring that confidence, which Cæsar
possessed so transcendently, and which can make men fight, who are not
much inclined to do so, are also still the same.
A General should not only have studied attentively the sciences which
qualify him for his profession, but he ought also to be an experienced
soldier. He should know, with due discrimination, how to appreciate
men, and to employ them, so as to reap the greatest advantages from
their various talents and acquirements, especially those which fit them
for staff appointments. He should know how to act, so as to make the
most of both the fear and love of those he leads. He should, like the
Duke of Wellington, command the respect of mankind by the uprightness
of his public dealings with them; even to the exclusion of his own
family or intimates, from appointments, which he could have, even
with apparent justice, bestowed upon them. He should possess that
rapid _coup d'œil_, which would enable him in war to take advantage
of any error in tactics, which his adversary might commit, and to
avail himself of events to the utmost; and whilst he inspired all with
confidence in his military skill, in his actions, and in the example he
set others, he should not only teach, but also create in them ambition
to resemble him.
The great Emperor Napoleon, possessed, as a soldier, many of these
essential qualities; and carried along with him, not only the hearts
and feelings of Frenchmen, but also those of the people of many other
countries, even in his most ambitious aspirations; and, perhaps, no
period of the world produced two men of greater or more opposite
characters, views, and abilities, not only for the welfare of mankind,
but also for their bane, than Wellington and Napoleon. In short, I look
for talents, acquirements, and many perfections in a soldier, who aims
at the distinction of commanding-in-chief, or even of holding a high
staff appointment; and amongst others, that confidence in himself, not
the fruits of presumption, but of matured experience, which a perfect
knowledge of the art of war naturally produces.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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