DEFILE, in military affairs, a strait narrow passage, or road, through which the troops cannot march, otherwise than by making a small front, and filing off; so that the enemy may take an opportunity to stop, or harrass their march, and to charge them with so much the more advantage, because the rear cannot come up to the relief of the front. _To_ DEFILE, is to reduce divisions or platoons into a small front, in order to march through a defile; which is most conveniently done by quarter facing to either the right or left, and then covering to either right or left, and marching through by files, &c. It has been mentioned by a writer on military manœuvres, that defiling should be performed with rapidity, for this obvious reason, that a body of men which advances towards, or retires from an approaching enemy, may get into line, or into columns prepared for action, without loss of time. There may, however, be exceptions to this general rule. For instance, if the regiment is passing a bridge, either retreating or advancing, and the bridge is not firm, the pressure upon it must be as little as possible; because if it should break down, the regiment is suddenly separated, and the remainder may be cut to pieces. In passing a common defile the pace must be proportioned to the nature of the ground. DEFILING _a lodgment_. See ENFILADE. DEFORMER, _Fr._ in a military sense, signifies to break: as _déformer une colonne_, to break a column. DEFY. See CHALLENGE. DEGAST, _Fr._ the laying waste an enemy’s country, particularly in the neighborhood of a town which an army attempts to reduce by famine, or which refuses to pay military exactions. DEGORGEOIR, _Fr._ a sort of steel pricker used in examining the touch-hole of a cannon; called a priming wire. DEGRADATION, in a military life, the act of depriving an officer for ever of his commission, rank, dignity, or degree of honor; and taking away, at the same time, title, badge, and every other privilege of an officer. DEGRADER, _Fr._ To degrade. The character of a soldier in France was formerly, and we presume still is, so scrupulously watched, that criminals were never delivered over to the charge of the civil power, or sent to be executed, without having been previously degraded; which was done in the following manner: As soon as the serjeant of the company to which the culprit belonged, had received orders from the major of the regiment, to degrade and render him incapable of bearing arms; he accoutred him cap-a-pied, taking care to place his right hand upon the but-end of the musquet, while the soldier remained tied. He then repeated the following words: _finding thee unworthy to bear arms, we thus degrade thee_. “Te trouvant indigne de porter les armes, nous t’en dégradons.” He then drew the musquet from his arm backwards, took off his cross-belt, sword, &c. and finally gave him a kick upon the posteriors. After which the serjeant retired, and the executioner seized the criminal. See DRUM-OUT.