A Military Dictionary and Gazetteer / Comprising ancient and modern military technical terms, historical accounts of all North American Indians, as well as ancient warlike tribes; also notices of battles from the earliest period to the present time, with a concise explanation of terms used in heraldry and the offices thereof. The work also gives valuable geographical information. Compiled from the best authorities of all nations. With an appendix containing the Articles of war, etc.

by Thomas Wilhelm

Loosen, To. To open ranks or files from close order. To loosen is, in fact, to lose that firm continuity of line or perpendicular adherence, which constitutes the true basis of military operations. The lock-step was introduced for the purpose of counteracting the mischievous effects of loose marching, but it produced a greater inconvenience, and has therefore been laid aside; the equal pace and marked time correct both.

Loot. An East Indian term for plunder or pillage.

Looties, or Lootees. An East Indian term for a body of irregular horsemen, who plunder and lay waste the country, and harass the enemy in their march.

Lootywallow. An East Indian term of the same import as [looties].

Lorarii. Among the Romans, officers whose business it was, with whips and scourges, to compel the gladiators to engage. The lorarii also punished slaves who disobeyed their masters.

Lorca. A town of Spain, in the province of Murcia, on the Cornera. This town is remarkable in history as having been the key of Murcia during the Moorish wars; being situated on the frontiers of Granada, it was often taken and retaken. It suffered greatly from military violence during the French occupation in 1810.

Lord-Lieutenant. In Great Britain the lord-lieutenant of a county is a permanent provincial governor appointed by the sovereign by patent under the great seal. He is the permanent local representative of the crown, who, on the occasion of an invasion or rebellion, has power to raise the militia, form regiments, troops, and companies, and give commissions to officers. He is also the head of the magistracy, the militia, and the yeomanry; he nominates officers of militia and volunteers, and is the chief executive authority.

Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. The viceroy or deputy of the sovereign, to whom the government of Ireland is committed. The office has existed from a remote period, the appointment having been made under different designations. The lord-lieutenant is appointed under the great seal of the United Kingdom, and bears the sword of state as the symbol of his viceregal office. He has the control of the police, and may issue orders to the general commanding the troops for the support of the civil authority, the protection of the public, the defense of the kingdom, and the suppression of insurrection. He also has the power to confer knighthood.

Loreto, or Loretto. A fortified city of Italy, in the province of Macerate, situated 14 miles southeast from Ancona. This place was taken by the French in 1797.

Lorica. A cuirass, or coat of mail worn by the Roman soldiers, was made of various materials. The ordinary kind consisted of a skin, or a piece of strong linen covered with small plates of iron, which resembled both in their shape and in their manner of overlapping each other the scales of a serpent or fish. Sometimes cuirasses or hauberks, composed entirely of iron rings linked together, were worn by the Roman [hastati]. A less flexible but more impervious defense was the cuirass made of hard leather or of metal, and consisting of two parts (the one covering the breast and abdomen, and the other the back), united by hinges and leathern thongs.