RECOMPENSES militaires, Fr. See [Military Rewards].
RECONNOITRE, Fr. To reconnoitre.
Reconnoitre une place, Fr. To reconnoitre a fortified town or place.
RECONNOITRE, in military affairs, implies to view and examine the state of things, in order to make a report thereof.
Parties ordered to reconnoitre, are to observe the country and the enemy; to remark the routes, conveniences, and inconveniences of the first; the position, march, or forces of the second. In either case, they should have an expert topographer, capable of taking plans readily: he should be the best mounted of the whole, that in case the enemy happen to scatter the escort, he may save his works and ideas.
All parties that go for reconnoitring only, should be but few in number. I would never chuse more than twelve or twenty men. An officer, be his rank what it will, cannot decline going with so few under his command: the honor is amply made up by the importance of the expedition, frequently of the most interesting consequence, and the properest to recommend the prudence, bravery, and address of an officer that has the fortune to succeed.
It is previously necessary that the officer ordered on this duty should be well acquainted with the country, the roads, and the distance of the enemy. His party must consist of men of approved fidelity, part of whom should be disguised. This detachment must march off in the night. The men must have strict orders neither to smoke tobacco, make a noise, nor speak. The officer must be provided with two guides, who are to be strictly interrogated, but are to remain ignorant of the route you intend to take. A detachment of this kind should be furnished with subsistence for two or three days. The horses are to be fed every ten or twelve miles, for it is absolutely necessary that they should be always fresh and fit for duty. The officer will take care never to halt, but at a distance from any road, and also take every precaution to prevent his being surprised, whilst his horses are feeding, &c.
Reconnoitring. The following necessary observations to be made in examining a country in a military point of view, are principally translated from the Aide Memoire, but improved by some judicious remarks from Mr. Landman’s introduction to reconnoitring.
Before an officer sets out to reconoitre a country, he should trace out from the best map he can procure, its principal features, which will serve him as a guide in his progress through the principal parts which are to be the subject of his observations, and enable him to connect the whole into one grand plan.
His observations should be expressed by written remarks, and by sketches. For this purpose he must be provided with a sketch book, on the right hand page of which, he may express the appearance of the country by sketches, and on the left the remarks made on particular parts, with the names of the towns, their distances asunder, &c. with proper references to the sketches. The scale most proper for this purpose is 2 inches to a mile; if therefore, the sketch book be made 6 inches wide, and the leaves divided by lines into three equal parts, each division will be one mile, which will be a sufficient scale for the purpose.