A military dictionary

by William Duane

To Form on a front division, is from close, or open column, or by the march in echellon, to arrive by a parallel movement at the right or left of any given division, by which means a prolongation of the line is produced. When this formation takes place with the right in front, the officer of the second, or leading division (the first standing fast, and all the rest facing to the left) having stepped out to the right at the words quick march! allows his division led by his serjeant to go on a space equal to its front, and then gives his word front, dress, halt; his serjeant still remaining on the left of his division. The officer being still on the right of his division, immediately gives the word march! and the division proceeds at the ordinary step towards its place in the alignement. He steps nimbly forward, and obliques so as to be within the third file of the left flank of the preceding division, and is thus ready to give the words, dress, halt! at the instant his inward flank man joins that division. He then expeditiously corrects his men, (who have dressed upon the formed part of the line, on the distant given point) and resumes his proper post in line. Great care should be taken in these movements to prevent the outward flank of every advancing division from over-stepping its ground; as it is a general principle in dressing, to be rather behind the preceding formed division at the word dress, than before it; the word halt being the final and conclusive direction, and the dressing of ranks being more easily attained by a forward than a backward movement.

In this manner every other division proceeds; each officer advancing, with a firm, steady step, in a perpendicular direction towards his point of formation, while the flank serjeant remains at his point in the line, till the succeeding officer, who has dressed his division, arrives to replace him; after which the serjeant covers his own officer.

To Form on a rear division, is to face all the preceding divisions which are in column to the right, (the point of forming having been previously taken in that direction, as far as the prolongation of the head division will extend, and just beyond where the right of the battalion is to come) and to uncover the rear one, so as to enable it to advance forward to a given point on the left, and take up its place in the alignement.

The leader of the front or head division having been shewn the distant point in the alignement on which he is to march, and having taken his intermediate points, if necessary, at the word march, the faced divisions step off quick, heads of files are dressed to the left, the front one moves in the alignement with scrupulous exactitude, and the others continue in a parallel direction close on its right; each carefully preserving its relative points of prolongation, and being fronted by its officer the instant it gets upon the ground, which is perpendicular to its intended formation in line.

As soon as the rear division is uncovered, and has received the word march, it proceeds forward, and when arrived within a few paces of its ground, the officer commanding steps nimbly up to the detached officer or serjeant, who has carefully marked its left in the new position, gives the words dress, halt, and quickly corrects his division on the distant point of formation; after which he replaces his serjeant on the right of his division. As the officer who conducts this division has necessarily the longest extent of ground to march on, he must take especial care to observe his perpendicular direction, constantly keeping the different points of formation in his eye, and preserving a perfect squareness of person. The intermediate divisions will successively proceed and advance as the ground opens before them.

To Form on a central division. To execute this manœuvre, the front and rear divisions must deploy, or open, so as to uncover the named division, and enable it to move up to a given point of alignement. A forming point must be given to both flanks in the prolongation of the head division.

When the caution of forming on a central division has been given, the leading officers will shift to the heads of their several divisions, the instant they have been faced according to the hand which leads to their ground. The files during their deployment must be kept close, and well locked up; and when fronted, must instantly be corrected in their dressing before they march forward. The central division, when uncovered, moves up into line to its marked flank. Those that were in front of it proceed as in forming on a rear division; those that were in rear of it proceed as in forming on a front division. By means of those three formations, which are effected by the deployment, or flank march, every battalion in close column, may uncover and extend its several divisions. The previous formation of close column upon given proportions of a brigade, battalion, &c. is done by facing and moving inwards, and thus contracting the original line with any given division for the head; which line may again be restored by the different divisions facing and moving outwards, as we have just described.

To Form line on a rear company of the open column standing in echellon, that company remains placed; the others face about, wheel back on the pivot flanks of the column, as being those which afterwards first come into line. On the word march, they move forward, and then front, halt, dress, successively, in the line of the rear company.

To Form line on the rear company facing to the rear of the open column standing in echellon, the whole column must first countermarch, each company by files, and then proceed as in forming on a front company.

To Form line on a central company of the open column, that company stands fast, or is wheeled on its own centre into a new required direction. Those in front, must be ordered to face about. The whole, except the central company, must wheel back the named number of paces. Those in front, on the proper pivot flanks of the column, and those in its rear on the reverse flanks, such being the flanks that first arrive in line. The whole then marches in line with the central company. See Am. Mil. Lib.