The prospectiue glasse of vvarre Shevving you a glimpse of vvarres mystery, in her admirable stratagems, policies, wayes; in victualling of an armie, prouiding money to pay souldiers, finding out the enemies purposes, traps, and stratagems: ordering of marches, framing of battails, sundry fights, retreats, and the like, to auoide battell or fight. Furnished with argument to encourage and skill to instruct. By C.E. Warre is a schoole of necesary knowledge.

CHAP. II.

How a Commander or Generall should order his March, both by day and night for the saftie of his Army: How passe Woodes, Hills, and Riuers, beset or not beset with Enemies. With many other necessary circumstances apper∣taining to Marches.

I Am now to enter by degrees vpon these foure principall heads of the Art of warre: namely, Marching, Embattel∣ling, Fighting, and Flying from an Ene∣mie. All which I will deliuer with as good method, plainnesse, and breuitie as I can. I am to begin with Marching: wherein I pray obserue my method and order; which shall be, fiirst by pre∣cept to prescribe it: Then by Example to approue it; Example being the life of precept. I begin.

* 1.1 1. In Marching you must bee very mistrustfull of your Enemie, lest he entrap you with Ambushes.

2. You must therefore appoint some to march before to discouer suspected places; as Woodes, Mountaines, Forests, Rockes, Banckes of Riuers, Caues, Hills, hollow and deepe wayes. The most of which are rough and intricate, and scarce passable for the heauy Armed and horse.

3. The fittest for this seruice are your Musket∣teers;

I, and your Dragons to ioyne with them, for they may alight from their Horses and serue on foot.

4. You must march sometimes in one forme, some∣times in another, according to the place and occasion offered. Example.

Alexander at the Riuer Granicus marched with his horse foremost to passe the Riuer, and to assaile the Persians, who had opposed their Horse against him on the bankes.

5. Marching through the streights to fight the bat∣taile of Issos, he marched with his Horse behinde his Foot, because he was vncertaine how neere the Enemy lay, and was loath to put them to hazzard before they had libertie of ground to order themselues, and might haue assistance of the Foot. At the Riuer of Ister hee did the like; for hauing past the Riuer, hee marched through a Corne field, and therefore so marshalled them for feare of an Ambush. Otherwise it was his cu∣stome in marching (as it is the manner also at this day) to dispose his Horse halfe behinde, and halfe before: the Carriage in the midst, or Otherwise.

But how to March properly both by day and by night, with your Carriage truely placed, and euery thing rightly ordered, is a point worthy to be taken notice of: Briefely thus.

Being to March in the day, obserue the manner of March now in vse.

7. Let some Dragons and Musketteers march be∣fore to represse the Enemies incursions, and to search Woods and Forrests for Ambushes, and to surprise straight Wayes, Bridges and Foords. Send after them your Pyoneers to mend the wayes, to cut the woods that are in the way, least by bad way the Army be tyred.

8. Let the Foot of the Vantguard (or right wing) follow, enery battalion there of in order, hauing halfe the horse of the Army before them, and all their bag∣gage and Carriage behinde them.

9. After let the battalions of the battell follow with all their baggage and carriage in the Reare, as the for∣mer. Let the battalions of the Reareward (or left wing) follow, with all their baggage or carriage behinde them. Let euery one of the battalions haue their shoot before and behinde. And let the remainder of your Horse bring vp the Reare. As for your Ordnance, di∣stribute that (as your Carriage) both behinde the Vant∣gard, the battell, and the Rereward; the better to serue against all attempts.

10. At night, quarter the Battalions of the Vantgard all in one place; those of the Battell all in another; and those of the Reareward all by themselues, but not too farre a sunder for feare of danger.

11. In the morning being to dislodge: First shoot off one peece of Ordnance, a little after that another, and so a third in his time. Shooting the first, the Army takes notice you will dislodge; therefore they trusse vp their baggage and load it. Shooting the second, they take vp their Armes and fall into ranke: shooting the third, they set forward to march. Thus Graue Mau∣rice did dislodge his Souldiers. Vespatian did it by the sound of a Trumpet (as Iosephus doth report) in the third Booke of his Antiquities, Chap. 3.

12. Being to march in the night obserue the Graeci∣an order.

Send your baggage and carriage before with a suffi∣cient guard. Then follow, first with your Pikemen, then with your light Armed (being Musketteers;) next

with all your Horse in the reare; the better▪ by breake of day to come all together into one place, as ought to be. This way your Army in the night is easily kept to∣gether, and is soonest espied if it breake.

13. Being to inuade an Enemies Countrie, march with your Carriage in the Reare. When you doe dis∣march from an Enemies Countrie, let your Carriage be in the Front, vnlesse great store of Enemies be sus∣pected to intercept it; then you must place it in the midst.

14. Now in fight you may dispose of it fiue manner of wayes; either before the Army, or behinde, or on the one flanke, or on the other, or in the midst. Before the Army, when you feare to be charged behinde: be∣hinde the Army, when you lead towards the Enemy: when you feare to be charged in Flanke, on the contra∣ry side: in the midst, when a hollow battell is needfull and fit. This last was practised by S^r Horatio Vere in the Pallatinate, and by the Graecians (as Zenophon doth re∣cord in his third booke of the Ascent of Cyrus.

15. Being to march through a wood obserue Zeno∣phons counsell. Let your Foot and Horse in order single themselues as the way fals out, and you shall make your passage the more secure and easie: Zenophon did thus, as you may read in his sixt book of the Ascent of Cyrus.

16. It were not amisse to haue some Musketteers to march on the sides of the Wood, to secure the rest within.

* 1.2 17. If your Enemy be in a Wood, Fenne, Hill, Fort, Towne, or other place of strength, that admitteth no accesse, send your Musketteers to shew themselues, and with a brauado to toule him out of his aduantage, and bring him into the field, where he may the more easily

be dealt withall: with these Musketteers send some Horse to set vpon him, if he dare to venture forth. Ex∣ample.

Alexander leading his Army against the Tribals that had hid themselues in a wood, commanded his Archers and slingers to run out and shoot, and sling among the Barbarians, to see if he could toule them into the plaine. The Archers and slingers spared not to let flye, and the Tribals being wounded with arrows, threw themselues out of the wood with all speed, to fall vpon the vnar∣med Archers. Then Alexander with his Horse present∣ly charged them, and being ouerborne by the Horse they fled through the Wood to the Riuer.

18. Alexander whensoeuer he was to vse expedition, marched away with the Horse and light armed, leauing the Armed to come after. The Armed are for a firme and stedfast fight, not for Concursions.

19. Being then forsome farre, yet sodaine attempt, leaue your Pikemen behinde, and march away with your Horse and Musketeers: for when celeritie is re∣quisite, who so fit to be imployed, as they who haue no∣thing to hinder their speed.

20. Being to march against an Enemy in his owne Countrie, giue the word to come to such a Prouince, but Inuade another: by this you shall deceiue your Enemy.

* 1.3 Agesilaus to deceiue Tisaphernes, made countenance as though he would first inuade Caria; whereupon Ti∣saphernes gathered all his power together; but Agesilaus on a sodaine returned backe againe, and entred into Phrygia, tooke there many Cities, and won great spoile.

21. Many Generals besides Agesilaus haue done the like, then be not you carelesse of it; for by such a plot the Enemy some other time may perchance be drawne

to deceiue himselfe. Example.

Agesilaus vpon another time gaue out that he would enter Lydia, not meaning to deceiue Tisaphernes againe, but Tisaphernes deceiued himself, and thought he would haue inuaded Caria, a woodie Countrey very ill for horsemen, in which he was the weaker: but Agesilaus tooke the champion Countrey of Lydia contrary to his expectation, so that Tisaphernes was inforced to come with all the speed that might be to the rescue thereof: therefore leauing all his Foot behinde him, he came stealing vpon them with his Horse: Agesilaus vnder∣standing by his men that Tisaphernes was come (and had made some slaughter of such as were found stragling a∣broad out of order) imagined with himselfe that the footmen of his Enemies could not yet be arriued, there∣fore with all speed he thrust in among the horsemen (which he had) his light armed footmen, and comman∣ded them straight to charge the Enemy, whilst he cau∣sed the heauy armed men to follow at their heeles, as they did: but Tisaphernes men fled vpon it immediately, and Agesilaus men lustily followed the chase, tooke his Campe, and made a great slaughter of them that fled.

22. Being in an Enemies Countrie, march in battell array, and let your Pyoners worke the harder, for a long march here is dangerous. Send Horse and Musketeers a good way before, to search the hils, and to surprise them from the Enemy.

23. In marching betweene Mountaines and Hils, see that your Vantgard succour your Rereward, your Rere∣ward the Vantgard, if your Enemies goe about to inter∣cept or molest you marching.

Zenophon and Cherisophus did thus against the Cardu∣chans: Obserue the manner.

The Carduchans by fighting took the streights which lay in their way, and indeauoured to hinder and shut vp their march: but when they opposed against the Vant, Zenophon from the Reate ascending the Mountaines, and gaining the vpper ground, remoued all the impe∣diments the Enemy could cast vpon the way: when a∣gainst the Reare, Cherisophus ascending vp tooke the vp∣per ground likewise, and freed the way from them that came behinde. So they alwayes succoured, and had mutuall care one of another.

* 1.4 24. Lighting in your March vpon deepe and im∣passible Riuers, and hauing no Boats (to make Bridges) to waffe you ouer; marching further to the heads of the Riuers, you may goe ouer without wetting your knees: Zenophon in the third Booke of the Ascent of Cyrus.

25. Being come to some passable Riuer, where the currant runnes exceeding strong; cause your Horse to breake the waters, and then let your Foot march ouer, but sheltered on each side with the Horse.

26. If the currant be ouer bigge, so that you cannot waide ouer; cut the same Riuer in diuers places, and turne it into the landward with other currants, and you may passe ouer with ease.

27. Being to passe a great Riuer where the Enemy on the bankes stands to intercept your passage; to with∣draw him from thence (and to deceiue him) seeme to leaue the attempt, and march away; then hauing left some behinde you to make a Bridge (vnknowne to the Enemy) returne when you see your time, and passe your men ouer with ease. Example.

Caesar hauing his Army on a banke of a Riuer in France and his passage being let of Vergintorige a Frenchman,

the which on the other side of the Riuer, had his men, marched many daies along the Riuer, and the like did the Enemy: wherefore Caesar encamping in a woodie place, apt to hide men, he tooke out of euery Legion 3. Cohorts, and made them to tarry in the same place, commanding them that so soone as hee was departed, they should cast ouer a bridge, and fortifie it, & hee and his other men followed on the way: Wherefore Ver∣gintorige seeing the number of the Legions, thinking that there was not left any part of them behinde, fol∣lowed also his way. But Caesar when hee supposed the bridge was made, turned backward, & finding all things in order, passed the Riuer without difficultie.

* 1.5 In marching, to auoyd contention about place; let euery Nation haue his honour of place: That which had the Vantgard this day, must haue the Reareward the next day; and so of all the rest by turnes. Thus much for Marching.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Precepts for Marching.
• * 1.2

  How to troule an enemy out of a wood.
• * 1.3

  Plutarch in the life of A∣gesilaus. Example.
• * 1.4

  How to passe Riuers.
• * 1.5

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