for our princes to iffue commiffions of array, and fend into every county, officers in whom they could confide, to muster and array (or fet in military order) the inhabitants of every diftrict; and the form of the commiffion of array was fettled in parliament in the 5th of Hen. IV. fo as to prevent the infertion of any new penal caufes; but it was alfo provided that no man fhould be compelled to go out of the kingdom at any rate, nor out of his fhire but in cafes of urgent neceffity; nor fhould provide foldiers unless by confent of parliament. About the reign of Henry VIII. or his children, lieutenants began to be introduced as ftanding reprefentatives of the crown; to keep the counties in military order; for we find them mentioned as known officers in the ftatute 4 and 5 Ph. and M. c. 3. though they had not been then long in use, for Camden fpeaks of them in the time of queen Elizabeth, as extraordinary magiftrates conftituted only in times of difficulty and danger; but the introduction of these commiflions of lieutenancy, which contained in fubftance the fame powers as the old commiffions of array, caufed the latter to fall into difufe.

In this ftate things continued, till the repeal of the statutes of armour in the reign of James I. after which, when Charles I. had, during his northern expeditions, iffued commiffions of lieutenancy, and exerted fome military powers, which, having been long exercifed, were thought to belong to the crown, it became a queftion in the long parliament, how far the power of the militia did inherently refide in the king; being now unfupported by any statute, and founded only on immemorial ufage. This queftion, long agitated with great heat and resentment on both fides, became at length the immediate caufe of the fatal rupture between the king and his parliament; the two houses not only denying this prerogative of the crown, the legality of which perhaps might be fomewhat doubtful; but also feizing into their own hands, the entire power of the militia, the illegality of which step could never be any doubt at all.

Soon after the restoration of Charles II. when the military tenures were abolished, it was thought proper to recognize the fole right of the crown to govern and command the militia, and to put the whole into a more regular method of military subordination: and the order, in which the militia now ftands by law, and which will foon claim particular attention, is principally built on the ftatutes which were then enacted.

When the nation was engaged in war, more veteran troops and more regular difcipline were efteemed to be neceffary, than could be expected from a mere militia; and therefore at fuch times more rigorous methods were put in ufe for the railing of armies, and the due regulation and discipline of the foldiery:

which are to be looked upon only as temporary excrefcences bred out of the diftemper of the ftate, and not as any part of the permanent and perpetual laws of the kingdom. For niartial law, which is built upon no fettled principles, but is entirely arbitrary in its decifions, is, as Sir Matthew Hale obferves, in truth and reality no law, but fomething indulged rather than allowed as a law. The neceflity of order and difçipline in an army is the only thing which can give it countenance; and therefore it ought not to be permitted in time of peace, when the king's courts are open for all perfons to receive justice according to the laws of the land. The petition of right moreover enacts, that no foldier fhall be quartered on the fubject without his own confent; and that no commiffion fhall iffue to proceed within this land according to martial law. And whereas after the restoration, Charles II. kept up about five thousand regular troops, by his own authority, for guards and garrifons; which James II. by degrees increafed to no less than thirty thousand, all paid from his own civil lift; it was made one of the articles of the bill of rights, that the railing or keeping a standing army within the kingdom in time of peace, unlefs it be with confent of parliament, is against law. But, as the fashion of keeping ftanding armies, which was first introduced by Charles VII. in France, in 1445, has of late years univerfally prevailed over Europe, it has alfo, for many years paft, been annually judged neceffary by our legiflature, for the fafety of the kingdom and the defence of its poffeffions, to maintain even in time of peace a standing body of troops, under the command of the crown; who are however ipfo facto difbanded at the expiration of every year, unless continued by parliament.

In fact, the indifpenfable duty of obferving and regulating our conduct by the events which are daily paffing around us, requires that the rigour of the principle against standing armies fhould be relaxed, or perhaps that the axiom itself fhould receive from practice a new construction. It may fafely be affirmed that it is illegal for the monarch by his own prerogative, or out of any monies which he may possess in his own right, or with which he may be fupplied by any other means than by the authority of parliament, to keep up a standing army; but that which parliament declares to be law, is legal, and the popular fafety now requires that the popular jealousy fhould no longer be directed against a regular and well trained military force, maintained even in time of peace in very confiderable numbers, and attended with all the means of giving perfection to fuch an establishment, as places for the exercife of artillery, fchools and colleges for the instruction of youth intended for the military profeffion, and all other requifites for the attainment of knowledge and inforcement

of

of difcipline. The fafety of the realm demands that a military body of fufficient magnitude and perfectly taught, fhould always be ready for our protection against fudden or premeditated design, but the fafety of the subject also requires that the checks on the power of the crown with refpect to military bodies, should be most tenaciously maintained. The right of parliament to fix the number and iffue the fums required for pay, the annual mutiny act, the prohibition to extend martial law beyond its proper bounds, and the strict obfervance of all laws which tend to prevent the foldier from being effectually feparated from the citizen, will ever afford ample fecurity against the incroachments of prerogative, while the valour and loyalty of the military body will be fufficient to protect the realm, and divert into other quarters the fury of hoftile operations. Ever fince the revolution the standing military force has been augmenting, and, far from producing any evil, war has never been undertaken, but regrets have been expreffed that its extent was not greater, and schemes are perpetually imagined for rendering it more ample and efficient. In the reign of William III. the ftanding force in peace was 25,000 men; Queen Anne, after the peace of Utrecht, was obliged, in order to garrifon her conquefts, and in conformity with general practice, to maintain a ftill larger force; after the peace of Aix-la-chapelle in 1748, the troops on the English and Irifh establishments, exclufive of thofe on foreign ftations, amounted to 26,000; after the peace in 1763, domestic and foreign duty demanded 40,000; on the peace in 1783 the force was fixed at 50,000, and in 1787 advanced to 60,000. After the great struggle against France in the war begun in 1793, and on the conclufion of peace at Amiens, in 1802, arrangements to reduce the war establishment were made; but the reduction was very trifling. The fecond battalions of thofe regiments that received drafts from the militia, were, according to agreement, discharged; the fencibles were difbanded; and the militia difembodied.-Most of the foreign corps were difcharged; the invalid companies were difbanded; and in their ftead feven battalions, from the invalids and out-penfioners, incorporated. Thefe new regulations being thus arranged, the standing army of Great Britain refted at thirty five regiments of horfe and dragoons; eight battalions of artillery befides their followers; feven battalions of foot guards; 96 regiments of infantry of 102 battalions; nine Welt, India regiments; feven garrifon battalions; and the regiment called the Queen's Germans, that fo highly diftinguished itfelf in Egypt; the whole amounting to about

75,000 men.

WAR ESTABLISHMENT. Thus far, following in general, the

1

steps

fteps of the learned commentator on the laws of England, the army has been viewed as affecting the internal policy of the realm, and as connected in time of peace with the general state and government of the kingdom. As a war establishment, it is neceffary to analyze its various parts, and to confider its formation, regulations, pay and allowances, and official establishments. FORMATION. The general or grofs divifion of the military force, is into regulars and irregulars, the former composed of troops inlifted for life or during his Majefty's pleasure, to be employed on all services, and paid out of funds affigned for that purpose by parliament; the latter of militia, volunteers, fencibles, and other troops varying in fome effential particu lars from the regulars. Each of thefe bodies is again compofed of cavalry, or men on horfeback, and infantry or foldiers on foot; befides which there are regiments of artillery, and corps of engineers. The regular cavalry are divided into life guards, of which there are two regiments; royal horse guards, one regiment; dragoon guards, feven regiments; and dragoons, heavy and light, twenty four regiments: of foot guards there are three regiments; and of foot foldiers exclufive of guards, one hundred regiments, befides eight Weft India regiments; three garrifon battalions; nine royal veteran battalions; four regiments of foreign fencible cavalry, and feveral mifcellaneous corps, as new South Wales and Royal Africans; and the foreign regiments, as the King's German legion, the regiments of De Rolle, Dillon, Chafieurs Britanniques, and Corfican rangers, and of artillery and engineers each a regiment. Of these forces, it is not poffible to ftate the exact amount, but it is calculated to exceed 260,000 men. The militia, and other irregular forces are fuppofed to carry the number of men armed for the defence of the country and its poffeffions, exclufive of the navy and marines, beyond 800,000 men.

RANK. The degrees of rank of commissioned officers in the army are; in the first divifion, called that of general officers, field marfhals, generals, and lieutenant and major generals; in the divifion of field officers, colonels not being general officers, lieutenant colonels, and majors; captains not having higher rank in the army form a clafs by themfelves, and under them is the divifion called fubaltern officers, confifting of lieutenants, cornets of horse and ensigns of foot. The general duties of officers confift in exercifing, and fubmitting to command, according to their ftations, and in attending with ferupulous exactnefs to all the regulations of difcipline and all the rules of focial propriety; their failure in any of the former, as, being abfent without leave, and many other inftances, would fubject them to be fuperfeded, and with respect to the latter,

the

the fyftem of honour is carried to the highest degree of strictnefs; a fyftem which is abfolutely neceffary to preferve that exactness of behaviour which makes every one free and equal, without danger of encroachment, and properly respectful without fufpicion of fear, or any other unworthy motive. The feparate duty of each individual officer is not eafily difcriminated, and the recital would lead to explanations too technical for this work. There are alfo in the regiments, both of cavalry and infantry, officers of an inferior description, called noncommiffioned, as ferjeants and corporals.

COMPARATIVE RANK. The Comparative rank of officers in the navy and army is as follows:

Navy.

Army.

equal with Field-marfhal.
equal with Generals.

equal with Lieutenant-generals.
equal with Major-generals.

Admiral of the fleet

equal with Brigadier-generals.

manders in chief

Captains of three years poft equal with Colonels.

Other poft Captains

Commanders

Lieutenants

equal with Lieutenant-colonels.
equal with Majors, and
equal with Captains.

PRIVATES. In treating of the fituation of private foldiers, it will be neceffary, in many points, to confider the mode of recruiting the army, and the particular regulations to which its members are fubject.

RECRUITING. For augmenting or For augmenting or fupplying the ranks of the regular army, no compulfory means, like thofe used to failors, can be reforted to; but parties, under the command of commiffioned officers, are employed in the various portions of the kingdom, called recruiting diftricts, for the purpose of engaging men to ferve, by the offer of fuch bounty as the government thinks proper to allow.

PAYMASTERS OF RECRUITING DISTRICTS. For each recruiting district, there is a paymaster appointed by fpecial military commiffion, under the fign manual, and not removeable, except by command of the king, or by fentence of a court-martial. He is amenable in the ordinary course, to martial law, for every part of his conduct; but he is not liable to receive orders touching the manner of making up his pay lifts and accompts, unlefs under a fpecial inftruction in writing, from the com mander in chief of the forces, the fecretary at war, or the infpector-general of the recruiting fervice. His allowance is fimilar to that of a captain, but he has no military rank.