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{{About|16th to 18th century militias}} |
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#REDIRECT [[Trainband]] |
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{{British English}} |
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'''Trained Bands''' were companies of part-time [[militia]] in [[England]] and [[Wales]]. Organised by [[county]], they were supposed to drill on a regular basis, although this was rarely the case in practice. |
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They later became common in the [[British_America|American colonies]], where they are normally referred to as '''Trainbands'''. Similar organisations existed elsewhere, among them the Dutch [[Schutterij]], and the [[Swiss_Armed_Forces|Swiss militia]], elements of which remain in existence today. |
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==English and Welsh Trained Bands== |
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Founded in 1572, and organised by county, it was not until the 'Exact Militia Programme' of 1625 that they began to have regular training and weapons drill. Even then, standards varied considerably, and depended on the level of financial support by the local gentry.{{sfn |Braddick|2000|p=194}} |
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February 1638 saw the issue of a standard drill book, which was used throughout the [[Wars of the Three Kingdoms]], together with a muster roll by county. This shows large variations in size, equipment and training; the largest was [[Yorkshire]], which had 12,000 men, then London, with 8,000, increased in 1642 to 20,000. Counties like [[Shropshire]] or [[Glamorgan]] had fewer than 500 men.<ref>{{cite web |title=Trained Bands |url=http://wiki.bcw-project.org/trained-band/start |website=BCW Project |accessdate=13 March 2020}}</ref> |
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==American Train bands== |
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In the early American colonies the trained band was the most basic tactical unit.<ref name="M&M1984">Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski: ''For the common defense: A military history of the United States of America'', New York: Free Press; London: Collier Macmillan, 1984, Library of Congress bibliographic record, http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/simon052/94005199.html, last accessed 27 Oct 2018: "Although the basic tactical unit in all the colonies was the company, or trainband, regional variations and changes over time were as important as the superficial uniformity. No standardized company size existed, some companies containing as few as sixty-five men and others as many as two hundred. Some trainbands elected their officers, but in others the governors appointed them. Southern colonies, with widely dispersed populations, often organized companies on a countywide basis, while in New England, with its towns and villages, individual communities contained their own trainbands. As populations increased and the number of trainbands grew, colonies organized companies into regiments to preserve efficient management."</ref> However, no standard company size existed and variations were wide. As population grew these companies were organized into regiments to allow better management.<ref name="M&M1984">Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski: ''For the common defense: A military history of the United States of America'', New York: Free Press; London: Collier Macmillan, 1984, Library of Congress bibliographic record, http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/simon052/94005199.html, last accessed 27 Oct 2018: "Although the basic tactical unit in all the colonies was the company, or trainband, regional variations and changes over time were as important as the superficial uniformity. No standardized company size existed, some companies containing as few as sixty-five men and others as many as two hundred. Some trainbands elected their officers, but in others the governors appointed them. Southern colonies, with widely dispersed populations, often organized companies on a countywide basis, while in New England, with its towns and villages, individual communities contained their own trainbands. As populations increased and the number of trainbands grew, colonies organized companies into regiments to preserve efficient management."</ref> But trainbands were not combat units. Generally, upon reaching a certain age a man was required to join the local trainband in which he received periodic training for the next couple of decades. In wartime, [[Provincial troops in the French and Indian Wars|military forces were formed by selecting men from trainbands on an individual basis and then forming them into a fighting unit]]. |
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The exact derivation and usage is not clear. A nineteenth-century dictionary says, under "Train": |
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{{Quotation|train-band, i.e. train'd band, a band of trained men, Cowper, John Gilpin, st. I, and used by Dryden and Clarendon (Todd)|''Skeat's Etymological Dictionary of the English Language'' (Oxford 1879)<ref name="WWS">Walter W. Skeat: ''An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language'', Dover Publications, Inc., Mineola, N.Y., an unabridged republication of the work originally published in 1910, p. 658, https://books.google.com/books?id=jeeGAAAAQBAJ&q=Train-band#v=snippet&q=Train-band&f=false, last accessed 27 Oct 2018.</ref>}} |
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The issue is whether the men "received training" in the modern sense, or whether they were "in the train" or retinue or were otherwise organized around a [[train (military)|military "train"]] as in horse-drawn artillery. |
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In 17th Century [[New England]] colonial militia units were usually referred to as "train bands" or, sometimes, "trained bands".<ref name="CJH"/> Typically, each town would elect three officers to lead its train band with the ranks of captain, lieutenant and ensign. As the populations of towns varied widely, larger towns usually had more than one train band. In the middle 1600s train bands began to be referred to as companies. |
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On December 13, 1636 the Massachusetts Militia was organized into three regiments - North, South and East. As there are National Guard units descendants of these regiments, this date is used as the "birthday" of the [[National Guard of the United States|National Guard]], despite the fact that citizen militias in the American Colonies date back to the [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown settlement]] in 1607. |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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==Sources== |
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* {{cite book |last1=Braddick |first1=Michael |title=State Formation in Early Modern England, C.1550-1700 |date=2000 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521783460 |ref=harv}} |
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* {{cite book |last1=Harris |first1=Tim |title=Rebellion: Britain's First Stuart Kings, 1567-1642 |date=2014 |publisher=OUP |isbn=978-0199209002 |ref=harv}} |
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* {{cite journal |last1=Warton |first1=Jonathan |title=Ludlow's Trained Band: A Study of Militiamen in Early Stuart England |date=April 1997 |pages=86–102 |journal=Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research |volume=91 |issue=365 |jstor=44232985|ref=harv}} |
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==External links== |
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* {{cite web |title=Trained Bands |url=http://wiki.bcw-project.org/trained-band/start |website=BCW Project |accessdate=13 March 2020}} |
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[[Category:Infantry units and formations]] |
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[[Category:Militia in the United States]] |
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[[Category:Militia of the United Kingdom]] |
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Revision as of 13:54, 13 March 2020
Trained Bands were companies of part-time militia in England and Wales. Organised by county, they were supposed to drill on a regular basis, although this was rarely the case in practice.
They later became common in the American colonies, where they are normally referred to as Trainbands. Similar organisations existed elsewhere, among them the Dutch Schutterij, and the Swiss militia, elements of which remain in existence today.
English and Welsh Trained Bands
Founded in 1572, and organised by county, it was not until the 'Exact Militia Programme' of 1625 that they began to have regular training and weapons drill. Even then, standards varied considerably, and depended on the level of financial support by the local gentry.[1]
February 1638 saw the issue of a standard drill book, which was used throughout the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, together with a muster roll by county. This shows large variations in size, equipment and training; the largest was Yorkshire, which had 12,000 men, then London, with 8,000, increased in 1642 to 20,000. Counties like Shropshire or Glamorgan had fewer than 500 men.[2]
American Train bands
In the early American colonies the trained band was the most basic tactical unit.[3] However, no standard company size existed and variations were wide. As population grew these companies were organized into regiments to allow better management.[3] But trainbands were not combat units. Generally, upon reaching a certain age a man was required to join the local trainband in which he received periodic training for the next couple of decades. In wartime, military forces were formed by selecting men from trainbands on an individual basis and then forming them into a fighting unit.
The exact derivation and usage is not clear. A nineteenth-century dictionary says, under "Train":
train-band, i.e. train'd band, a band of trained men, Cowper, John Gilpin, st. I, and used by Dryden and Clarendon (Todd)
— Skeat's Etymological Dictionary of the English Language (Oxford 1879)[4]
The issue is whether the men "received training" in the modern sense, or whether they were "in the train" or retinue or were otherwise organized around a military "train" as in horse-drawn artillery.
In 17th Century New England colonial militia units were usually referred to as "train bands" or, sometimes, "trained bands".[5] Typically, each town would elect three officers to lead its train band with the ranks of captain, lieutenant and ensign. As the populations of towns varied widely, larger towns usually had more than one train band. In the middle 1600s train bands began to be referred to as companies.
On December 13, 1636 the Massachusetts Militia was organized into three regiments - North, South and East. As there are National Guard units descendants of these regiments, this date is used as the "birthday" of the National Guard, despite the fact that citizen militias in the American Colonies date back to the Jamestown settlement in 1607.
References
- ^ Braddick 2000, p. 194.
- ^ "Trained Bands". BCW Project. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
- ^ a b Allan R. Millett and Peter Maslowski: For the common defense: A military history of the United States of America, New York: Free Press; London: Collier Macmillan, 1984, Library of Congress bibliographic record, http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/simon052/94005199.html, last accessed 27 Oct 2018: "Although the basic tactical unit in all the colonies was the company, or trainband, regional variations and changes over time were as important as the superficial uniformity. No standardized company size existed, some companies containing as few as sixty-five men and others as many as two hundred. Some trainbands elected their officers, but in others the governors appointed them. Southern colonies, with widely dispersed populations, often organized companies on a countywide basis, while in New England, with its towns and villages, individual communities contained their own trainbands. As populations increased and the number of trainbands grew, colonies organized companies into regiments to preserve efficient management."
- ^ Walter W. Skeat: An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, Dover Publications, Inc., Mineola, N.Y., an unabridged republication of the work originally published in 1910, p. 658, https://books.google.com/books?id=jeeGAAAAQBAJ&q=Train-band#v=snippet&q=Train-band&f=false, last accessed 27 Oct 2018.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
CJHwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Sources
- Braddick, Michael (2000). State Formation in Early Modern England, C.1550-1700. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521783460.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Harris, Tim (2014). Rebellion: Britain's First Stuart Kings, 1567-1642. OUP. ISBN 978-0199209002.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Warton, Jonathan (April 1997). "Ludlow's Trained Band: A Study of Militiamen in Early Stuart England". Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research. 91 (365): 86–102. JSTOR 44232985.
{{cite journal}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help)
External links
- "Trained Bands". BCW Project. Retrieved 13 March 2020.