A Military Dictionary and Gazetteer. Thomas Wilhelm
war with Austria in 1805. Louis Napoleon, afterwards emperor, made a descent here with about 50 followers, August 6, 1840, without success.
Bounty. A premium offered or given to induce men to enlist into the public service.
Bourbon, Isle of (in the Indian Ocean). Discovered by the Portuguese about 1545. The French here formed a colony in 1653 (according to others, 1642, 1646, 1649). In 1810, after a gallant resistance, it fell into the hands of the British, who retained it till the general peace, 1814. In 1815, before the downfall of Napoleon, it was once more besieged by the English, and along with the Mauritius again fell into their hands. After the general pacification of Europe, Bourbon was restored to France, in whose possession it now is; but the adjoining island has since been retained by its English conquerors.
Bourdonnante (Fr.). A name formerly given to a kind of bombard of a heavy caliber.
Bourg-en-Bresse. A town of France, capital of the department of Ain. The town was captured by the allies in 1814.
Bourges. The capital of the department of the Cher, in France; captured by Cæsar, 52 B.C.; destroyed by Chilperic, 583; carried by assault by Pepin, 762; sustained a siege during the reign of Charles VII., in 1415; captured by the Protestants, 1562; by Henry IV., 1594; by the Protestants, 1615, and by Marshal Matignon in 1616.
Bourguignote, or Bourgignotte (Fr.). A helmet worn by the Burgundians, from whom it was named. It was of polished iron, with a visor. Under Louis XIV. their head-dress was changed to a kind of bonnet.
Bourlette (Fr.). In antiquity, a mace which was garnished with iron points.
Bournous, Burnoose, or Burnos. A kind of cloak or overcoat, used by the Arabs, and which constitutes a part of the military clothing of some corps of the French army.
Bouton, or Boutoou (Fr.). A kind of war-club, formerly used by the Caribs of the Antilles.
Bovianum (now Bojano). A town of Italy, 10 miles southwest of Campobasso. It was sacked by the Romans in 311, 305, and 298 B.C. During the second Punic war it was several times the headquarters of the Roman army.
Bouvines (Northern France). The site of a desperate battle, July 27, 1214, in which Philip Augustus of France was victorious over the emperor Otho and his allies, consisting of more than 150,000 men. The Counts of Flanders and Boulogne were taken prisoners.
Bow. A weapon made of a strip of wood, or other elastic material, with a cord connecting the two ends, by means of which, when drawn back and suffered to return, an arrow is propelled.
Bow, Cross. An ancient weapon of offense of the 11th century. Philip II., surnamed the Conqueror, introduced cross-bows into France. In this reign Richard I. of England was killed by a cross-bow at the siege of Chalus.
Bowie-knife. A knife from 10 to 15 inches long, and about 2 inches broad, worn as a weapon in the Southern and Southwestern States of the United States—so named from its inventor, Col. James Bowie.
Bowman. A man who uses a bow; an archer.
Bow-shot. The space which an arrow may pass when shot from a bow.
Bowstring. The string of a bow. Also a string used by the Turks for strangling offenders.
Bowyer. The man who made or repaired the military bows was so called.
Boxer-cartridge. The metallic cartridge used in the service rifle of England. See Cartridge.
Boxtel (in Dutch Brabant). Here the British and allied armies, commanded by the Duke of York, were defeated by the French republicans, who took 2000 prisoners and 8 pieces of cannon, September 17, 1794.
Box Pontons. See Pontons.
Boyaca. A village of the republic of New Granada, South America, celebrated for the victory gained by Bolivar over the Spaniards, August 7, 1819, which secured the independence of Colombia.
Boyau. In military engineering, is a winding zigzag or trench, made by besiegers to enable them to approach a town or fortified place under cover. These trenches are also called zigzags, or approaches.
Boyne. A river in Kildare, Ireland, near which William III. defeated his father-in-law, James II., July 1, 1690. The latter lost 1500 (out of 30,000) men; the Protestant army lost about a third of that number (out of 30,000). James fled to Dublin, thence to Waterford, and escaped to France. The Duke of Schömberg was killed, shot by mistake by his own soldiers as he was crossing the river.
Brabançons (Fr.). Soldiers of fortune, adventurers, freebooters of Brabant, who, during the Middle Ages, hired their services to those chiefs who paid them best.
Bracelet. In ancient times, a piece of defensive armor for the arm; a part of a coat of mail.
Bracket. The cheek of a mortar-carriage, made of strong plank.
Braconnière, or Bragonnière (Fr.). In antiquity, a mail-armor, of the shape of a petticoat, which was attached to the cuirass, and reached from the hips to the middle of the thigh, and sometimes below the knee.
Braga (anc. Bracara Augusta). The capital of the province of Minho, in Portugal; it is fortified and defended by a citadel. The Suevi were here vanquished by the Goths in 585.
Brailoff, Brahilow, or Ibraila. A fortified town and the principal port of Wallachia, European Turkey. In 1770 the town was taken by the Russians, and almost razed to the ground; rebuilt, and again taken by the Russians in 1828, after a brave defense. It was restored to Turkey by the treaty of Adrianople in 1829. During the war of 1854–56, it was occupied by Russian troops.
Brake. That part of the carriage of a movable battery or engine which enables it to turn.
Brake. An ancient engine of war analogous to the cross-bow and balista.
Bramham. In Yorkshire, England; near here the Earl of Northumberland and Lord Bardolf were defeated and slain by Sir Thomas Rokeby, the general of Henry IV., February 19, 1408; and Fairfax was defeated by the royalists under the Duke of Newcastle, March 29, 1643.
Brand. The Anglo-Saxon for a burnished sword.
Brandenburg. A city in Prussia, founded by the Slavonians. Henry I., surnamed the Fowler, after defeating the Slavonians, fortified Brandenburg, 926, as a rampart against the Huns, and bestowed the government on Sigefroi, count of Ringelheim, with the title of Margrave, or protector of the marches or frontiers. Occupied by the French, October 25, 1806.
Branding. Was a mode of punishment, in nearly all armies, inflicted on soldiers who were convicted of the crime of desertion—the branding or marking being with ink, or other similar preparation. This practice is now discontinued in the American, and several European armies.
Brandschwaermer (Ger.). A small rocket which contained a bullet; it was fired out of a gun and used for the purpose of setting fire to straw-thatched buildings.
Brandywine. A river in Pennsylvania and Delaware, near which a battle took place between the British and Americans, in which the latter (after a day’s fight) were defeated with great loss, and Philadelphia fell into the possession of the victors, September 11, 1777.
Brass. See Bronze.
Brassar. A piece of defensive armor for the arm.
Brassart.