The Minute Book
Saturday, 23 November 2013

Discipline Makes the Soldier
Topic: Discipline

Discipline Makes the Soldier

By Field Marshal Lord Birdwood in the United Services Review, London
Canadian Army Training Memorandum, No 32, November 1943

William Riddell Birdwood, Australian War Memorial photo - P03717.009

1.     There is a great deal of misunderstanding on the subject of discipline among the general public, although now that the gallant Soviet army is apparently framing rules and regulations that seem to correspond to our own, we may hear less superficial criticism from the public. Even inside the army itself the purpose of discipline is often misunderstood by a young soldier, and sometimes I think it would be an excellent idea, if the whole purpose were explained to the new recruit the first day he joins the navy, army or air force.

Better Fighters

2.     Young soldiers are apt to think that smartness, whether in dress, appearance, or movement, is merely a fetish on the part of a commander, and I will admit there are times when this may be carried to excess. But from time immemorial in the history of war it has been found that the best disciplined regiments always fight better than the others, endure hardship better, and hold together in the face of incredible difficulties.

3.     When Napoleon made his terrible retreat from Moscow, it was no coincidence that the soldiers who suffered least and who had fewest casualties from the cold were the men of the Guard. They were the elite of the army, accustomed to obey orders without question, and when other badly behaved units were fighting over the meager food supplied, the men of the Guard shared it out equally among the battalions, and every man got his tiny ration. When other units straggled hopelessly over the snow-covered plains and men dropped out unheeded, the Old Guard kept together and encouraged the weaker men to remain in the ranks somehow.

4.     To go back still further. In our civil war in Stuart times, it was Cromwell who realized that the Cavaliers could not be beaten by men of poor spirit and behaviour. He, therefore, fashioned his Ironsides, and they carried all before them.

5.     The whole idea of discipline is to accustom men to obey orders automatically, so that when deafened by the roar of battle, weary, hungry and thirsty, they will still do their duty and carry out orders cheerfully. Mere enthusiasm may survive the rigours of battle and hardships, but discipline and pride in one's corps will more than perform that miracle.

The Importance of Compliments

6.     Take saluting, for example. A man who is slack in noticing an officer, or an officer who is slack in returning a salute, is very likely to be slack in more important things on the battlefield, for he is obviously unobservant. The good soldier is always on the look-out for a senior who is entitled to a salute a nd the senior, however busy his mind may be on other things, must always be watchful that the salute of the humblest soldier is properly acknowledged. That makes for an alert mind.

7.     Commanding officers, whose cars bear the divisional or corps flag, have been known to stop their car and rebuke a soldier failing to notice the little flag which marks the commander's car. That rebuke was not a mere piece of officiousness or snobbishness, as some thoughtless people assume, but because the commander knows that the soldier who does not take the trouble to notice the little flag which distinguishes that car from the others will be equally unobservant on the field of battle. All this makes for mental alertness.

8.     The same thing applies to personal appearance. The slackly dressed soldier is generally slack in other ways - ways that make all the difference between life and death. In the last war many commanders - in fact, most insisted on their men shaving in the trenches every morning. It was sound psychology, because a freshly shaven man feels better than the fellow with the stubble on his chin.

Nothing Irksome in Obedience

9.     You can tell a Guards battalion a mile off, by the way the men march. There is something magical in the name "Guards" and why? Because they are the best disciplined units in an army, and they are the men for the toughest jobs. It may seem hard at first to the young recruit, but if he is made to realize that in the long run good discipline saves lives and wins battles, he will cheerfully play his part, and to the willing soldier there is nothing very irksome in obeying orders swiftly and unhesitatingly.

10.     I notice that in the Soviet armies the Guards divisions, which were abolished at the Revolution, have been formed and these divisions set the standard for the others. Also quite recently, the Soviet High Command issued an order that every man who goes to a theatre or cinema must have his uniform well pressed, his buttons polished, and his hair tidy. Nor must men be seen in the streets carrying heavy, untidy parcels; they must have a neat suitcase. This shows that the Red Army has come to the same conclusions in these matters as the British Army.

11.     It is a common delusion among the public that the Dominion forces will not stand for discipline, saluting, and the rest of it. This is nonsense. The Dominion soldier has exactly the same pride of regiment as the men in the Home Country. In the war I had the honour to command the Australian troops, and I had Lord Haig's own testimony that these brave troops bore themselves in battle and on the parade grounds with the same distinction as the British line battalions. That was naturally one of the reasons why the Germans came to fear them so greatly.

Motive Behind Operations

12.     When people talk about the soldier obeying orders blindly, they imply that it is all wrong. It is impossible for the private soldier to be told the whole motive and aim behind every operation; he can only be told the part he personally is to play, and it is essential that if the operation is to succeed he shall obey without question.

13.     Commanding officers do their utmost today to acquaint them with the task that they have to perform in an action, but the battalion commander himself only knows part of the drama in which he is playing a role. Much has to be hidden from him. Probably in a great battle only a few high officers know the complete plan in all its phases and the rest, down. to the private soldier, must carry out orders to the letter. That is commonsense, and discipline is commonsense.

Drill Has Its Function

14.     I am sure if these things were carefully explained to the newcomer to the services at the very outset, explained with patience and good humour, all misunderstanding would be avoided and cheerful obedience would be easier. Even the drill that seems so dull and meaningless to the recruit has its function.

15.     Let no soldier ever forget that discipline is based on tradition - and it is tradition which always has carried and ever will carry every one of the glorious units of the British Empire through the most dangerous and difficult times to victory.the same pride of regiment as the men in the Home Country. In the war I had the honour to command the Australian troops, and I had Lord Haig's own testimony that these brave troops bore themselves in battle and on the parade grounds with the same distinction as the British line battalions. That was naturally one of the reasons why the Germans came to fear them so greatly.

Motive Behind Operations

12.     When people talk about the soldier obeying orders blindly, they imply that it is all wrong. It is impossible for the private soldier to be told the whole motive and aim behind every operation; he can only be told the part he personally is to play, and it is essential that if the operation is to succeed he shall obey without question.

13.     Commanding officers do their utmost today to acquaint them with the task that they have to perform in an action, but the battalion commander himself only knows part of the drama in which he is playing a role. Much has to be hidden from him. Probably in a great battle only a few high officers know the complete plan in all its phases and the rest, down. to the private soldier, must carry out orders to the letter. That is commonsense, and discipline is commonsense.

Drill Has Its Function

14.     I am sure if these things were carefully explained to the newcomer to the services at the very outset, explained with patience and good humour, all misunderstanding would be avoided and cheerful obedience would be easier. Even the drill that seems so dull and meaningless to the recruit has its function.

15.     Let no soldier ever forget that discipline is based on tradition – and it is tradition which always has carried and ever will carry every one of the glorious units of the British Empire through the most dangerous and difficult times to victory.

The Senior Subaltern


Posted by regimentalrogue at 12:01 AM EST

View Latest Entries

The Regimental Rogue.

Follow The Regimental Rogue on facebook.

« November 2013 »
S M T W T F S
1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Entries by Topic
All topics  «
Armouries
Army Rations
Battle Honours
British Army
Canadian Armed Forces
Canadian Army
Canadian Militia
CEF
Cold Steel
Cold War
Commentary
CWGC
Discipline
DND
DND - DHH
Drill and Training
European Armies
Events
Film
Forays in Fiction
Halifax
Humour
LAC
Leadership
Marching
Marines
Martial Music
Medals
Militaria
Military Medical
Military Theory
Morale
Mortars
Officers
OPSEC
Paardeberg
Pay; the Queen's shilling
Perpetuation
RCAF
RCN
Remembrance
Resistance
Russia
Sam Hughes
Soldier Slang
Soldiers' Load
Staff Duties
Stolen Valour
Taking Advantage
The Field of Battle
The RCR
The RCR Museum
Tradition
US Armed Forces
Vimy Pilgrimage
Wolseley Barracks

You are not logged in. Log in
Blog Tools
Edit your Blog
Build a Blog
RSS Feed
View Profile