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.
1. Friendly fire – isn't.
15. The enemy invariably attacks on two occasions: — when they're ready. — when you're not.
30. No inspection ready unit has ever passed combat.
50. Napalm is an area support weapon.
65. Everything always works in your HQ, everything always fails in the Colonel's HQ.
85. The newest and least experienced soldier will usually win the Medal of Honor.
105. Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when the General is watching.
Before being dismissed recruit training every regular recruit will be examined by the depot or battalion commander and a medical officer, who will determine whether he has attained the necessary standard of efficiency, and is physically fit for the duties of a trained soldier.
The following instructions should be impressed upon all:…
[Drivers of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps] also learned the art of "brewing-up"—something we didn't know anything about until we joined the 8th Army.
Allow me to describe one restrictive example. Within Volumes I and II of the regimental history of 
Not long ago, in my research on 
1st Canadian Infantry Battalion — about 6000 soldiers passed through the ranks of the 
168th Canadian Infantry Battalion — The sailing list for the 
Messages summoning them were sent out and we added a few frills to the chart and hung it up in the largest room in our offices. They were duly assembled, and, being astute men, at once spotted the graph and saw what it was about. At this point DADOS was called away to take a telephone call from the Base, and the QMs were left alone. When we returned it was to find several of them beating out the flames from what was left of the charred graph, it having been "inadvertently" set on fire by someone's cigarette whilst they were all standing around. Our dramatic evidence gone, our denouement fell flat and all they got was a routine harangue on economy from the AQMG. On another occasion in the BEF an order came out authorizing units to hold "small stocks" of medal ribbon on a scale of 1-inch per medallist to issue when torn or worn clothing was replaced. At my Divisional HQ we reckoned we knew our units pretty well and did a calculation based on their previous stations, make-up of personnel and such like. We checked their indents against this "control" and found most of them reasonable except one. This was from a TA battalion of a famous Highland Regiment which had recently come into the Division. Their indent began "Ribbon, silk, medal, Victoria Cross, 36 inches". Increduously, we sent it back with a note "Please confirm that you have 36 holders of this decoration in your battalion." A few days later the Major Quartermaster, himself with two rows of ribbons, came in and explained. "Oh, he said, "we've no got them yet, but we'll have them alright and I want a wee bit by me when the time comes." Boastful? Not really; maybe a little arrogant, but this is the stuff of which fighting men are made. Poor gallant Highlanders; in action against over-whelming enemy forces, the whole battalion was captured at Saint Valery and passed into captivity. To end on a lighter note, perhaps one of the best stories illustrating Quartermasters' minds and methods is told of an Irish Regiment in the old days. Bread had "come up" and the QM's private storeman was apportioning it to the companies. "If you please, sorr," he said, "I am one loaf short who shall I give it to?" "Keep it yourself, Mick," was his master's reply.
Technique of Hand-over
Mugs' Game
National characteristics may influence the order of priorities but will not much change the methods of QMs. The Irish Guards History of the Second World War recounts a splendid story of a French Quartermaster. The Guardsmen were in a position on a Norwegian fjord and had been told they were to be joined by a battalion of the famous Chasseurs Alpins. Later they beheld what looked like a Seine barge, very low in the water, coming up the fjord. When it came into shore, "a short, fat man wearing a huge beret jumped ashore. He explained that he was the Quartermaster of the Chasseurs and asked permission to land the advance party and essential stores." This was granted, "whereupon the Frenchmen began to roll ashore many barrels of wine." The great French literateur, Andre Maurois, in his book, "The Silence of Colonel Bramble", gave an example of how such knowledge was put to use by the OC of a unit: "Colonel Boulton commanded an ammunition depot. He was responsible, among other things, for fifty machine guns. One day he noticed that there were only forty-nine in the depot. All the enquiries, and punishment of the sentries, failed to restore the missing machine gun. "Colonel Boulton was an old fox and had never acknowledged himself in the wrong. He simply mentioned in his monthly return that the tripod of a machine gun had been broken. They sent him a tripod to replace the other without any comment. "A month later, on some pretext or other, he reported the sighting apparatus of a machine gun as out of order; the following month he asked for three screw nuts; then a recoil place; and bit by bit in two years he entirely replaced his machine gun. And correspondingly, bit by bit, the Army Ordnance Department reconstructed it for him without attaching any importance to the requisitions for the separate pieces. "Then Colonel Boulton, satisfied at last, inspected his machine guns and found fifty-one. "While he had been patiently reconstructing the lost gun, some damned idiot had found it in a corner. And Boulton had to spend two years of clever manipulation of his books to account for the new gun which had been evolved out of nothing."
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