Exercise regulations

Drill regulations are printed regulations for general military training and for the manner in which military orders are carried out .

historical development

With the formation of the standing armies since the 17th century , drill regulations emerged as binding and long-term provisions . The first drill regulations essentially contained provisions on the handling and use of firearms. Its prototype was the regulation on the use of pipes, muskets and skewers , published in 1607 , with which Prince Moritz of Orange laid the foundation for the uniform training of an entire army. In the 17th century they and those who followed formed the basis for the handling of weapons by infantry and cavalry in the European armies and also influenced the first German drill regulations.

Official drill regulations for the infantry appeared in 1702 in Prussia , 1704 in Saxony and 1737 in Austria . The cavalry also received corresponding regulations at this time, the artillery, however, only since the end of the 18th century. All of these drill regulations had the character of general service regulations for the branches of service . They contained provisions on the use of weapons and tactical rules as well as provisions that covered almost all aspects of military service and life.

Developments in the military in the wake of the French Revolution (1789–1794) and new knowledge of the art of war also required new drill regulations for all branches of arms. They were enacted in Austria in 1807 and in Prussia in 1812. Major General Gerhard von Scharnhorst played a particularly important role in drawing up the Prussian drill regulations . In the course of the 19th century the previous standard regulations were replaced by service, administrative, mobilization and training regulations as well as tactical drill regulations. The latter were issued separately for each type of weapon and, along with the field service regulations common to all, were the most important regulation for the troops. The regulations were issued by the war ministries' own pamphlet administrations.

The official principles of tactics contained in the drill regulations often did not take sufficient account of the level of development of weapon technology and war experience. The military authorities were often reluctant to make changes. For example, E.g. the adherence of the Austrian troops to the tactics of the battalion column in the war of 1866 and that of the Prussian troops to the tactics of the company column in the war of 1870/71 lead to great losses. The inclusion of new experiences in the regulations was often delayed and against the resistance of conservative troop leaders. For example, the tactical form of the swarm of riflemen appeared in the drill regulations of 1888 .

Since the second half of the 19th century, other special regulations were issued, for example for field service and shooting training, which supplemented the drill regulations and took over parts of its previous duties.

To the drill regulations of the German Army of the Empire , the rejected as training regulations drill book the designated Reichswehr , which appeared from 1922 for the various military branches. The significantly higher proportion of field service in basic training resulted from the evaluation of the war experience of the First World War . From 1935, the Wehrmacht introduced new versions of the drill regulations, which were finally revised and introduced in 1941.

In the modern armed forces, drill and combat training are uniformly regulated by regulations.

source

Dictionary of German military history, Military Publishing House of the German Democratic Republic VEB, Berlin 1985

Individual evidence

↑ Jakob de Geyn: Wappenhandelinghe van Roer's Musquetten ende Spießen , Haag, 1607, with 42 figures handling the light fire tube , 43 figures handling the musket , 32 figures handling the pike .
↑ for example Johann Jakob von Wallhausen: The art of war on foot, for the greatest benefit and best not only for all arriving soldiers, but also for training a common country folk and committee in principalities and places , Oppenheim 1615, 2nd edition Frankfurt a. M. 1630.

[1] Jakob de Geyn: Wappenhandelinghe van Roer's Musquetten ende Spießen , Haag, 1607, with 42 figures handling the light fire tube , 43 figures handling the musket , 32 figures handling the pike .

[2] r example Johann Jakob von Wallhausen: The art of war on foot, for the greatest benefit and best not only for all arriving soldiers, but also for training a common country folk and committee in principalities and places , Oppenheim 1615, 2nd edition Frankfurt a. M. 1630.