Military parade

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A unit of the Italian Navy on a parade in Rome
Parade on the 30th anniversary of the founding of the GDR

A military parade (also known as an army show or revue ) is a military ceremony in which soldiers appear publicly on special state occasions and present their weapons and equipment.

Usually, participating in a military parade of troops to take on a larger public space (for example, along a road train) line-up, where they from or diminishing (mostly representatives of the state or high military ) inspected the parade. Following a so-called usually followed by parade , in which the troops involved are organized into marching formations and accompanied by military marching music then where and march past the diminishing (also: parade or parade ). In many countries there are special forms of lockstep for the march past (e.g. the “ goose step ”). Marches past are not necessarily part of a military parade and should not be misunderstood as a synonym for it.

Conceptual problem

In common parlance, as in media reports, the term “parade” is often applied to any form of military ceremony . This is incorrect, but a precise definition of the term - for example using the type of units involved or their equipment - is extremely difficult due to the diverse military traditions around the world. To make matters worse, elements of military parades (such as the march past) can also be found in other military ceremonies. In general, it is literally a military parade only if the ceremony does not serve any purpose for everyday military service or a military necessity, but is used as an instrument of state self-representation. For example, a pledge is not a military parade, as it is part of everyday service as part of basic training in Germany. The reception with military honors, which is often incorrectly referred to as a military parade, is a military necessity (in accordance with international protocol ), so the term does not apply here.

Origin of the military parade

So- called army shows , in which commanders are convinced of the discipline and level of training of their troops, have been handed down in large numbers from ancient times . For example, For example, during the siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD , the later Roman emperor Titus carried out a great appeal, during which his legionaries were paid their wages with full equipment and armament in order to intimidate the besieged enemy. Likewise, the triumphal procession of victorious generals on their return to Rome belongs to the category of the military parade by today's standards.

Friedrich II. Of Prussia takes a parade in front of the City Palace in Potsdam from

With the end of large, standing armies in the Middle Ages , such army displays were only carried out very rarely (exceptions are e.g. the crusades ). Only when larger contingents of troops were put together on a permanent basis with the Thirty Years' War did such inspections become part of everyday life for soldiers again, above all in order to be able to maintain the often poor discipline at least in part. When Louis XIV of France began to build up a standing army again from around 1660, the basis was laid for a military parade according to today's understanding: the presentation of weapons and equipment on the occasion of an appeal and the march of the troops in front of the commanders with the intention of to regularly bring their superiors to the attention of the soldiers and to remind them of their duty to them. At the same time, the march past was intended to demonstrate the marching discipline of the troops, an important factor at the time in battles in which the orderly movement of closed formations was crucial. This process has remained the basic form of the military parade, the only significant difference is the greater involvement of the public today.

Military parades today

Indian Agni II missile on military parade
Tradition and Representation: Delegation of the Bulgarian Guard to a parade in Paris

Nowadays there are two main types of military parade: the military parade as a pure element of maintaining tradition, which does not convey a political or military message, and the military parade, in which, in contrast, value is placed on conveying such a message. The latter is a parade in which the most impressive possible selection of weapons and equipment is presented in order to deter potential opponents (examples were the parades of the Eastern Bloc and especially in the Soviet Union itself, which always featured the latest weapon systems from Public; nowadays, for example, countries like North Korea , China or Iran are pursuing the goal of deterrence through their parades). The other form of parade does not aim to convey strength and deterrence. These are parades that are carried out by the military as one of the pillars of state order for the sole purpose of self-representation or for reasons of tradition. A classic example of this is the annual Trooping the Color parade for the British sovereign in London.

There are also mixed forms of the two forms mentioned; For example, heavy weapon systems ( tanks , artillery ) regularly take part in the parades on July 14th in Paris and October 12th in Madrid . However, due to the democratic conditions in the countries concerned, this form of representation is usually not interpreted as a threatening gesture, even if it nevertheless creates a certain deterrent factor. In this context, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev spoke of the " educational significance " of the military parades (on May 9th ) and described the decision to show heavy military equipment again since 2008 as a (psychological) signal to the population that the homeland is over " A combat-ready army with a combat-ready war technique " had, which could " fulfill real combat tasks ".

Spanish M109 self-propelled howitzers in a parade in Madrid

In democratic states, the representatives of the government as representatives of the people are paid homage to a parade on special occasions. In countries that are ruled authoritarian or dictatorial (such as Belarus or North Korea), parades have a certain "submissive character"; that is, they follow the elements of a person or party cult . In general, foreign guests ( ambassadors , military attachés ) are often invited to parades to get an impression of the strength and equipment of the respective army.

Germany

No military parades are officially held in the Federal Republic of Germany. However, German soldiers are allowed to take part in military parades abroad upon invitation. In Germany only so-called "field parades" take place, which usually take place on the fringes of large-scale exercises and are removed by the commanders involved, but the soldiers do not wear any special uniforms (parade uniforms) and there is less emphasis on the display of discipline than on the presentation laid by weapons and equipment. During the Cold War , however, parades also took place in the Federal Republic of Germany , which were officially called "field parades", but were more in keeping with the character of a classic military parade. However, they did not take place in public, but in closed-off areas ( Nürburgring ). The GDR held public military parades in Berlin on Republic Day , which regularly led to protest notes from the Western occupying powers.

criticism

Like all elements of military ceremonial, military parades are now subject to criticism from politically left-wing and pacifist groups who consider them to be out of date and militaristic.

Well-known military parades

Parade in Moscow in memory of the victory in World War II
This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.

Historical

Annual parades

literature

  • Regulation H.Dv. 273, M.Dv.Nr. 273, Parade, Uniform Rules for All Arms, 1938

Web links

Commons : Military Parade  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: Military parade  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Securing parade in Berlin until 1989

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Voice of Russia : Medvedev: “The military parade is a symbol of our country's strength” , interview from May 8, 2011 on the occasion of the annual military parade on Victory Day. Retrieved May 9, 2011
  2. ↑ http://www.hawkies.de/chronik-39.html