Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Seize the (reenacting) Day!
    Seize the (reenacting) Day!
    Seize the (reenacting) Day!
    Ebook113 pages1 hour

    Seize the (reenacting) Day!

    By William J. Watson

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    "Seize the Day!" contains a distillation of the best available practices now deployed by reenactors who want to get in the 1860s and stay there for the duration of an event. The book describes how any reenactor can easily live the life of a Civil War soldier, using the equipment and technology they used.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWilliam J. Watson
    Release dateSep 26, 2010
    ISBN9781452356068
    Seize the (reenacting) Day!
    Author

    William J. Watson

    William J. Watson was professor of Celtic at the University of Edinburgh from 1914 to 1938. He is widely recognised as one of the greatest ever scholars in the field.

    Related to Seize the (reenacting) Day!

    Related ebooks

    Wars & Military For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Q&A WITH ANDY MCNAB

      Oct 26, 2023

      Q&A WITH ANDY MCNAB
      7 min read

    • Article

      School Of Hard Knox

      Mar 22, 2019

      School Of Hard Knox
      8 min read

    • Article

      My Decision to Serve

      Nov 11, 2022

      My Decision to Serve
      6 min read

    • Article

      Reconsidering Troop Ratings

      Jan 7, 2022

      It is, of course, human nature to feel comfortable with ideas that are familiar. Indeed, even those who proclaim a desire to see interesting new ideas in their games can find that some interesting new ideas are actually just a bit too interesting. As

      6 min read

    • Article

      At Hom E In The Inhospitable

      Dec 14, 2021

      At Hom E In The Inhospitable
      15 min read

    • Article

      The Inside Man

      Oct 29, 2019

      The Inside Man
      15 min read

    • Article

      Do You Want To Be A Leader, Or Just A Boss?

      Dec 9, 2019

      Imagine you’re a senior officer on a small minesweeper in the US Navy during the Second World War. Your first experience of action is when your ship, the USS Caine, takes part in an attack on an island under Japanese control. The captain, Philip Quee

      2 min read

    • Article

      A Good Military Leader

      May 19, 2021

      A Good Military Leader
      6 min read

    • Article

      It’s Good To Talk

      Feb 14, 2020

      It’s Good To Talk
      3 min read

    • Article

      Trust Your Drill Sergeant? Army Takes New Approach To Basic Training.

      Oct 7, 2020

      Boot camp now focuses more on trust than intimidation, cultivating trust not only among soldiers but between soldiers and their leaders.

      5 min read

    • Article

      The Day Jujitsu Died

      Jul 1, 2023

      The Day Jujitsu Died
      5 min read

    • Article

      Let Us Not Slash History to Shreds

      Jan 14, 2020

      WE NOTICED that much of what’s called “indigenous” seems to have a mighty close parallel to Filipino blade work or European sword-and-dagger traditions. Now, this simply could stem from one or more of the following: • Human movement is finite, and ba

      4 min read

    • Article

      Delta Seven*

      Aug 5, 2021

      Delta Seven*
      2 min read

    • Article

      Norm Hooten

      Jan 23, 2024

      Norm Hooten
      14 min read

    • Article

      Be Like Water

      Jun 6, 2023

      Be Like Water
      2 min read

    • Article

      Readers Recoil

      Oct 21, 2022

      Readers Recoil
      2 min read

    • Article

      Bouncing Back

      Nov 12, 2020

      Bouncing Back
      3 min read

    • Article

      Desire Drives Story

      Dec 21, 2020

      At the outset of any story, most characters find themselves beset by the following motivational factors: • A state of LACK: Something is missing from his life. • This lack speaks to an unfulfilled YEARNING, or dream of life: the kind of person the ch

      6 min read

    • Article

      Mixed Messages Of 21st-century Recruitment

      Nov 1, 2018

      “MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES NEED TO BE CAPABLE OF DEALING WITH DEATH AND DISASTER ON A DAILY BASIS” Recent televised attempts by the UK Ministry of Defence to encourage young people to join up are creating a great deal of controversy. In response,

      4 min read

    • Article

      Wild Problems: A Guide to the Decisions That Define Us

      May 12, 2023

      By Russ Roberts New York: Portfolio/Penguin Pp. 284. $27 hardcover I got to “interview” Russ Roberts about this book in a “Sadie Hawkins Day” kind of podcast, where the guest gets to ask the questions and the host gives the answers. That podcast, “Ec

      8 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Seize the (reenacting) Day!

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Seize the (reenacting) Day! - William J. Watson

      Seize the (Reenacting) Day!

      How to wring more satisfaction from your Civil War events

      Published by William J. Watson/Broken Lance Enterprises at Smashwords

      Copyright 2010 William J. Watson/Broken Lance Enterprises

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Cover art: Art Stone, 13th NJVI

      Contents

      Chapter One: The Private

      Chapter Two: The Corporal

      Chapter Three: The Sergeants

      Chapter Four: Company Commander

      Chapter Five: Sergeant Major

      Chapter Six: Adjutant

      Chapter Seven: Quartermaster/Commissary

      Chapter Eight: Bugler

      Chapter Nine: Officer of the Guard

      Chapter Ten: Officer of the Day

      Chapter Eleven: Regimental Clerk

      Chapter Twelve: Orderlies

      Chapter 13 Battalion Commander

      Chapter 14: Critical Mass

      Chapter 15: Suggestions

      Chapter 16: Suggested Reading

      About the Author

      Introduction

      We all had some idea, when we first hesitantly approached the uniformed guys in wool at the local living history and asked about joining, that we’d experience what the Civil War soldier experienced. For most of us, that has been a disappointed hope. At best there is a moment when, if you squint in the middle of a battle or on the picket line at night, it feels real. We can do better. This book is one part of making it happen.

      Seize the Day provides information for Civil War reenactors who want to get more from their reenacting weekends, without starving to death or setting their hair on fire. It builds on the work of Brigadier General August V. Kautz, who during the war wrote how to books intended to help citizen volunteers make the transition to effective soldiers. Kautz’s work isolated the functions performed by various ranks and the responsibilities that went with each. He then explored the relationships among the jobs, positions and duties. What this book attempts to do is translate that body of knowledge into a set of attitudes and activities the reenactor can deploy. It is especially intended for reenactors who will be going to a fully operational weekend experience, but it is still applicable to those who are attending events where functioning as Civil War people is not a 24-hour expectation. It also provides some thoughtful material for those who wish to take a new approach to reenacting — functionality — rather than using some of the old paradigms that seemed to have taken us away from experience-based reenacting at the beginning of the 21st Century. The ultimate goal: creation of functioning companies and regiments, with all that such things provide to supply us with magic moments, and creation of more events at which to deploy those units.

      The book takes each rank, describes the classic set of responsibilities, and discusses how those are altered by the inescapable facts of any reenactment or living history. It offers suggestions on the scope and potential of each rank and job duty, and also fills in gaps explaining how the different functions interrelate to create and operate companies and regiments that can actually supply themselves effectively, move efficiently, bivouac comfortably, deploy without fuss, and engage the enemy realistically.

      The book also attempts to embrace the spirit Kautz tried to inject into his ideal army. Armies are a role culture. You have a job to do, and the job carries expectations. If everyone does each job properly, harmony prevails. But Kautz also had a strong sense that leadership needed room to grow. He knew that without leadership — the folks who are deciding, What are the right things to do? rather than just making sure people are doing things right — the whole venture will not go anywhere worth going. That is an idea as true now as it was then. The absence of appropriate leadership may be said to be one of the obstacles we face in achieving the moment as reenactors, and it is one of the realities implicitly addressed throughout this book. We need more good leaders. This book suggests what leadership means, at every level.

      This book is not intended to be an all-encompassing, encyclopedic work. It’s more like a handy reference to check in the weeks before an event, to remind yourself of not just things to know, but attitudes to use and specific things to do when you get there, depending on what rank you wear at the event.

      It IS within our power to better experience the moment. All we have to do is reach out and touch it.

      Acknowledgments

      A lot of folks helped shape this book. Thanks to Michael Shaffner, Dave Grieves, Chris Anders and Ron Myzie for reading and editing and ideas. And thanks to all the people who have put up with me in reenacting, starting with Bob Patterson of the old 7th NJVI, Co.D, up through Jim Ridge of the Palmetto Battalion, Clark Fox of the 21st NCT, Dom dal Bello of the Army of the Pacific, Tim O’Neill of the Civil War Living History Institute, the entire Potomac Legion. Special thanks to Rob Hodge, Jeff Hayes and a host of others who put me on the path to authenticity during the Andersonville movie in 1994. And a really big thank you to all the guys who have helped with Company I over the years, showing scores of reenactors that doing it right isn’t all that hard, but it is a lot more fun.

      Chapter One: The Private

      The private, Brigadier General Augustus Kautz tells us in Customs of Service, is a soldier whose primary duty is obedience. Even the soldier’s deportment needs to reflect that fact, and the list of ritualized salutes Kautz uses to begin his description of a private’s duties, expectations and responsibilities is quite daunting.

      However, he also makes it clear that a private is expected to take an active, not passive role. Obedience does not mean docility.

      The general list of duties:

      • Familiarize yourself with your camp or garrison duties.

      • Adapt your clothing and equipment to best advantage.

      • Embrace instruction in drill.

      • Be accountable for issued equipment;

      • Always be present with your company for duty.

      • Attend all roll calls and exercises.

      • Know your job at guard, on working parties and for daily duties.

      (A list of accessible sources, both print and online, for every period duty and responsibility discussed in this book is included in an appendix.)

      Guard duty is one of the foundation stones of Kautz’s approach to soldiering, and he spends several pages working it through. Working parties involve exactly that, the work of the company and regiment, including firewood collecting, obtaining water, policing the bivouac, preparing meals, and the construction of earthworks and other improvements, including bridges and winter quarters.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1