PURPOSE
First Brigade, Army of Northern Virginia (ANV,
Inc.)
(revised April, 2000)
PURPOSE
The primary purpose of the 1st Confederate Battalion is to
portray a common mid- to late-war Confederate infantry battalion and to support
and respect the authority and decisions of the First Brigade, Army of Northern
Virginia (ANV) to which this battalion is attached. To this end, members of the
battalion shall comply with all ANV requirements and standards with the
following additional criteria and restrictions.
COMMAND
Battalion: Staff shall be appointed by the battalion commanding
officer and shall maintain a minimum of one adjutant, one engineer (assigned by
Brigade headquarters) one sergeant major, and one ordnance
sergeant.
No officer above the rank of captain is allowed
except as is appointed to staff.
No NCO above the grade of
first or orderly sergeant is allowed except as is appointed to
staff.
Company Organization: No company, whether field or
self-supporting, shall field more than the following acting officers at a given
event: one captain, one first lieutenant, one second
lieutenant.
No company, whether field or self-supporting
(except the color company) shall field more than the following acting NCOs at
any given event: one first or orderly sergeant, three sergeants, four
corporals.
The color guard shall consist of no more than
six men and shall field no more than the following acting NCOs: one sergeant,
five corporals. It is desirable that the color guard consist of men drawn from
all companies present.
These maximums are based on the
chain of command: If higher ranks are not filled, lower ranks could be more
numerous, providing the maximum total of officers and NCOs is not exceeded
(e.g., a company fielded without a company could have one acting first
lieutenant and two acting second lieutenants).
UNIFORMITY
The general impression being sought is that of a mid- to
late-war infantry battalion on campaign, supplied through the Richmond Depot.
Jackets are to be replicas of the types issued through the Richmond Clothing
Depot (types II and III) as made by Charlie Childs, Shirley Miller, Lynn Bull
and others. Although much variety in the details between individual impressions
can exist, a certain amount of uniformity should be visually prevalent,
particularly within companies.
No women "soldiers" are
allowed.
Minimal hat cords and brass are allowed, and
those only upon approval of the battalion commanding
officer.
Slouch hats are strongly encouraged. Kepis are
tolerated, and forage caps are strongly discouraged.
No
modern eye wear will be tolerated. Contact lenses are strongly recommended.
Otherwise period frames for glasses are required.
Officers:
Recognizing the campaign impression sought and the lower grades of rank held by
battalion officers the following is included for your consideration: Officers
should try to dress down; foppish frocks and braiding are strongly discouraged.
Officers' rank is strongly suggested to be born on the collar and shoulder
straps are discouraged. No sashes are to be worn in the field save for parade
and special, full-dress occasions. Use of common enlisted style jackets,
trousers, and gear is encouraged.
Weapons: All weapons are to be of
infantry types only. All rifles and smoothbore muskets are to be equipped with
bayonets. Two-banded rifles are strongly discouraged but, if necessary, should
be carried only be sergeants. The so called M1863 Remington "Zouave" rifle is
not allowed; neither are repeating or breech-loading weapons.
CAMPS
Each field company is allowed two wall tents or one wall
tent and one fly which will be pitched at the head of the company street.
Officers and staff only shall have wall tents.The battalion quartermaster and/or his representative will be the first to officially arrive on an event camp site and set up the camp. If any individual or group arrives earlier and sets up tents, they may be required to move if the camp has to be changed to accommodate the quartermaster's design.
Surface
authenticity shall be required at all times (i.e., tent flaps should be allowed
to open without exposing anachronisms.
Minimal furniture
shall be placed in company streets. Camp stools, etc., should be placed in tents
when not in use so not as to impede traffic while improving the camp appearance.
Camp tables are limited to designated flies and officers' and staff tents
only.
Weapons shall be properly stacked on the color line
or company street, depending of space restrictions, during dry daylight hours
and properly wrapped and stored in tents during the night or damp
weather.
Fire pits shall be dug only at the ends of
company streets unless specified by battalion staff officers or the event
host. Burning fires shall never be left unattended. All fire pits
will have a nearby full bucket of water and a heavy blanket within immediate
reach and visibility. Other full buckets of water shall be placed within reach
for emergencies as well.
DRILL
The battalion shall use Hardee's Rifle and Light Infantry
tactics only.
A school of the battalion shall be held
annually and representatives from each unit are strongly encouraged to attend.
Battalion drill will be held at least once at each event. All units and
individuals present at an event must participate in said drill or shall be
excluded from the reenactment.
INSPECTIONS
All weapons shall be inspected in respective companies
prior to falling into battalion line. Weapons failing inspection must be
repaired or replaced immediately. Any weapon failing inspection on the field
shall cause the bearer to break ranks and return to camp. In order to pass inspection, a weapon must be either struck bright, or blued. In either case, it must be clean, bright,
and shiny. There will be no rust on the barrel or furniture. The weapon's bore must be clean, with no trace of residue in breech. The lock must be in good working order. The stock must not be cracked or broken. The ramrod must be of proper length. The bayonet, even an original, must be clean and free of rust, even inside of
socket. This also pertains to officers sidearms.
The senior NCO of each company shall be responsible for making certain that the
weapons are cleaned after each day's firing at any given
event.
No individual may consume alcohol prior to fielding
with the battalion.
FORMATIONS
All companies will be already formed and
counted off in the battalion line at the designated formation time. To this end,
companies will gear up and order themselves prior to said time in their
respective company streets and march as individual units to said
formation.
All battalion formations require all members to
have on his person a serviceable canteen filled with water.
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