Rifle Exercises (Arms Drill)

[fourdeuce]

Aye Sarn't Maj!
I noticed in some of the movements, you mentioned not raising the knee or something like that - is that knee raising stomping that makes British drill so unique (and cool I think) a more modern development?

Thanks!

Mar

[qms]

Gentlemen,

The 'stamping' during food drill (or more accurately, raising the foot 9-12 " and bringing it into position), dates from the interwar period, when, as with most armies in peace-time, more emphasis was placed on ceremonial.
The full-on "Guards Stamp", 'driving' the heel in, seems to become more wide spread in the immediate post WW2 period.

Of course, the British/Commonwealth armies are not the only ones to adopt such exaggerated drill - take the ceremonial drill of the Greeks with, what an old 'Drill pig' I used to know, always referred to as a "cow-kick"; or the various new African states with their swinging their arms to above eye-level (or this, with Russian 'bent' arms) and/or a stamping marching pace.

Any help?

Tom

[oskar2ndchev]

I'll leave the intricacies of British drill to the experts but it's something that I encourage, especially for public events. It really helps separate the truely committed from the cap-busters and powder-burners. Keep it up.

[oskar2ndchev]

Adam.. you know what a stickler I am for details and getting them correct, but if the 'unique' stamping did not happen for period drills..... sorry, its out!

No worries- I'm not broken-hearted over no stamping. I've always thought that it looked a bit stupid.

[qms]

Seph,

To the best of my knowledge, the 'Raising the foot 9 - 12"' first appears in print around the 1930s (about '32 IIRC) and the habit of "Driving the heel in" for that ear shattering 'crash' seems (from more oblique references) to be post WW2.

It is not surprising that there is mention of moving the foot 'without stamping' in New Army training. As a former career serviceman (you were RM weren't you?), you'll know that Drill instructors are always looking for that extra "edge" in drill, to make their charges look just that touch 'sharper' than anyone else. I remember being taught, for example, in the move from positon 2 to position 3 of "Present Arms", as the weapon is turned and brought down into its final position, to throw the left arm out to its full extent to the front at shoulder height before bringing it back to its final position - There's nothing about it in the book, but get a guard doing it together (especially in white gloves) and it looks good.
I suspect that there was a degree of that going on since the change to the 1905 (and later the 1914) manual as the drill lends itself more to stamping - Again, the crunch of boots sounds sharper than simply bringing the feet together.

Am I making sense here?

Tom

[oskar2ndchev]

Funny you should mention unofficial drill steps...when I pulled a temporary duty tour with the Old Guard at Ft. Myer (3rd Infantry- they guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and perform all the military ceremonies in Arlington National Cemetary), new soldiers would have to become "Tomb Qualified", meaning that they had to attain a ceratin standard before they'd be allowed to guard the Tomb.

The first month was spent learning the regular drill manual backwards and fowards. Then, there was all the extra stuff that was unique to the Old Guard...you'll never find it in the drill manual but it was all in a 50 page or so handout that they issued you when you arrived. It had all sorts of arcane drill movements and the way it was explained to me, it was more a product of evolution and copying other militaries' drill steps than any "official efforts" on the part of the command. You could say it was a product of the senior NCOs.

I myself never became Tomb Qualified- doing my regular military job of taking care of the various horses took up all my duty time and after mucking stables every morning, I was in no mood to deal with spit and polish (as veterinary technicians, we had the option of participating in all the ceremonies and the like so long as they didn't interfere with our normal duties).

[rmli]

Concerning drill and the penchant for stamping and slamming things around, that probably explains most of the repairs that I see on the SMLE's. Particularly on the heel and toe of the butt stock.

Phil

[rmli]

That's some pretty rough "fair wear and tear" to cause so many repairs. I've seen very few SMLE's that didn't have repairs of that sort. Be interesting to find the real cause. Blame it on the cadets!!!!

[qms]

I can't help wondering if the repairs are to storage damage before the weapons were sold off.

The repairs always seem to be to the same area of the heel of the butt (occasionally to the toe), but, seldom to a depth of greater than an inch or so.

I suspect that, if the damage was due to impact, the wood would have split on more occasions, probably from the butt screw holes, and that there would have been more evidence on extant examples. If, however, the wood had been damaged in storage, perhaps from damp in the long term store, or from abraision etc., then the decayed or damaged timber could be removed and a patch block inserted allowing the piece to be sold-out to the civilian market (or wherever).

Tom

[rmli]

Sounds reasonable to me. Recently on armsbroker.com I saw an SMLE that had the fore stock just forward of the receiver shattered. Then repaired. I have also seen alot of SMLE's that are referred to as "Kyber Pass". I think it would be a very good idea to stay away from such weapons, no matter how good of a price it has.