Where is it?

[Sgt_Pepper]

Mr. Sandusky, you're getting a bit cheeky here. Tone down the sarcasm.

[bob 125th nysvi]

Mr. Sandusky, you're getting a bit cheeky here. Tone down the sarcasm.

Sargent!

(And you're not the first NCO to say that.)

[OVI]

It has been my experience and observation that within typical reenactment units, both companies and battalions, only a relative few officers and NCOs really know their jobs and apply themselves as to the situation.
How many companies at reenactments are cobbed together from the 6 or 7 guys from each unit that showed up? You are lucky to find a good 1st Sgt and a company officer who know their stuff and can function on the same page. How many times do these ad-hoc companies of 12-15 men even have a good 2nd Sgt, which is vital if you are doing battalion work? Most of the time some less than willing short Corporal gets the job and is clueless?
This situation is what compells the officer to take on all the roles instead of focusing on the commands of the Colonel or wing commanders.

Kent Dorr
"Devils Own Mess"

[Kevin O'Beirne]

I'm glad people like Guy finally had the balls to come up and post something worth while.

Realism is what should drive everyone in this hobby.

Realism as defined by who, or what? What's "real" or "authentic" to one person is dumb, frivilous, and a waste of time to others. Many folks have said for years, "It's only a hobby", and other excuses. Both you and Guy have, on occasion, taken the opposite position from much of the "authentic" reenactor community about "how far" to take the hobby.

Could many elements of the hobby try harder for a more-accurate portrayal? Absolutely. However, telling them to make those changes is a bit akin to peeing into the wind, and it's certainly not an original or revolutionary thought to opine that reenactors should try to be "more authentic" than they do.

E-gads, this has all the makings of another "us vs. them" thread. If you don't like what you see at the events you attend, then try going to different events until you find something you like and find to be consisitent with your own reenacting style.

"There's two kinds of events: Those I attend, and those I don't." - Joe Smotherman, reenactor-philosopher

[bob 125th nysvi]

It has been my experience and observation that within typical reenactment units, both companies and battalions, only a relative few officers and NCOs really know their jobs and apply themselves as to the situation.
How many companies at reenactments are cobbed together from the 6 or 7 guys from each unit that showed up? You are lucky to find a good 1st Sgt and a company officer who know their stuff and can function on the same page. How many times do these ad-hoc companies of 12-15 men even have a good 2nd Sgt, which is vital if you are doing battalion work? Most of the time some less than willing short Corporal gets the job and is clueless?
This situation is what compels the officer to take on all the roles instead of focusing on the commands of the Colonel or wing commanders.

Kent Dorr
"Devil's Own Mess"

We should be drilling on Saturday morning instead of going to the sutler to whip that 'company' into shape.

But I think we are coming around again and again to the same problem that bedevils our portrayals no matter how we classify ourselves.

Too many chiefs for too few men and too little time working together.

And even if someone is willing to "step down" in order to get the right force ratios, how do we know we have the right guy stepping down and we're leaving the right guy in command?

[vamick]

Guy,
A few years ago I attended a reenactment that my old unit was at as a spectator. I watched the battle and was horrified at what I saw. Men that smiled when they fired, or fired straight into the air like an AAA gunner, walked erect like you stated, rested on their elbows watching the rest of the battle after taking a hit, and all around shenanigans.

GAWD YES! some of my pet peaves..jeysus I know all that safety stuff but really guys! I've seen foilks taking shots at flying ducks er some such at 50 +++ yards!..my fav is tha 'amblin charge'..no need to get ina hurry men!..I know thos two packs a day slow a feller down!..and after all we're 50 + years old...then theres tha stand in line blastin away at 20 yards...kinda like some of tha movie "Gettysburg" its enuf to make ya cringe. If I were that director my standard line would have been 'CUT'!!..'we' did much better playin war as kids!

[8thILCavalry]

I have watched a few reenactments myself not many because I am mostly in them but as a spectator I have noticed it is very boring watching them. I say that some of our battles are just way to long for the damage it should be causing. I know we get out there and we want to shoot as many rounds we can and not die because its boring just laying there, So I say we need more battles during the day and then we can show the casuality and the realism of a battle, by having soldiers taking hits left and right and many wounded screaming and crawling would show a better battle. And having more acting from everyone would be an important part of the battle because they would not just be out there to go BANG with there guns.

I myself when I get shot in front of a crowd I find it hard to not breath, so I have to act like I am wounded so it is time to start Hamming it up.
I also when in line firing I act scared silly.

I have just recently been promoted to Sgt. and my duty is to teach new and old troopers so I will mention this good point to the men on ACTING and Hamming it up in the mist of battle.

[bill watson]

Bob S:
"Never stumbled or tripped or had to step over a casualty or walk around a tree or bush have you?

Or maybe had some guys walk faster than others or have one unit break run or disappear in a cloud of smoke either.

Hmmmm .... nice neat little war you're fighting there, can I come over and play?

We don't know what the officers actually said in the heat of the battle and if you think absolutely every command ever given was by the book, you've never been in a real furball."
------------------------
You're setting up a straw man. What I said was it's the noncommissioned officer's job to keep the alignment where it should be, if it matters. So when guys walk faster, the noncoms slow them down. Not the officer, who should be looking to make sure the company is actually going where it needs to go. What could possibly be wrong with that? Is it that important that you not be made aware of alternatives to your paradigm? Or are we all to be limited by your own experiences? Kautz didn't write all this out to amuse himself, he wrote it out because it's how things get effectively done.

You've read in this thread what guys do when officers fail to exercise actual leadership and are cavalier toward the morale and physical wellbeing of their men. I'm showing you what leadership should look like. Don't you feel bad when your company moves out late on "forward, march" because your company officer was busy managing the rank and file when he should have been listening for what to do next? I do. If you're going to be an officer, why not do it right? It's actually less work than doing it wrong. Ask my noncoms.

[Kevin O'Beirne]

But again I think this type of issue revolves around leadership.

Welcome to the biggest problem in reenacting. Somone oughtta write some essays on that topic...

Seriously, it takes a very large amount of knowledge to portray a private somewhat correctly per the period, and the higher one goes in rank the greater the knowledge level and expectations on you by those in subordinate positions. Sadly, as I see it, few who portray even commissioned officers are competant in their role.

An officer should get in front of the soldiers and yell "On the double quick, forward!" and then take off with the colors and the men following.

Actually, a commissioned officer impressionist should be in the location where he's supposed to be when in line. This way, his men know where he is, and so do his superior and subordinate officers. The idea that all officers are supposed to be "out front" (in reenacting and the movies, often with their sword ridiculously pointing the way toward the enemy, as if the men cannot figure out from which direction the bullets are supposedly coming) is bunk. That I know, only the field officers and certain men of the color party should be out front during a battalion's advance.

Oh yeah and shoot the musicians. About all they do is get in the way and give away your position.

That's a darned unfortunate statement, reflecting that Bob attends events where officer impressionists apparently fail to understand the proper uses of field music and their role during a battle. Buglers are used for directing troop movements. Field musicians and bandsmen go to the rear, usually to assist the medical staff with collecting the casualties. Needless to say, it was probably quite rare that field music stood behind the lines playing loudly during a battle in the Civil War. That said, music in the Civil War played a crucial role that I believe is rarely appreciated by reenactors, hence statements like the above quote.

[Mint Julep]

Firing of blanks is?

This line of thought isn't valid. We fire blanks because we don't want to really kill each other.

I guess next you'll ask if I walked to the event site or rode in my car.

But I see no reason for officers to be ordering "hits" to the rank and file. The participants should be informed prior to the battle how many dead and wounded their company is expected to suffer during the battle and ask if anyone wants to claim one of those roles. Everyone looks around and knows who is doing what. Is this hard?

The higher quality events have addressed this issue with fate cards for each participant. Each man gets his card and learns his fate and what he should expect. We don't have to have officers yelling "Let's take some hits here, okay?" That kind of stuff really wipes a booger on my window to authenticity.