(History)of Non Commissioned Officer in the American Army (1775-1865)

The History of the Non-Commissioned Officer

in the American Army (1775-1865

Overview

The origin of the non commissioned officer (NCO ) developed early in the country 's history , actually before the country was a country . In the late 1700s the mean worried about their rights of liberty and property at the hands of the English monarchy . These advocates of `the citizen-soldier ' called on free , adult men of property to respond to their sense of duty , to their sense of political obligation , by serving for a period of time in the militia of

their community . Thus military service , indeed , compulsory service in militias , was deemed appropriate under what has come to be known as the "consent " theory of government (Karsten , 2001

Fisher points to a difficulty in distinguishing between commissioned officers and non commissioned officers . He claims that it wasn 't until the early 1700s that a distinction could be made . He argues that by the Revolutionary War period , great confidence was place on the position of the non-commissioned officer , including the promise of some financial rewards (as high as 80 ) to those who made it through each designated segment of service . However , there was still an undertone of lower status of the NCO at this particular time in American history (Fisher 2001

Unfortunately , not everyone felt the need to serve his country in the face of all enemies . Many founding essayists felt as if abandoning work to join in the military was an irresponsible action for husbands and sons alike . Even though the American Army had the money to pay 75 ,000 men in 1776 , it never got more than 37 ,500 to sign up at any one time (Karsten , 2001 . Thus , the picture of the non-commissioned officer was less of a concerned and responsible citizen solder and more of a lazy unfocused , displaced laborer

Between 1820 and 1850 the organization and training of these men was loose and unorganized . The enrolled men met only once or twice a year for militia muster and drill ' as the law dictated . If one had `the common defense of the nation ' in mind when he came to view such musters it was quickly dispelled as the day turned from muster to picnic to drunken brawl in rather too rapid succession (Karsten , 2001

In addition to these men , the army also had a fair number of women Like most armies , the Continental Army included women and even their children who followed the troops throughout the war , performing tasks that contributed to the soldiers ' welfare (Rees , 1995 . In 1777 Valley Forge had 400 women enlisted in its army . The number continued to rise and some units from areas closer to the coast had far more than average numbers of women (Rees , 1995

Training and Discipline

Black describes training as learning war through war (Black 2002 . Training was generally poor or non-existent because it was very difficult to amass large numbers of people in one spot , and if they were amassed , they were nearly impossible to outfit...