Part 395

QUARTIER géneral de la tranchée, Fr. Head quarters or principal station of the trenches. That spot is so called in which the commanding officer of the trenches takes post, and to which all reports of progress, &c. are, from time to time, conveyed. When the siege is somewhat advanced, it is usual to fix this quarters, near the outlet of the last parallel which leads to the head of the saps, in the principal line of attack.

QUARTIER d’Assemblee, Fr. The ground on which troops assemble to commence their military routes, or to be otherwise prepared for active operations.

Un QUARTIER bien Retranche, Fr. A quarter that is well entrenched.

Un QUARTIER Enleve, Fr. Quarters taken possession of by force.

Officiers de QUARTIER, Fr. Officers who were upon duty for three months, or during the space of one quarter of a year. This term was used in the old French service, to distinguish such officers from those who did duty throughout the year.

Etre de QUARTIER, Fr. To be upon duty for three months.

QUARTIER Generaux, Fr. General head quarters.

QUARTIER-Maitre, Fr. Quarter-master. This term, with respect to foreign troops, corresponds with maréchal des logis in a French infantry corps.

QUARTIER-Mestre General, Fr. Quarter-master-general. Among other armies the same as marechal général des Logis in the old French service. There is a quarter-master-general in the Turkish service, whose immediate duty is to mark out the ground of encampment, the instant he has received orders to that purpose from the grand vizir, or, in his absence, from the seraskier, who is the general in ordinary, and who is always with the army, whether the grand vizir be present or not.

QUATRE, Fr. Four.

To QUELL. To crush, to subdue. Military force is sometimes resorted to by the civil magistracy to quell riots, &c. In England, the riot act must be read by a justice of the peace, and if the rioters or insurgents do not disperse, the magistrate may order the officer to do his duty, by firing, &c. upon them. When military law has been proclaimed, there is not any necessity for this preliminary caution.

QUERELLES, Fr. quarrels, feuds, &c.

QUERELLE d’Allemand, Fr. An expression used among the French, to signify a drunken quarrel.

QUERRY. See EQUERRY,

QUEUE. From the French, which signifies tail; an appendage that every British soldier is directed to wear in lieu of a club. Regimental tails were ordered to be nine inches long.

QUEUE D’ARONDE, a corruption of Queue d’Yronde. It signifies a piece of wood which is so made that it resembles at each end a swallow’s tail.

QUEUE d’Yronde, ou d’Yrondelle, Fr. See SWALLOW’S TAIL.

QUEUE du Camp, Fr. Literally means the tail or extremity of the camp. It is the line which is drawn in the rear of the camp, and which is directly opposite to the one in front, called the head of the camp.

QUEUE de Paon, Fr. Literally means a peacock’s tail. It is used in architecture, to signify the different compartments or spaces which, in a circular figure, spread gradually from the centre to the circumference.

QUEUE à Queue, Fr. one after another.

Etre à la QUEUE, Fr. To be behind, or in the rear.

Avoir l’ennemi en QUEUE, Fr. To have the enemy close at your heels.

To go in QUEST of an enemy. To send out vedettes, patroles, &c. for the purpose of ascertaining an enemy’s motions.

QUIBERON, or Quibron. A small peninsula of France, in Bretagne, in the bishoprick of Vannes, and to the north of Belleisle; as also a small island called the point of Quiberon, separated from the peninsula by a channel, and the sea next it is called the bay of Quiberon. This spot has been rendered remarkable by the expedition which took place in June, 1795. Upwards of 3000 regular troops (composed mostly of French emigrants that had served abroad, with the ill judged addition of some French prisoners, taken out of English gaols) were landed upon the coast. This force was intended as a co-operation with the insurgents of La Vendee, and was afterwards to have been increased by the descent of an English army, under the command of the earl of Moira; who had, indeed, already been instructed to detach a covering body for that purpose; but the British did not land, having been driven from the French coast by stress of weather. The French emigrants were all sacrificed.

QUICK, with celerity. It forms the cautionary part of a word of command when troops are ordered to move in quick time; as quick-march.

QUICK-Step, or Quick-Time, is 100 steps of 24 inches each, or 200 feet in a minute, and is the step used in all marchings but guard marching and reviews, when the slow march may be used.

QUICKEST-Step, or Quickest-Time, is 120 steps of 24 inches each, or 240 feet in a minute. In this step, all wheelings are performed, as also the doublings up of divisions, and their increase or diminution in front.

QUICK-match, in laboratory-works. See LABORATORY.