Post by bmoses on Dec 22, 2007 15:42:51 GMT -5
A Glossary was suggested by Gregg Dimmick to post some of the more interesting terminology from the Alamo period of use to researchers, translators and writers. Please recommend any updates or changes to the list and I will see that they are added.
Words marked (Sp.) are military terms in Spanish that have been found specifically in accounts, returns, and reports pertaining to the Mexican Army during the period from the Texas Revolution to the Mexican-American War.
A
Abatis: a defensive obstacle formed by felled trees with sharpened branches facing the enemy.
Abrazadera: (Sp.) retaining band of a firearm barrel (e.g., segunda abrazadera del fusil: center band of a musket).
Acequia: (Sp.) (irrigation ditch) is a community operated waterway used in Spain and the American Southwest for irrigation. Missionaries and Indians built seven main hand dug gravity-flow ditches, five dams, and an aqueduct in order to distribute water from the San Antonio River over a 15-mile network that covered and irrigate 3,500 acres of land. The San Antonio River acequia system was an elaborate and complex system of managing the water.
Acequias Secundarias (Menores): (Sp.) lateral ditches dug perpendicular to the main acequia channel.
Achuela (Acuila): (Sp.) hatchet.
Acicate: (Sp.) large-rowelled Moorish spur; a goad.
Ación, or Ación de Estribo: (Sp.) stirrup leather.
Adarga: (Sp.) a shield was made of three thicknesses of bullhide stitched together and designed to deflect lance thrusts or arrows.
Adarme: (Sp.) unit of measurement of musket balls. One adarme=approximately 1/16 of an ounce. Andrade listed musket balls of 17 and 19 adarmes and rifle balls of 9 adarmes.
Aderezos: (Sp.) horse equipments.
Adobe: (Sp.) Sun dried, unburned brick of clay and straw.
Alamares: (Sp.) embroidered lace on a coat.
Alameda: (Sp.) a grove of cottonwood trees.
Alcalde: (Sp.) mayor of a town.
Anilla: (Sp.) scabbard ring
Arma Blanca: (Sp.) edged (steel) weapon.
Armas de Chispa: (Sp.) flintlocks: term often used in returns of weaponry.
Arriero: (Sp.) mule driver.
Artilleria de la Campaña: (Sp.) field artillery.
Asta: (Sp.) flagstaff or lance shaft.
Atacador: (Sp.) head of a ramrod.
B
Baker Rifle: originally a flintlock rifle, the Baker rifle was introduced in 1802 as a British military firearm. Towards the end of its popularity, it was often converted to utilize percussion caps. This rifled .61 caliber military long arm was adopted for use by the Mexican Army in limited numbers for cazadores.
Bala: (Sp.) musket ball; projectile.
Bala Rasa: (Sp.) solid-shot cannon ball.
Balas de Metralla: (Sp.) grapeshot.
Bandera: (Sp.) flag; colors; banner.
Bandera de Guia: (Sp.) guidon.
Banderola: pennant; signal flag; pennon.
Banderola de Lanza: (Sp.) lance pennon.
Banderín: (Sp.) camp color.
Banquette: a step made on the rampart near the parapet, for troops to stand upon in order to fire over the parapet.
Baqueta: (Sp.) ramrod.
Barbette: (formerly) a mound of earth inside a fort from which heavy gun can be fired over the parapet. A cannon is considered to be "en barbette" when firing directly over the parapet without embrasure.
Barbiquejo: (Sp.) chin strap of a shako or helmet.
Barra(s) : (Sp.) stripe, stripes (barras can also mean turnbacks on a coat).
Batallón: (Sp.) Mexican infantry units were organized on a battalion level since 1823. A Mexican battalion consisted of eight companies, one each of granaderos and cazadores, with six fusilero companies. Prior to 1833, Mexican battalions were numbered, but from 1833-1839, they were named in honor of the heroes of the War for Independence. In 1839 the battalions were merged to form numerical regiments of the line (línea).
Bateria Atonerada: (Sp.) an embrasured battery.
Bateria Caballero: (Sp.) cavalier battery, a high battery commanding a large area. At the Alamo, the battery in the church was considered to be the Bateria Caballero and commanded large portions of the battelfield to the northeast, east, and southeast.
Battery: a gun-emplacement.
Bayoneta: (Sp.) bayonet.
Bayoneta Calada: (Sp.) fixed bayonet.
Beeves: cattle.
"Blue Whistlers": (slang) buckshot; sometimes specified as 00 buckshot.
Bocado: (Sp.) bit.
Bocado del Freno: (Sp.) curb bit.
Bocamangas: (Sp.) cuffs.
Bolsa: (Sp.) saddle bag.
Balsa de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cartridge pouch.
Bordado (or Bordada): (Sp.) lace on a uniform.
Botafuego: (Sp.) linstock; also called lanzafuego.
Botas Fuertes: (Sp.) high boots; jack boots.
Bote de Metralla: (Sp.) cannister (artillery).
Botín, Botines: (Sp.) boot, boots; half-boots; gaiters.
Botón; Botones: (Sp.) button(s).
Breastwork: a defensive work of moderate height, hastily constructed for the protection of troops.
Bricole: rope or strap used for manhandeling a cannon.
Brida: (Sp.) bridle.
Brown Bess: nickname applied to the Long Land Pattern and Short Land Pattern British muskets. Both used a No.11 bore barrel (0.76-inch caliber) and fired a No. 14 bore ball (0.71). The length of the barrel was 42 inches. The East India Pattern model had a similar caliber but a 39-inch barrel and metal ramrod. This India Pattern model was shipped in-mass to Mexico in 1826 and was the main firearm of the Mexican infantry. The weapon weighed nine pounds, eleven ounces and came with a seventeen inch socket bayonet that itself weighed one pound. In essence, it was a cheaply made version of the famous "Brown Bess."
C
Cabeza de Pesebre: (Sp.) halter.
Cacerina: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Cáchas: (Sp.) hilt of a knife or any tool.
Cacle: (Sp.) sandals.
Caja: (Sp.) gun stock.
Caja de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Caja de Guerra: (Sp.) drum.
Caja de Parque: (Sp.) Ammunition box; cartridge box.
Cajones de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cases of cartridges.
Calzoneras: (Sp.) pants with the outer seams open from about the thigh or knee down; seams often decorated with buttons, conchos, embroidery, etc. Frequently worn by vaqueros, irregular cavalry, etc.
Calzones: (Sp.) breeches.
Caliber: (1) the diameter of the bore of a gun; (2) diameter of a projectile; (3) unit of measurement used to express the length of the bore of a gun or mortar. (Number of calibers was found by dividing the length of the bore by the diameter. A gun having a 40-foot bore in length and 12 inches in diameter is said to be 40 calibers long).
Calzones Cortos: (Sp.) knee breeches.
Camino: (Sp.) road.
Camisa: (Sp.) shirt.
Campanario: (Sp.) bell tower.
Campo/Campamento: (Sp.) encampment.
Campo Santo: [Sp.] a Spanish colonial-period Catholic church cemetery that is usually located in front, and occasionally also along the sides, of a church.
Caña: (Sp.) shaft of a ramrod.
Canister Shot: a kind of case shot for close-range artillery fire, consisting of a large number of bullets in a light case (usually made of sheet tin) fitting the gun's bore, and bursting by the force of the firing charge.
Cañon: (Sp.) cannon; any type of gun barrel (cañon de hierro: iron cannon; cañon de bronce: bronze cannon).
Cantonera: (Sp.) butt-plate of a firearm.
Capa: (Sp.) cloak, cape, or mantle.
Capona de Metal: (Sp.) metal shoulder strap or epaulet.
Capote: (Sp.) great coat; overcoat; often with an attached hood; also called a "blanket coat."
Carabina: (Sp.) carbine; short cavalry musket.
Carbine: short cavalry musket.
Carreta: (Sp.) a primitive wooden cart, or wheelbarrow, usually pulled by a pair of oxen.
Carriage: wooden framework supporting a cannon-barrel.
Carrillera: (Sp.) chinstrap of a helmet or shako.
Cartuchero: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Cartucho: (Sp.) cartridge.
Casa: (Sp.) house.
Casaca: (Sp.) coat; dress coat.
Casaca Corta: (Sp.) short, close-fitting coat or jacket. The term is often used as the English "coatee" or a tailcoat with short tails. This is the style of military coats in the 1830's for the most part.
Casaca de Paño: (Sp.) cloth coat.
Casco: (Sp.) cavalry helmet.
Cavyyard: colloquialism of nineteenth–century Texas. It started with the Spanish “caballada,” which meant a group of mules or saddle horses (later the northern cowboys called it a “remuda”). In Texas and the Southwest in the early nineteenth century, “caballada” was corrupted into “cavallado” or “caviarde,” then by the 1850s it was “cavyyard” or simply, “cavvie yard.” It was spelled several ways in the period.
Cazadores: (light infantry) Cazadores used light infantry muskets known as Tercerlos (which were lighter and of smaller caliber than the standard musket), the India Pattern Sergeants Carbine, and Baker rifles. Cazadores received more marksmanship training so they might fight as skirmishers and light infantry. Cazadore's wore black belts.
Cazoleta: (Sp.) fire pan of a flintlock.
Chalán: (Sp.) canoe or crude raft.
Chaleco: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Chaqueta: (Sp.) jacket.
Chaqueta de Brin: (Sp.) sailcloth (or canvas) jacket.
Charreterea: (Sp.) shoulder strap; epaulet.
Charretera Mocha: (Sp.) shoulder knot.
Chupa: jacket: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Chupin: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Cimera: (Sp.) crest of a cavalry helmet.
Cincho: (Sp.) belt; sash [?].
Cinta: (Sp.) ribbon tied around a flagstaff below the finial.
Cinturon: (Sp.) baldric; shoulder strap for supporting sword; equivalent to porta-sable.
Clarín: (Sp.) bugle.
Clavado: (Sp.) spiked.
Cohete de la Congreve: (Sp.) Congreve rocket.
Cola de Caballo: (Sp.) horse-tail decoration on a cavalry helmet
Collarín: (Sp.) collar (can mean a black collar edged in white).
Commissariat: the supply wing of an army.
Compuerta: (Sp.) a sluice or gate for restraining, deviating, or otherwise regulating the flow of water in the acequia system. A compuerta can be opened (to let the water in) or closed (to stop the flow).
Con Grado de: (Sp.) brevet, a mark of honorary rank (e.g.: teniente con grado de capitán: lieutenant with brevet rank of captain).
Convento: (Sp.) a building used by the community of priests, religious brothers or religious sisters, in the Roman Catholic Church. At Mission San Antonio de Valero, the Long Barracks once formed the western portion of the convento that wrapped around the four sides of what is today called the Convento (or Well) Courtyard. After the military occupation of the Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1803, the mission's convent was utilized as a troop barracks and later as a hospital that served both the miltary and civilian populations.
Coracero: (Sp.) cuirassier.
Coraza: (Sp.) cuirass.
Corbata: (Sp.) cravat; neck cloth.
Corbatín: (Sp.) stock.
Corneta: (Sp.) bugle.
Correa: [Sp.] belt or shoulder sling for a sword or bayonette.
Correllitas: [Sp.] a variant spelling of "correitas" or "correyitas," which Santamaria, Diccionario de Mejicanismos, gives as a name applied to the old presidial soldiers who used to adorn their leather-coated uniforms with leather fringes, akin to charro or western wear today. "Correita" is simply a diminutive form of "correa," a strip of leather.
Crucetta: (Sp.) iron crosspiece on the spearhead of a lance.
Cuartilla: [Sp.] Small copper coin equal in value to one-quarter of a real.
Cuchara para Piezas de Artilleria: [Sp.] powder scope for loading cannon, mounted on a shaft.
Cuchíllo de Mónte: [Sp.] a plug bayonette used in escopetas, also used as a knife.
Cuello: (Sp.) collar.
Cuera: (Sp.) leather jacket.
Culatazos: (Sp.) blows with the butt of a musket or rifle; also, musket or rifle recoil.
Culebrinas: (Sp.) culverins.
Cureña: (Sp.) cannon carriage.
D
Desague: (Sp.) a drainage ditch branching off of an acequia channel and returning water into the river or creek.
Disparador: (Sp.) trigger.
Dispensa: (Sp.) latrine.
Dragona: (Sp.) sword knot; shoulder knot.
Dragónes: (Sp.) dragoons; medium cavalry, originally mounted infantry.
E
Ejido: an area of farmland held in communal ownership but divided into separate family plots.
Embrasures: a small opening in a wall through which weapons may be fired. Windows and arrow or rifle loops are usually wider on the inside. Embrasures for cannons are generally wider on the outside. This angled opening allows for greater angles of fire.
Emplacement: military installation consisting of a prepared position for siting a weapon.
Empuñadura: (Sp.) hilt of a sword or saber.
Enfilade: fire from a flank, raking the entire length of a formation.
Epaulement: (retaining wall) an elevation constructed in order to protect troops and batteries from direct fire of the enemy. Usually composed of gabions filled with earth, or sandbags. In permanent fortifications, considered to be the low stone wall constructed at the top of the rampart.
Escarapela: (Sp.) cockade.
Escobillion: (Sp.) cannon sponge on a shaft.
Escopeta: (Sp.) 1) large-caliber, smoothbore weapon with a wooden shoulder stock and miquelet lock, either with a long or a short barrel; sometimes with a flared muzzle; 2) a shotgun; 3) a gun.
Escopeta de dos Cañones: (Sp.) double-barreled shotgun.
Espada: (Sp.) sword.
Espada Ancha: (Sp.) broadsword.
Espada de Caballería: (Sp.) cavalry sword.
Espada de Infantería: (Sp.) infantry sword.
Espada para Músicos: (Sp.) musician's sword.
Espaldón: (Sp.) military barricade: the key to the Sánchez-Navarro map of the Alamo refers to the Texan gun emplacement within the compound and just north of the main gate as "Espaldón." The espaldón was a barrier made of bags, twigs, baskets, and probably earthworks.
Espoleta: fuse for a shell.
Espuela: (Sp.) spur.
Estado: (Sp.) return or statement of men, arms, clothing, etc.
Estado Militar: (Sp.) list or register of military units and their officers.
Estandarte: (Sp.) standard; cavalry standard.
Estopin: (Sp.) artillery primer.
Estribos: (Sp.) stirrups.
Estuche: (Sp.) powder flask (also Frasco).
F
Faldón: (Sp.) skirt of a coat; coattail.
Fanega: (Sp.) grain measure equal to about 1.5 bushels.
Fanion: (Sp.) marker flag.
Forrajera: (Sp.) forrage ladder.
Forro: (Sp.) lining of clothing; also, the turnback of a lined coat.
Fortín: (Sp.) fort; fortlet; redoubt; battery.
Fosse (Foss): (1) A ditch, moat, canal or pit, which were used to impede the advance of an enemy force. (2) The ditch or a set of ditches which surrounded a fortification, the excavated soil being used to construct the vallum or rampart.
Fragua de Campaña: (Sp.) field forge.
Franja: (Sp.) fringe; border; braid.
Frasco: (Sp.) powder flask (also Estuche).
Frazada: (Sp.) blanket.
Funda de Morrion: (Sp.) Helmet or shako cover.
Funda de Schaco: (Sp.) shako cover.
Fusil: (Sp.) musket.
Fusil Chico: (Sp.) cadet's musket.
Fusil Grande: (Sp.) full-size musket.
Fusil Recortado: (Sp.) cut-down (sawed-off) musket.
Fusilero: (Sp.) fusileer; member of a battalion company.
G
Gafete: (Sp.) clasp; hook-and-eye fastening.
Galon: (Sp.) binding; galloon; lace; stripe on uniform.
Galoncito Estrecho: (Sp.) narrow binding (i.e., on a collar).
Gambeto: (Sp.) quilted or lined coat.
Gamuza: (Sp.) unfinished leather; buckskin.
Garzota: (Sp.) plume: helmet crest.
Gastadores: (Sp.) pioneers; sometimes used more generally to connote troops engaged in engineering work. By decree of September 1, 1824, each regimental headquarters had eight gastadores attached to it.
Glacis: 1) smooth stone incline used as a defense; 2) on a fort the sloped earthwork out from the covered way to provide for grazing fire from the fort’s main walls.
Golpes: (Sp.) pocket flaps.
Gorra: (Sp.) cap.
Gorra Cilíndrica de piel de oso: (Sp.) cylindrical bearskin hat (i.e., busby) as worn by some light cavalry troops.
Gorra de Cuartel: (Sp.) barracks (or garrison) cap.
Gorra de Granadero: (Sp.) bearskin grenadier cap.
Gorra de Pelo: (Sp.) fur grenadier’s cap.
Granada: (Sp.) grenade; grenade insignia; artillery shell (e.g., granada de obus: howitzer shell).
Granadera: (Sp.) grenadier's pouch.
Granadero: (Sp.) (heavy infantry) grenadier; member of a flank company and armed with hand grenades.
Granadero a Caballo: (Sp.) horse grenadier.
Grandes Guardias: (Sp.) The main guard to a unit that is in camp. Outside of the main guard would be the sentinels.
Grapeshot: a cluster of lead balls, each about one inch in diameter, that was wrapped together in a cloth and fired from a cannon like a giant shotgun blast.
Guarnicion: (Sp.) sword or saber guard.
Guía: (Sp.) guide; or, a type of military list.
Guión: (Sp.) guidon.
H
Hacha de Armas: (Sp.) military hatchet or axe.
Haversack: fabric bag used for carrying food, etc.
Headright: land grants made to immigrants as inducements to settle in Texas.
Hebilla: (Sp.) buckle; clasp.
Hoja de Espada: (Sp.) sword blade.
Hombreras: (Sp.) shoulder straps; shoulder scales; metal epaulettes.
Howitzer: a short cannon used to fire projectiles at high trajectories.
Huaraches (or Guaraches): (Sp.) leather sandals.
I
Infantería: (Sp.) infantry.
Infantería Ligera: (Sp.) light infantry.
Instrumentos de Zapa: (Sp.) entrenching tools.
J
Jacal: [Sp.] a crude hut comprised of pole and thatch construction. Wooden posts were set into a trench, coated with adobe and plaster, and covered with gabled roofs or thatch.
Jinete: (Sp.) trooper; cavalryman; horseman.
K
Knapsack: infantry pack.
Contributors:
Gregg Dimmick
Phil Graf
Tom Kailbourn
Bruce Moses
Words marked (Sp.) are military terms in Spanish that have been found specifically in accounts, returns, and reports pertaining to the Mexican Army during the period from the Texas Revolution to the Mexican-American War.
A
Abatis: a defensive obstacle formed by felled trees with sharpened branches facing the enemy.
Abrazadera: (Sp.) retaining band of a firearm barrel (e.g., segunda abrazadera del fusil: center band of a musket).
Acequia: (Sp.) (irrigation ditch) is a community operated waterway used in Spain and the American Southwest for irrigation. Missionaries and Indians built seven main hand dug gravity-flow ditches, five dams, and an aqueduct in order to distribute water from the San Antonio River over a 15-mile network that covered and irrigate 3,500 acres of land. The San Antonio River acequia system was an elaborate and complex system of managing the water.
Acequias Secundarias (Menores): (Sp.) lateral ditches dug perpendicular to the main acequia channel.
Achuela (Acuila): (Sp.) hatchet.
Acicate: (Sp.) large-rowelled Moorish spur; a goad.
Ación, or Ación de Estribo: (Sp.) stirrup leather.
Adarga: (Sp.) a shield was made of three thicknesses of bullhide stitched together and designed to deflect lance thrusts or arrows.
Adarme: (Sp.) unit of measurement of musket balls. One adarme=approximately 1/16 of an ounce. Andrade listed musket balls of 17 and 19 adarmes and rifle balls of 9 adarmes.
Aderezos: (Sp.) horse equipments.
Adobe: (Sp.) Sun dried, unburned brick of clay and straw.
Alamares: (Sp.) embroidered lace on a coat.
Alameda: (Sp.) a grove of cottonwood trees.
Alcalde: (Sp.) mayor of a town.
Anilla: (Sp.) scabbard ring
Arma Blanca: (Sp.) edged (steel) weapon.
Armas de Chispa: (Sp.) flintlocks: term often used in returns of weaponry.
Arriero: (Sp.) mule driver.
Artilleria de la Campaña: (Sp.) field artillery.
Asta: (Sp.) flagstaff or lance shaft.
Atacador: (Sp.) head of a ramrod.
B
Baker Rifle: originally a flintlock rifle, the Baker rifle was introduced in 1802 as a British military firearm. Towards the end of its popularity, it was often converted to utilize percussion caps. This rifled .61 caliber military long arm was adopted for use by the Mexican Army in limited numbers for cazadores.
Bala: (Sp.) musket ball; projectile.
Bala Rasa: (Sp.) solid-shot cannon ball.
Balas de Metralla: (Sp.) grapeshot.
Bandera: (Sp.) flag; colors; banner.
Bandera de Guia: (Sp.) guidon.
Banderola: pennant; signal flag; pennon.
Banderola de Lanza: (Sp.) lance pennon.
Banderín: (Sp.) camp color.
Banquette: a step made on the rampart near the parapet, for troops to stand upon in order to fire over the parapet.
Baqueta: (Sp.) ramrod.
Barbette: (formerly) a mound of earth inside a fort from which heavy gun can be fired over the parapet. A cannon is considered to be "en barbette" when firing directly over the parapet without embrasure.
Barbiquejo: (Sp.) chin strap of a shako or helmet.
Barra(s) : (Sp.) stripe, stripes (barras can also mean turnbacks on a coat).
Batallón: (Sp.) Mexican infantry units were organized on a battalion level since 1823. A Mexican battalion consisted of eight companies, one each of granaderos and cazadores, with six fusilero companies. Prior to 1833, Mexican battalions were numbered, but from 1833-1839, they were named in honor of the heroes of the War for Independence. In 1839 the battalions were merged to form numerical regiments of the line (línea).
Bateria Atonerada: (Sp.) an embrasured battery.
Bateria Caballero: (Sp.) cavalier battery, a high battery commanding a large area. At the Alamo, the battery in the church was considered to be the Bateria Caballero and commanded large portions of the battelfield to the northeast, east, and southeast.
Battery: a gun-emplacement.
Bayoneta: (Sp.) bayonet.
Bayoneta Calada: (Sp.) fixed bayonet.
Beeves: cattle.
"Blue Whistlers": (slang) buckshot; sometimes specified as 00 buckshot.
Bocado: (Sp.) bit.
Bocado del Freno: (Sp.) curb bit.
Bocamangas: (Sp.) cuffs.
Bolsa: (Sp.) saddle bag.
Balsa de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cartridge pouch.
Bordado (or Bordada): (Sp.) lace on a uniform.
Botafuego: (Sp.) linstock; also called lanzafuego.
Botas Fuertes: (Sp.) high boots; jack boots.
Bote de Metralla: (Sp.) cannister (artillery).
Botín, Botines: (Sp.) boot, boots; half-boots; gaiters.
Botón; Botones: (Sp.) button(s).
Breastwork: a defensive work of moderate height, hastily constructed for the protection of troops.
Bricole: rope or strap used for manhandeling a cannon.
Brida: (Sp.) bridle.
Brown Bess: nickname applied to the Long Land Pattern and Short Land Pattern British muskets. Both used a No.11 bore barrel (0.76-inch caliber) and fired a No. 14 bore ball (0.71). The length of the barrel was 42 inches. The East India Pattern model had a similar caliber but a 39-inch barrel and metal ramrod. This India Pattern model was shipped in-mass to Mexico in 1826 and was the main firearm of the Mexican infantry. The weapon weighed nine pounds, eleven ounces and came with a seventeen inch socket bayonet that itself weighed one pound. In essence, it was a cheaply made version of the famous "Brown Bess."
C
Cabeza de Pesebre: (Sp.) halter.
Cacerina: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Cáchas: (Sp.) hilt of a knife or any tool.
Cacle: (Sp.) sandals.
Caja: (Sp.) gun stock.
Caja de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Caja de Guerra: (Sp.) drum.
Caja de Parque: (Sp.) Ammunition box; cartridge box.
Cajones de Cartuchos: (Sp.) cases of cartridges.
Calzoneras: (Sp.) pants with the outer seams open from about the thigh or knee down; seams often decorated with buttons, conchos, embroidery, etc. Frequently worn by vaqueros, irregular cavalry, etc.
Calzones: (Sp.) breeches.
Caliber: (1) the diameter of the bore of a gun; (2) diameter of a projectile; (3) unit of measurement used to express the length of the bore of a gun or mortar. (Number of calibers was found by dividing the length of the bore by the diameter. A gun having a 40-foot bore in length and 12 inches in diameter is said to be 40 calibers long).
Calzones Cortos: (Sp.) knee breeches.
Camino: (Sp.) road.
Camisa: (Sp.) shirt.
Campanario: (Sp.) bell tower.
Campo/Campamento: (Sp.) encampment.
Campo Santo: [Sp.] a Spanish colonial-period Catholic church cemetery that is usually located in front, and occasionally also along the sides, of a church.
Caña: (Sp.) shaft of a ramrod.
Canister Shot: a kind of case shot for close-range artillery fire, consisting of a large number of bullets in a light case (usually made of sheet tin) fitting the gun's bore, and bursting by the force of the firing charge.
Cañon: (Sp.) cannon; any type of gun barrel (cañon de hierro: iron cannon; cañon de bronce: bronze cannon).
Cantonera: (Sp.) butt-plate of a firearm.
Capa: (Sp.) cloak, cape, or mantle.
Capona de Metal: (Sp.) metal shoulder strap or epaulet.
Capote: (Sp.) great coat; overcoat; often with an attached hood; also called a "blanket coat."
Carabina: (Sp.) carbine; short cavalry musket.
Carbine: short cavalry musket.
Carreta: (Sp.) a primitive wooden cart, or wheelbarrow, usually pulled by a pair of oxen.
Carriage: wooden framework supporting a cannon-barrel.
Carrillera: (Sp.) chinstrap of a helmet or shako.
Cartuchero: (Sp.) cartridge box.
Cartucho: (Sp.) cartridge.
Casa: (Sp.) house.
Casaca: (Sp.) coat; dress coat.
Casaca Corta: (Sp.) short, close-fitting coat or jacket. The term is often used as the English "coatee" or a tailcoat with short tails. This is the style of military coats in the 1830's for the most part.
Casaca de Paño: (Sp.) cloth coat.
Casco: (Sp.) cavalry helmet.
Cavyyard: colloquialism of nineteenth–century Texas. It started with the Spanish “caballada,” which meant a group of mules or saddle horses (later the northern cowboys called it a “remuda”). In Texas and the Southwest in the early nineteenth century, “caballada” was corrupted into “cavallado” or “caviarde,” then by the 1850s it was “cavyyard” or simply, “cavvie yard.” It was spelled several ways in the period.
Cazadores: (light infantry) Cazadores used light infantry muskets known as Tercerlos (which were lighter and of smaller caliber than the standard musket), the India Pattern Sergeants Carbine, and Baker rifles. Cazadores received more marksmanship training so they might fight as skirmishers and light infantry. Cazadore's wore black belts.
Cazoleta: (Sp.) fire pan of a flintlock.
Chalán: (Sp.) canoe or crude raft.
Chaleco: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Chaqueta: (Sp.) jacket.
Chaqueta de Brin: (Sp.) sailcloth (or canvas) jacket.
Charreterea: (Sp.) shoulder strap; epaulet.
Charretera Mocha: (Sp.) shoulder knot.
Chupa: jacket: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Chupin: (Sp.) waistcoat.
Cimera: (Sp.) crest of a cavalry helmet.
Cincho: (Sp.) belt; sash [?].
Cinta: (Sp.) ribbon tied around a flagstaff below the finial.
Cinturon: (Sp.) baldric; shoulder strap for supporting sword; equivalent to porta-sable.
Clarín: (Sp.) bugle.
Clavado: (Sp.) spiked.
Cohete de la Congreve: (Sp.) Congreve rocket.
Cola de Caballo: (Sp.) horse-tail decoration on a cavalry helmet
Collarín: (Sp.) collar (can mean a black collar edged in white).
Commissariat: the supply wing of an army.
Compuerta: (Sp.) a sluice or gate for restraining, deviating, or otherwise regulating the flow of water in the acequia system. A compuerta can be opened (to let the water in) or closed (to stop the flow).
Con Grado de: (Sp.) brevet, a mark of honorary rank (e.g.: teniente con grado de capitán: lieutenant with brevet rank of captain).
Convento: (Sp.) a building used by the community of priests, religious brothers or religious sisters, in the Roman Catholic Church. At Mission San Antonio de Valero, the Long Barracks once formed the western portion of the convento that wrapped around the four sides of what is today called the Convento (or Well) Courtyard. After the military occupation of the Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1803, the mission's convent was utilized as a troop barracks and later as a hospital that served both the miltary and civilian populations.
Coracero: (Sp.) cuirassier.
Coraza: (Sp.) cuirass.
Corbata: (Sp.) cravat; neck cloth.
Corbatín: (Sp.) stock.
Corneta: (Sp.) bugle.
Correa: [Sp.] belt or shoulder sling for a sword or bayonette.
Correllitas: [Sp.] a variant spelling of "correitas" or "correyitas," which Santamaria, Diccionario de Mejicanismos, gives as a name applied to the old presidial soldiers who used to adorn their leather-coated uniforms with leather fringes, akin to charro or western wear today. "Correita" is simply a diminutive form of "correa," a strip of leather.
Crucetta: (Sp.) iron crosspiece on the spearhead of a lance.
Cuartilla: [Sp.] Small copper coin equal in value to one-quarter of a real.
Cuchara para Piezas de Artilleria: [Sp.] powder scope for loading cannon, mounted on a shaft.
Cuchíllo de Mónte: [Sp.] a plug bayonette used in escopetas, also used as a knife.
Cuello: (Sp.) collar.
Cuera: (Sp.) leather jacket.
Culatazos: (Sp.) blows with the butt of a musket or rifle; also, musket or rifle recoil.
Culebrinas: (Sp.) culverins.
Cureña: (Sp.) cannon carriage.
D
Desague: (Sp.) a drainage ditch branching off of an acequia channel and returning water into the river or creek.
Disparador: (Sp.) trigger.
Dispensa: (Sp.) latrine.
Dragona: (Sp.) sword knot; shoulder knot.
Dragónes: (Sp.) dragoons; medium cavalry, originally mounted infantry.
E
Ejido: an area of farmland held in communal ownership but divided into separate family plots.
Embrasures: a small opening in a wall through which weapons may be fired. Windows and arrow or rifle loops are usually wider on the inside. Embrasures for cannons are generally wider on the outside. This angled opening allows for greater angles of fire.
Emplacement: military installation consisting of a prepared position for siting a weapon.
Empuñadura: (Sp.) hilt of a sword or saber.
Enfilade: fire from a flank, raking the entire length of a formation.
Epaulement: (retaining wall) an elevation constructed in order to protect troops and batteries from direct fire of the enemy. Usually composed of gabions filled with earth, or sandbags. In permanent fortifications, considered to be the low stone wall constructed at the top of the rampart.
Escarapela: (Sp.) cockade.
Escobillion: (Sp.) cannon sponge on a shaft.
Escopeta: (Sp.) 1) large-caliber, smoothbore weapon with a wooden shoulder stock and miquelet lock, either with a long or a short barrel; sometimes with a flared muzzle; 2) a shotgun; 3) a gun.
Escopeta de dos Cañones: (Sp.) double-barreled shotgun.
Espada: (Sp.) sword.
Espada Ancha: (Sp.) broadsword.
Espada de Caballería: (Sp.) cavalry sword.
Espada de Infantería: (Sp.) infantry sword.
Espada para Músicos: (Sp.) musician's sword.
Espaldón: (Sp.) military barricade: the key to the Sánchez-Navarro map of the Alamo refers to the Texan gun emplacement within the compound and just north of the main gate as "Espaldón." The espaldón was a barrier made of bags, twigs, baskets, and probably earthworks.
Espoleta: fuse for a shell.
Espuela: (Sp.) spur.
Estado: (Sp.) return or statement of men, arms, clothing, etc.
Estado Militar: (Sp.) list or register of military units and their officers.
Estandarte: (Sp.) standard; cavalry standard.
Estopin: (Sp.) artillery primer.
Estribos: (Sp.) stirrups.
Estuche: (Sp.) powder flask (also Frasco).
F
Faldón: (Sp.) skirt of a coat; coattail.
Fanega: (Sp.) grain measure equal to about 1.5 bushels.
Fanion: (Sp.) marker flag.
Forrajera: (Sp.) forrage ladder.
Forro: (Sp.) lining of clothing; also, the turnback of a lined coat.
Fortín: (Sp.) fort; fortlet; redoubt; battery.
Fosse (Foss): (1) A ditch, moat, canal or pit, which were used to impede the advance of an enemy force. (2) The ditch or a set of ditches which surrounded a fortification, the excavated soil being used to construct the vallum or rampart.
Fragua de Campaña: (Sp.) field forge.
Franja: (Sp.) fringe; border; braid.
Frasco: (Sp.) powder flask (also Estuche).
Frazada: (Sp.) blanket.
Funda de Morrion: (Sp.) Helmet or shako cover.
Funda de Schaco: (Sp.) shako cover.
Fusil: (Sp.) musket.
Fusil Chico: (Sp.) cadet's musket.
Fusil Grande: (Sp.) full-size musket.
Fusil Recortado: (Sp.) cut-down (sawed-off) musket.
Fusilero: (Sp.) fusileer; member of a battalion company.
G
Gafete: (Sp.) clasp; hook-and-eye fastening.
Galon: (Sp.) binding; galloon; lace; stripe on uniform.
Galoncito Estrecho: (Sp.) narrow binding (i.e., on a collar).
Gambeto: (Sp.) quilted or lined coat.
Gamuza: (Sp.) unfinished leather; buckskin.
Garzota: (Sp.) plume: helmet crest.
Gastadores: (Sp.) pioneers; sometimes used more generally to connote troops engaged in engineering work. By decree of September 1, 1824, each regimental headquarters had eight gastadores attached to it.
Glacis: 1) smooth stone incline used as a defense; 2) on a fort the sloped earthwork out from the covered way to provide for grazing fire from the fort’s main walls.
Golpes: (Sp.) pocket flaps.
Gorra: (Sp.) cap.
Gorra Cilíndrica de piel de oso: (Sp.) cylindrical bearskin hat (i.e., busby) as worn by some light cavalry troops.
Gorra de Cuartel: (Sp.) barracks (or garrison) cap.
Gorra de Granadero: (Sp.) bearskin grenadier cap.
Gorra de Pelo: (Sp.) fur grenadier’s cap.
Granada: (Sp.) grenade; grenade insignia; artillery shell (e.g., granada de obus: howitzer shell).
Granadera: (Sp.) grenadier's pouch.
Granadero: (Sp.) (heavy infantry) grenadier; member of a flank company and armed with hand grenades.
Granadero a Caballo: (Sp.) horse grenadier.
Grandes Guardias: (Sp.) The main guard to a unit that is in camp. Outside of the main guard would be the sentinels.
Grapeshot: a cluster of lead balls, each about one inch in diameter, that was wrapped together in a cloth and fired from a cannon like a giant shotgun blast.
Guarnicion: (Sp.) sword or saber guard.
Guía: (Sp.) guide; or, a type of military list.
Guión: (Sp.) guidon.
H
Hacha de Armas: (Sp.) military hatchet or axe.
Haversack: fabric bag used for carrying food, etc.
Headright: land grants made to immigrants as inducements to settle in Texas.
Hebilla: (Sp.) buckle; clasp.
Hoja de Espada: (Sp.) sword blade.
Hombreras: (Sp.) shoulder straps; shoulder scales; metal epaulettes.
Howitzer: a short cannon used to fire projectiles at high trajectories.
Huaraches (or Guaraches): (Sp.) leather sandals.
I
Infantería: (Sp.) infantry.
Infantería Ligera: (Sp.) light infantry.
Instrumentos de Zapa: (Sp.) entrenching tools.
J
Jacal: [Sp.] a crude hut comprised of pole and thatch construction. Wooden posts were set into a trench, coated with adobe and plaster, and covered with gabled roofs or thatch.
Jinete: (Sp.) trooper; cavalryman; horseman.
K
Knapsack: infantry pack.
Contributors:
Gregg Dimmick
Phil Graf
Tom Kailbourn
Bruce Moses