THE PIONEER

On Loan To The Incorporated Militia of Upper Canada

The idea of having a soldier whose chief role is to provide manual labor goes back many centuries. The Pioneers' roots date from Roman times. Roman legions frequently required groups of legionaries to move ahead of the main body in order to secure and clear the army's advance. By the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, each British infantry battalion (including the Foot Guards), would detail a section or squad (Pioneers) of ten men under the command of a corporal or sergeant. Their main tasks were to undertake and/or supervise heavy construction work. The Pioneers were an early form of combat engineers. They would travel in advance of the army in order to effectively clear the way for those who follow.

To paraphrase the British army's Royal Pioneer Corps; the Pioneer is a skilled worker who leads the way, embraces a purpose, tough of spirit, far-sighted, and adventurous, the person who will prepare the way for an advancing army. One of the earliest references may perhaps be found in the book of Nehemiah, Chapter 4, Verses 17-18: "They will build on the wall, and they that bear the burdens, with those that laded, everyone with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, everyone had his sword girded by his side, and so builded . . ."

Pioneers were mention in the pay and muster rolls of the British Garrison at Calais in the year 1346. By the 1600s, there were Pioneer contingents under their own officers and NCOs, attached to the Artillery. Later on, a company of Pioneers served with the 7th of Foot (Royal Fusiliers). By 1739, the Guards had organized and maintained a detachment, followed by the Black Watch and many other Infantry Regiments.



Traditionally;
Each Line Battalion, or Infantry Regiment had its quota of such men. Trained infantry soldiers who were responsible for performing a variety of tasks under difficult conditions. Each company in a Battalion contributed two men to the Pioneer section under the command of a corporal or sergeant. The Pioneer would wear the normal red jacket. The pattern, the decorative tape and the facing colour (collar and cuffs) would identify the Regiment to which he belonged. The wings on the Pioneer's shoulder would show that he belonged to the Grenadier Company. The Pioneers drawn from the eight Battalion Companies would just wear the usual worsted tufts. No special badges were worn, apart from the plate on the front of the bearskin cap (prescribed for home service). On active service their respective regimental cap or shako was worn.

In theory at least, the principal distinction of the Pioneer was his axe, apron and his beard, the only soldiers allowed to be unshaven in the otherwise clean-shaven army. The wearing of the beard was a privilege, because their task was considered so arduous in warfare. Away from the Regiment and the niceties of formal camp life, they were permitted facial hair. However, it may have reflected the simple fact that because they formed the advance party, usually setting off before dawn, shaving in the dark was hardly a practical proposition. Like so many other privileges in the army, it soon became a requirement and even today, it is expected of the Regimental Pioneer sergeant that he will grow a suitably impressive beard. In practice, however, beards were probably much more widely worn on active service than contemporary illustrations suggest.

The Pioneer was a soldier who marched at the head of the Regiment. On the day that the Regiment was scheduled to relocate, an advance party consisting of Pioneers, the Regimental Quartermaster, Engineering Officers, Artificers and Guides would assemble and begin their march to the new location. This group would be prepared to be detached for possibly days at a time. The Pioneer's task would involve the facilitating the movement of the Regiment, even when crossing enemy terrain. This would typically include clearing natural obstacles, repairing or building roads and bridges.



The Pioneer was highly skilled in the use of tools, such as axes, spades, saws, and other tools. He would have the required skill and knowledge to use such tools or gain them by way of training. The men of the pioneer section were usually former labours, farmers, artisans and use to hard physical manual work. The Pioneer would use his skills to;

• Break down or remove man made or nature's obstacles.
• Clearing paths through the hinterland, to facilitate the army's movement.
• Repairing or building roads and bridges.
• Prepare encampment sites for the army.
• Construct military field fortifications and/or defensive positions, breastworks, and trenches.
• Destroy the enemy's installations and/or barricades.

BILLHOOK; About the pioneer's waist was a black belt carrying the billhook. This ancient, traditional cutting tool is used mainly in European agriculture. The billhook used as a cutting tool goes back to the Iron Age. The billhook may vary in shape, weight and size, depending from which part of England it originated. They would have once been made by the local blacksmith to the user's specifications This tool, halfway between the need for an axe or a knife was used to sharpen stakes, trim timber, and to cut through thick hedges and scrub woodland. It would be the equivalent, to all large woodland utility knives (machetes, parangs, khukris, etc.). Typically having a blade between 6 inches to 10 inches long, with an increasingly strong curve towards the end. The blade is generally sharpened only on the inside of the curve and the edge of the billhook is beveled at a relatively abduce angle in order to avoid binding in green wood. The wooden handle is usually six inches to eight inches long. This was a popular tool used by British army throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. This hook of ancient design, has existed for so long, it has developed a large variety of names in different parts of Britain including bill, billhook, hook bill hedging bill, handbill and groomhook, was also known as Fascine knife. In medieval times, the billhook was developed into a military weapon, also known as a bill or billhook. When the blade from the billhook was taken and added to a long pole, the weapon was called a Hilberd.

LEATHER APRON; The pioneer would also wear the traditional stout, buff leather apron (one of the pioneer's trademarks). The pants and the front of the jacket were almost entirely concealed beneath the leather apron. This distinctive trademark was deemed functional. The leather apron afforded protection from the hazards of his job.

PIONEER'S MATTOCK; Similar to a pick-axe, but having two broad blades set at different plains. Generally the blades took the form of an axe-like edge on one end and chisel edge on the other. The mattock was used to loosen earth, grub out roots and rocks or loosen brickwork. The chisel end curved slightly inwards to facilitate turning up earth while the axe end which was formed practically at right angles to helve made the tool extremely effective for cutting through tough obstructions.

FELLING AXE; Single cutting edge (head). Used for the felling of trees. Cuts across the grain of wood.

BROAD AXE; Edge is chisel-shaped (one side flat and one beveled ). Used with the grain of the wood (more controlled and precision splitting) .

For both axes they would have steel heads and wooden handles (Haft). If made in the UK and Europe traditionally, it was made of a resilient hardwood like hickory, in the USA and ash. For the 17th & the early part of the18th century the handle (haft) would be straight, no curves for the better grip, with a circular cross-section that wedged onto the axe-head without the aid of wedges or pins.

SPADE; Use full hand tool (type of shovel), used for digging, loosen ground, or to break up clumps in the earth. Used for a variety of different functions and jobs. Made in many different shapes and sizes. The most typical shape is a broad flat blade with a sharp lower edge, straight or curved. The spade has a wooden handle that ends with cross-piece (wood for this time period), sometimes T-shaped and sometimes forming a kind of loop for the hand.

MATTOCK; Hand tool similar to a pickaxe. Suitable for breaking up moderately hard ground. Distinguished by it's head, this broad-bladed chisel-like blade is perpendicular to the handle. Used effectively used as a hoe (adze). The reverse end may be pointed, in which case the tool is called a pick mattock, or may instead have an axe-like splitting end, then it is a cutter mattock. In the southern states, the mattock is called a "grub hoe" or "grub axe".The heads range from 3 to 7 pounds in weight. The shaft is normally 3 to 4 feet, often heavier than the head (think of a heavy baseball bat).

SAW; Crosscut saw, is designed to cut wood at a right angle to the direction of the grain or horizontally through the trunk of a standing tree. Buck saws and felling saws are crosscut saws. The bucking saw generally are often used on trees that are already downed. A felling saw is generally used to cut down standing trees. Note: before the 1880s crosscut saws were primarily used for bucking, with axes used to fell trees

PICKAXE; Hand tool with a hard head attached perpendicular to the wooden handle. Pickaxe has a head with a pointed end and a flat end (picks has both ends pointed). One end of the head is a spike, slightly curve ending in a sharp point. The spike is a effective tool for piercing or break up hardened dried earth or rocky surfaces. The other end or the second spike, is a flat end for prying. This chiseled end, is useful for cutting through roots.