Cittie of London Brigade, The Armie of Parliament, Sealed Knot
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cittie of london brigade brigade drum major
All Brigades in the Armie of Parliament are required to have a Brigade Drum Major by the Standing Order of the Lord General. Some Brigades already have one in place. In the Cittie of London Brigade we have not had a Brigade Drum Major for a number of years, so we need to put a system in place for this appointment to the Brigade Staff.
The drummers of any unit or formation reflect the character of that formation, and we are all proud of the drummers as they are a very public and often noisy introduction for the Cittie of London Brigade to the members of the public. It's great to hear the drums sounding good - it puts a swagger in the step of those marching to the beat.
Of course, this is a time of change, and a new Brigade Commander has brought some new ideas to the way we do things as there is always room for improvement and for better communication between the different units that make up the brigade. The person who is nominated for this role will act as a bridge between the wishes of the Brigade Commander and ultimately his control of the whole brigade on the battlefield.
Brigade Drum Major what is the role?
The Brigade Drum Major is an Appointment made by the Brigade Commander and is not a Rank. However, as Brigade Drum Major the other drummers will defer to their orders, and they will have seniority.
Officers of the brigade will also recognise the Brigade Drum Major as the senior drummer and responsible for the drummers in a brigade formation, and any orders when the unit is in full formation will go through the Brigade Drum Major.
The Brigade Drum Major will collate numbers and plan (with the Brigade Commander) the distribution of drummers through a marching and fighting formation each time we parade.
On the battlefield the Brigade Drum Major will remain with the Brigade Commander and will take orders directly, translating the orders to drum calls for the rest of the brigade drummers to repeat throughout the formation.
Off the battlefield the Brigade Drum Major will be responsible for advice on improving the dress standards (where necessary) and meeting the Dress Codes published elsewhere on this website.
The Brigade Drum Major will be responsible for teaching and practising 'Orders by the drum' - also published elsewhere on this website.
The playing of approved authentic calls and marches is the responsibility of the Brigade Drum Major - deviation from the approved/authentic calls and marches is not acceptable to the Brigade Commander, and the Brigade Drum Major is responsible for ensuring standards are maintained at a high level.
The Brigade will be drilling every Sunday Morning at Major Musters, and the initial drill session of approximately 15 minutes will take the format of working as a single brigade pike division, a single brigade musket division, and the drums and colours will form a third separate division. The Drums and colours will drill separately to ensure that their foot drill is at an acceptable standard, that the formation moves correctly under the orders of the divisional officers. [Coming together with an agreed unified series of orders will ensure that the whole brigade functions correctly - see 'Orders by the Drum']. The second part of the drill session will be coming together to work as a brigade combining pike, musket, drums and colours.
Drummers will work as essential part of the military command structure of the Brigade, and are expected to behave in an appropriate manner.
BRIGADE DRUM MAJOR who is eligible for the role?
It seems appropriate that the post is open to all experienced drummers that know and can teach all of the Orders and Marches, to understand and agree with the Brigade Commander's aspirations for the drums and work to achieve those aspirations, can regularly attend and lead the brigades drummers for drill sessions, drumming practice sessions, parades and battles.
BRIGADE DRUM MAJOR who choses?
All drummers from the Brigade will attend a meeting at the Armie Training Weekend or the first Major Muster, whichever comes first at the beginning of the campaign season, and agree between themselves either by agreement or by ballot, who will be nominated to act as the Brigade Drum Major for the coming season. The meeting will be chaired by the Brigade Commander [or one of his staff] and the format will be as follows:
DRUMMERS MEETING FIXED FORMAT AGENDA:
Meeting opens and Apologies offered;
Thanks are given to the Brigade Drum Major for the previous year;
Nominations are sought for all of those drummers willing to be considered for nomination to the post - they must attend the meeting to be eligible for nomination;
Each eligible drummer wishing to be considered for the post of Brigade Drum Major will be invited to make a short presentation to the meeting explaining their ideas and aspirations for the coming season. Presentations will be presented in a random order with names drawn out of the hat by the chair.
If there is more than one person standing then it shall be decided by secret ballot - each drummer having one vote, writing one name on a folded ballot slip and dropping it into the Chair's hat. The chair will count the votes and by simple majority announce to the meeting the person to be recommended for nomination to the Brigade Commander for the appointment of Brigade Drum Major. [If the vote is tied, both names will be given to the Brigade Commander who will choose one for Brigade Drum Major, and one for Brigade Corporal of Drums].
If a Brigade Drum Major is appointed, and the meeting feels it appropriate, they may repeat the voting process for the post of Brigade Corporal of Drums. Again if there is more than one person standing the secret ballot process will be repeated.
The Chair thanks the meeting, and closes.
The recommendation for nomination is made to the Brigade Commander who, if satisfied, confirms the appointment for a year, updates the website and administration for the year, and awards the Brigade Drum Major the black sash of a brigade staff member for that campaign season. [The sash will be worn around the waist, and returned to the Brigade Commander prior to the Drummer's Meeting at the beginning of the next campaign season].
The meeting is fixed format, so that the choice of the Brigade Drum Major and the Brigade Corporal of Drums are the only items of business. Once elected the Brigade Drum Major may choose to hold another meeting with the drummers - the format of which is up to the new Brigade Drum Major.
Brigade corporal of drums
If it is felt appropriate, the Drummers Meeting may choose to nominate a second-in-command to support the roles and responsibilities of the Brigade Drum Major. They shall be known as the Brigade Corporal of Drums and they will act as Brigade Drum Major in their absence. The Brigade Corporal of Drums is recommended by the Drummers Meeting, is not a brigade staff position, and as such the Brigade Corporal of Drums will not wear a sash.
