Infantry Drill Regulations 1911 - United States Army
Front Cover, Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 1911, With War Department Changes. Special Edition with Interpretations, Illustrations, and Index. | GGA Image ID # 231d43e2fb
✅ Highlights
📌 Noteworthy Content
✅ Drill & Commands – School of the soldier, squad, company, battalion, regiment, and brigade, ensuring consistency across the Army.
⚔️ Combat Principles – Leadership, reconnaissance, fire superiority, attack and defense, counterattacks, and withdrawal.
🏕️ Marches & Camps – Guidance on training, sanitation, and protecting bivouacs.
🎖️ Ceremonies & Inspections – Reviews, parades, honors, and salutes central to military tradition.
📯 Manuals & Appendices – Saber, tent pitching, bugle calls/signals, and the Manual of the Bayonet (1913 edition included).
📝 Ownership Inscriptions – Copies in this collection once belonged to Boyd L. Friday (314th Regiment, Camp Meade) and John E. McClure (35th Engineers, Camp Grant), adding provenance and personal history.
✨ Why it matters: This volume shaped U.S. Army training on the eve of WWI. For genealogists, it contextualizes ancestors’ letters and diaries. For educators, it provides a primary source that reflects both military doctrine and cultural values of the time.
Preamble
Infantry Drill Regulations United States Army 1911. Text correct 18 August 1917 to include Changes 1 to 20. Changes No. 20 does not alter the text of any edition of IDR issued by the Army and Navy Joural. United States of America War Office. New York: Army and Navy Journal | D. Appleton and Company.
War Department,
Office of the Chief of Staff,
Washington, August 19, 1911.
The following System of Drill Regulations for Infantry, prepared by a board of officers consisting of Lieut. Col. John F. Morrison, Infantry; Capt. Merch B. Stewart, Eighth Infantry; and Capt. Alfred W. Bjornstad, Twenty-eighth Infantry, is approved and is published for the information and government of the Regular Army and the Organized Militia of the United States. With a view to insure uniformity throughout the Army, all infantry drill formations not embraced in this system are prohibited, and those herein prescribed will be strictly observed.
By order of the Secretary of War:
Leonard Wood,
Major General, Chief of Staff.
WAR DEPARTMENT
Document No. 453
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF STAFF
War Department,
Office of the Chief of Staff, Washington, November 19, 1913.
The following system of Infantry Drill Regulations, 1911, with corrections to November, 1913, including the Manual of the Bayonet, is approved and herewith published for the information and government of the Regular Army and the Organized Militia of the United States. With a view to insure uniformity throughout the Army, all infantry drill formations not embraced in this system are prohibited, and those herein prescribed will be strictly observed.
By order of the Secretary of War :
Leonard Wood,
Major General, Chief of Staff.
[Note.—In the Army and Navy Journal editions of this manual all changes ordered by the War Department have been made in the text of the paragraphs affected. See title page.—Army and Navy Journal.]
Inscriptions from Previous Owners of this Infantry Drill Regulations Manual - Boyd L. Friday of 314th Regiment at Camp Meade, and John E. McClure of the 35th Regimental Engineers at Camp Grant. | GGA Image ID # 1821135840
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Part I—Drill. | Paragraph.
1. Introduction 1–30
2. Orders, commands and signals 31–47
3. School of the soldier 48–100
4. School of the squad 101–158
5. School of the company 159–257
(a) Close order 167–198
(b) Extended order 199–231
(c) Fire 232–257
6. The battalion 258–326
(a) Close order 263–289
(b) Combat principles 290–326
7. The regiment 327–346
(a) Close order 333–341
(b) Combat principles 342–346
8. The brigade 347–349
Part II—Combat.
1. Introduction 350–357
2. Leadership 358–388
(a) General considerations 358–370
(b) Teamwork 371–377
(c) Orders 378–383
(d) Communication 384–388
3. Combat reconnaissance 389–399
4. Fire superiority 400–424
(a) Purpose and nature 400–401
(b) Fire direction and control 402–424
5. Deployment 425–441
6. Attack 442–488
(a) Deployment for attack 449–452
(b) Advancing the attack 453–457
(c) The fire attack 458–463
(d) The charge 464–475
(e) Pursuit 476–480
(f) Attack of fortifications 481–484
(g) Holding attack 485–488
7. Defense 489–519
(a) Positions and intrenchments 489–494
(b) Deployment for defense 495–510
(c) Counterattack 511–516
(d) Delaying action 517–519
8. Meeting engagements 520–530
9. Withdrawal from action 531–535
10. Miscellaneous 537–622
(a) Machine guns 537–546
(b) Ammunition supply 547–553
(c) Mounted scouts 554–557
(d) Night operations 558–568
(e) Infantry against Cavalry 569–574
(f) Infantry against Artillery 575–578
(g) Artillery supports 579–583
(h) Intrenchments 584–595
(i) Minor warfare 596–603
(j) Patrols 604–622
Part III—Marches and camps.
1. Marches 623–660
(a) Training and discipline 623–635
(b) Protection of the march 636–660
2. Camps 661–707
(a) Sanitation 661–677
(b) Protection of camp or bivouac 678–707
Part IV—Ceremonies and inspections.
1. Ceremonies 708–765
(a) Reviews 711–731
(b) Parades 732–735
(c) Escorts 736–744
2. Inspections 745–754
3. Muster 755–757
4. Honors and salutes 758–765
Part V.—Manuals.
1. The color 766–778
2. The band 779–781
3. Manual of the saber 782–791
4. Manual of tent pitching 792–803
5. Manual of the bugle 804–807
(a) Bugle calls.
(b) Bugle signals.
Appendix A.
Appendix B.
Appendix C.—Manual of the Bayonet.
📦 Reviews & Reception
Infantry Drill Regulations (1911) was welcomed by the U.S. Army as a major step toward standardization of training across the Regular Army and the Organized Militia.
Army and Navy Journal (1911–1913) praised its clarity and uniformity, noting that all other drill formations not listed were explicitly prohibited — ensuring every regiment trained the same way.
Military educators valued its practicality, especially the sections on combat principles, reconnaissance, and fire control, which aligned with evolving battlefield doctrine.
Later editions (1913, 1917) were noted for incorporating the Manual of the Bayonet, reflecting both tradition and modern combat needs.
Endorsed by Major General Leonard Wood, Chief of Staff, the manual quickly became the standard reference for infantry training in the years leading into World War I.
✨ This reception shows the manual was more than instructions — it represented a deliberate effort to prepare a modern, professional fighting force on the eve of America’s entry into the Great War.
📦 Availability & Public Domain Status
Original Publication: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1911 (War Department Document No. 453).
Subsequent Editions: Corrected through November 1913 (incorporating the Manual of the Bayonet); later reprints during 1917–1918 added wartime amendments.
Digital Access:
HathiTrust Digital Library – Edition corrected to Changes 1–21 (close to the version presented here). University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Full View 1917-06
Internet Archive – Scans from Army libraries and the Library of Congress are available.
Public Domain: As a U.S. Government publication (pre-1923), the manual is in the public domain, free for reproduction and research use.
✨ Researchers, teachers, and genealogists can access full-view digital editions, making this an enduring and widely available training guide from the early 20th century.
Related World War I Resources
🎓 Essay Prompts for Students: Infantry Drill Regulations (1911)
🪖 Training & Discipline
“Standardizing the Army: Why Did the War Department Insist on Uniform Drill Regulations?”
– Explore how the 1911 manual sought to unify training across the Regular Army and the Organized Militia. What challenges might arise without standardization?
“The Soldier’s Day: What the Drill Manual Reveals About Army Life in 1911”
– Use sections on drill, inspections, and ceremonies to reconstruct the routine of an enlisted man before World War I.
⚔️ Combat & Doctrine
“From Parade Ground to Battlefield: How Did Drill Translate to Combat?”
– Examine whether the manual’s combat principles (attack, defense, reconnaissance) realistically prepared soldiers for the trench warfare of World War I.
“The Role of Leadership in Early 20th Century Combat”
– The manual devotes a section to leadership and teamwork. Compare these teachings to modern Army leadership manuals. What values persist?
🎖️ Culture & Tradition
“Why Did Ceremonies and Salutes Matter in 1911?”
– Analyze the importance of saluting, reviews, and honors as defined in the manual. What does this suggest about military culture at the time?
“Symbols of Discipline: Bugle Calls and Bayonets in the 1911 Regulations”
– Discuss the inclusion of bugle calls, saber, and bayonet manuals. How did these reflect both tradition and practicality in the Army’s identity?
🧬 Genealogy & Social History
“Tracing Ancestors Through Drill”
– For genealogical essays: If an ancestor trained under the 1911 regulations, how might this manual help us understand their letters, photos, or service record?
“The Citizen-Soldier and the Militia”
– Consider how the manual was meant for both Regulars and Organized Militia. What does this reveal about America’s military preparedness before WWI?
✨ Why This Manual Matters
The Infantry Drill Regulations of 1911 was more than a set of commands — it shaped the discipline, identity, and battlefield readiness of a generation of American soldiers. By codifying drill, combat tactics, and traditions, it bridged the gap between parade ground instruction and the realities of modern warfare. For teachers, students, genealogists, and historians, this manual offers a unique lens into the training culture of the U.S. Army on the eve of World War I, preserving both its practical lessons and its enduring values.
Library of Congress Catalog Listing
- NOTE: Listing is for a manual released July 1918. List for August 1917 was not found at LOC.
- Corporate name: United States. War Department.
- Main title: Infantry drill regulations, United States Army, 1911, corrected to July 31, 1918 (changes nos. 1 to 22, and App. D).
- Published/Created: Washington, Govt. print. off., 1918
- Description: 259 p. illus., plates, fold. diagr. 14 1/2 cm.
- LC classification: UD160 .A5 1918e
- LC Subjects: United States. Army. Infantry--Drill and tactics
- Notes: War Dept. Document no. 394. Office of the chief of staff. Music (bugle calls and bugle signals): p. 201-216. Appendix c: Manual of the bayonet, 1913.
- LCCN: war18000047
- Other system no.: (OCoLC)990852
- Type of material: Book
