Our word 'army' also came to us direct from the
French, who still apply it equally to both services--_armee_de_
_terre,_armee_de_mer_. It is a participle, and means 'armed,'
the word 'force' being understood. The kindred words _armada_ in
Spanish and Portuguese, and _armata_ in Italian--equally derived
from the Latin--are used to indicate a fleet or navy, another
name being given to a land army. The word 'army' was generally
applied to a fleet in former days by the English, as will be
seen on reference to the Navy Records Society's volumes on the
defeat of the Spanish Armada.
This short etymological discussion is not inappropriate here,
for it shows why we should not neglect authorities on the history
and conduct of war merely because they do not state specially
that they are dealing with the naval branch of it.
A very slight knowledge of history is quite enough to make us
acquainted with the frequent recurrence of defeats and disasters
inflicted on armed forces by antagonists whose power to do so
had not been previously suspected. It has been the same on the
sea as on the land, though--owing to more copious records--we
may have a larger list of events on the latter. It will not be
denied that it is of immense importance to us to inquire how this
happened, and ascertain how--for the future--it may be rendered
highly improbable in our own case. A brief enumeration of the more
striking instances will make it plain that the events in question
have been confined to no particular age and to no particular
country.
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