The beating of a military drum has regulated soldiers’ lives since the earliest days of organized warfare. The drum has been as much a part of a soldier’s life as tricorn hats, tower muskets, RSM and tired feet. The fighting man throughout the ages has risen to the beating drum, assembled to it, recalled from the public houses by it, been flogged to it, and indeed been buried to it. With these facts in mind, I will attempt to trace the history of the military drum as used in the British Army.
Early Times – The Romans
It is known that the invading legions of Rome used drums to regulate the march and herald triumphs. The latter was usually performed as an accompaniment by the Cornicen and players of other early brass winds. The drums the Romans armies used were the forerunners of the modern Timpani or Kettledrums. They consisted of metal hemisphere covered by an animal skin. The diameter was from 15” to 18” and depth 8” to 10”. The drum was supported on the drummer’s front and struck with one padded drumstick. Very little impression must have been made upon the early Britons, as it was not until 1100 Ad that the military drums were introduced to the armies of Briton.
Conception and Development
(1100-1700)
The early British military drum evolved from the varying types brought back to England by the Crusaders. Military officials noted with some enthusiasm that the Saracen drums were admirably suited to maintaining the cadence of the men while marching. Marching in formation was of course a new infantry tactic quite removed from the hand-to-hand combat practiced by their loosely organized predecessors. The first true side drum was the Tabor and is depicted in fourteenth century lithographs and paintings as having rope tension and two gut snares across the bottom or snare head. This drum was therefore the first military drum designed and built to suit the military purpose.
Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries the military drum grew to quite large proportions. An Elizabethan period drum still in existence measures 22 ½ deep and 22 ¾ in diameter. The military drum consisted of a wooed shell, two animal skins heads, two hoops, hemp rope, rawhide sliders or tighteners and gut snares. The skins were mounted on a flesh hoops. The flesh hoop was made of wood approximately one half inch square. This was formed into a hoop with an insider diameter slightly larger than the outside diameter of the shell. The skin was cut approximately two inches larger than the flesh hoop and when wet and pliable was tucked around the hoop. When dry they were placed on the top and bottom of the shell. On this was placed the hoops, these being the same diameters as the flesh hoop. They were approximately two to three inches deep and had 8 to 10 holes. Through these holes the rope was threaded from top to bottom until it encircled the drum, then it was tied off.
The early sliders were nothing more than a piece of rawhide knotted around the rope at the apex and pulled down the ropes thus drawing them together and tightening the heads. The method of stringing a drum did not change appreciably until Rod tension drums came into use in the British Army in the early 1960’s.
The snares consisted of a length of gut which was supported on one side of the shell by a stud, passed through the hoop, across the head, through the other slide of the hoop and was attached to a tensioning device. This enabled the drummer to loosen or tighten the snare as he deemed necessary.
The drum was supported over the shoulder of the drummer by a leather or worsted strap or carriage. Due to the length of the instruments, the player had to wear it considerably higher than his 20th century counterpart which must have proved very cumbersome to carry and to play.
The drums of the early 15th and 16th centuries appear to have little uniformity as to decoration or colour. Some were plain varnished wood and others painted in a colour complementing the player’s uniform. Some have noted to have scenes painted upon them. It was not until 1645 that emblazoning consisted of the Royal Arms. This was noted in a picture of the Campaign of Portsmouth. From this period onward drum usually had either the Arms of the King or the Regimental Colonel’s emblazoned on the front half of the shell.
Other adornments seen on the drums of this period were intricate designs produced by hammering brass studs into the shell. Actually the brass studs served an useful purpose in that they added bonding strength to where the shell was laminated together.
With the exception of size, material and decoration, the basic construction of the military drum was to experience very little change throughout its history.
Standardization (1700-1850)
A notable change in the size began to occur during the early 18th century. Shall sizes decreased to 18” by 17” and varied from this size by only 1 or 2 inches. Although these drums were still large by modern standards, it must have decreased the encumbrance considerably. This was an asset as young boys were beginning to be recruited as drummers.
Brass shells made their first appearance during this period but due to the lack and cost of brass they were quite scare until the mid 19th century.The drum of this period began to take on some uniformity as to colour. They started to appear painted in the facing of the regiment but there was no ruling on this until 1768. The colonels exercised considerable licence as to the colour of their drums.
Royal Warrant of 1768 for Infantry, Clothing and Equipment put an end to this licence as colonels were forbidden ‘to put his arm, crest, device or livery, on part of the appointments of the regiment under his command.
The drums were to be of wood, the front to be painted with the colour of the facings of the regiment, with the King’s cipher and crown and the number of the regiment underneath it. The only exceptions to these were the devices and badges of Royal Regiments and the six old Corps of the army. Drums were now to be seen painted with the front half painted Blue, Red, Buff, White, various shades of Yellow and Green and indeed any colour which appeared as the facing colour of the regular regiment. Drums of the Royal Regiments were painted blue and usually had the Royal Coat of Arms emblazoned on the front of this blue background.
The hoops, though not specified in the Royal Warrant were usually painted Rd. There were exceptions as some regiments had diagonal lines of Red, White and Blue or just Red and White.
A Royal Airforce rope tension Side Drum
The foot Guards had their own distinctive colours as seen on the drum hoops of the 2nd Foot guards. They were white with a Red edge top and bottom and a central wavy blue line through the white. This pattern is still used by the Coldstream Guards to this day.
The tighteners during this period changed from the piece of rawhide to a piece of leather folded over and held together with animal skin. These were either left their tan brown colour or bleached white.
The extra rope after a drum was strung was braided into a single chain which hung down under the drum. It definitely added something to the appearance but it did have a more practical purpose. It was used as a carrying strap so that the drummer might carry the drum on his back using the strap over his shoulder to support it.
A new type of sling or carriage evolved with the smaller drum. It still consisted of a leather or worsted strap but it was worn around the neck of the player. The method of fastening the drum to the sling during this period is unclear but it is thought that a leather thong on the end of the sling tied to a metal ring around the rope at the back of the drum.
The military drum as described above continued in use with modifications until the mid-19th century.
New Materials and Improvements
1850-1960
The post Napoleonic era heralded more changes in size, material and emblazoning. The trend toward smaller military drums became evident as during the Crimean War period the common shell size was 16” x 15’. This size appears to have been a standard size until the beginning of the 20th century when it changed to 14” by 12”.
The wooden shell finally gave way to the brass shell as this metal became cheaper and more abundant. A notable side effect of this change was, not surprisingly, a tinnier sound when the drum was struck.
A change in emblazoning also took place during this period. The Royal Cypher gave way to distinctive regimental badges and devices. Royal Engineers however, adopted the Royal Coat of Arms with the regimental badges appearing underneath it in miniature. The number of the regiment which was previously in Roman numerals under the Cypher was replaced by the name of the regiment including the battalion number printed in full on a gold painted scroll above the regimental badge or Coat of Arms. Another important addition to the heraldry was a column of gold scrolls either side of the Badge on which were printed the battle honours which had been accorded the regiment. It is not too clear just when this addition took place but some sources indicate this practice as early as 1855. This method of emblazoning has changed very little.
The hoops after 1860 were almost all painted in the facing colour of the regiment the same as the front half of the shell. A red edge top and bottom and a white or red wavy line through the facing colour completed this decoration. This hoop design is still used today but diagonal lines and triangles can still be seen on some regimental drums. Two hanging ropes or drag ropes underneath the drum became popular as it was more convenient for drummers to pass each arm through the ropes and carry it on his back much like a back-pack is worn. The drum carriage changed during this period from the around the neck type to the over the shoulder type. It was still made of leather, usually white, had a buckle to enable the drummer to adjust the length and a ring and clip which attached to a ring now mounted on the drum hoop.
The majority of the changes which took place during this period persisted and with the exception of two more important changes the British Military Drum was standardized.
The Modern Military Drum
1960-Present
The early 1900’s had seen a new innovation in snare drum construction. This was the use of tension rods to replace the rope. Early tension rods were nothing more than a long rod with a threaded end. The rod passed through a free floating clamp which applied pressure to the top hoop. It then passed through an eyebolt affixed to the middle of the shell and continued into another clamp which had a threaded hole. Eight of these rods completed the set and when screwed down with a key, pulled the hoops together, tightening the drum.
This method of tensioning drums did not appear to impress the British Army as they continued to specify Rope tension drums for their regiments.
In the early 1960’s a compromise seems to have been reached as photographs show Rod tension drums with rope strung ‘in the proper manner’ purely for its decorative effect.
Another important development which occurred in this period was the adoption of nylon or plastic drumheads. Unlike calfskin, they are not affected by weather extremes and therefore maintain a consistent tonal quality in any weather conditions.
By 1965 there were two distinct types of military drums in use by the British Army. A rod tension drum with no rope adornment (except drag ropes in the Crops of Drums) was preferred by the Regimental Bands and Corps of Drums. It had wooden hoops, a wooden shell with metal mountings into which were screwed the tension screws from top to bottom. It was painted in the proper manner with the back half, formerly brass, now painted red. The facing colour still appeared on the front adorned as previously specified with the Coat of Arms, name of the regiment, regimental devices and Battle Honours.
The drums of the Scottish regiments were now of a form especially designed for the Pipes and Drums. The basic construction was as above but wooden hoops were replaced by lower profile steel one which were chrome plated. The shell was of wood but covered with a layer of plastic which was usually black on military drums. The most important difference on this drum was the addition of a second set of snares, now wire, under the top head. This gave the drum a very tight snappy tone consistent with the close style of drumming used with bagpipes. The usual regimental emblazoning also appeared on these drums and in some regiments drag ropes were attached.
Although this type of drum maws designed for use with the pipes, it was found favour with some regiments for use in the Corps of Drums. The military drum in all its form throughout history has added a great deal to the pomp and circumstance of war and peace. It has gained an honoured place in military symbolism as the drums of the British Battalion are second in importance and significance only to the actual colours of the battalion and are accorded the same respect and veneration.