Camisado

In military tactics, a camisado or camisade is a surprise attack occurring at night or at daybreak, when the enemy are supposed to be asleep.^[1]

The term comes from Spanish camisa (shirt): when the Tercio had actions (skirmishes) of around fifty men attacking at night with minimum equipment, only sword and dagger (although some soldiers could carry arquebus or musket), and they were dressed only with a white shirt (thus the Spanish word es:encamisada), in order to kill in silence as many enemies as possible while they were sleeping. This is reflected in the film Alatriste, based on the main character of The Adventures of Captain Alatriste (Las aventuras del Capitán Alatriste), a series of novels written by Arturo Pérez-Reverte.

Notable camisados

On 9 October 1544, French forces under the Dauphin assaulted Boulogne by night, but were ultimately unsuccessful.
On 14 October 1758, General Daun surprised Frederick the Great in the Battle of Hochkirch.
On 26 December 1776, General George Washington and his Continental Army swiftly defeated the Hessians in the Battle of Trenton.
Sometime in 2005, Panic! At The Disco released A Fever You Can't Sweat out, featuring the song Camisado.

Quotations

For I this day will lead the forlorn hope,
The camisado shall be given by me.
— —The Four Apprentices of London by Thomas Heywood

(Spanish) Chapter of "la encamisada" in "El sol de Breda"

References

↑ This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chambers, Ephraim, ed. (1728). "^{article name needed}". Cyclopædia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences (first ed.). James and John Knapton, et al.

External links

Look up camisado in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

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