Drumming Out! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Military service

A dishonorable discharge from military service can only happen if an enlisted person is court martialed. Convictions for serious offenses, such as desertion or murder, result in not only immediate dismissal, but also a person losing all potential veteran benefits. According to the United States Department of Defense, 157 people were dishonorably discharged or drummed out of the military in 2014.

Although the discharge may not happen to the beat of a drum today, it is still considered to be a disgrace.

Answer: Alexander Pope

Alexander Pope wrote "Moral Essays", a series of four poems, or epistles, from 1731-35. His third poem, "Epistle to Bathurst" (1733) was addressed to Lord Bathurst and called "Of the Use of Riches". In it he said, "Chartres was a man infamous for all manner of vices.

When he was an ensign in the army, he was drummed out of the regiment for a cheat; he was next banished Brussels, and drummed out of Ghent, on the same account."

Answer: Lieutenant Frederick Gotthold Enslin

Lieutenant Frederick Gotthold Enslin was drummed out of the Continental Army on charges of sodomy, which is also the earliest known discharge of an American soldier for that reason. George Washington approved the sentencing order, which called for Enslin to "never return". The sentence was carried out on March 15, 1778.

Answer: They were given a horse so they could leave camp.

During the American Civil War it was typical for officers who were being drummed out to have their heads shaved and their insignia ripped from their uniform in public view of their fellow soldiers. Other officers were told not to touch anyone who was being drummed out, but there were cases of drummed out soldiers being found beaten to death.

Answer: Rogue's March

According to the "English Oxford Living Dictionaries", the Rogue's March was a "tune played by a military band to accompany the expulsion of an offender from a regiment". In the words to the tune, the soldier had been given a red coat and a bit of training, and was taken far away to fight either the Russians or French - he couldn't remember.

"When we got back home again
To desert was my intent, sir
I sold my cot and I sold my coat
And over the wall I went, sir.

Fifty I got for selling me coat
Fifty for me blankets
If ever I 'list for a soldier again
The devil shall be me sergeant.

Went to a tavern and I got drunk
That is where they found me
Back to barracks in chains I was sent
And there they did impound me".

Answer: Napoleon

The famous cartoon shows Napoleon being drummed out or exiled to Elba. At this point in his career Napoleon had just returned to France on the heels of a disastrous defeat in Russia. Using the scorched earth policy, the Russians burned everything they could not take with them as they retreated. Napoleon, therefore, had to maintain long supply lines, which the Russians successfully terrorized with guerilla warfare.

By the time Napoleon "took" Moscow, it was a city of burning buildings. Not only that, but his men were exhausted and freezing, having been ill-prepared for the Russian winter.

By the time he returned to France he had lost approximately 480,000 men. Forced to abdicate, Napoleon was exiled to the tiny Mediterranean island of Elba.

Answer: Officers

The term "cashiering" comes from the time (1683-1871) when officers in the British Army typically purchased their commissions; that is, they paid money and they were made an officer. That way a person didn't have to wait for a promotion due to merit or seniority - although it was practice to only sell commissions for either the cavalry or infantry up to the rank of colonel.

A number of reasons are given for this practice; for example, people with more money were less prone to steal and plunder or try to swindle their men.

It also ensured a certain degree of good behavior and decorum as any disgraced officer would have to resign their commission and not be eligible for reimbursement. That is what being "cashiered" meant.

Answer: Alfred Dreyfus

Alfred Dreyfus was a French Jew, serving as an artillery officer. He was unfairly convicted of spying for the Germans and giving them information about newly developed artillery parts. Sentenced to life in prison on Devil's Island, which is off the coast of French Guiana, after a secret court martial, Dreyfus was publicly cashiered out of the army by having his insignia, buttons, and braid torn off his uniform and his sword broken. Eventually when new evidence regarding the case came to light, Dreyfus was offered a pardon, which he accepted but later he was completely exonerated and returned to service in the army.

Answer: True

The term "cashiering" comes from the 1590s Dutch "casseren", which means "to cast off" and from the French "casser", meaning "to discharge or annul". It also is derived from the Latin "cassus", meaning "void or empty". According to the "Oxford English Dictionary", Shakespeare's "Othello", published in 1603, is the first instance of the use of the word "cashiering" in print - in the military sense. Taken from Act1 Scene 1, Iago, the villain of the play, states in a conversation with Roderigo:

"For nought but provender, and when he's old, cashier'd:
Whip me such honest knaves. Others there are
Who, trimm'd in forms and visages of duty,
50 Keep yet their hearts attending on themselves,
And, throwing but shows of service on their lords,
Do well thrive by them and when they have lined
their coats".

Answer: True

The procedure of "drumming out" is still used today at the Virginia Military Institute. It is not a good sign when the cadets hear drums being played in the morning; it means that someone has broken the school's honor code. According to an article in 2012 in the "Roanoke Times", the practice of drumming out a cadet with his peers performing an about face is no longer used.

Instead, the ceremony is performed without the offending cadet being there.