U. S. Army bagpiper

[Red 6]

I saw this when I was checking my e-mail on the U.S. Army server and thought ya'll might be interested. Here's the caption: "Sgt. John M. Savery plays a Great Highland Bagpipe in the parking lot of the joint operations center on Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, May 21. He said this is a good way to relax. (Photo by Sgt. Jim Wilt)"

 

[geo]

Heh,
HE may be relaxing!
The guys trying to sleep might have something else to say about it

 

[Red 6]

It seems like bagpipers take their work seriously, Geo!

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Is that a specialist trade for the US army?  ;D

 

[Blackadder1916]

More about this piper.

A Different Weapon of War
http://www.dvidshub.net/index.php?script=news/news_show.php&id=10539  (more at link)

One military policeman, serving at Bagram Airfield, carries a weapon of a different caliber.

U.S. Army Sgt. John M. Savery, of the 235th Military Police Company, carries an instrument of war that was once banned by the British government. The irony is the instrument Savery carries is just that, an instrument. The Great Highland Bagpipe was banned by the English government as a weapon of war.

As the sun sets on Bagram Airfield, Savery, with pipes in hand, can be found in the Joint Operations Center parking lot playing to an audience of himself and anyone who happens to walk by.

Savery, 26, is a self-described “connoisseur of weird instruments” which includes many traditional Irish and Scottish instruments. He plays the bagpipe, when he gets the chance, so he can blow off steam and raise the morale of anyone passing by.

“For some reason, and anyone can attest to this, there is something about it that just grabs at you,” Savery said.

“It inspires troops and motivates them,” said Savery, a Custer, S.D. native. “I don’t know how it does it but it does.”

 

[Red 6]

Is that a specialist trade for the US army?  ;D

We better be careful here Colin.  There are so many answers runnin' through my head, but I better not write any of them down! :gunner:

 

[jimb]

I guess it is some kind of "cultural difference " between the Americans and us..............We would never, I hope, reffer to a "Bag Piper " all ways a " Piper ".  And of course,  pipers in the CF are given some status, while the US Army Sgt in the story,  seems be a  " army of one piper". ?

Are any US Army units to be found with offcially sanctioned pipers? Just wondering?

Jim B.

 

[niner domestic]

IIRC, there is only the Res AF Pipe Band in Georgia and the Cadet pipe band at Westpoint ( I think the Citadel still has one).  Most of the pipe bands were put out to pasture by the 1970s.

 

[the 48th regulator]

IIRC, there is only the Res AF Pipe Band in Georgia and the Cadet pipe band at Westpoint ( I think the Citadel still has one).  Most of the pipe bands were put out to pasture by the 1970s.

Interesting article on the Marine Corps Pipers


I know that a former Piper from my Regiment, Fraser Clark, had gone down there in the mid Nineties to instruct their band.


dileas

tess

 

[niner domestic]

Good spot Tess.  I forgot about them.  I'm still drawing a blank on the army side.  I just don't recall any being around past VN time frame. 

 

[medaid]

Pardon my ignorance, but could Red 6 or any other American military personnel shed some light on to this for me. It seems that the US military does not at all follow any sort of lineage to our cousins across the pond. I mean, we, here in Canada, has many Scottish regiments, Irish regiments, or anything else that ties us with our country's inception history.

Now, I know all about the war of 1812 and all the other historical notes about the separation of the 13 colonies. I guess my question is, how much cultural history, such as the pipes, the kilt or other things does the US Military have? I mean, the US military doesn't have a tartan does it?

 

[geo]

(imitation is the best form of compliment )

 

[Red 6]

MedTch: You're correct in the lineage thing. There are National Guard units in the northeastern US that trace their lineage back to the 1600's and the oldest Active Army units trace their lineage to the Revolutionary War. As far as lineal links to the British Army, the U. S. Army doesn't have any, at least so far as I know. The Marine Corps has an unofficial tartan, but I don't think there's one for the U.S. Army. It's interesting, but there is much more of a linkage between law enforcement in the U. S. and the Scots. Amazing Grace by a bag piper is a standard at police funerals and memorials. It's very moving.

 

[geo]

(the US navy also has it's own tartan - c/o their sub base in scotland)

 

[jimb]

Another bit about US military traditions. It seems  to me that not very many US Army units have a "name " as oppossed to a number. Example the 101st Airbourne, has the unoffcial  name " screaming eagles " but it is just that, unoffcial.  Most of their Army  units have a number, whereas the Canadian units  tend to be "named " rather than numbered.

Now before any one gets a panty wad, I know about the Royal 22nd and the 48th Highlanders and the others, but isn't it  easier to remember a distinctive unit name like the RCR or the Calgary Highlanders,  rather than the 2145 Regimental Combat Team ?  Unit history and tradition plays a big role in the CF, as it should. I'd find it hard to be interested in the history of a vanilla flavoured outfit, that has no distinctions amongst a huge mass like the US Army.  Perhaps that explains the large number of "un-authorised " U.S  unit patchs and "off duty clothing ". ? Trying to stand out ifrom the  crowd?

Jim B.

 

[Red 6]

Jim: I get your drift, but the name is just one part of a unit's traditions. I served in some outstanding units during my career, among them the 1st Infantry Division and the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. I can tell you that traditions and lineage are very important in the US Army. it's just different from the system in the Commonwealth forces. I think the strongest sense of heritage comes in the Army National Guard. There are many many Guard units where generation after generation of families serves in the same unit.

The names of divisions i.e. The Big Red One, Jungleers, All Americans, etc, are approved by the Army Institute of Heraldry, so I think they're more than unofficial. In service dress uniform you wear the distinctive unit insignia of your assigned regiment on the epaulets of your dress green blouse, the unit shoulder patch on your left shoulder, French Fourragere on the left shoulder if your unit earned one in WW1 or WW2, unit awards over the right pocket and the DUI of your affiliated regiment over unit awards on the right side of your blouse.

It's a mistake to assume the US Army is a mass with no distinctions. Every unit has its own individuality. In the Blackhorse, NCOs and officers went through spur qualification and we wore them with our greens and blues. Every unit has its own greeting to accompany the hand salute. In the 37th Armor, when you came on an officer outdoors, you sounded off with "Courage Conquers, sir." In the 41st Infantry, we made a regimental punch at dining ins with ingredients that harkened back to each phase of our history. Brother, it was so strong, it would blow you socks off and we mixed it in the regimental silver and drank it out of a combat boot. I never served in the 9th Infantry Regiment, but their nickname is "The Manchus" and they led the way in the relief of Peking in the Boxer Rebellion. They have an official belt buckle with the Chinese dragon on it that they award to Soldiers who complete the Manchu Mile, which is a forced march to commemorate the Regiment's forced march to take on the Boxers and relieve Peking. I could keep going on and on.

I think most Soldiers are aware of the history of their units. If you serve in the 101st, for instance, you can't help but know of the weight of history behind what you do. I remember like it was yesterday when I was in the Big Red One and we got the alert order to go to Desert Shield in october of 1990. Our battalion commander stood in front of the formation on our battalion square on a windy Fall morning and said to us "The 1st Infantry Division is deploying to Saudi Arabia. I don't have any details right now, but I know one thing—there is no mission too difficult for this battalion and no sacrifice too great." Then he said, "Whatever happens over there, expect that we will be the spearhead." We all knew exactly what he was talking about; our divisional motto, "NO MISSION TOO DIFFICULT, NO SACRIFICE TOO GREAT, DUTY FIRST, SIR, DUTY FIRST."

 

[medaid]

Red 6 I think you are absolutely correct. Although we often make fun of our American cousins for not knowing much about us Canadians and the Common Wealth over all. We in the military circle knows very little about our counterpart's history, culture and alike. Even we, those of us who serve in the CF, have a hard time being able to tell some of our own regiment/unit/sqn's distinctive histories and have to be reminded or reread about them.

I always found military history interesting, and one of the first military fictions series I read was the Brother Hood of War series by W.E.B Griffin. It was good informative, and although a fiction, shed a tiny speckle of light on to how the other half lived at times. I thank you for your brief introduction into US Army history. Cheers!

 

[Red 6]

I think most folks are locked in on what they're doing and where they are. It's totally normal and I feel really fortunate to have worked with the Canadian Forces in a small way during my career.

 

[Journeyman]

I'm not about to point fingers north or south of the border, regarding knowledge lapses of our neighbouring militaries......but I did have to Google this one 

Jungleers

 

[Red 6]

The Jungleers is the name for the 41st Infantry Brigade, which was the 41st Infantry Division in World War II. They got the name because of the years they spent in the South Pacific fighting against the Japanese. The 41st is the infantry of the Oregon Army National Guard, but before the reorganization, it also had units in the Washington Army National Guard.