I am hoping that someone can give me a brief primer on the mechanics of muster. I have two ancestors who were Sgts. for the Loyalists in Burke Co. NC who were assigned to recruitment. The entry indicated "muster; 1 Capt., 1 ensign, 2 Sgts., 3 corporals, and 33 privates." My question is how were these ranks and rates determined, who assigned them and was their pay commenserate with them? Were the Sgts. given a formula to follow and did they then select personal to fit the quota requirements?

> I am hoping that someone can give me a brief primer on the > mechanics of muster. Every month every unit on the British establishment (including Provincial a.k.a. "Loyalist" and German a.k.a "Hessians") reported to the next higher authority the status of their unit. The commanding general sent a consolidated "State of the Army" report to London. This was a numerical report quantifying the number of officers and staff officers present. The balance of the force is reported by Serjeants, Drummers, and Rank & File broken out into categories such as "Fit and Present for Duty" or Hospitalized or Sick in the Regiment." Not all reports are the same. Some list those on command or recruiting out of the district. The final columns typically are "Total Effectives" and "Wanting to Complete." Adding these two columns indicates the authorized establishment of the Regiment. > I have two ancestors who were Sgts. for the Loyalists in > Burke Co. NC who were assigned to recruitment. The > entry indicated "muster; 1 Capt., 1 ensign, 2 Sgts., 3 > corporals, and 33 privates." > > My question is how were these ranks and rates determined, > who assigned them and was their pay commenserate with > them? Not all of the so-called "Loyalists" were created equal. See: http://www.royalprovincial.com/military/rlist/establish.htm Assuming that these folks were members of a Provincial Regiment mustered on the North American Establisment, then officer ranks were by royal commision, NCO ranks were by regimental warrant, and all got paid in accordance with the royal pay scale establisheed for the provinvial army. Of course, politics played a big part in the rank structure. All British and Provincial regiments at various times had people assigned to recruiting parties. The British recruited primarily in Great Britain while the Provincials recruited locally. The muster you cite above could reflect either a 2 officer + 5 NCO recruiting party escorting 33 recently recruited privates or it could be a reinforced recruiting party -- or a combination of both. If the recruiting locale was North Carolina and the date (not stated) was 1781, this muster could reflect the remnants of a larger unit sent out to bring its forces up to its establishment standard. > Were the Sgts. given a formula to follow and did they then > select personal to fit the quota requirements? The formula usually was "Go get bodies!" Once enlisted the recruits came under the rules miltary law re: desertion, failure to obey orders, etc. If the fool if he had all his limbs and signed (or "marked") the enlistment papers and accepted the King's shilling. He became a soldier. Of course, if not sober, he might have had some help signing. Bob Brooks