|
A soldier is a person who has enlisted with, or was drafted into, the armed forces of a sovereign country
and has undergone training and received equipment to defend that country or its "interests". Soldiers are a part of strictly
hierarchical societies called armies.
Within the army, groups of soldiers are usually divided into military
units of some kind.
In an army, most soldiers are of the lowest military rank - In the
United States Army, a private. Soldiers can "rise in the ranks" and become officers.
Many great military and political leaders began as lowly soldiers.
A soldier who no longer serves in the armed forces is called a veteran.
Classification
Infantry are soldiers who specialize in ground combat. Not all
soldiers are infantry, and not all infantry are soldiers. Infantry that are not soldiers include members of the Royal Air Force
Regiment of the United Kingdom (technically they are airmen not
soldiers), and members of the United States Marine
Corps, Royal Marines of the United Kingdom, or other marine forces (who are marines not soldiers; in fact many marines bristle at
being called soldiers). Finally, many navies maintain naval infantry, who are sailors not soldiers.
A pre-modern soldier is also called a warrior. The word warrior implies one who is not part of a full-time
army. Without strict heirarchial discipline constantly being imposed on them, warriors in pre-modern societies were often guided
by societal warrior codes.
See also
|