ABSTRACT
The composition and character of the rank and file lie at the very foundation of an army's combat effectiveness. The Revolution raised the citizcn-soldier as a demanding but attainable ideal. The preservation of personnel records of the French army during the eighteenth century makes it possible to sketch a statistical profile of its rank and file. Militia service fell almost exclusively on peasants, who were chosen by lot. The peasantry detested the militia as unfair and burdensome. Mass emigration of officers robbed the line army of its command structure. Noncommissioned officers found themselves elevated to commissioned rank in order to fill the great number of vacant slots. The decay of the line army and the mounting threat of war finally forced the National Assembly to turn its attention toward the Guard. The Convention also authorized the hiring of replacements by the chosen who wished not to serve.
