Drawing of the preferred troop order in forests

Titel Leupe: Afbeelding van de wijze waarop een commando of detachement gewoonlijk in de bossen manouvreert.

This schematic map was drawn in Suriname in or shortly before 1778 by Captain of the Infantry Ary Westmaas and was dispatched to the Republic the same year. In that year, Westmaas was appointed inspector of the Military Cordon (Cordon of Defence). The map shows Westmaas’ ideas about the most effective order of march against the Marrons. On the left are the symbols for the ranks of colonel (the commander), major, captain, subaltern, sergeant, corporal and private soldier, and for the ‘commando Negroes’, a reference to the enslaved who accompanied them as bearers. The concise meaning of the legend on the right is: A. four slaves who clear the way; B. a sergeant with a compass, plus three soldiers; C-D. the vanguard; E-F. the Corps; G-H. the bearers and their guards; I-K. the rear-guard; 1.1.1. three slaves each carrying a case of gunpowder.

Taken from 1.05.03 inv.nr. 364 (on fols. 304-314 [bijlage no. 1794]; see attched report). A second edition can be found in 1.05.06 inv.nr. 691 (see map 1).