Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States

What it is

This is a drill manual written by Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, Inspector General of the Continental Army, and published in 1779. It was ordered printed by the Continental Congress and distributed to the army.

Why it matters

Steuben had trained a model company of soldiers at Valley Forge, who then trained the rest of the army using the same methods. This manual wrote down those methods so every unit could follow identical procedures. It became known as the army's "Blue Book" and remained the official U.S. military guide for decades, showing how a foreign-trained officer helped professionalize an inexperienced revolutionary army.

Look closer

• Why might Congress have wanted all troops trained the same way?
• What does it tell us that a Prussian-trained officer was chosen to write America's first drill manual?
• What kinds of details does a drill manual include, and what does it leave out about actual combat?