Camisado

In military tactics, a camisado, or camisade, is a surprise attack occurring at night, or at daybreak, when the enemy are supposed to be asleep.1728]

The word is said to have come about from an attack of this kind, in which, as a means to recognize one another, the attackers wore shirts, "chemise" or "camise", over their armor. The term was very common in the 16th and 17th centuries."Camisado". "Oxford English Dictionary". Oxford University Press. 2nd edition. 1989.]

The term "camisado" has also been erroneously applied to the shirt worn over armor during a night attack.

Notable camisades

*On 9 October, 1544, French forces under the Dauphin assault Boulogne by night, but are ultimately unsuccessful.
*On 14 October, 1758, General Daun surprise Frederick the Great in the Battle of Hochkirch.

Quotations

"
text=For I this day will lead the forlorn hope,
The "camisado" shall be given by me.
sign=—"The Four Apprentices of London" by Thomas Heywood

In music

*Alternative rock band Panic at the Disco have a song named Camisado about guitarist Ryan Ross's father's struggle with alcoholism on their album A Fever You Can't Sweat Out.

References