Glossary of terms
cacolet | a seat or bed fitted to a camel or mule for carrying sick or wounded people |
cadet | a student or young person undergoing military training, usually before full entry to the services, especially for officer status |
calibre | the width of the inside of a gun's barrel |
casualty | a person who is injured or killed in a war |
Casualty Clearance Post (CCP) | a safe area within a conflict zone or disaster site, for triage and emergency treatment of casualties before they are transported elsewhere for further care. |
Catafalque | a temporary raised platform on which a body lies in state before or during a funeral |
catalyst | a person or thing that causes a change or event to happen |
Catholic | a member of the Catholic Church, the branch of Christianity |
cavalry | the group of soldiers in an army who fight on horseback |
ceasefire | an arrangement in which countries or groups of people that are fighting each other agree to stop fighting |
celerity | swiftness in acting or moving; speed |
censor | to officially examine letters of the media and cut out any information that is regarded as secret |
cipher | a secret system of writing used to send encrypted messages |
civil war | a war or conflict fought between 2 or more different groups of people who live in the same country |
civilian | describes a person who is not a member of the armed forces |
coalition | an alliance between two or more nations, groups or political parties, especially for some temporary and specific reason |
collectivism | the political belief that a country's industries and services should be owned and controlled by the state or by all the people in a country |
collier | a ship designed to transport coal |
colony | a country that is controlled by a more powerful country |
combatant | a nation or person engaged in active fighting with enemy forces |
commandeer | officially take charge of a vehicle, vessel, building, supplies or equipment for a military purpose |
commemorate | to remember an event or person through a special action or ceremony or a specially created object |
commerce raiding | a form of naval warfare that disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping |
commission | an official document issued by a government that confers an appointment or rank in the armed forces |
Commonwealth of Nations | a voluntary association of the United Kingdom, states that were previously part of the British Empire, and dependencies |
compensation | money or anything given as an equivalent to make amends for losses or damages |
conscientious objector | someone who refuses to meet a community or political obligation, such as compulsory military service |
conscription | when citizens are made to join their country's military force, such as the army |
contingent | a group of military personnel serving on the same side or for the same cause |
convalesce | to rest and recover health after an illness or operation |
convoy | a group of ships with an escort of warships, or a group of vehicles travelling together with a military escort |
cordite | a smokeless explosive substance used in bombs and guns |
cot case | a person too ill to leave their bed |
counterattack | a military attack in response to an attack |
coup d'etat | overthrowing of an existing government illegally or by force |
curfew | a law that people must stay home after a particular time at night, often during a war or civilian crisis |