There are four basic positions used for firing a rifle: standing; keeling; sitting; and prone. During the age of musketry standing and kneeling were most common. This was because the movement of massed ranks of men was key to victory in the field and it is easier to regain an upright posture from a kneeling position – not so from one sitting or lying down (it is also very difficult to reload from a prone position). Kneeling was also used in the front rank of a multi ranked fusillade. The position is executed with the left foot forward, right knee in contact with the ground. The left arm supports the rifle directly over the left knee. In the optimal situation the left tricep would be resting just before the left knee. The heat of battle rarely offers the optimal situation.