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Posted on FR from: The Essentials of the Catholic Faith, Part Two: Channels of Grace, Confirmation

Sacramental Character. The Church stresses that the indelible seal received in Confirmation is really a new character. It is not merely a deepening of the baptismal character. The Church’s tradition teaches that the confirmation character gives the power and the right to perform actions which are necessary in the spiritual battle against the enemies of the faith. These enemies are the world, our own proud intellect and will, and the evil spirit.

Moreover, the Church does not hesitate to say that Confirmation changes the simple members of the kingdom of Christ into soldiers of Christ. St. Ignatius, in his Spiritual Exercises, expresses this idea forcefully in the invitation that Christ extends to His chosen followers.

My will is to conquer the whole world and all enemies and thus to enter into the glory of my Father. Whoever, therefore, desires to come with me must labor with me in order that following me in pain, he may likewise follow me in glory (The Kingdom of Christ).

The character of Confirmation confers on the baptized the strength they need to live up to Christ’s expectations of the Mystical Body on earth, which is the Church Militant.

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Three words in the Church’s definition of Confirmation bring out the unique effects of this sacrament. They are to “witness to Christ,” and “spread and defend the faith.” On each of these three levels, Confirmation strengthens a Christian and imposes the obligation to witness, spread, and defend. Let us now examine them in detail.

In order to be able to witness to Christ, Confirmation deepens a person’s faith by making Christ better understood, more clearly perceived, and more firmly believed in as the Son of the living God who became man to redeem the world. In a word, Confirmation strengthens our conviction of mind by enabling us to say with St. Paul: “I have not lost confidence, because I know who it is that I have put my trust in, and I have no doubt at all that He is able to take care of all that I have entrusted to Him until that Day” (II Timothy 1:12).

Conviction is the bedrock of courage: A convinced mind is the foundation for a courageous will. Every courageous witness to Christ was, in effect, a martyr for Christ, either by shedding his blood for the Savior in dying a martyr’s death, or certainly testifying to his deathless love for Christ by living a martyr’s life.
In order to be able to spread the faith, Confirmation develops our sense of mission and deepens our desire to share with others what others have so zealously passed on to us.

Here is what wikipedia says about the "soldier of Christ" issue:

The "soldier of Christ" imagery, remains valid [7] but is downplayed... Then he strikes him lightly on the cheek, saying: Peace be with you) (cf. the knightly custom of the accolade). When, in application of the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,[10] the Confirmation rite was revised in 1971, mention of this gesture was omitted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_(Catholic_Church)

Admittedly wikipedia often has a leftist bias, but its report on the post-Vatican II watering down of Confirmation is consistent with the consensus among traditionalists.