The regular troops raised as _regiments de marche_, &c., amounted to
213,000 infantry, 12,000 cavalry and 10,000 artillery. The _garde
mobile_ exceeded 300,000, and the mobilized national guard exceeded
1,100,000--of whom about 180,000 were actually in the field and 250,000
in Paris; the remainder preparing themselves in camps or depots for
active work. Altogether the new formations amounted to nearly 1,700,000.
Though, in the face of the now war-experienced well-led and disciplined
Germans, their efforts failed, this cannot detract from the admiration
which must be felt by every soldier for the patriotism of the people and
the creative energy of their leaders, of whom Gambetta and Freycinet
were the chief. After the war every Frenchman set himself to solve the
army problem not less seriously than had every Prussian after Jena, and
the reformed French army (see FRANCE) was the product of the period of
national reconstruction. The adoption of the "universal service"
principle of active army, reserves and second-line troops, the essential
feature of which is the _line_ training of every man, was almost as a
matter of course the basis of the reorganization, for the want of a
trained reserve was the most obvious cause of the disasters of "the
terrible year."
GERMAN ARMY
87. The German army, strictly speaking, dates only from 1871, or at
earliest 1866. Before the unification of the German empire or
confederation, the several states possessed distinct armies, federal
armies when required being formed from the contingents which the members
of the union, like those of an ordinary alliance, engaged to furnish.
The armies of the Holy Roman Empire were similarly formed from "single,"
"double," or "treble" contingents under the supreme command of specially
appointed field marshals of the Empire. In the troubles of 1848 there
was witnessed the curious spectacle of half of a victorious army being
unable to pursue the enemy; this, being composed of "Prussian" as
distinct from "federal contingent" troops, had to stop at the frontier
of another state. The events of 1866 and 1870 put an end to all this,
and to a very great extent to the separate armies of the old
confederation, all being now remodelled on Prussian lines. The Prussian
army therefore is at once the most important and historically the most
interesting of the forces of the German empire. Its _debut_ (about 1630)
was not satisfactory, and in the Thirty Years' War troops of Sweden, of
the Emperor, of the League, &c., plundered Brandenburg unharmed. The
elector, when appealed to for protection, could but answer, "Que faire?
Ils ont des canons." The humiliations of this time, were, however,
avenged by the troops of the next ruler of Brandenburg, called the Great
Elector. The supposed invincibility of the Swedes did not prevent him
from inflicting upon them a severe defeat at Fehrbellin, and thereafter
the Prussian contingents which took part in the many European wars of
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account