French Revolutionary Wars PDF

Beard Notes =========== ***[How to structure]*** **Hypothesis:** Set out what you intend to argue + the themes you intend to explore. **Main body:** - Theme 1 - Theme 2 - Theme 3 **Conclusion:** Judgement [French Revolutionary Wars] [A New Army] - Prior to 1792, armies had principa...

Beard Notes =========== ***[How to structure]*** **Hypothesis:** Set out what you intend to argue + the themes you intend to explore. **Main body:** - Theme 1 - Theme 2 - Theme 3 **Conclusion:** Judgement [French Revolutionary Wars] [A New Army] - Prior to 1792, armies had principally sought to sustain the absolute authority of European Monarchs. - The French Royal Army ceased to exist. Many of its officers were aristocrats and fled the Revolution and the 'Terror' which followed. Some even defecting to the armies of Austria and Prussia and actively working against the Revolution. - The Republican leaders distrusted the old Royal Army and the Royal prefix was dropped and National Guard volunteers were brought in so as to ensure the army was loyal to the Revolution. In their place, came younger politically motivated officers (like Napoleon) who were ideologically bound with the Revolution. - The Revolution and the declaration at the end of 1792 that France was willing to "assist all peoples who seek to recover their liberty" made the France the enemy of the other European states which were still monarchies. France was viewed as a 'rogue state' and war with Austria and Prussia soon broke out. - The Revolution was under threat and in April 1792 the French Army performed badly at Valenciennes, with mass desertions and the lynching of the French commander by his own men. - Only through sheer weight of numbers and Revolutionary Zeal was the Revolution saved. An invasion of Paris by the Prussian Army being stopped at the Battle of Valmy in September 1792. - The French ranks were swelled by volunteers, but victory had as much to do with the superior French artillery which had benefitted from the reforms of de Gribeauval from the 1760s, whereby French cannon had been standardised, made more mobile, more accurate and where they were grouped together to concentrate their fire. [A Nation in Arms] - Invasion averted, the French now set-about whole-sale reform of their armed forces and attitude to fighting a war. - On 23^rd^ August 1793, the 'Levee en masse' was decreed. By this edict, all Frenchmen were placed in a "state of permanent requisition for the army". - Young men were to fight. Married men were to forge arms and transport food and supplies and women were to make tents, uniforms and to work in hospitals. - Public buildings were converted into barracks and arms factories. Horses were requisitioned for the army. - The army swelled to nearly a million men under arms. - France was now a "Nation in Arms" and the transition towards "Total War" had been begun. - No longer would the war be prosecuted as a limited affair, whereby the army and the state (and its citizens within) were separated. - The economy of France was fully mobilised, price controls were introduced, labour, property and produce requisitioned by the government and transport and industry were nationalised. - 20 new sword and bayonet factories and 12 new gun factories were established. The largest in Paris produced more muskets than the rest of Europe put together. - All of this effort was coordinated by the Committee for Public Safety (CPS) under the leadership of Lazare Carnot. [The Organisation of the Army] - Carnot set about amalgamating the volunteer forces which derived from the 'Levee' with the regular forces. In this way recruits were 'trained on the job' by more experienced soldiers and brought up-to-speed more rapidly. - The CPS also appointed 'deputies' to supervise the political indoctrination of the troops and to ensure that the armies Generals stayed 'on message'. These men were forerunners to the 'Political Commissars' that the Communist Red Army of the USSR would later employ. - The Regiments of the old army were disbanded and in their place, Divisions were created. These units (of about 12,000 men) combined infantry, artillery and cavalry and could therefore work independently from one another, improving the speed and flexibility of French forces. Although, the Divisions achieved 'mixed success' until the intervention of Napoleon later and the establishment of the Corps d'Armee system. [Size of the Army ] - France had the second highest population in Europe after Russia. There were some 30 million French men and women at the time of the Revolution. - This meant that France could more easily supply its armies than other European nations and that, despite, the heavy casualty rate suffered as a result of French tactics, that losses were more easily replaced than those suffered by France's enemies. - Indeed, such was the advantage, that by 1793, the French Army was engaged in ten separate campaigns simultaneously. [Changes to strategy] - The mass French armies and the lack of any formal training for the majority of French soldiers saw a change to the types of tactic employed on the battlefield. - Complex encirclement manoeuvres were replaced with the 'Shock Tactics' of 'the charge'. This involved columns of French troops charging enemy lines with their bayonets. - Infantry units were organised into columns of around 50-80 men across and 12 men deep. These presented smaller targets to the enemies artillery than lines. - Later, more 'mixed order' tactics were employed with columns, skirmishing and sniping all developed by 1795. [Napoleon] [13 Vendemiaire] - By 1795, there was growing frustration that the Revolution had not delivered the solution to all of France's problems. - The Thermidorian Reaction saw the CPS challenged, Robespierre removed and executed and a rise in Royalist counter-insurgency against the Revolution. - On the 5^th^ October 1795 (13 Vendemiarie in the Revolutionary Calendar) Napoleon was appointed to defend the National Convention and the Tuileries Palace against the Royalists. - Bonaparte, working with the cavalry officer Joachim Murat, utilised artillery cannons and 'the whiff of grape shot' to repel the insurgents and defend the Convention. - Bonaparte's success brought fame, the patronage of Paul Barras and the Command of the (French) Army of Italy. [Campaign in Italy] - Bonaparte left to take command of the Army of Italy in March 1796 just after his marriage to Josephine - The army was weak and poorly supplied with the priority going to Frances other forces. The army was already undergoing some reorganisation - Bonaparte was soon able to carry out the plan for the invasion of Italy that he had been advocating for years, which provided for an advance over the Apennines near Altare to attack enemy position of Ceva - Bonaparte was able to achieve a series of lightning victories in Italy, knocking the Piedmonts out of the war by April 1796. Total losses during the campaign were 6000 French troops and over 25,000 Allied. - The victories against the Piedmonts brought confidence and further victories followed against the Austrians at Lodi in May and Lonato and Castiglione in August-Austrians forced back over the Alps. - The victories in Italy confirmed Napoleon as a military commander of weight. Popular with his men, Napoleon was nicknamed the little corporal for his willingness to fight alongside the ranks and to lead the charge. - His popularity rose with the troops too, as he used the war fines paid by Austria in the treaty of Campo Formio in order to pay his troops [Rise to power] - Napoleons success in Italy established him as a potential revival to the Directory (French gov.) - Between 1798-99 He led the French forces in Egypt as he sought to increase the influence of the revolution in the middle east. - Campaign didn't go well. Napoleon suffered supply issues outnumbered by strength of the British Navy - French suffered problems of disease too - In the Autumn of 1799 Napoleon returned to France where he challenged the Directory and established himself as first consul of France (Coup du Brumaire) - Napoleon consolidated his power over the next 4 years before crowing himself as Emperor in December 1804 [Napoleons Strategy ] - Primary strategic goal was the rapid destruction of enemy forces - Preference for decisive battles which would break the enemy and remove any further resistance. - His strategy, to some extent, was forced upon Napoleon by the nature of his forces (large and dependent upon foraging- not sustainable) - 18^th^ century wars had seen development of manoeuvre strategies designed to avoid battle, but Napoleon countered this by sending as large a force as he could muster, deep into enemy territory so that they could not be ignored and so that battle might be forced [Innovation- The Corps] - Napoleon built upon Carnot's divisional system with the introduction of the Corps d'armee system - This saw the introduction of army corps which had 3 infantry divisions, a cavalry brigade and 46 artillery guns - Approx. 3x the size of one of Carnot's divisions - The Corps was a big enough tactical unit to fight on its own. Intended to work in action with other Corps. - The system allowed for the French forces to converge on targets from multiple directions utilising different roads and foraging in different areas. Made them more flexible and quicker - Battle of Austerlitz,1805 - Demonstrated himself as a master of strategic movement and the army corps model revolutionised the conduct of warfare  [Battle of Marengo] - Having established himself as First Consul in 1799, Napoleon turned again to war in 1800 - 14 June 1800, Part of the second Italian campaign - French fought Austrians for dominance of northern Italy - Victory confirmed French dominance over Italy and recemented Napoleon as commander - In December 1800, the Austrians and French fought again at the battle of Hohenlinden, in the dense forests of Bavaria. Austrians hoped to defeat the French, but their surprise attack was met with an impressive counterattack by the French, led by Moreau. Austrian to French casualties= 12000:7000 - Despite not committing troops to land warfare, Britain remained the main enemy for the French and, as part of his divide and rule tactics, whereby Napoleon sought to isolate his enemies and avoid fighting them all simultaneously, in 1802, a temporary peace treaty was concluded with the British at Amiens. - The treaty acknowledged the need for respite between the two. - France officially withdrew from Egypt and French control of Belgium and Netherlands was acknowledged. [Tactics] - Napoleone preferred to use the leading corps to pin the enemy down from the front whilst the other units outflanked them and attacked the rear - In this way, armies could be encircled and forced to surrender, as was the case at Ulm in Oct. 1805. - Where the enemy was a larger force, Napoleon - would strike at the point at which they were joined with a view to dividing opponents, finishing off the weaker enemy before turning his entire force on the stronger element. - In terms of infantry formations, Napoleon preferred to utilise 'ordre mixte' of lines of fire, attack columns and skirmishers. - Artillery and skirmishers would attempt to break enemy lines before infantry columns were used to test the weak point. Once discovered the French artillery would then pound these points before fresh troops were sent to smash through enemy lines. - When routed, the enemy would be pursued by the French cavalry and cut down. [Video Notes] - 1804 Napoleon as Emperor, both head of state and head of army, "war finances war" - 1806 vs. Prussia at Jena Auerstedt, all arms warfare, Corps system. French outnumbered 2:1 but still win. - 1808, bigger and improved GB army land in Portugal with future duke of Wellington More use of skirmishes, "hit and run" - Peninsula war (Spanish ulcer) Guerilla Warfare vs peasants, becomes war of attrition. - Outside of Lisbon, Wellington has constructed lines of Torres Vedras [Towards defeat- Iberian Peninsula] - Between 1808 and 1814 the British Army fought a war in the Iberian Peninsula against the invading forces of Napoleon's France. Aided by their Spanish and Portuguese allies, the British held off superior French numbers before winning a series of victories and driving them out. They then carried the war into France, playing a part in Napoleons first overthrow. - By 1806, the French had achieved dominance in mainland Europe. Their emperor Napoleon, decided to combat Britain's ongoing opposition by attacking its economy and forcing the nations of continental Europe to close their ports to British Goods-Continental system - [T]he Portuguese however, continued to trade with Britain. So in November 1807 a French army marched through Spain and occupied the Portuguese capital Lisbon - Napoleon then turned his attention on Spain a previous ally of France. In February 1808, French troops invade Spain and occupy capital. Napoleon Brother announced King [Revolt ] - As the Spanish rose up against the French, Napoleon ordered his columns to quickly pacify the major centres of resistance. Defeat at Balian meant he had to abandon much of Spain the insurgents - First setback for the French "unbeatable" army. Emboldened Iberian people - Spain appealed to Britain for help. August 1808, 14000 troops land at Mondego Bay under Lieutenant General Sir Arthur Wellesley (late duke of wellington) - Goya's art "The Disasters of War" effectively propaganda [Spanish Ulcer] - The Portuguese and Spanish played an important part in the war. Retrained and reorganised under William Beresford, Portugal's soldiers fought bravely alongside those of Britian. It tied down thousands of French troops, as insurgents kept reappearing despite defeat - French troops had to garrison hostile territory and wage a bitter war against insurgents. French comms and supply lines were constantly harassed by 1812 French had 350000 soldiers in Iberia but 200,000 were protecting lines of supplies rather than serving as front line troops - All these factors meant that although on Paper the French heavily outnumbered the British armies in Iberia never able to concentrate enough troops to win a decisive victory. The continual drain on resources led Napoleon to call it the Spanish Ulcer - Lt-Gen Sir John Moore advanced to Spain with 35000 men. But when he discovered that Napoleon himself had entered the country with a large army and that Madrid had fallen to France, he was forced to retreat. In terrible winter conditions, his army fell back to the Northwest coast of Spain where the Navy could evacuate them. - On 16 Jan 180, British fought off their pursuers at la Corunna. Although Moore himself was mortally wounded, the remainder of his force was successfully embarked. Moore's army had been severely mauled. Wellesley assumed command after in Spain. - In prep for another French invasion of Portugal, wellington ordered the construction of a series of defences around Lisbon known as the Lines of Torres Vedras. - In 1810 large French army under Marshal Massena captured the border fortresses of Ciudad Rodrigo and Almeida, and advanced into Portugal. On 27^th^ Sep, Wellingtons army checked them at Busaco-French driven off with 4500 casualties - Wellingtons men fell back to the Lines. Reinforced by scorch earth policy-destroyed land for French to forage off - Wellingtons position was clearly impregnable. But it took Massena six months and the starvation of 25000 men before he retreated. [New Offensive ] - As French were withdrawn from Spain to take part in Napoleons invasion of Russia, Wellington felt ready at last to take the offensive - In early 1812, Wellington attacked the fortresses at Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. Success at each would open up the northern and southern routes into Spain - On 8 of Jan 1812 laid siege on Ciudad Rodrigo. By the 19^th^, his guns had opened two gaps in the town's defences. That night the 3^rd^ division attacked one breach whilst the light division attacked the other. - 3^rd^ div suffered heavily from mine explosion. But the light div forced its way into the town whilst other troops scaled the walls elsewhere-French surrendered - Further victories at Badajoz and Salamanca [Supply lines] - In 1813 Wellington advanced again with 120000 soldiers. Since he would be lengthening his lines of comms, he switched his supply bases from Portugal's to the northern coast of Spain; a move made possible by the royal navy's dominance - While the French lived off the land- a policy which angered the Spanish and strengthened support for the guerillas- Wellington ensured that his troops were properly supplied, and always insisted on paying for what he took from the locals. [Vitoria] - After taking Burgos on 21 June 1813, Wellington catches up with the French at Vitoria and defeated them in an enveloping attack, Napoleons brother narrowly escaped capture. - The Victory would have been even more decisive had many of Wellington's troops not broken off the pursuit to plunder French baggage. The victory at Vitoria effectively ended French control in Spain. It also encouraged the Austrians to re-join the coalition against Napoleon. [Why did Napoleon invade Russia] - Napoleon agreed a peace treaty with the Tsar Alexander at Tilsit in 1807 following a French win at Friedland in 1807 - Treaty helped cement Napoleons mastery over central Europe and effectively made the two countries allies rather than enemies - Via this treaty, Russia agreed to enact Napoleons 'Continental system' the attempted blockade of Europe's ports to deny British ships trade with Europe - Impacted Russia and Tsar Alexander left the continental system in 1810-this angered Napoleon - Napoleon and Alexander fell out over Franes annexation of parts of modern day Poland, which the Tsar believed to be a precursor to an invasion of Russia - In 1810, Napoleon married the Austrian empress, Marie Louie, over the sister of Alexander- Anna Pavlovna. This cemented relations between France and Austrian, in the Tsars view, at the expense of Russia. - The invasion was a means of getting Russia to heel [Summary] - Napoleon assembled the largest army seen to date for the invasion - Began in June and met with little resistance - Roads were dirt tracks and poor construction hindered the French - Barren lands made forging difficult and by July there was an outbreak of Typhus - 100000 had been lost already from disease or desertion - Heat of summer made it difficult for French - Borodino September 1810- nominal French victory both sides lost 40,000 - Russians retreated, ceding territory extending French supply lines - Moscow was abandoned by the Russians with the city set ablaze and the asylums opened-no respite or sustenance for French. Napoleon stayed 5 weeks demanding a Russian surrender-it was refused - On 19^th^ October Napoleon abandons Moscow and started his retreat- had about 108k men but very few horses- retreat suffered from worsening weather, lack of sustenance and many attacks from partisans and Cossacks - Once winter arrived French army were still equipped with summer uniform and did not have the means to protect themselves from the cold Night temp dropped to -35 degrees - Russians caught up in November, another 30,000 French died [Consequences] - Estimated Napoleon lost half a million men in Russia - Many were experienced and not easily replaced - Napoleon no longer seen as invincible reputation suffered - Morale was very low - Napoleons allies now began to turn against him so that in 1813 he faced war with a sixth coalition now comprised of GB, Russia, Prussia, Austria, Spain, Portugal and Sweden and a number of German states - French defeat in the Peninsula war paved the way for Wellington to move across the Pyrenees and into France - A decisive victory was achieved at the battle of Leipzig, in October 1813, the largest battle of the Napoleonic wars, where French were outnumbered, 360,000 to 195,000 - By the end of 1813 French faced attacks from south and East. In January 1814 coalition forces were inside France - In April 1814 Napoleon abdicated at Fontainebleau and went into exile on the island of Elba [The 100 days] - By March 1815, Napoleon was back in Paris and back in control - Splits amongst the coalition powers had become evident and the restored monarchy of Louis XVIII proved unpopular who longed for Napoleons return. - Napoleone landed with 1000 men but these quickly swelled as he marched for Paris so that by May 1815 he had nearly 200,000 troops under his command. - Coalition forces now regrouped and set about organizing their forces to rid France of Napoleon once and for all. However their collective forces were slow to mobilise and Napoleon seized the chance to divide them with a pre-emptive strike vs. the British and Prussian armies in Belgium June 1815. - Napoleons strategy was to keep Prussia and Britian separated GB under Wellington and Prussia under Blucher. - Onus is on French to win, Wellington need only hold out for reinforcements from the Prussians and can therefore fight more defensively - Wellington fortifies his position using farms (La Haye Sainte, Hougoumont) - Wellington utilized the landscape of the battlefield in order to protect himself from the French cannon fire. Using the reverse of the slope so that his men were not subject to artillery fire - Napoleon incapacitated for much of the battle by illness - Neys reckless cavalry charge proves suicidal as the allies are ready in squares to meet them. - Grouchy's corps were unable to hold Bluchers forces and the Prussians arrived to support wellington at a crucial moment - The arrival of Prussia threatens the French flank and diverts men away from the main body of the French force. - Failure of imperial guard to force a breakthrough allows for Wellington to launch a counterattack. The guard was not what it had once been with many of its best men lost in Russia or at Leipzig. - France flee fearing encirclement - Napoleon flees - French are defeated, Napoleon exiled on St Helena [Reasons for Napoleons defeat] - Hubris - Strategic overstretch - Composition of French army changed - Marshals were prone to feuding - War changed and Napoleon did not - Napoleons enemies grew stronger and more united - Declining physical health *[To what extent do you agree that the strength of the sixth and seventh coalitions was the primary reason for Napoleon's and France's eventual defeat between 1808-1815?]* **P1-Thesis** **P2-** coalition strengths (enc. Economic factors) **P3**-Strategic overstretch (enc. Leadership) **P4**- Rise of Nationalism and popular resistance (guerillas and attritional warfare e.g. Cossacks and partisans in Russia) **P5-Overall Judgement-***separation* 1808-1812 is point 2 1812-1815 Is point 1 and 3 [The Crimean War] [The role of media and public opinion ] - The Crimean war was the first widely reported conflict. First with reporters imbedded and first to be photographed - As a result the death destruction and misery of warfare was brought home to the British public , like never before - This would have a huge impact upon the nature of warfare as reforms were enacted to take account of the need to appease public opinion - The media and public now saw the realities of war and were not use to them, so they criticised the efficiency and needless death - What the Crimean war did was increase the standards of what is expected of a military commander [War Correspondent W.H.Russell] - His criticism of military authorities contributed to the collapse of the government and provoked Prince Albert to denounce him as a miserable scribbler - Among his achievements was his exposure of the truly appalling conditions among the men wintering in the Crimea, starving unhoused, ragged, freezing and diseased. Also established opinion that led to Nightingale etc.. - Dispatches revealed info for the enemy - Russell blamed Raglan for everything. [Advancements in weaponry: rifles ] - Trotsky -- 'war is the locomotive of history', it is a catalyst of change - The most significant advancement was in weaponry with the creation of the Minie bullet and the application of riffling - They replaced old musket bullets; it smaller tighter fit meant it was more accurate - Further improvements in rifling, the spiral grooves within the barrel gave the Minie bullets a spin improving accuracy - This meant the British infantry soldier was more likely to hit their target, this changed the formation of the British and their tactics [Advancements in weaponry: artillery ] - A slow start after the battle of alma was very costly for the allies -- instead of simply advancing on Sebastopol immediately they gave the Russians 3 days to finish their defences -- this made the Russian position very secure and if it was not for the British using the 68 pounders the assault would have been a waste - British 68 pounder showed the British strength -- after much of the French artillery were put out of action, 41 British cannons remained causing damage to the Russians - These new powerful canons significantly changed the siege warfare -- no longer were wooden walls implacable to these beneath cannons which in small numbers could demolish fortifications - This led to a change in engineering of defences in warfare, an improvement to more solid materials [Changes in tactics: infantry lines ] - Advances in rifling and the Minie bullet meant the British infantry men were more likely to hit their targets and this significantly changed the British formations - No longer did they keep deep squared to hold of against calvary charges but instead they assembled in long two men deep lines in what Russel called the 'thin red line' - This formation was used at the Battle of Balaclava in which the British where able to defeat a Russian calvary attacks - The increased rate if fire and accuracy meant that the incoming charge was simply demolished - In contrast the Russians relied on dense columns which could not deal with the great range of the British -- there eventual defeat would lead to the reform of warfare in Russia especially with weaponry [Changes in tactics: Cavalry ] - Crimea saw the end of the famous cavalry charge - The advancements in technology were making this method obsolete but the historic failure of the light brigade was a costly eye opener for the British - The cost of the charge showed that despite their courage, the cavalry could no longer dominate the battlefield as they once did - This was a huge change to the conduct of war - For years the calvary had been the main strength of a force -- now slowly becoming obsolete - Artillery not calvary was now the key weapon [Changes in logistics ] - Supply line is extensive, and very long distance mostly by sea - Logistics varied throughout the war, started of very poorly but eventually become more effective - Upon the arrival of the beaches of Crimea the British found they had a shortage of horses to carry necessary supplies - During this time, they had been a serve outbreak of cholera which had weakened a large population of the British forces -- sick soldiers were forced to burden the extra weight and this made them worse and in some cases lead to their deaths - A constant struggle to maintain adequate level of supplies for the troops, the lack of land transport had not been solved, this led to food shortages - This problem was often blamed on the British commander Lord Raglan - However, Raglan had no direct control over logistical supply; they were supplied directly from britain by the army commissariat (a civilian run body) - The problems in the Crimea result in the scrapping of the commissariat, the person who is solely responsible for the money and goods supplied for war and the establishment of a logistics corps - The change saw better co-ordination and more productivity within the army - There was also the creation of a 25-mile railway line to the harbour to transport goods to front line which was incredibly effective ending the issues of transport and lack of horses [The railway ] - Was built in 1855 by British - First military railroad - Its purpose was to supply ammunition and provision from the port of Balaclava to allied soldiers engaged in the siege of Sevastopol - It was a single track railroad - Certainly, it had come some success in doing this and aided the allied bombardment of Sevastopol in both April and June 1855 - But when the locomotives were first used, the first one running in November 8, they struggled with the gradient from Balaclava to Kakoki, even with a light load - Many case they came too late to affect the outcome of the siege [Protest and the fall of the Aberdeen government 1855] - The Crimea war (1853-56) sparked major protests in England, particularly over the British government's mishandling of war - This was due to the development of the telegram which connected europe, therefore news could be published within 24 hours along with a higher literacy rate this meant more people in britain knew what was going on in the war -- seeing the true horrors of the war - Public outrage grew as reports revealed the harsh conditions, inadequate supplies, poor medical care, and high mortality rates which the British soldiers were experiencing particularly during the siege of Sevastopol - The British press, notably the times, played a key tole by publishing reports from war correspondents that detailed the suffering of soldiers and the bureaucratic inefficiency - There was a sense that the war had been mismanaged and lives being wasted due to poor leadership and planning - In response to the mounting public and parliament criticism, lord Aberdeen's coalition government collapsed early 1855, as all the blame of the war was placed on the government - January 1855, protests in Trafalgar square demonstrated that the government needed to take in the needs of the public - It was succeeded by Lord Palmerston's administration, which promised reforms and more effective management of the war - This shift marked a significant moment in British politics, as public opinion played a central role in toppling a government, underscoring the growing power of the press and public scrutiny in holding leaders accountable - Post the Crimea war due to this government falling, there was an increased propaganda and censorship to ensure this won't happen again ['advancements' in medical treatment on the battlefield ] - Florence nightingale and her team of 38 women set about providing better care, largely by improving supplies of food and clothing - Mary Seacole was a part of this team - Floors were swept and cleaned, bed linen was washed, and patients' clothes were changed more frequently - Sanitary conditions soon followed, with cleaner toilets, better ventilation, and water supplies - Prior there was a high level of infection as they didn't do any of these 'basic' levels of sanitation - This helped lower the death rate which was being kept very high due to the cholera breakout - Nightingale and her team of nurses revolutionised nursing care for future generations - However, in the Crimea they had little effect, as they didn't arrive in till later on in the war and had limited supplies - Despite these medical innovations thousands still dies of disease which was the biggest killer during the war - The foundations for change in the future were laid down during Crimea changing the nature for warfare for good - Medical technology and innovations largely stem from war -- although didn't have huge effect in the war but lasting effects [Post-war changes: britain ] - Britain rationalised the chain of command - as they realised that logistically their system was failing - The role of the secretary of war was created and one military officer who now controlled all aspects of personnel, supply and ordnance - Staff collage was set up in 1862 -- to improve the standard of staff working in the army - Permanent hospital corps were set up - Mounted staff corps who acted as the army's police, to hold discipline in the army - The end of the Crimea saw a positive reform: britain learned from its mistakes and also pushed forward in successes like in the field of medicine [Conclusions ] - The Crimea war was filled with mass improvements in the field of technology - Millie bullet - Telegraph - Tactics were largely influenced by weaponry which now completely changed and an end of the heroic calvary charge and other foolish acts of bravery, effective methods of attack which relied on rate of fire and not bravado replacing them - Though leadership in Crimea has been criticised, its failures are often exaggerated - There were laps in judgement, like the charge of the light brigade, but non were significant enough to suggest the quality of military leadership had declined, rather it ceased to improve - Issues such as medical innovations served well but did not heavily influence events in the Crimea - It was the after effects which truly changed the nature of warfare - The mass reform completely altered the standard of armies, the fact that these reforms were launched was an admission in part of the need to meet a growing concern of the public and since public opinion was drastically influencing warfare it was necessary to appease them [The Civil War] [Changing Organisation] - The US, with its strong tradition of liberty had no experience in raising mass armies through conscription. - In addition the size of the USA; even the size of the conflict area was huge. This necessitated the transportation of goods (munitions etc) and soldiers over a large area. - The South was the first to adopt conscription (in April 1862 all males aged 18-35 had to enlist) this was hugely unpopular however. Draft dodging was common. Nevertheless the Confederate army expanded by a third to 450,000. This however, proved inadequate and so in December 1863 substitution had to be abolished. - Conscription in the North did not begin until March 1863 (when all males 20-45 had to enlist), though substitutes could be used and exemptions bought (for \$300). The North had the advantage of a larger population to draw upon. - Movement of troops was aided by the development of railways, again the North had the advantage (30,000 miles of track) compared to the South's (9000). In Sept. 1863 the North moved 23,000 men, 1200 miles in 7 days in order to facilitate Grant's victory at Chattanooga. - Strategically however, railways were vulnerable to targets to attack and were difficult to protect. [Weapons Development] - In 1861 Richard Jordan Gatling, produced an effective mechanical gun. The Gatling Gun consisted of six barrels mounted in a revolving frame. The United States Army purchased these guns in 1865 and over the next few years most major armies in Europe purchased the gun. The British Army tested it at Woolwich in 1870, and found that the 0.42 Gatling Gun fired 616 shots in two minutes. Of these, 369 hit their intended targets. - The Spencer repeating rifle was a manually operated lever-action, repeating rifle fed from a tube magazine with cartridges. It was adopted by the Union Army, especially by the cavalry, during the American Civil War, but did not replace the standard issue muzzle-loading rifled muskets in use at the time. The Spencer carbine was a shorter and lighter version. - The Spencer showed itself to be very reliable under combat conditions, with a sustainable rate-of-fire in excess of 20 rounds per minute. Compared to standard muzzle-loaders, with a rate of fire of 2-3 rounds per minute, this represented a significant tactical advantage. However, effective tactics had yet to be developed to take advantage of the higher rate of fire. Similarly, the supply chain was not equipped to carry the extra ammunition. Detractors would also complain that the smoke and haze produced was such that it was hard to see the enemy. [New tactics ] - Bushwhacking was a form of guerilla warfare during the American Civil War that was particularly prevalent in rural areas where there were sharp divisions between South and North. - Not part of the military command therefore not in control. While they conducted a few well organized raids in which they burned cities, most of the attacks involved ambushes of opponent individuals or families. - They killed many civilians [Changing tactics] - The north in particular undertook operations against the people of the south - Sheridan carried out Grants order to turn the Shenandoah valley into a barren waste. Form of scorched earth-later seen in the USSR during WW2 - Minie bullet, developed tactics: development of skirmishing and sniping - Battle of Coldharbour represented the last frontal assault against a trench- Union loses 60,000 in over 2 hours compared to souths 1500 - Artillery largely defensive , purpose was to hold back enemy infantry from launching attacks. Smooth bore was still preferred rifled artillery less reliable- crews lacked the skills to utilise the additional range and hit unsighted targets [Conclusions] - Trench warfare illustrated the ability of a small force to counter a larger one - Infantry was the key element - New weapons-gatling gun, repeating rifles - Improvements in accuracy - New strategies of guerilla war and making war upon civilians - Organisation- railroads and telegraphs as well as better General-ship [The Austro-Prussian war ] [Conclusions] - Sometimes called the seven weeks war - Conflict fought between Austrian and Prussia for dominance over the German states - Prussia under its chancellor Otto von Bismark, seems to have deliberately provoked the conflict in order to go war with Austria and assert its dominance - Prussia's victory was in essence the result of its use of modern methods and weapons of warfare, which the Austrians neglected. [Prussia ] - Chancellor: Otto von Bismark - King Wilhelm I, had fought himself in Campaigns against Napoleon - Military Leaders: Von Roon, minister of war and von Moltke, chief of general staff - Prussia had retained conscription after the Napoleonic wars ended, but by the 1950s its armies were once again in need of reform, quotas for recruits not having been changed since 1833Mol - Needed to take account of its growing population 10m in 1815  18m in 1859 [Why was victory so swift ] - Prussian military reforms - Prussian infantry adopted the Dreyse 'needle' gun, Austrians were still using muzzle loading rifles - Speed of mobilisation - Logistics - Economic factors- Prussia forms an economic union with other North German states - International factors-All of the other Great European powers stayed out of the conflict. Prussian persuaded Italy to attack Austria in an attempt to secure Venetia. Consequentially faced a war on two fronts [Prussian Military reforms ] - Moltke introduced reforms which streamlined the Landwehr (reserve) & strengthened the regular army. - Universal conscription, combined with an increase in the term of active service from two years to three years, dramatically increased the size of the army (trebled between 1857-1866) - Troops continually trained and drilled, therefore a better standard of training and discipline than the Austrians - A permanent army corps was established with officers, who used their shared training and experience to address both strategic and operational issues - Moltke's general staff meticulously planned for the movement of the army [Weapons] - Prussians used the needle gun, it was 4x quicker then the Austrians general issue - Prussians with their increased rapidity of fire began to adopt small unit fire tactics - The Austrians used old tactics lie battalion sized columns which were easy targets - Austrians had some advantages in that their **artillery** was breech loading but this was negated by the weakness of their infantry - Prussians had also invested in breech loading artillery but not in heavy numbers [Speed of Mobilisation and concentration] - Prussian army was locally based, organised as Kreise(circles), each containing an HQ and its component units. Reserves lived within a few hours journey of their depot - Austrians did the opposite to avoid separatist revolts, kept soldiers far from their recruitment locations. Mobilisation would take a few weeks - Prussia had a better railway network-allowed Prussia to concentrate its forces more easily. [Economic factors] - 1866 the Prussian economy was rapidly growing, partly as a result of the Zollverein, this gave an advantage in the war. It enabled Prussia to equip army with breech loading rifles, and later with new Krupp breech-loading artillery. - In contrast, the Austrian economy was suffering after the 1848 revolutions in Hungary and the second Italian war of independence. Austria only had one bank, the Creditanstalt-nation was heavily in debt. [Conclusions] - Prussias military reforms, together with the strength of its economy, meant that it was in far better shape to fight a war in 1866 than Austria - In particular, Prussia's rapid mobilisation and the adoption of the breech loading needle gun as opposed to traditional muzzle loaders, seems to have been decisive. [The Franco-Prussian war ] [Prussia after 1866] - Moltke seemingly planned for a war against France, mapping out how some 300,000 Prussian troops could cross into Alsace-Lorraine - 4 extra rail lines were laid in the region to facilitate the transportation of troops with sufficient speed and numbers, specifically for the purpose of invasion - Both the Prussian cavalry and artillery were modernised - In 1867 a new army bill decreed that the annual levee of conscripts would not fall below 1% of the population. - Thus Prussia had a standing army of 400,000 and a further 400,000 reservists by 1870-3 times its size in 1866 [The Chassepot Rifle ] - The Chassepot rifle, a French breech-loading firearm, significantly influenced the Franco-Prussian War of 1870--71. - Its superior range, accuracy, and rate of fire gave French troops a tactical advantage in skirmishes, allowing them to inflict heavy casualties on advancing Prussian forces. - However, logistical challenges, strategic errors, and Prussian innovations like artillery and superior organisation diminished its overall impact, contributing to France\'s defeat. - Despite its limitations, the rifle demonstrated the evolving nature of warfare and highlighted the importance of modernised firearms. - Indeed, by 1914, rapid fire breech loading rifles like the Lee Enfield.303 would play a huge impact in increasing casualties and making the battlefield even more deadly. - The Reffye Mitrailleuse, an early type of rapid-fire weapon developed in 1866, had a significant but ultimately mixed impact during the Franco-Prussian War (1870--71). - Often referred to as one of the first machine guns, it fired volleys of bullets using multiple barrels and was operated by a crew. - The Mitrailleuse had a high rate of fire for its time, offering the potential to deliver devastating barrages against massed infantry. - However, its effectiveness was hindered by several factors. French commanders often misused it, deploying it like conventional artillery rather than as a direct-fire support weapon, which limited its battlefield impact. - The weapon\'s secrecy before the war also meant that many French troops were unfamiliar with its use, further reducing its tactical value. - In contrast, the Prussian forces employed highly mobile and well-coordinated artillery that overshadowed the Mitrailleuse in effectiveness​. - Although technologically innovative, the Reffye Mitrailleuse exemplified the challenges of integrating new weapons into traditional military doctrines, highlighting the importance of training and tactical adaptation. - Nevertheless, it foreshadowed the wider use of machine gun and weapons such as the Maxim and the Vickers (firing 600rpm) would become the norm by 1914, as war transcended into the age of 'Total War' and the innovation of the Industrial Revolution began to be fully harnessed. [C/64 Krupp Field Gun] - The Krupp C/64 field gun played a crucial role in the Franco-Prussian War, providing the Prussian army with superior artillery. - Its breech-loading mechanism allowed faster reloading, while the rifled barrel ensured greater range and accuracy. These features gave the Prussians an edge over French artillery, particularly in long-range bombardments. - The C/64's effectiveness in sustained fire and its superior technical design contributed significantly to Prussian victories, including during sieges and battles such as Sedan. - Its impact cast an ominous shadow as to what was to come in the future, with ever more accurate and powerful artillery, leading to the stalemate and the cult of the defensive in the Great War, 1914-18. [French armed forces] - French prep was poor - Size of army was increased and in 1868, following Prussian victory over Austria it was agreed to double the size of the French force, far from complete when war began in 1870 - French invested in the Chassepot which were better rifles than the needle (Prussian) fired further and more accurate. - French did not invest into breech loading artillery, too expensive. - French did have an early form of the machine gun, Mitralleuse, but French soldiers had not trained with the weapon due to secrecy-not used to full effect - French did not establish a general staff - French slow to mobilise when war came Prussians able to mobilise 460,000 men in 18 days. [The Professional War: August-September 1870] - Initially the French were the aggressors, moving into Prussia before withdrawing three days later. - Prussia then moved into France. Moltke splitting his army into three in order to prevent the French army (which was split in two) from joining up. - The French were not aided by the overly cautious and indecisive actions of their leader, Marshal Bazaine. - Nevertheless, both sides suffered heavy casualties in and around Metz -- illustrating the devastating effect of new breech loading guns. - Emperor Napoleon III leading the French second army to try and relive that besieged at Metz was engaged at Sedan. - The Prussians managed to encircle Napoleon's force, taking the strategic hills surrounding them. From here Prussian artillery was able to pound the French into submission with little help needed from the infantry. - Artillery was beginning to prove its worth on the battlefield again. - Napoleon III alongside 83,000 of his men surrendered. 17,000 had already died. Napoleon III abdicated the next day. - A few weeks later the beleaguered French army at Metz surrendered, 150,000 in total. [The National War] - With Napoleon III's surrender the second phase of the war begun. France refused to recognise defeat and the Government of National Defence which emerged to replace Napoleon III's continued the war. - Thus the Prussian army went to war with French civilians. - The French had hopes of pushing out invading forces as in 1793, but it was not to be. - Paris was laid siege to and 2 million Parisians became the front line of war. - French partisans, or freeshooters continued to harass the Germans but were unable to push them out of the country. - By September 150,000 Germans had enveloped the French capital. Conditions in Paris deteriorated and food shortages were rife. - Bismarck then ordered the artillery bombardment of the city. For 3 weeks in January 1871, Prussia's heavy guns sounded. 97 French citizens were killed and a further 278 wounded before the French surrendered. - France was forced to pay a large indemnity and to give the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine over to the Germans. - The war with France had given Prussians and Bavarians a common purpose and the German nation emerged unified under a Prussian King, Wilhelm I in 1871. [Conclusions] - Preparation for war was key (hence having a General Staff became indispensable). - In particular, size of armies (via conscription) was become ever more important and apparent. - Use of railways for mobilisation remained important. - Artillery was starting to be used more effectively and was becoming a more dominant weapon once more. This would be clearly apparent by 1914. - Total war, involving civilians as well as soldiers was starting to develop e.g. bombardment of Paris in 1871.