The Battle of Königgrätz

The Battle of Königgrätz PDF

Author: Gordon A. Craig

Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press

Published: 2003-03-07

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 9780812218442

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Königgrätz, a city overlooking the river Elbe, was a western strongpoint of the Austrian Empire. On the morning of July 3, 1866, Prussia attacked the city against high odds and defeated the Austrian army in a single day, despite the Austrian advantage in heavy artillery and command of the high ground. The fall of Königgrätz transferred power over the German states from Austria to Prussia, marking the beginning of the German nation, a political consequence considered to be among the most important of any conflict in modern history. The battle for the city of Königgrätz—now called Hradec Králové, located in the Czech Republic—was the largest of its time, with nearly half a million troops involved. It was also the first battle where the outcome was directly determined by the availability of new technologies, including the railroad, telegraph, cast steel rifled cannon, and breech-loading rifle. It also marked a lesson in the fallacy of dependence on technology at the expense of sound strategy. In this full account, distinguished historian Gordon A. Craig discusses the state of political affairs surrounding the battle, the personalities involved, the weaponry, and the tactics in order to recreate the battlefield in all its complexity.

The Austro-Prussian War in Bohemia, 1866, Otherwise Known as the Seven Weeks' War Or Needle-gun War

The Austro-Prussian War in Bohemia, 1866, Otherwise Known as the Seven Weeks' War Or Needle-gun War PDF

Author: John H. Anderson

Publisher: London : Rees 1908.

Published: 1908

Total Pages: 114

ISBN-13:

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Useful and reliable primer that was designed for use of Staff College students sitting exams in 1908, and as such gives a clear analytical account of this mid-19th century conflict. The Seven Weeks' War was the first war between two major continental powers in seven years, and used many of the same technologies as the American Civil War. The Prussian Army used von Dreyse's breech-loading needle gun, which could be rapidly loaded while the soldier was seeking cover on the ground, whereas the Austrian muzzleloading rifles could only be loaded slowly, and generally from a standing position. Superior Prussian organization and élan decided the battle against Austrian numerical superiority, the victory was near total, with Austrian battle deaths nearly seven times the Prussian figure. --

The Road to Königgrätz

The Road to Königgrätz PDF

Author: Quintin Barry

Publisher: Helion

Published: 2014-02

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781909384965

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"Before the War of 1866 the name Helmuth von Moltke was scarcely known outside the Prussian army ... This book follows Moltke's part in the course of the campaign at the end of which his name had become a household word. It traces his rise to the position of Chief of the General Staff, against the background of the political situation of Prussia in the middle of the 19th Century, and the way in which he developed the functions of the General Staff."--Inside cover

The Austro-Prussian War

The Austro-Prussian War PDF

Author: Geoffrey Wawro

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 9780521629515

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This is a history of the Austro-Prussian-Italian War of 1866, which paved the way for German and Italian unification. It is based upon extensive new research in the state and military archives of Austria, Germany, and Italy. Geoffrey Wawro describes Prussia's successful invasion of Habsburg Venetia, and the wretched collapse of the Austrian army in July 1866. Although the book gives a thorough accounting of both the Prussian and Italian war efforts, it is most notable for the light it sheds on the Austrians. Through painstaking archival research, Wawro reconstructs the Austrian campaign, blow-by-blow, hour-by-hour. Blending military and social history, he describes the terror and panic that overtook Austria's regiments of the line in each clash with the Prussians. He reveals the unconscionable blundering of the Austrian commandant and his chief deputies who fumbled away key strategic advantages and ultimately lost a war - crucial to the fortunes of the Habsburg Monarchy - that most European pundits had predicted they would win.

The Battle of Koniggratz.

The Battle of Koniggratz. PDF

Author: Graham Morris

Publisher: Lulu.com

Published: 2015-05-17

Total Pages: 184

ISBN-13: 9781326278335

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The Battle of Koniggratz, also known as the Battle of Sadowa, or Hradec Kralove, was the decisive battle of the Austro-Prussian War, in which the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire. Taking place near Koniggratz (Hradec Kralove) and Sadowa (Sadova) in Bohemia on 3 July 1866, it was an example of battlefield concentration, a convergence of multiple units at the same location to trap and/or destroy an enemy force between them. There were more troops on the field of Koniggratz than any other battle, prior to, or after it until the battle of Mukden (20th February-10th March 1905). Even the greatest battle of the century thus far, Leipzig in 1813, also known as the Battle of Nations, in which, on the final day of the battle the troops on both sides numbered, after losses sustained during the previous days fighting, some 420,000 men engaged, still fell short of the 430,000 plus who stood on the field of Koniggratz. Including 55 figures and detailed maps."

Moltke on the Art of War

Moltke on the Art of War PDF

Author: Daniel Hughes

Publisher: Presidio Press

Published: 2009-03-12

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 0307538516

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Field Marshal Helmuth Graf von Moltke is best known for his direction of the German/Prussian campaigns against Austria in 1866 and France in 1870-71, yet it was during his service as chief of the General Staff that he laid the foundation for the German way of war which would continue through 1945. Professor Daniel Hughes of the Air War College, in addition to editing and assisting with the translation of this selection of Moltke’s thoughts and theories on the art of war, has written an insightful commentary on “Moltke the Elder” that places him in the broader context of Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz’s sometimes abstract philosophical ideas. The book also contains an extensive bibliographic and historiographic commentary that includes references to Moltke and his theories in the current literature in Germany, England, and the United States—a valuable aid to anyone doing research on the subject. This volume, in addition to its appeal to scholars, serves as an introduction to the theory of the German army, as well as a summary of Moltke’s enduring theoretical legacy. Praise for Moltke on the Art of War “Moltke molded the Prussian and ultimately the German army at a time of technological and economic change. For that reason . . . this book deserves a much wider audience than those interested in nineteenth-century military history. Readers will be particularly grateful for the editor’s careful explanation of terms that are easily mistranslated in English, and for concise and useful footnotes and bibliography. A model of fine editing.”—Foreign Affairs Magazine “This valuable work ably compiles the selected writings on the art of war of one of military history’s greatest geniuses. [Moltke’s] impact on American military thinking persists, especially in various military staff college curricula. Strongly recommended.”—Armed Forces Journal “A thoughtfully edited, well-translated anthology that merits a place in any serious collection on the craft of war in the modern Western world."—Journal of Military History

The Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War PDF

Author: Geoffrey Wawro

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2003-08-25

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 9780521584364

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Wawro describes the Franco-Prussian War, 1870-1, that violently changed the course of European history.

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