The Prussian Army (German: Königlich Preußische Armee) was the army An army (from Latin armata "armed " via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine)), in the broadest sense, is the land-based Military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps. Within a national military force, the word Army may also mean a field army, of the Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire. It took its name from the territory of Prussia, although its power base was Brandenburg. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession upon the latter's extinction in the male line in 16 as a European power.
The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War Pilsen – Lomnice – Sablat – Wisternitz – Humenné – White Mountain – Neu Titschein – Mingolsheim – Wimpfen – Höchst – Fleurus – Stadtlohn – Breda – Cádiz – Dessau Bridge – Lutter am Barenberge – Stralsund – Wolgast – St. Kitts– Swedish landing – Frankfurt – Magdeburg – Werben – 1st Breitenfeld –. Elector Frederick William Frederick William (February 16, 1620 – April 29, 1688) was the Elector of Brandenburg and the Duke of Prussia ("Brandenburg-Prussia") from 1640 until his death. He was of the House of Hohenzollern and is popularly known as the Great Elector (Der Große Kurfürst) because of his military and political skill. Frederick William was also a developed it into a viable standing army A standing army is an army composed of full-time career soldiers who 'stand over', in other words, who do not disband during times of peace. They differ from army reserves who are activated only during such times as war or natural disasters. Standing armies tend to be better equipped, better trained, and better prepared for emergencies, defensive, while King Frederick William I of Prussia Frederick William I (14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740) of the House of Hohenzollern, was the King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg (as Frederick William II) from 1713 until his death. He is popularly known as "the Soldier-King" (der Soldatenkönig). He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel drastically increased its size. King Frederick the Great Frederick II was a King of Prussia (1740–1786) from the Hohenzollern dynasty. In his role as a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, he was Frederick IV (Friedrich IV.) of Brandenburg. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel. He became known as Frederick the Great (Friedrich der Große) and was led the disciplined Prussian troops to victory during the 18th century Silesian Wars The Silesian Wars were a series of wars between Prussia and Austria for control of Silesia. They formed parts of the larger War of the Austrian Succession and Seven Years' War. They eventually ended with Silesia being incorporated into Prussia, and Austrian recognition of this. It foreshadowed a wider struggle for control over the German-speaking and increased the prestige of the Kingdom of Prussia.
The army was outdated by the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to the, and Prussia was defeated by France The French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire, First French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I in France. It was the dominant power of much of continental Europe during the early 19th Century in the War of the Fourth Coalition The Fourth Coalition against Napoleon's French Empire was defeated in a war spanning 1806–1807. Coalition partners included Prussia, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. However, under the leadership of Gerhard von Scharnhorst Gerhard Johann David von Scharnhorst was a general in Prussian service, Chief of the Prussian General Staff, noted for both his writings, his reforms of the Prussian army, and his leadership during the Napoleonic Wars, Prussian reformers began modernizing the Prussian Army, which participated in the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte , was a military and political leader of France and Emperor of the French as Napoleon I, whose actions shaped European politics in the early 19th century during the War of the Sixth Coalition In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers joined Russia, Britain, and the rebels in Spain and Portugal. With. Conservatives halted some of the reforms, however, and the army subsequently became a bulwark of the conservative Prussian government.
The Prussian Army was successful in 19th century wars against Denmark The Second Schleswig War was the second military conflict as a result of the Schleswig-Holstein Question. It began on February 1, 1864, when Prussian forces crossed the border into Schleswig, Austria The Austro-Prussian War (in Germany known as Deutscher Krieg ; or Seven Weeks War, the Unification War or the German Civil War or Bruderkrieg, German for "fraternal war") was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with and France The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and Bavaria. The complete Prussian and German victory, allowing Prussia to unify Germany The formal unification of Germany into a politically and administratively integrated nation state officially occurred on 18 January 1871 at the Versailles Palace's Hall of Mirrors in France. Princes of the German states gathered there to proclaim Wilhelm of Prussia as Emperor Wilhelm of the German Empire after the French capitulation in the Franco- and create the German Empire The German Empire refers to Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871 to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of Wilhelm II (28 November 1918). Deutsches Reich remained the official name of Germany throughout the Weimar period and in 1871. The Prussian Army formed the core of the Imperial German Army The German Army was the name given the combined armed forces of the German Empire, also known as the Imperial Army (Reichsheer) or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr. The Imperial German Army was formed when the German Empire was formed in 18, which was replaced after World War I World War I was a military conflict that lasted from 1914 to 1918 and involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies and the Central Powers. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. More than 15 million people were with the Reichswehr The Reichswehr listen (German for "National Defence") formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ("Defence Force").
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The Great Elector
Creation of the army
Growth of Brandenburg-Prussia Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession upon the latter's extinction in the male line in 16, 1600-1795The army of Prussia grew out of the united armed forces created during the reign of Elector Frederick William Frederick William (February 16, 1620 – April 29, 1688) was the Elector of Brandenburg and the Duke of Prussia ("Brandenburg-Prussia") from 1640 until his death. He was of the House of Hohenzollern and is popularly known as the Great Elector (Der Große Kurfürst) because of his military and political skill. Frederick William was also a of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg (Mark Brandenburg), it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe (1640-1688). Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern is a noble family and royal dynasty of electors, kings and emperors of Prussia, Germany and Romania. It originated in the area around the town of Hechingen in Swabia during the 11th century. They took their name from their ancestral home, the Burg Hohenzollern castle near Hechingen Brandenburg-Prussia Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession upon the latter's extinction in the male line in 16 had primarily used ineffective Landsknecht Landsknechts were European, most often German, mercenary pikemen and supporting foot soldiers from the late 15th to the late 16th century, and achieved the reputation for being the universal mercenary of the European Renaissance mercenaries A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict, who is not a national or a party to the conflict, and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or during the Thirty Years' War Pilsen – Lomnice – Sablat – Wisternitz – Humenné – White Mountain – Neu Titschein – Mingolsheim – Wimpfen – Höchst – Fleurus – Stadtlohn – Breda – Cádiz – Dessau Bridge – Lutter am Barenberge – Stralsund – Wolgast – St. Kitts– Swedish landing – Frankfurt – Magdeburg – Werben – 1st Breitenfeld –, in which Brandenburg was devastated. Swedish The Kingdom of Sweden was, between 1611 and 1718, one of the great powers of Europe. In modern historiography this period is known as the Swedish Empire, or stormaktstiden and Imperial The Holy Roman Empire (HRE; German: Heiliges Römisches Reich , Latin: Imperium Romanum Sacrum (IRS), Italian: Sacro Romano Impero (SRI)) was for about a millennium a realm in Central Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in forces traversed and occupied the country essentially at will. After acceding to the electoral throne, Frederick William started building a standing army A standing army is an army composed of full-time career soldiers who 'stand over', in other words, who do not disband during times of peace. They differ from army reserves who are activated only during such times as war or natural disasters. Standing armies tend to be better equipped, better trained, and better prepared for emergencies, defensive to better defend his state in spring 1644.
Frederick William Frederick William (February 16, 1620 – April 29, 1688) was the Elector of Brandenburg and the Duke of Prussia ("Brandenburg-Prussia") from 1640 until his death. He was of the House of Hohenzollern and is popularly known as the Great Elector (Der Große Kurfürst) because of his military and political skill. Frederick William was also a, the "Great Elector".By 1643-44, the developing army numbered only 5,500 troops, including 500 musketeers A musketeer was an early modern type of infantry soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern armies, particularly in Europe in Frederick William's bodyguard.[1] The elector's confidant Johann von Norprath recruited forces in the Duchy of Cleves The Duchy of Cleves was a state of the Holy Roman Empire in present Germany (part of North Rhine-Westphalia) and the Netherlands (parts of Limburg, Noord-Brabant and Gelderland). Its territory was part of the Low Countries, situated on both sides of the river Rhine, around its capital Cleves and roughly covering today's districts of Cleves, Wesel and organized an army of 3,000 Dutch The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces (Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Provinciën) — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the modern Kingdom of the Netherlands. Alternative names and German The German people are people descended from several Germanic tribes that inhabited what became the German-speaking part of Europe, collectively known as Germany soldiers in the Rhineland The Rhineland today is the general name for areas of Germany along the river Rhine between Bingen and the Dutch border. To the west the area stretches to the borders with Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands; on the eastern side it only encompasses the towns and cities along the river. Except for the Saar this area more or less corresponds with by 1646. Garrisons were also slowly augmented in Brandenburg and the Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia or Ducal Prussia was a duchy in the eastern part of Prussia from 1525–1701. It was the first Protestant (Lutheran) duchy with a dominant German-speaking population, as well as Polish and Lithuanian minorities. In old texts and in Latin, the term Prut(h)enia refers alike to Ducal Prussia, its western neighbor Royal Prussia,.[2] Frederick William sought assistance from France France is a founding member state of the European Union and is the largest one by area. France has been a major power for several centuries with strong cultural, economic, military and political influence in Europe and in the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonised great parts of North America; during the 19th and early 20th, the traditional rival of Habsburg Austria The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg (1278–1780), and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine (since 1780), between 1526 and 1867/1918. The capital was mainly Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was Prague. The monarchy from 1804 to 1867 is usually referred to, and began receiving French subsidies. He based his reforms on those of Louvois, the War Minister of King Louis XIV of France Louis XIV , known as the Sun King (French: le Roi Soleil), was King of France and of Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days, and is the longest documented reign of any European monarch.[3] The growth of his army allowed Frederick William to achieve considerable territorial acquisitions in the 1648 Treaty of Westphalia The term Peace of Westphalia denotes the two French-language peace treaties of Osnabrück and Münster (24 October 1648) that ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–48), in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War (1567–1609), between Spain and the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. The Peace of Westphalia treaties involved the Holy, despite Brandenburg's relative lack of success during the war.
The provincial estates desired a reduction in the army's size during peacetime, but the elector avoided their demands through political concessions, evasion and economy.[4] In the 1653 Brandenburg Recess between Frederick William and the estates of Brandenburg, the nobility provided the sovereign with 530,000 thalers The Thaler was a silver coin used throughout Europe for almost four hundred years. Its name lives on in various currencies as the dollar or tolar. Etymologically, "Thaler" is an abbreviation of "Joachimsthaler", a coin type from the city of Joachimsthal (Jáchymov) in Bohemia, where some of the first such coins were minted in 15 in return for affirmation of their privileges. The Junkers A Junker was a member of the landed nobility of Prussia and eastern Germany. These families were mostly part of the German Uradel (very old feudal nobility) and carried on the colonization and Christianization of the northeastern European territories during the medieval Ostsiedlung. Today "Junker" is often used as an honorific for thus cemented their political power at the expense of the peasantry.[5] Once the elector and his army were strong enough, Frederick William was able to suppress the estates of Cleves The Duchy of Cleves was a state of the Holy Roman Empire in present Germany (part of North Rhine-Westphalia) and the Netherlands (parts of Limburg, Noord-Brabant and Gelderland). Its territory was part of the Low Countries, situated on both sides of the river Rhine, around its capital Cleves and roughly covering today's districts of Cleves, Wesel, Mark and Prussia The Duchy of Prussia or Ducal Prussia was a duchy in the eastern part of Prussia from 1525–1701. It was the first Protestant (Lutheran) duchy with a dominant German-speaking population, as well as Polish and Lithuanian minorities. In old texts and in Latin, the term Prut(h)enia refers alike to Ducal Prussia, its western neighbor Royal Prussia,.[6]
Frederick William attempted to professionalize his soldiers during a time of soldiers of fortune. In addition to individually creating regiments and appointing colonels, the elector imposed harsh punishment for transgressions, such as punishing by hanging Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", although it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain "hanging" for looting. Acts of violence by officers against civilians resulted in decommission for a year.[3] He developed a cadet institution for the nobility; although the upper class was resistant to the idea in the short term, the integration of the nobility into the officer corps allied them with the Hohenzollern monarchy in the long term.[7] Field Marshals of Brandenburg-Prussia included Derfflinger, John George II, Spaen and Sparr. The elector's troops traditionally were organized into disconnected provincial forces. In 1655, Frederick William began the unification of the various detachments by placing them under the overall command of Sparr. Unification also increased through the appointment of Generalkriegskommissar Platen as head of supplies. These measures decreased the authority of the largely mercenary colonels who had been so prominent during the Thirty Years' War.[8]
Campaigns of the Great Elector
Brandenburg troops of the infantry regiment of Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau, by Richard Knötel.Brandenburg-Prussia's new army survived its trial by fire through victory in the 1656 Battle of Warsaw, during the Northern Wars. Observers were impressed with the discipline of the Brandenburger troops, as well as their treatment of civilians, which was considered more humane than that of their allies, the Swedish Army.[9] Hohenzollern success enabled Frederick William to assume sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia in the 1657 Treaty of Wehlau, by which Brandenburg-Prussia allied itself with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Despite having expelled Swedish forces from the territory, the elector did not acquire Vorpommern in the 1660 Treaty of Oliva, as the balance of power had been restored.
In the early 1670s, Frederick William supported Imperial attempts to reclaim Alsace and counter the expansion of Louis XIV of France. Swedish troops invaded Brandenburg in 1674 while the bulk of the elector's troops were in winter quarters in Franconia. In 1675 Frederick William marched his troops northward and surrounded Wrangel's troops. The elector achieved his greatest victory in the Battle of Fehrbellin; although a minor battle, it brought fame to the Brandenburg-Prussian army and gave Frederick William the nickname "the Great Elector".[10] After Sweden invaded Prussia in late 1678, Frederick William's forces expelled the Swedish invaders during "the Great Sleigh Drive" of 1678-79; Thomas Carlyle compared the wintertime Swedish retreat to that of Napoleon from Moscow.[11]
Frederick William built the Hohenzollern army up to a peacetime size of 7,000 and a wartime size of 15,000-30,000.[7] Its success in battle against Sweden and Poland increased Brandenburg-Prussia's prestige, while also allowing the Great Elector to pursue absolutist policies against estates and towns.[1] In his political testament of 1667, the elector wrote, "Alliances, to be sure, are good, but forces of one's own still better. Upon them one can rely with more security, and a lord is of no consideration if he does not have means and troops of his own".[12]
The growing power of the Hohenzollerns in Berlin led Frederick William's son and successor, Elector Frederick III (1688–1713), to proclaim the Kingdom of Prussia with himself as King Frederick I in 1701. Although he emphasized Baroque opulence and the arts in imitation of Versailles, the new king recognized that the importance of the army and continued its expansion to 40,000 men.[13]
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