Helmut Karl Bernhard von Moltke (1800-1891), also known as Old Moltke, was the Chief of General Staff of Prussia and Germany and a famous military strategist. He attached great importance to the application of new technologies in the military, emphasized the important role of staff in improving military command, and made great achievements in military theory. The "entrusted command method" and "blitz warfare" theories popular in Western armies are all derived from He is the first of its kind here.
Quotes
The purpose of war is to end the war as soon as possible, and the most effective way to end the war as quickly as possible is to use the most cruel means!
Life introduction
On October 26, 1800, Moltke was born in Parchim, a small town on the Elbe River in Mecklenburg, Prussia. In 1811, he was sent to the Royal Military Academy in Copenhagen, Denmark. In 1817, he was awarded the rank of second lieutenant of the Royal Guards and became a Danish officer.
In March 1822, Moltke passed the exam and joined the Prussian military and became a second lieutenant of the 8th Guards Division stationed in Frankfurt am Main on the Oder River. A year later, he passed the exam and entered the Prussian Military Academy. In 1828, he published the military work "On the Outline of Military Surveying and Mapping", which attracted the attention of the military circles, so he was transferred to work in the Ordnance Survey Office under the General Staff Headquarters in Berlin.
From then on, Moltke tasted the sweetness of research and writing. He was more concerned about the study of social, political and military history than before. Wrote papers such as "On Internal Relations and Social Conditions in Poland" and began drafting documents for the Chief of General Staff.
In 1834, Moltke was promoted to captain. In November of this year, he arrived in Constantinople, the capital of Turkey, to help Turkey carry out military reforms and strengthen Prussia's influence in Turkey. In June 1839, Turkey went to war with Egypt and suffered a defeat, and Moltke was forced to return home.
In 1842, Moltke was promoted to major and served on the staff of the Fourth Army in Berlin. At this time, the large-scale industrial revolution, technological revolution and ideological revolution caused fundamental changes in the face of Europe and Germany. Moltke participated in the management of the Hamburg Railway, which gave him the opportunity to observe what role the railway could play in the war.
From 1845 to 1846, Moltke lived in Rome as an aide-de-camp to Prince Henry of Prussia. He had studied Napoleon in detail and recognized Napoleon's unparalleled military talent. But he believed that Napoleon lacked a complete war system and relied on personal planning and determination to direct operations. He studied more of Clausewitz's military thoughts and conducted in-depth analysis of major wars and campaigns. After a long period of meditation, a large and rigorous ideological framework was gradually established in his mind.
Moltke proposed that the army should establish a large-scale general staff system. The General Staff should be the "sole adviser" to the Commander-in-Chief (King) during wartime. It should formulate strategies and tactics, coordinate military and material resources, and unify the command of military operations. It is necessary to educate and train General Staff officers. At the same time, the state must introduce technological revolution into war. It was not only necessary to renew the equipment of the army, but also to use the railways and telegraphs for war purposes. He proposed the so-called "Prussian railway politics", using railways, telegraphs and even the newly emerged hot-air balloons as auxiliary means of strategic action, and applying a series of sciences such as statistics, national economics, geography, surveying, etc. war.
Hard work paid off, and Moltke's political attitude, military thinking and talents finally won the appreciation of the highest Prussian authorities. In just 7 years, Moltke was quickly promoted from a major officer to the chief of staff of the Army General Staff.
The famous strongman Bismarck had great trust and admiration for Moltke. His military plan just catered to Prime Minister Bismarck's political strategy-to unify Germany through dynastic war. In early 1864, the war between Prussia and Denmark broke out, and Moltke commanded the troops at the headquarters as chief of general staff. According to his battle plan, the Prussian army and the Austrian army adopted a pincer offensive and quickly defeated Denmark. In early 1866, with the Austro-Prussian War approaching, the King of Prussia ordered that military orders for this war be issued directly from Moltke to all armies in the field, without going through the Military and Administrative Department. The final outcome of the Austro-Prussian War was that Austria withdrew from the German Confederation and Prussia unified the entire northern and central Germany.
On July 19, 1870, the Franco-Prussian War broke out. Moltke was appointed "Chief of the General Staff of the Army of His Majesty the King's Headquarters", which actually gave him full command. Moltke divided the 380,000 troops into three front armies, and adopted the tactics of "railway march", coordination, division and encirclement, to lure the French army into Sedan City step by step. As a result, Napoleon III had to surrender with 100,000 French troops. On January 5, 1871, Moltke ordered the bombardment of Paris. On January 28, the Paris garrison surrendered.
On May 10, Prussia and France signed the Treaty of Frankfurt, declaring France's defeat. In the same year, the King of Prussia was crowned Emperor of the German Empire, and Germany was finally unified. In June, Moltke was awarded the title of earl and promoted to marshal.
After the Franco-Prussian War, Moltke continued to serve as Chief of General Staff for 17 years. During this period, he presided over the compilation of the history of the war from 1870 to 1879. At the same time, he also carefully studied the issue of fighting France and Russia at the same time. After two years of planning, he finally chose the strategy of Russia as the first combat target. In 1872, Moltke became a member of the House of Lords.
In 1876, the unveiling ceremony of the Moltke Monument was held in his birthplace.
On August 10, 1888, the 88-year-old Moltke resigned as Chief of General Staff. After resigning, he served as chairman of the National Defense Committee and completed a long paper "On the History of the Franco-Prussian War from 1870 to 1871." In addition, Moltke often promoted the spirit of Prussian militarism in parliament, loudly calling for an increase in military spending, an expansion of the army, and an increase in armaments, and encouraged Germany to quickly embark on the path of militaristic expansion after reunification. Moltke died of illness in Berlin on April 24, 1891.
Classic Battle
In 1867, under the leadership of Moltke, the General Staff formulated a plan for a war against France, preparing to use three legions to annihilate the main force of the French army in the border areas. , and then headed straight to Paris. On July 26, France deployed seven armies in the Rhine River area around Metz and Strasse, collectively known as the "Rhine Army".
Faced with heavy troops pressing down on the situation, Chief of General Staff Mao Qi was confident and gathered troops within two or three days to prepare for the battle. Under the command of Moltke, the 470,000-strong army was divided into two groups and launched a full-scale counterattack on August 4. The Southern Route Army crossed the border on August 5, severely damaged the right wing of French Marshal McMahon's army, and occupied Wissembourg. Then, a fierce battle broke out between the two sides in the village of Walter, and the French army collapsed. Part of the French army retreated to Strasbourg and was surrounded by the Prussian army. Most of the French army followed McMahon and retreated to Chalons, the hinterland of France.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Napoleon III handed over his command to Marshal Bazin and fled westward in a carriage. On August 14, the Prussian army defeated Marshal Bazin's troops again in Corsellis, forcing the remnants of Bazin to retreat to Metz. Moltke realized that Bazin planned to continue to retreat westward, so he sent the center route army across the Ser River, inserted into the rear of the French army, and surrounded Bazin's troops in the city of Metz. Bazin led an army of 180,000 people and broke through the encirclement twice. Unsuccessful.
On August 23, Marshal McMahon led the Chalon Army Group (more than 120,000 men, 393 artillery pieces, 76 "Mitrajoz" guns) from the assembly area (City of Reims) , went to rescue the Rhine Army surrounded by Metz, and Napoleon III also accompanied him.
When Moltke learned that McMahon did not retreat to Paris, but was preparing to detour to Sedan to rescue the French army in Metz, he deliberately spread the news that the Prussian army was resolutely advancing towards Paris to paralyze McMahon. flood. He ordered Prince Karl to command the main force of 150,000 people from the First and Second Army to surround Metz. At the same time, he ordered the Third Army and the newly formed Army of Meuse to stop marching into Paris and instead go to confront McMahon. On August 28th and 31st, McMahon's department suffered repeated attacks in the Meuse River area. The Prussian army surrounded it in two directions. The right wing of the Prussian army crossed the Meas River and occupied the Ardennes Pass leading to Belgium; the left wing cut off the French army's retreat to Paris. The two groups joined together and compressed McMahon's troops in the city of Sedan, forming a "catching a turtle in a urn" situation against the French army just like in Metz. At dawn on September 1, Moltke, who was sure of victory, invited William I, Bismarck and others to come to Sedan to watch the battle. Before the general attack, Moltke said to King Prussia: "The Guards Division has attacked. I congratulate Your Majesty on the greatest victory of this century." 200,000 Prussian troops launched a general attack, 700 cannons roared at the same time, and shells fell into the city like rain. When the city was in flames. The French army could not resist, and McMahon was injured. At 3 p.m., the French army raised a white flag on the central tower. On September 3, Napoleon III sent a telegram to Paris: "The army has been defeated. All officers and soldiers and myself have become prisoners."
The Battle of Sedan was the largest battle in the Franco-Prussian War, with many French casualties. 17,000 people, Napoleon III, his 39 generals and 100,000 soldiers became prisoners of the Prussian army. 650 cannons were also captured by the Prussian army. The Prussian army suffered only more than 9,000 casualties, and Chief of General Staff Mao Qi could be said to have taken the greatest credit.
Character Comments
Mao Qi was Germany’s greatest military strategist in the second half of the 19th century. He was famous in Europe and the world for his literary, military, and illustrious military exploits. He is ambitious, studious, and tireless. His rich experience and keen military vision enable him to stand higher and see farther than ordinary people.
Moltke believed in the military thought of the famous military theorist Clausewitz and believed that war is a continuation of foreign policy and even a decisive tool to achieve political goals. He also did a lot of research on Napoleon's combat thoughts. He inherited the theories and principles of war from his predecessors, but he did not stick to them. Instead, he focused on the needs of the times and made full use of the achievements of the industrial revolution in the second half of the 19th century. It created new strategies, tactics and a combat command system with modern significance, making the general staff the brain of military operations, greatly improving command efficiency, and bringing the style of warfare into a new era. He advocated that wars should be preceded by mobilization of the enemy, sudden attacks, separate attacks and combined attacks, and the use of external combat methods to win in quick battles. This laid the foundation for leading modern large-scale operations. His military theory brought great influence to the Western military circles. Impact and impact.