Franco-Prussian War

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The creation of a unified German Empire (aside from Austria) greatly disturbed the balance of power that had been created with the Congress of Vienna after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Germany had established itself as a major power in continental Europe, boasting the most powerful and professional army in the world. Although Britain remained the dominant world power overall, British involvement in European affairs during the late 19th century was limited, owing to its focus on colonial empire-building, allowing Germany to exercise great influence over the European mainland. Anglo-German straining of tensions was somewhat mitigated by several prominent relationships between the two powers, such as the Crown Prince's marriage with the daughter of Queen Victoria. Einheit – unity – was achieved at the expense of Freiheit – freedom. The German Empire became, in Karl Marx’s words, “a military despotism cloaked in parliamentary forms with a feudal ingredient, influenced by the bourgeoisie, festooned with bureaucrats and guarded by police.” Indeed, many historians would see Germany's “escape into war” in 1914 as a flight from all of the internal-political contradictions forged by Bismarck at Versailles in the fall of 1870.

French reaction and Revanchism[edit]

The defeat in the Franco-Prussian War led to the birth of Revanchism (literally, "revenge-ism") in France, characterised by a deep sense of bitterness, hatred and demand for revenge against Germany. This was particularly manifested in loose talk of another war with Germany in order to reclaim Alsace and Lorraine. It also led to the development of nationalist ideologies emphasising "the ideal of the guarded, self-referential nation schooled in the imperative of war", an ideology epitomised by figures such as General Georges Ernest Boulanger in the 1880s. Paintings that emphasized the humiliation of the defeat became in high demand, such as those by Alphonse de Neuville. Revanchism was not a major cause of war in 1914 because it faded after 1880. J.F.V. Keiger says, "By the 1880s Franco-German relations were relatively good." The French public had very little interest in foreign affairs and elite French opinion was strongly opposed to war with its more powerful neighbor. The elites were now calm and considered it a minor issue. The Alsace-Lorraine issue remained a minor theme after 1880, and Republicans and Socialists systematically downplayed the issue. Return did not become a French war aim until after World War I began.

• Belgium and the Franco-Prussian War
• British ambulances in the Franco-Prussian War
• Foreign relations of Germany
• French–German enmity
• History of French foreign relations
• International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)

1. ^French: Guerre franco-allemande de 1870, German: Deutsch-Französischer Krieg, [dɔɪ̯t͡ʃ fʁanˌt͡søːzɪʃɐ ˈkʁiːk](listen)

1. ^Clodfelter 2017, p. 184, 33,101 officers and 1,113,254 men were deployed into France. A further 348,057 officers and men were mobilized and stayed in Germany..
2. ^ Clodfelter 2017, p. 184.
3. ^ Howard 1991, p. 39.
4. ^ Clodfelter 2017, p. 187.
5. ^Clodfelter 2017, p. 187, of which 17,585 killed in action, 10,721 died of wounds, 12,147 died from disease, 290 died in accidents, 29 committed suicide and 4,009 were missing and presumed dead.
6. ^Nolte 1884, pp. 526–527.
7. ^Nolte 1884, p. 527.
8. ^Clodfelter 2017, p. 187, of which 41,000 killed in action, 36,000 died of wounds and 45,000 died from disease.
9. ^German General Staff 1884, p. 247, of which 11,860 officers and 371,981 men were captured, 7,456 officers and 241,686 men laid down their arms in Paris and 2,192 officers and 88,381 men were interned in Switzerland.
10. ^Éric Anceau, "Aux origines de la Guerre de 1870", in France-Allemagne(s) 1870–1871. La guerre, la Commune, les mémoires, (under the direction of Mathilde Benoistel, Sylvie Le Ray-Burimi, Christophe Pommier) Gallimard-Musée de l'Armée, 2017, p. 49–50.
11. ^Ramm 1967, pp. 308–313, highlights three difficulties with the argument that Bismarck planned or provoked a French attack..
12. ^Milza 2009, p. 39.
13. ^Milza 2009, pp. 40–41.
14. ^Howard 1991, p. 40.
15. ^Milza 2009, p. 41.
16. ^ Howard 1991, p. 45.
17. ^WaWro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German conquest of France in 1870-1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p. 18
18. ^von Bismarck 1899, p. 58.
19. ^ Britannica: Franco-German War.
20. ^von Bismarck & von Poschinger 1900, p. 87.
21. ^Howard 1991, p. 41.
22. ^Wawro 2002, p. 101.
23. ^Milza 2009, p. 49.
24. ^German General Staff 1881, p. 8.
25. ^German General Staff 1881, pp. 34–35.
26. ^Milza 2009, pp. 57–59.
27. ^G.Wawro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p.85
28. ^Vinogradov V. N. Was there a connection between the triumph of France in the Crimean War and its defeat at Sedan? // New and recent history. 2005. No. 5 (in Russian)
29. ^McElwee 1974, p. 43.
30. ^ McElwee 1974, p. 46.
31. ^ Wawro 2002, p. 102.
32. ^Wawro 2002, p. 103.
33. ^Howard 1991, p. 4.
34. ^Palmer 2010, p. 20.
35. ^Ascoli 2001, p. 9.
36. ^Elliot-Wright & Shann 1993, p. 29.
37. ^Barry 2009a, p. 43.
38. ^Wawro 2002, p. 89.
39. ^Wawro 2002, p. 110.
40. ^Palmer 2010, p. 30.
41. ^Wawro 2002, p. 113.
42. ^Wawro 2003, p. 58.
43. ^Zabecki 2008, pp. 5–7.
44. ^Wawro 2003, p. 47.
45. ^Howard 1991, p. 78.
46. ^Howard 1991, pp. 69, 78–79.
47. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 66–67.
48. ^Howard 1991, pp. 47, 48, 60.
49. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 85, 86, 90.
50. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 87, 90.
51. ^Wawro 2003, p. 94.
52. ^Howard 1991, p. 82.
53. ^Wawro 2003, p. 95.
54. ^Howard 1991, pp. 100–101.
55. ^Howard 1991, p. 101.
56. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 97, 98, 101.
57. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 101–103.
58. ^Howard 1991, pp. 101–103.
59. ^Wawro 2003, p. 108.
60. ^Howard 1991, pp. 87–88.
61. ^Howard 1991, pp. 89–90.
62. ^Howard 1991, pp. 92–93.
63. ^Howard 1991, pp. 98–99.
64. ^Howard 1979, pp. 108–117.
65. ^Howard 1979, p. 145.
66. ^Howard 1979, pp. 152–161.
67. ^Howard 1979, pp. 160–163.
68. ^Wawro 2003, p. 196.
69. ^Wawro 2003, p. 201.
70. ^ Wawro 2003, p. 240.
71. ^Wawro 2003, p. 244.
72. ^Wawro 2003, p. 247.
73. ^Howard, Michael (2001) [1961]. The Franco-Prussian War: The German Invasion of France 1870–1871. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-26671-8
74. ^Baldick 1974, pp. 20–21.
75. ^Howard 1979, pp. 228–231.
76. ^Wawro 2003, p. 239.
77. ^Craig 1980, p. 31.
78. ^Howard 1979, p. 234.
79. ^Howard 1991, pp. 230–233.
80. ^Ridley 1976, p. 602.
81. ^Свечин А. А. Эволюция военного искусства. Том II. — М.-Л.: Военгиз, 1928, с. 327/Svechin A. A. Evolution of military art. Volume II. - M.-L.: Voengiz, 1928, p. 327, in Russian
82. ^Свечин А. А. Эволюция военного искусства. Том II. — М.-Л.: Военгиз, 1928, с. 332/Svechin A. A. Evolution of military art. Volume II. - M.-L.: Voengiz, 1928, p. 332, in Russian
83. ^G.Wawro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p.280
84. ^Howard, p. 286.
85. ^Foley 2007, pp. 19–20.
86. ^Shann & Delperier 1991, p. 4.
87. ^Hozier & Davenport Adams 1872, p. 217ff.
88. ^Ollier 1883, p. 210.
89. ^Howard, p.429
90. ^Howard, p.421
91. ^de Chavannes 1872.
92. ^G.Wawro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p.298
93. ^Sondhaus 2001, pp. 101–102.
94. ^Rüstow 1872, pp. 229–235.
95. ^Wawro 2003, p. 191.
96. ^Ropp T. The development of a modern navy: French naval policy 1871–1904. — Annapolis (Maryland): Naval Institute Press, 1987
97. ^Wilson X. Battleships in battle. — London.: s. Low, Marston and Company, 1896. p.274
98. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 190–192.
99. ^ Wawro 2003, p. 192.
100. ^von Pflugk-Harttung 1900, pp. 587–588.
101. ^Rüstow 1872, p. 243.
102. ^van Creveld 1977, p. 96.
103. ^Howard 1991, p. 23.
104. ^ Irvine 1938, p. 192.
105. ^Howard 1991, pp. 23–24.
106. ^Holborn 1942, p. 159.
107. ^Howard 1991, pp. 19–20.
108. ^Howard 1991, p. 21.
109. ^Howard 1991, p. 68.
110. ^Howard 1991, pp. 70–71.
111. ^G.Wawro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p.238
112. ^G.Wawro. The Franco-Prussian War. The German Conquest of France in 1870–1871. Cambridge University Press.2003. p.290
113. ^Chris Kempshall, British, French and American Relations on the Western Front, 1914-1918, Canterbury, Kent, UK, 2018, (ISBN 978-3-319-89464-5), p. 31.
114. ^Jasper Ridley, Lord Palmerston (1970), p.582
115. ^William Baring Pemberton, Lord Palmerston (Batchworth Press, 1954) p. 332
116. ^Paul M. Kennedy.The rise of the Anglo-German antagonism, 1860-1914.London ; Boston : Allen & Unwin. 1980. p.410.
117. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 52–53.
118. ^Bailey 2004, p. 217.
119. ^Howard 1991, pp. 35–36.
120. ^Bailey 2004, pp. 216–217.
121. ^German General Staff 1884, p. 195.
122. ^Bailey 2004, pp. 218–219.
123. ^ Howard 1979, pp. 156–157.
124. ^Bailey 2004, p. 218.
125. ^
126. ^ Taylor 1955, p. 133.
127. ^Wawro 2003, pp. 301, 310.
128. ^ Baldick 1974, p. 209.
129. ^Horne 1965, p. 416.
130. ^Rougerie 1995, p. 118.
131. ^Wawro 2000, p. 122.
132. ^Wawro 2003, p. 301.
133. ^Rougerie 2014, p. 118.
134. ^Horne 1965, pp. 422–424.
135. ^Kennedy 1987.
136. ^John Arthur Ransome Marriott, The Evolution of Prussia: The Making of an Empire, OUP 1937, pp.400-402
137. ^Wawro 2003, p. 302.
138. ^Varley 2008a, pp. 62–80.
139. ^Varley 2008b.
140. ^Brown 2010.
141. ^Jay 1984, pp. 151–162.
142. ^J.F.V. Keiger, France and the World since 1870 (2001) pp 112–120, quoting p 113.
143. ^Gordon Wright, France in Modern Times (5th ed. 1995) pp 288–299.
144. ^
145. ^Frederic H. Seager, "The Alsace-Lorraine Question in France, 1871–1914." From the Ancien Régime to the Popular Front: Essays in the History of Modern France edited by Charles K. Warner, (1969): 111–26.
146. ^E. Malcolm Carroll, French Public Opinion and Foreign Affairs: 1870–1914 (1931) pp 47–48.

145. A. de Schell, traduit de l'allemand par Furcy-Raynaud,Les opérations de la première armée allemande, campagne de 1870 - 1871, par Paris, 1873

Books[edit]

Journals[edit]

Websites[edit]

Books and journals[edit]

• Varley, Karine. "Death and sacrifice in the Prussian War," History Today (Aug 2020) 70#8 pp 28–41. online

Caricatures and editorial cartoons[edit]

• Fabry-Tehranchi, Irene (2019), "Cambridge caricatures of the Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune (1870–71)". Cambridge University Library.

• (in French)La guerre de 1870–71 en images
• "Caricatures of the Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune (1870-71)": Virtual exhibition and story, Cambridge University Library
• Collection de caricatures et de charges pour servir à l'histoire de la guerre et de la révolution de 1870–1871 (Cambridge University Library)
• Collection de caricatures et de charges pour servir à l'histoire de la guerre et de la révolution de 1870–1871 (Heidelberg University Library)
• Texts and documents about German–French relations and an essay on the Franco-German war
• Information and maps on the battles of Wissembourg, Woerth and Gravelotte

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