The New York Herald Newspaper, September 19, 1875, Page 5

NEW YORK HERALD, SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1875--QUADRUPLE SHEET, joe VAR EwY “Or THA OPES Map of Silesia, Showing the Ground Whereon the Manoeuvres of the German Army Have Taken Place. Neo @ Reichynt aie: Des, Ss Ce as Beuthen™ Waal vi Yrikinnigs SM AGORLITZ L. ae Lauban Los ae —_—— Railroads m=n-Z Common Roads 60 Longitude Wael Nev astadtel _-———---—— VA “Strojfpen\, *Wohlau Striegau iedfhery ay ; Nn [Ion i ne FA 70 East 16 from Greenwich eat ~=qJaroezyn Kalitsz eee Kempe >Barangw . (es e a eBe¢ eoschutz - Bauerwitz 4% CPsBeutsc hd <NNeukirch ‘\ Zaudtt ee = Ne : 1 Gos A A Tame? eae R. qweichscl, CS & NS KRIEGSPIEL. The German Army Mancu- vres in Silesia. THE SCENE OF BLUCHER’S VICTORY Movements of the Armies ‘Playing at War” on the Katzbach. sown psesisavne EMPEROR WILLIAM PRESENT. A Brilliant Military Display—Dis- tinguished Spectators. [SPECIAL CABLE DESPATCH TO THE HERALD.) Lirenrrz, Silesia, Sept. 17, 1875. The grand autumn manwuvres of the German army concluéled to-day near Lieg- nitz, after three days’ earnest /criegspiel (war play), which resembled real war rather than play. Two army corps, the Fifth, commanded by General Von Kirchbach, and the Sixth, under General Tiimpling, each about 30,000 strong, were pitted against each other. Although executing plans of battle laid down for them, they endeavored to gain the victory as adjudged by the Kaiser and the general staff. ON THE KaTZpacn, ‘Lhe ground on which the manceuvres took place was to a great extent the sceno of Blitcher's victory over Macdonald on the Katzbach River in 1813. The Fifth Army Corps, representing Blicher's army, repeated his movements, and the Sixth took the place of the foe, THE MANGQUVRES, The Sixth advanced from the direction of Haynau, but the Fifth, offering a vigorous opposition, pushed it back across the creek, and virtually defeated it by preventing its advance on Liegnitz, Being hard pressed the defeated corps en- deavored to reach Janor, a town enclosed by double walls and a fossé, situated on the sight-bonk of sha Neiaio, jen miles 49 of Liegnitz, by marching via Goldberg, on the Katzbach, Liegnitz. It crossed that river in the hope of being able to form a new base of operations and receive reinforcements. Though success- fully effecting the passage of the Katzbach, the Fifth corps effectually checked its further advance. ‘THE THIRD DAY. On the third day, however, the Sixth corps takes the offensive and succeeds in pressing the Fifth back upon Liegnitz. ROOM FOR GENIvs, This was the general plan. The execution of the details was left to the skill of the com- manders, many of whom won laurels on these mimic battle fields and some disgraced themselves. BRILLIANT SCENES, ‘The Sixth corps was commanded to-day by the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Each day the scene was brilliant in the ex- treme. A SHARP CONTEST, The contest for the passage of the K atz- bach on Friday morning, as seen from the heights above Kroitsch, resembled more a real than asham battle. Bridges had been erected during the night and the position of the Sixth corps was maintained by many brilliant cavalry charges, A WIDE BATTLE FIELD, ‘The battle ground was nine miles in diame- ter, and from every point in the horizon clouds of dust marked the advance of the troops. The lovely valley of the Katzbach was enveloped at times in the smoke of the artil- lery and from the infantry firing, To-day’s contest concluded by the brilliant storming of the heights near Rothkirch by the Sixth corps, deciding the victory in its favor. EMPEROR WILLIAM, The Emperor was watching the manwu- vres, attended by a brilliantly uniformed suit, including the foreign officers, and the group presented a scene of kaleidoscopic colors. DISTINGUISHED ONLOOKERS. With the Emperor were the Crown Prince, the King of Saxony, Archduke Albrecht of Austria, Prince August, the Crown Prince of Portugal, Princes Frederick Charles and Corl Albrechti.of Prnssins Prince August of eleven miles southwest of Wiirtemberg, Prince Arthur of England, The Americans present were Quartermaster Meigs, with his son, and Lieutenant New- comb and Colonels Dickenson, Woodruff and Delancey Floyd Jones. THE KAISER ACTIVE, The Emperor rode an immense distance daily, accompanied by Von Moltke, often dashing upon eminences where the fight was thickest, criticising the storming and commending. ‘THE FOREIGNERS IMPRESSED, The foreign officers were unanimous in praising the discipline, activity and the pre- cision of the evolutions. A BIVOUAG, The troops bivouacked for the night on the field of battle, and their camp fires extended a circumference of fifteen miles. The scene was visited by thousands and presented a magnificent spectacle, A HOMERIC SCENE, The valley of the Katzbach was Ye up by the camp fires, and the plateau toward Lieg- nitz made up a scene that is seldom wit- nessed. The war was earnest, without any deaths, and the Prussians entered heartily into the spirit of the undertaking. BACK TO BERLIN, The Emperor and suite, and the foreign officers left Liegnitz at five o'clock, and will arrive in Berlin to-morrow. THE CONQUEST OF SILESIA. It would hardly have been possible for the Emperor of Germany to selevt a more historically significant ground for the great autumn manceuvres of 1875 than the province of Silesia The military glory of the greatest of Prussian kings, Frederick IIL., is inseparably connected with the history of this province. His sud- den invasion of it in Decomber, 1740, must ever be looked upon as an unjustifiable aggression; but the wars which ensued placed nim in the first rank of mili- tary commanders and gave the Prussian troops under him a reputation never excelled in the annals of war- fare, Silesia, ag will be seen from our map, lies in the valley of the Oder, On the southwest it is divided from Bohemia by the range of the Riesengebirge (Giant Mountains). Through these the passes are few and easily defended, In 1866 the world wondered why Benedek allowed the Prussians to get through them, The would-be knowing ones said that he wished to got them into his mouse-trap. He found a curious mouse init! On the east and northeast Silesia lies open to She yastulains of Foland, Naburallicih ja Wana pik subsequently paid The from Austria and connected with the Prussian terri- tories into which the Oder flows, THB ARPA OP PRUSSIAN SILESIA 1s about 16,000 square miles, In 1860 the population was something over 3,250,000. Half of these are Prot- estants, and, if we except 40,000 Jews, the rest are Ro- man Catholics, They do not fight on the 12th of July. The province is divided into the administrative dis- tricts (besirk) of Oppeln, Breslau and Liegnitz. The Oder flows through the province in a northwest direc- tion, dividing it into two nearly equal portions. The country on the left bank of the river is mountainous, that on the right is quite flat. The chief tributaries of the Oder in Silesia are the Bober, the Katzbach, Weis- tritz, Lohe, Ohlau and Neisse, on the left, and the Bartsch, Weide, Malapane and Klodnitz, on the right. A small portion of the southeast corner is drained by the upper course of the Vistula, HISTORIC GROUND, Such are the main features of the province in which the great autumn military manceuvres have taken place, Connected with it, however, isa history familiar to the “men in spectacles,” who form so largo a proportion of the Prussian armies. They will be engaged in their mimic warfare upon ground forever famous in their an- nals, Their mind will be carried back to the time when this appanage of the Prussian Crown cost seven years of war, the sixth part of the adult male able-bodied part of the population and such suiferings to the people gener- ally as are rarely recorded in history, But they will, at the same time, be reminded that, even when a young kingdom, their country confronted Europe in arms for the sake of this very province; that, compared with what their fathers did, their own victorious career in France was really a promenade mililaire, and they may not improbably put the question to themeclves, who is going in 1876 to vanquish a country with ali Germany at her back which 180 years ago could face Europe sin- gle-handed without blenching? The question is a fair one. Who will answer it? PREDERICK’S GREAT WAR, The history of this war about Silesia, or, as it is otherwise known, the war of the Austrian succession, is full of interest. During the lifetime of his father, Frederick II, (better known as Frederick the Great, born January 24, 1712) had como upon evil days, Until within a few years of his father’s death there was not peasant in the kingdom whose lot he might not have envied. When able to gratify his tastes in a separate establishment the world looked upon him as a pure dilettante, a good flutist, an indifferent liérateur, a thorough epicure, The mistake was discovered as soon ag the crown was upon his head. His father left him acountry without debt, a surplus of $6,000,000 in the treasury and an army of 70,000 of the finest and best disciplmed troops inthe world. He was anxious to do something. He did it. He invaded Silesia in the depth of winter, doubled up the few Austrian troops there, overran the country for six weeks and for this forty days’ amuse- ment by seven years of terrible war, The claims that Frederick the Great had upon Silesia were null. ‘The pragmatic sanction of Charles VI., guarantoed by Europe, and by no power more solemnly than by Prus- sia, had secared to the youthful Archduchess Maria Theresa the peaceful possession of the Austrian do- minions, Frederick wanted Glogau and Sayau. He offered his vote in favor of Maria Theresa’s husband as Emperor and afew millions of thalers in exchange. proposal was declined, Thinking the best method of establishing claim was to seizo upon the thing claimed, he marched into Silesia at the head of 100,000 men. He found no real opposition. It wag not until the spring of 1741 that he had any real enemy to fight, Tho battlo—Frederick’s first—was AR WOR SHO Dabble, WULRAR AIL A general war, such as the one now dreaded on the Eastern question, was the result, A secret alliance was made at Nymphenburg, near Munich, May 18, 1741, very charac- teristic of the times. France, Bavaria,Prussia, Spain, Sar dinia and Saxony combined to plunder Austria. Silesia was to go to Frederick, Austrian Italy to Spain, Moravia to Saxony, the Netherlands to France, Tyrol, Bohemia, and Upper Austria to Bavaria, while the double headed eagle of Austria was to rule simply over Carniola, Styria, Hungary and Lower Austria, England, Hol- land and Russia declared for the youthful archduchess, She reopened the campaign in the end of the year 1741, her army consisting chiefly of Hungarians and Croats. In 1742 Frederick invaded Moravia, took Olmitz On the 17th of May Frederick gamed a decisive victory over the Austrians at Chotusitz, near Czaslau. England, with the unselfishness which has ever characterized her when disposing of other peo- ple’s property, induced the young archduchess to cede Silesia to Prussia forever. She gave the world are- minder of this in her conduct towards Denmark in 1860-61. France and Bavaria were now on the hands of the Austrian princess. She was handling them so well that Frederick saw a prospect of another attack upon Silesia, With his usual promptness he marched an army into Bohemia, and on the 17th of September, 1744, captured Prague, This was called the second Silesian war. Tho Bohemians, however, starved Fred- erick back into Silesia, whither he was followed by the Austrians, who took possession of the greater part of it. On the 8th of Jan- uary, 1745, England, Austria, Holland and Saxony combined to wrest Silesia from Prussia, and to reduce her in rank. They counted without their host. Fred- erick had no money, but he fought the battle of Hohen- friedberg and saved himself. On Christmas Day, 1746, after a couple more victories, peace was made, Saxony having to pay the piper, the, piper being Prussia, That thrifty nation has always had an eye to expenses. Witness the accuracy of the figures in the late war indemnity paid by France, just exactly £200,000,000, Now followed ten yoars of peace, during which Frederick nursed Prussia, The monarchy was a very vigorous child, and throve, FIGHTING IN SELP-DEPENCE. In 1167 Frederick was informed by Peter, heir to the Russian throne, that he was to be attacked in order that Prussia might be dismembered and reduced to its status during the time of the electors, Not having been consulted on this littie arrangement, Frederick made up his mind to be beforehand with his enemies and on tho 29th of August, 1766, led 70,000 men in threo columns into Saxony. This time the robber cried out “Stop, thief!” Frederick was intho right, He fought the Austrians upon nearly even terms, destroyed tho Saxon army, got hold of the archives and published the complete proofs of the hostile intentions of the Saxon government, France now cut in, Prussia was to be dismembered. Russia was to have East Prussia, the much coveted Silesia and parts of Lausitz were to go to Austria, Lower Pomerania to Sweden, Magdeburg and Halberstadt to Saxony, Belgium and Luxemburg to France. ENTERING BOMEMIA, On the 18th of April, 1767, he entered Bohemia with 117,000 men in four columns. The Prussians knew the way there before 1866, Ho marched on Prague. The Austrians and Prussians met on the heights of Moldau, Tho battle was a bloody one. Browne, the Austrian commander, and Schwerin both fell. The victory was with Prussia, At Kolin, on the 18th of June, 1767, she suffered a reverse at the hands of the Austrian General Daun, Sweden now joined in the fray. So Frederick had on his hands Russia, France, Sweden, Austria and the German Empire, The Russians invaded the province of Prussia, and defeated his old and tried Sen era Aohwald mi rvs daewormders, AuRual J, 1 The Muscovites here committed horrible atrocities; and Frederick ordered Lehwald to stand up to them, although he had only 25,000 to 80,000 men. The Rus+ sian General Apraxin, hearing that the Empresa Elizabeth was dead, retreated, and left Frederick to deal with the Swedes, These he quickly disposed off He next had to attend to the Austrians and Frenchy His allies, the English, got beaten by the Fronch unde D’Estrécs, and magnanimously made a treaty of peace for themselves, leaving the whole of Frederick’s west+ ern frontier open. Frederick wanted to go to Silesia, but the attentions of the French were pressing. Ha accordingly met them at Rossbach, west of the Saale, near Merseburg, on the Sth of November, 1757. Tne day of Leuthen came and found Frederick, wittr 42,000 men, confronting an immeasurably superior force of Austrians under Prince Charles of Lorraine. 4 SERIES OF VICTORIES, This battle was a complete discomfiture to the Aus- trians. Before the end of the year he had driven them out of Silesia and covered himself with glory. England now took a more prominent part in the contest. Frode erick of Brunswick was made commander of the English and Hanoverian forces. He scattered the French undes Clermont. On the 23d of June he defeated them at Clerfeld. A French army, under Soubise, crossed the Bhine, and the country could be protected to the west as far as the Weser, Frederick retook Schweidnitz He then invaded Moravia in order to prevent the junc tion of the Russians and Austrians. Meanwhile the Russians had advanced, with frightful ravages, through Pomerania and Neumark to the Oder and laid Kuestria im ashes, Frederick, enraged at this method of warfare, forbade quarter to be given. The Russians were thus embittered. On the 25th of August, 1758, Frederick met theenemy. They were 50,000 strong. They were drawn up in a great square or phalanx in the ancient, half-barbarous manner. The fight was terrible. The Russians would not yield. They never do, Seidlita, the conqueror of Rossbach, led his cavalry on, captured the Russian artillery, crushed their right wing and won the day, One-third of the Prussian force remained om the field, but the day was won. The Russians retreated from Prussia, CLOSING SORNES, Froderick then went to Saxony. Daun, the Generm commanding, he despised, In eloven days he disposed of him, and was again in Silesia Here he relieved Neisse and Kose Frederick now wanted peace, and negotiated for it, but failed. In 1759 the Russians and Anstrians formed a junc tion so as to deprive him of Silesia, Frederick first sent Dohexa against the Russians, then Wedell, The overwhelming number of the Russians at Kai gained the day, Leaving a small army under Prince Henry to observe Daun, he attacked the enemy, 80,000 strong, with 48,000 men. He left the fleld with 5,000 men, The disagreement between the allies saved him. The Rus+ sians did not want Austria to become supreme in Ger- many; 80 they returned to Pomerania Laudor marched into Silesia, Prussia, supported by England and France, tried to negotiate a peace, but failed. Frederick had now but little money, and the best of his troops had fallen. But he still wanted to protect Silesia, It is needless to go through the alternations of acampaign well known to the whole reading world. Self-interest among his enemies, the indomitable spirit of his soldiers, and a measure of good luck, enablo® this commander to re-enter his capital, with @ treasury exhausted, his soldiors barefoot, but his enemies vanquished or deterred. There are few examples in tite history of the world of such proud, stubborn Oghting~’ down of obstacles. The Prussians are rightin calling thie King ‘the Great,” and the mon engaged in those autumal manauvres of 1875 are likely to remember him as they, encounter one another in bloodless fields upon the ound WiMph ia con with be panes of their Cabana +