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The Russian Army 1859-1871 The Russian Army 1859-1871 Gudrun Persson Ph.D. London School of Economics and Political Science, 1999 UMI Number: U615742 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U615742 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 !H£SE5 • r - Library British Library of Political and Economic- Science i Abstract The thesis examines how the Russian army interpreted and what lessons it learned from the wars in Europe between 1859 and 1871 and the American Civil War. This was a time marked by rapid change - political, social, economic and technological. By raising the question of learning from foreign wars the thesis attempts to fill a gap in the historiography of the Russian army. The army was one of the pillars on which the Russian re­ gime built its power, and it was crucial for the survival of the regime both in domestic and foreign affairs. The reactions and thinking of the military at a time of rapid social, political, economic, and technological change, therefore, tell a lot about the regime's ability to adjust, develop, and ultimately survive. Furthermore, the influence of foreign wars on Russian strategic war planning is analysed with the use of the first Russian war plan of 1873 and the proceedings from the strategic con­ ference, chaired by Alexander II, in 1873. The influence of foreign w ars on the G eneral Staff officer education is also investigated. The thesis is largely based on extensive research in Russian archives. Special attention is giv­ en to the military attaches and, thus, the thesis fills a gap in the historiography of the Russian army. It uncovers the development of the military attache institution with the use of new ar­ chival material. The Russian military attache reports from the European Great Powers 1859- 71 and the observer reports from the different war scenes are also examined. In addition, ex­ tensive use has been made of the military press and contemporary military literature with re­ gard to the wars. 2 Table of Contents Acknowledgements.................................................................................................. 6 Introduction............................................................................................................... 7 1 The Nation in Arms - Military Development 1859-1871....................... 18 1.1 From Peace to War in Europe................................................................................. 18 1.2 Armies and Warfare in Transition.........................................................................21 1.2.1 Civilians in Arms ...........................................................................................................22 1.2.2 The Rise of General Staffs and Officer Education.......................................................26 1.2.3 Technology and Tactics.................................................................................................31 2 Reforming the Russian Army................................................................... 35 2.1 Lessons from the C rim ea........................................................................................ 36 2.2 Miliutin and the Military Reforms ....................................................................... 39 2.2.1 The Importance of Education...................................................................................... 41 2.2.2 The Call for a Common Cause..................................................................................... 46 2.2.3 The Rise of the General Staff........................................................................................ 50 2.2.4 Miliutin and Prussia ..................................................................................................... 52 2.2.5 Rifles and Guns ............................................................................................................. 56 3 The Eyes of the Tsar: The Russian Military Attaches............................59 3.1 G athering Intelligence through A ttaches............................................................61 3.2 M en in High Places...................................................................................................67 3.3 A t the Prussian C o u rt...............................................................................................75 3.4 The Observers ............................................................................................................ 77 4 Lessons From Foreign Wars - the Military Debate and the General Staff Academy............................................................................................ 82 4.1 Military Reporting....................................................................................................82 4.2 Observing Foreign Wars ......................................................................................... 84 4.2.1 The Military System and Nationalism .........................................................................84 4.2.2 Men Against Fire.......................................................................................................... 90 4.2.3 The Cavalry Reconsidered ...........................................................................................99 4.3 Studying Foreign Wars at the General Staff Academy ..................................106 4.3.1 The Theory and Practice of Educating General Staff Officers................................. 106 4.3.2 The Curriculum.......................................................................................................... 109 4.3.3 The Library ..................................................................................................................112 4.3.4 The Role of Military History and the General Staff..................................................113 4.3.5 Staff Rides and War Games ........................................................................................ 118 4.4 Discussing W ar........................................................................................................123 3 5 Facing the Enemy - the Strategic Conference in 1873........................129 5.1 Strategy and War Plans in R ussia ...................................................................... 129 5.2 Russia and Europe in 1870 - the View of the Army ...................................... 132 5.3 Lessons from Prussia and America................................................................... 139 5.3.1 Militia Contra Reserve - the American Connection.................................................139 5.3.2 Military Expenses - the German Connection........................................................... 141 5.4 Stand Firmly in the West - the War Plan of 1873 ............................................146 5.5 Between Victory and Defeat - the Strategic Conference...............................160 Conclusions........................................................................................................... 173 Appendix 1 ............................................................................................................ 181 Bibliography.......................................................................................................... 183 4 List of Tables TABLE 1 Reserve Forces in European A nnies 1862.........................................................47 TABLE 2 Russian Small Arms in 1877 ................................................................................ 57 TABLE 3 Holdings of the General Staff Academy Library by Language 1866-1887... 112 TABLE 4 Library Holdings in Military History. Books in Russian/Total Holdings by Wars .................................................................................................................... 113 TABLE 5 Strength of the Russian Army and European Armies in 1870.................. 138 5 Acknowledgements In writing this thesis I have had the opportunity to work in a number of archives and libraries and I owe gratitude to the staff at the following institutions: the Russian State Military Histo­ ry Archive, the State Archive of the Russian Federation, the Manuscript Department of the Russian State Library, the State History Museum, and the Foreign Policy Archive of the Rus­ sian Empire. All of these institutions are located in Moscow. Furthermore, I would like to thank the staff at the British Library, the British Library of Political and Economic Science, the Library of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies, the University of London Li­ brary, the Institute of Historical Research in London, and both the Slavonic Library and the National Defence College Library in Helsinki. I would also like to thank the Summer Re­ search Laboratory at the University of Illinois for providing me with a housing grant which enabled me to spend some time in the Library of the University of Illinois. In addition, I would like to thank a number of persons who have been important in helping me to see this project through: my supervisors
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