German Armies 1870-71 (1)

Description: In 1870 Bismarck, Prime Minister of Prussia, engineered a war with France that would result in the fall of the Second Empire. It was the first modern European war and saw the use of bolt action rifles, machine guns, railway transport and professional general staffs. This war led to Germany's unification as a militaristic nation, and was central to France's military development, influencing her disastrous tactics in 1914. This book looks at the Prussian Army during this short war, and details its organisation and uniforms. Table of Contents: Introduction; Chronology; Orders of battle; Ranks and distinctions; Uniforms & Equipment: Officers' uniforms, generalities; Staff command guards; Line cavalry; Line infantry; Artillery; Pioneers; Train; Medical; Reserve cavalry; Landwehr Author Biography: Michael Solka, M.A. is an author and historian. He works mainly for the TXT media agency, and is also involved with the 'Word' programme produced by the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation. He has written fifteen books on American Indians and American military history for a German publishing company, but this is his first book for Osprey. He lives in Upper Bavaria, Germany. Darko Pavlovic was born in 1959 and currently lives and works in Zagreb, Croatia. A trained architect, he now works as a full-time illustrator and writer, specialising in militaria. Darko has illustrated a number of books for Osprey and he has also written and illustrated titles for the Men-at-Arms series on the Austrian army of the 19th century.