Unfolding of the Franco-German war of 1870

The Franco-German war of 1870 was marked by a domination military of the Germany, that it is from a numerical point of view, technical or strategic, helped in that in particular by the incompetence of the military leaders French, with the image of the marshal Bazaine, but also of Napoleon III, come to be locked up with Sedan. Officers trained in Africa, plus fighters that technicians, act in the disorder.

Roots and causes of the conflict

Bismarck is, since 1862, the minister-president of the king Guillaume Ier of Prussia. Its goal is to federate, around the Prussia, the whole of the German States, excluded Austria. With the business of the Duchies, Bismarck will create the Confederation of the States of Germany of the North which it then will weld at the time of the war against Austria. The victory of Sadowa (July 1866) reinforces the position of Prussia in the States of Germany of the South from where Austria leaves weakened. To finish the German unit, Bismarck still needs a war; it will be done against France.

In 1868, the queen Isabelle of Spain is reversed and the republic not having the majority, Spain seeks a king. Bismarck pushes the candidature for the crown of Spain of Léopold de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, cousin of king Guillaume Ier of Prussia. The risk of a prusso-Spanish alliance would make react Napoleon III.

For price of his non-intervention in the conflict prusso-Austrian, Napoleon III requests from Prussia the fastening of the duchy of the Luxembourg in France 1867), but Bismarck spreads this secret request what, not only, upsets Napoleon III, but alienates to him also the British cabinet.

The June 20th 1870, king Guillaume Ier grants approval, as an household head, with prince Léopold de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, of his candidature for the throne of Spain. The July 2nd 1870, the Gazette of France announces with the public that the Spanish Government sent a delegation in Germany to offer the crown to prince de Hohenzollern. Against all uses, the French government had not been informed. By diplomatic means implementing the various European chancelleries, the imperial government succeeds in making withdraw the Hohenzollern candidature. But the deputies, as well of the majority as of the opposition, ask for security. They want that the king of Prussia declares officially that there will be no more in the future of Hohenzollern candidature for the throne of Spain.

To the legislative body, only Thiers is opposed to this step; it is under the pressure, at the same time of the Room and the opinion, that Napoleon III gives directives to Gramont, Foreign Minister, so that Benedetti, the ambassador of France near the king of Prussia, requires of Guillaume Ier the official renunciation, for the future, of its house to the throne of Spain. Guillaume Ier receives by twice Benedetti and its refusal for this clause means to him. When Benedetti returns third once to the load, it makes him say by its aide-de-camp, Radziwill that it will not receive it. Bismarck exploits this answer made by the king and denatures the events to let appear only the fact that the king refused to receive the ambassador of France (Dépêche of Ems (July 13rd 1870). It is a diplomatic humiliation.

The people of Paris received bellows; he goes down in the street, pushes with the war. All the newspapers, governmental and of opposition, are in unison. But the reasons are different: so for the ones it is the consolidation of the Empire which is sought, at the others it is the hope of a weakening of the mode. The July 16th, the legislative Body votes, unanimously, less six votes (Emmanuel Arago, Jules Grévy, Desseaux, Esquiros, Glais-Bizoin, Ordinaire - Thiers, Crémieux, Girault and Raspail abstain from and Jules Favre is absent) the special appropriations for the war.

The July 19th, the Foreign Minister gave to the ambassador from Prussia to Paris a note in which France regarded itself as in state of war.

An obvious imbalance

Napoleon III declares the war with the king of Prussia the July 19th 1870 without making sure of the support of the many states rival or enemy of Prussia, just like it does not take either the trouble to check if the French Army is ready with the combat. Otto von Bismarck as for him benefits from transport French, since the declaration of war against Prussia urges the states of the German confederation to fight with Prussia against the attacker, which involves them in a war that it exploits to seal the German unit around its king, Guillaume I {{er}} of Hohenzollern.

Involved forces

France is able to mobilize only 250  000 men. The Germans have 600  000 men quickly mobilized and assembled to the face thanks to the use of the railroad.

The Germans develop an offensive strategy, while at the same time the French are persuaded that those will not attack, with the image of the remarks made by Mac-Mahon at the time of a conference on the subject with Reichshoffen it.

A succession of French defeats

The German armies cross the border between the the Rhine and the Luxembourg, hustling the imperial armies.

  • July: The marshal the Ox is named general major of the Rhine.

  • July 27th: The Impératrice Eugenie is named regent.
  • July 28th: Napoleon III, accompanied by the imperial prince 14 years old, goes to Metz to take the head of the army.
  • August 2nd: Combat of Saarbrucken, in which the young imperial prince takes part.
  • August 4th: Battle of Wissembourg in the the Low-Rhine, first battle which shows the retirement of the French troops of the marshal of Mac-Mahon (Douay division) in front of the Prussian troops of Kronprinz.
  • August 6th: Battle of Froeschwiller-Woerth at the time which IIIe armed German with Kronprinz of Prussia puts in rout the French troops of the Marshal of Mac-Mahon.
    • Loads of Reichshoffen: vain loads of the French cuirassiers on the villages of Morsbrunn (where they are destroyed) and of Elsasshausen.
    • Battle of Forbach-Spicheren: the division of the general Frossard is crushed, because of the inaction of the marshal Bazaine (jealous of Frossard).
  • August 12th: Napoleon III, patient, lets the marshal Bazaine take the head of the army.
  • August 14th: Undecided combat of the army of the marshal Bazaine with Borny-Colombey. The Germans put the seat in front of Toul.
  • August 16th: Battle of March-the-Turn in the Moselle.
    • the remainders of the army of the marshal of Mac-Mahon is folded up on Châlons.
    • undecided Combat with Gravelotte, where the Bazaine Marshal, with the head of 2 armies could have made capitulate an isolated German army.
  • August 18th:
    • Battle of Saint-Privat-the-Mountain in the North-West of Metz, in the Moselle, where the troops of the marshal Bazaine undergo a defeat which withdraws any possibility to him of leaving Metz.
    • Battle of Loigny, where the first army of the Loire is beaten.
  • August 25th: Having reconstituted an army the marshal of Mac-Mahon (accompanied by Napoleon III passes to the offensive with 120  000 soldiers to try to bore the Prussian troops and to release the marshal Bazaine of Metz. It must however take the direction of Sedan, because the direct road is barred by the Prussian armies.
  • August 30th: Battle of Beaumont an army corps charged to defend the blank of the army of Mac-Mahon east demolishes by the army of the prince of Saxony. The Mac-Mahon army is withdrawn on the citadel of Sedan.
  • August 31st: Two Prussian armies, with 240  000 men and 700 guns, under the orders of the royal princes of Prussia and Saxony to the continuation of the French troops of the marshal of Mac-Mahon, the Bataille of Sedan starts. (The King of Prussia and the Bismarck Chancellor are present).
  • September 1st:
    • As of the beginning, by observing the combat of Bazeilles (side is) on a hill of the village of Balan, the marshal of Mac-Mahon is wounded, and replaced by the General Ducrot then by the general Wimpffen who calls upon an order of the government to replace the commander-in-chief in the event of prevention. This succession of chiefs generates an incoherent battle plan.
    • Engagements of Bazeilles where the Marsouins of the marines oppose a heroic resistance against the Bavarian troops.
    • In order to avoid the surrounding of the citadel, the hunters of Africa of the Général Margueritte carry out the heroic ones but vain loads on the plate of Floing (western side).
    • With final, the disorganized troops are folded up on the citadel of Sedan. Encircled and under the German fire of the artillery of the States which draws on the citadel city, Napoleon III fact of hoisting the white flag, to avoid a massacre. It is 16:30 the battle is lost. The general of Wimpffen order the rendering of the city.
  • September 2nd: The emperor Napoleon III is made prisoner. Signature of the act of rendering by Wimpffen and Von Molkte with the Castle of Bellevue located at 2 km in the south of Sedan.
    • Assessment of the Battle of Sedan: 15  000 killed or wounded French, 91  000 prisoners interned on the peninsula of Iges bordered by the Meuse and a channel (this place of internment was called " the camp of misery "), 10  000 succeeded in being folded up on Paris and 3  000 are interned in Belgium; German side, 10.000 died or wounded on 250  000 men.
  • September 3rd: Napoleon III is taken along in captivity to Germany (to Wilhelmshoehe, close to Cassel. The French troops are interned with the camp of misery.

The fall of the French empire

From Paris, the republicans request the September 3rd the forfeiture of the Empire. The 4, the people invades the Palate-Bourbon, and Leon Gambetta with the platform proclaims the fall of the imperial mode. Accompanied by Jules Favre and Jules Ferry, it goes to the town hall and proclaims the republic: a provisional government, under the direction of Favre and of the General Trochu, is made up. It is a government of national defense, which orders resistance to excess.

A republican attempt at rectification

Gambetta organizes resistance. It leaves Paris in balloon on October 7th and joined with Tours the governmental antenna which had settled there before the blockade of Paris. It reconstitutes three armies (North, the Loire and Are).

On the Loire

See also: Armed with the Loire

It is (October 27th) which at this time Bazaine capitulates in Metz releasing IIe armed German which goes ahead of of the first army of the Loire of the general of Aurelle de Paladines that it beats the December 8th close to Orleans, then second army with the Loire entrusted to the general Chanzy is beaten the January 11th with the Mans. The army of the Loire is folded up behind Mayenne.

North

In January, in north the general Faidherbe after the battles of Bapaume and Saint-Quentin beats a retreat with the shelter of the fortified towns of Cambrai and Lille, without being really worried by von Goeben. However the action of Faidherbe will make it possible the Nord-Pas-de-Calais not to be invaded.

Is

See also: Armed with the East

The east, Bourbaki after a victory with Villersexel fails in its attempt to release Belfort besieged: its offensive is stopped with Héricourt and Montbeliard. It is replaced the January 26th, following an suicide attempt, by the commander of the 20th body the Général Clinchant which, encircled by German, has other resources to only negotiate with the Swiss general Hans Herzog and the army takes refuge in Suisse the 1871 what thus causes the disappearance of the army of the East. However, of hard combat take place with the procession of the Cluse (in the south of Pontarlier) where troops are made massacre courageously to save the army. Other generals whose To cream and Pallu of the Barrier as well as the admiral Penhoat succeed in passing the the snow-covered Jura with several thousands of men and joining Lyon by Gex. The forts of Joux and the Larmont go only the February 10th after having caused heavy losses with the Germans.

The armistice

The lack of vivres, the daily bombardment and the succession of the military failures cause an increasing agitation of the Parisian population which makes fear at the provisional government a forthcoming revolt. This one thus decides to cease the hostilities as fast as possible and signs the January 28th 1871 an armistice which does not relate to the operations in the east, in waiting of the stop of the negotiations on the future layout of the borders. The general armistice intervenes the February 15th. The order is then given to the place of Belfort to go, which it can do the February 18th with the honors.

List battles (nonexhaustive)

to see : Category: Battle of the Franco-German war of 1870-1871

External bonds

  • 1870, the army of the Loire

  • On the side of Spain
  • the Legend of Metz by the count of Hérisson (Wikisource)
  • http://laguerrede70enimages.com

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