Military society

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The Military Society was an association in Berlin that existed from 1801 to 1805 and from 1842 to 1919 , which saw itself as a discussion forum for Prussian officers of various ranks and branches of service and dealt with the warfare of the time.

organization

Meeting of the reorganization commission in 1807 (painting by Carl Röchling )

The association was founded on July 2, 1801 a. a. Established by Gerhard von Scharnhorst (1755–1813) in Berlin. On January 24, 1802, their statutes were adopted. Scharnhorst, who also ran the Berlin War School , was the director of the society himself and organized the individual meetings. Allegedly he had planned the establishment of such a forum as early as 1792 and oriented himself towards the association “ Patrotic Society of Admirers of the Art of War ” in Wesel . The president was Lieutenant General Ernst von Rüchel (1754-1823), who had to confirm the statutes . Rüchel's choice was not accidental. At that time he had already appeared as head of the reforms of the military education system and had subsequently been appointed inspector of all military education institutions. At the same time, Rüchel was considered the guardian of the grail of the Frederician tradition. In his capacity as President, he covered society against suspicions of promoting upheavals along the lines of the French Revolution under the guise of military debates. The leadership of the association was thus in the hands of the most important organizers of military education.

In the summer of 1801 there were only seven military men and two civilians who came together to found it. At the beginning of 1803 the Military Society had around 120 officers , but a year later the number had risen to 188. A branch in Potsdam even had to be set up under the direction of Christian von Massenbach in order to cope with the increasing number of members. In order to become a member, you had to send in a military paper , which was then discussed in a meeting. Civilians could also join the association provided they were engaged in an activity related to the military. However, there was no obligation for princes, regimental commanders and adjutants general to submit such a certificate of achievement. This was to ensure that they too entered society and that the composition of the association found a broader social base. In addition, a high membership fee had to be paid.

The crises of 1805 and the impending war against France ended the activities of the Military Society. Their last meeting took place on April 24, 1805.

The then major general, Prince Radziwill , issued a memorandum in December 1841 in which he developed the basic idea for the re-establishment of a military society. He called on the generals and regimental commanders of Berlin to take part in a conference on January 14, 1842. At this point in time 42 soldiers appeared who commissioned the princes, Lieutenant General Friedrich Erhard von Roeder , Lieutenant General Heinrich von Diest , Major General Karl Friedrich von Selasinsky and Major von Studnitz to draft statutes for the association. These were published after several consultations on March 24, 1842 and subsequently confirmed by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. By cabinet order of April 30, 1842 . On April 11, 1842, the king had already declared that he would take over the protectorate .

The first meeting before 158 members took place on October 31, 1842 under the first president, Minister of War Hermann von Boyen . Until his departure in 1847, he led the association, which held its meetings in the English House at Berlin Mohrenstrasse 49 Berlin.

A society of the same name also existed in the Kingdom of Bavaria between 1869 and 1899, which had also set itself the goal of forming the officer corps . The lectures held in it have also been published.

The Political-Military Society (PMG) has existed in Berlin for a number of years and sees itself as the successor to Scharnhorst's Military Society.

meaning

Although mainly young and open-minded officers were interested in the association, it should not be left unmentioned that it also included many conservative and reactionary soldiers. This wasn't bad in the first place, because it was hoped to combine old and new. Even so, there were often heated debates between conservatives and reformers. The purpose of the Military Society was primarily to form the officer corps through the exchange and evaluation of war experience. Another concern was to review recent military literature to keep officers informed of the current state of the art of warfare . One of the main activities was therefore the investigation of the war system - especially with regard to the upheavals of the revolutionary wars . The investigations and the discussions held in the meetings prepared the ground for progressive thinking and for the military reforms of the years 1807 to 1815 (many members of society later belonged to the reformers around Scharnhorst). Above all, society formed an important element of the bourgeois public, since non-nobles also had access.

Publications of the society

The written contributions of the members were published in the memorials of the Military Society in Berlin (5 volumes) when they had been approved by the President . The magazine was published between 1802 and 1805 and, above all, served Scharnhorst as a platform for his reform ideas. In addition, regular competitions were held, for which the participants submitted anonymous prize papers. Naturally, these writings were particularly critical and discussed controversially. This magazine was intended exclusively for members of the Military Society. Thus the sphere of activity of the writings appearing in it was very limited, which did not correspond to Scharnhorst's endeavors to form the Prussian officer corps scientifically. It was therefore planned to publish a public monthly, for which members of the army should receive a cheaper price. General Rüchel initially opposed these plans, fearing that secrets would be revealed. When he relented, it was determined that Scharnhorst should take over the management of the magazine, but that it should be under the control of the General Staff . In addition, more significant work should only appear in the memorials . The end of the Military Society in 1805 prevented the publication of this monthly. Otherwise it would have been the first state military journal. However, such a magazine did not appear until 1816 with the military weekly paper .

Known members

literature

  • Charles Edward White: The enlightened soldier. Scharnhorst and the Military Society in Berlin. 1801-1805. New York / NY 1989.
  • Memories of the Military Society in Berlin. 5 volumes, Berlin 1802–1805. New edition with an introduction by Joachim Niemeyer, Biblio-Verlag, Osnabrück 1985.
  • Olaf Jessen: Prussia's Napoleon? Ernst von Rüchel. 1754-1823. War in the Age of Reason, Paderborn a. a. 2007, ISBN 3-506-75699-0 .
  • For the 50th anniversary of the Berlin Military Society on January 24, 1893. In: Military weekly paper . No. 6, January 21, 1893, pp. 171-176.

Web links