(general background)
Partly because they believed France the aggressor, the states of S.
Germany enthusiastically joined the North German Confederation�just
as Bismarck had hoped. The military conduct of the war was, for the
Germans, in the hands of Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke, a military
genius. On the French side, Napoleon III took active command, but it
soon devolved on Marshal Bazaine.
On Aug. 4, 1870, the Germans crossed the border into Alsace. They
defeated the French at Wissembourg, pushed the French under Marshal
MacMahon to Ch�lons-en-Champagne, and forced a wedge between
MacMahon's forces and those of Bazaine, centered on Metz. Bazaine,
attempting to join MacMahon, was defeated at Vionville (Aug. 16) and
Gravelotte (Aug. 18) and returned to Metz. The Germans began their
march on Paris, and on Sept. 1 the attempt of Napoleon III and
MacMahon to rescue Bazaine led to disaster at Sedan. The emperor and
100,000 of his men were captured.
When the news of Sedan reached Paris a bloodless revolution occurred.
Napoleon was deposed, and a provisional government of national
defense was formed under General Trochu, L�on Gambetta, and Jules
Favre. Paris was surrounded by the Germans on Sept. 19, and a
grueling siege began. Gambetta escaped from Paris in a balloon to
organize resistance in the provinces. Faidherbe made a gallant stand
on the Loire, Chanzy in the north, and Bourbaki in the east, but the
surrender (Oct. 27) of Bazaine, with a garrison of 180,000 men, made
such resistance useless. Paris, however, held out until Jan. 28,
1871, suffering several months of famine. Though Bismarck and Adolphe
Thiers signed an armistice on the same day, the fortress of Belfort
resisted until Feb. 16.
(end general background)
Ok, so we know that France annexed Alsace via the Treaty of
Westphalia in 1648 and over the years Francophied the region so that
ancient cities like Wei�enburg became Wissembourg and M�hlhausen
Became Mulhouse etc. Now it is 220 years later and German troops are
entering Alsace, defeated France in 44 days and the resulting Peace
of Versailes ended the hegemony of France over continental Europe.
That obviously did not sit well with French national interests and 45
years later all of this was to be reversed once again via WWI.
But back to the 91st Oldenburgers regiment and it's involvement in
the war of 1870/1. I will try to recap this on a day by day basis.
I will use the German names of places as they are contemporaneous to
the time.
9. August, 1870
P�ttlingen - a day of rest for the 10th corps. It rains a deluge
during the night and the bivouac area turns into a muddy swamp. This
is now Lorraigne and the troops try to march the short distance to
Hellimer and Gro�-T�nnchen. It takes them until the 11th to get
there.
12. Aug.
Gen. v. Schwartzkoppen receives orders to move his 19th Division to
take the bridge over the Mosel at Pont � Mousson. The regiment, which
had just set up camp after the exhausting mud march, immediately left
to get to Delme by nightfall. Six hours rest and on they went
westwards towards their goal. The 70 km forced march ended on the
evening of the 13th. The general issued an order of the day praising
the efforts of the troops to get to their goal in such a fast manner.
13. Aug.
the regiment took positions on the western side of the Mosel which
was nothing but wine and presented a diffcult challenge to them as
the enemy could not be seen. The population here was not friendly
towards them and several shots were fired by civilians without anyone
responsible being found. No one was hurt.
14. Aug.
The division now waits for other units to come up behind them and has
a well deserved day of rest. The 91st was busy though. It sent
observers to the other side of the river to reconnoiter the area. The
10th & 11th companies were sent northwards to cover for the artillery
units which had been pushed forward to bombard the fortress of Metz.
Napoleon now realizes that his forte is not leading troops and hands
that job to Fieldmarshall Bazain. He orders a withdrawal of French
troops toward Metz to then head in the direction of Verdun. To stop
such nonsense William ordered the 1st Army under Prince Friedrich
Karl to cut them off. The French called their army the Rhine Army
even though they had never been close to the Rhine but the idea was
to get there. We won't go into detail on the various unit movements
where speed meant victory and the French were never fast enough. The
overall result of the battles of the 14th through 16th August was to
encircle the forces of Bazain at Metz. The battles of Colombey-
Nouilly, Vionville-Mars la Tour and Gravelotte-St. Privat were the
decisive events.
The 10th army corps was now made up of the 20th Div. at Pont �
Mousson; the 91st Inf. Reg. of the 19th Div, the 38th brigade of the
19th Div., the 1st Bat. of the 78th Inf. Reg. at Thiaucourt.
Col. von Lyncker had been detached with the 2nd Bat. 78th IR (Inf.
Reg.) along with the Fusellier Bat. 78th IR, 2 Escadron Bat. & 1 Art.
Batterie in order to facilitate a crossing of the Mosel by the 3rd
Army Corps.
(as an aside I should explain that the German forces were made up of
13 army corps. A mobile corps typically contained 25 Inf Battalions,
8 Esquadrones, 14 Batteries totalling about 25,000 infantry, 1200
horses and 84 cannons. An army corps was made up of two infantry
divisions, each with two brigades, each again with 2 regiments. An
inf. divisions would also have a J�ger battalion attached.)
16 August, 1870
Vionville
Lehmann's 37th brigade was ordered to spread out between Thiaucourt
and Noveant near Chambley. The 91st moved out at 6 am leaving the the
1st and 4th companies under Capt. v. Legat behind at Thiaucourt to
await the arrival of the 20th Div from Pont � Mousson. Col. Lehmann
was thus left with 3 1/2 Battalions, 2 Esquadrones (Cavalry), the 9th
dragoner and 2 art batteries. He arrived at 9:30am at Chambley. The
troops settled down to get and cook water and await the arrival of v.
Lynckers troops to make the corps complete again. Events would prove
otherwise.
At 9pm German artillery pounced on the French and they awoke from
their rest to hardly have time to saddle their horses before fleeing
the bombardment in all directions. This confusion was seen as an
opportunity to attack 30 minutes later. Dionville was an important
position which protected the highway towards Verdun and the French
soon were given orders to hold it at all costs. The 3 1/2 Bat.
Oldenburgers and East Frisian marched toward the enemy at 10am on a
warm and humid day to arrive at Tronville. Lehmann ordered the II
Bat. toward Vionville. The 6th (Gether) and 7th (Behnke) companies
under Major v. Kienitz moved toward the church tower. Explosions
everywhere from the batteries of both sides. Trompets and drums can
be heard to attack in the din. The ground shakes. The battle ensues
until a hurrah can be heard that the enemy has fled a position. On it
goes. The 5th and 8th companies under Capt. Goldschmidt were coming
up behind the 6th and 7th to offer support but a gen staff officer
orderes them to more dangerous spot to help the 24th regiment which
was facing a fierce French counter attack to retake the road to
Verdun. He sends a message to Kienitz that he can't back him up which
he never receives. He continus with his two companies into street
battles in Vionville. By 12 they have reached the outskirts and are
met by other troops whom they now join despite massive losses on
towards Rezonville.
The Losses of the 6th comp left the company without officers and
Sergeant Brunken took. command. Commander Capt. Gether, Vice-
Sargeant R��ler fell and Lt. Doniges and Lt. Wallroth were severely
wounded.
In the 7th company Vice-Sargeant Bunnemann fell while Capt. Behnke,
Lt. R�hr�en and Sergeant Hahneberg were wounded. The following were
mentioned as especially heroic fighters over this distance of 700
feet of won battleground: 6th Comp - Sargeants Frerichs & Sykers and
Avantageur (Officer Candidate) Trentepohl. 7th Comp - Sargeant
Bulling, Private Leinemann, Musketier Drohm and the volunteer Folte.
The troops now take cover behind some stone walls on the other side
of the village.
In the meantime Capt. Goldschmidt is still awaiting word from Maj. v.
Kienitz which doesn't arrive. So he takes off on his own with the 5th
& 8th companies to attack the left wind of what he thinks is the
action. He crosses the road (Chaussee) lined with poplars to head
towards the nearest woods known as the Tronville Bush. This was a
complete accident but it also reunited the entire 10th corps again as
Col Lehmann was already there with the rest of the troops ready to
follow the orders of Gen v. Alvensleben to attack the 3rd French
Corps under Leboeuf. The trouble was getting out of the forest as the
French were bombarding the open areas. So they had no choice but to
force their way through the thicket of the bush using their bayonetts
and whatever else they could muster to cut their way through.
Everybody was sort of left to themselves to find a path through the
bush. It was unbelievably thick with brambles and thorns of all
kinds. It meant proceeding step by step.
Companies became detached from their leaders. Capt Goldschmidt lost
his troops. 1st Lt. M�ller took the 5th company and engaged the
enemy. Little by little the troops emerged from the thicket. The 3rd
under 1st Lt. v. Bonin and the 2nd under Capt. v. Finckh came out
next and by 1:30pm the 8 companies of the regiment were out of the
forest next to them were the 1st, 2nd and 4th companies of the 78th
Inf. Reg. (the Frisians). The entire time the troops were defenseless
in the forest tey were peppered by both rifle and artillery fire of
the French who did not want them to come out. On the other side was a
valley which had to be crossed and the enemy sat up high on the other
side.
On top of the difficultiy was the short range of the German
Z�ndnadelgewehr vs the French Chassepot (Needle rifles). The French
had considerable more range and it decimated the German troops over
long distances.
The 2nd company loses Lt. Somm�, the 3rd 1st Lt von Bonin. His
replacement, 1st Lt. von Th�men is wounded. The 5th loses Lt. von
B�ltzingsl�ven. Capt. Goldschmidt receives a grenade wound in his
hip. He continues his command of the 8th company regardless.
Musketier Steinh�user helps 1st Lt. von Wedding off the field of
battle because of his wounds. The Fuseliers are even worse off.
The 10th company loses Capt. Henz, then 1st Lt. Wolf and winds up
lead by Lt. von Holtzendorff. The young Portepee-F�hnrich von Randow
is killed. The 11th company loses 1st Lt. Tenge and Lt. Wieben. Lt.
Schmidt, Bosse and Willich are wounded. The 12th Comp under Capt. von
Gayl loses Lt. Scholz and Vice-Sargeant Mosen. Countless other non-
commissioned offers and troops also lose their lives. The are mounds
of the dead at the edge of the forest. The wounded will not leave
their comrades and fight on. Among the bravest are mentioned: Non-
comm Gristede of the 3rd, Non-comm Bitter and Musketier Lotterburger
of the 5th, Corporal Janszen and Musketier Tellmann of the 8th, non-
comm Mann and Fuselier Kreye of the 9th company. The chief of the
regiment, Col von Kameke had his horse shot out from under him and he
continued with the Fuseliers on foot. In the forest he took the
regimental flag from the wounded Sargeant Freese and carried it
himself. As soon as he reached the edge of the forest he too sunk to
the ground dead.
It is now 2pm. The pressure of the French against the Oldenburgers
and Frisians is becoming immense. The French all of a sudden direct
their fire against Vionville and attack there. Here the 3rd and 10th
corps try to hold the French superiority in numbers. There are no
reserves behind them. The road to Verdun now seems open to the
French. All of a sudden the sound of hooves can be heard on the
cobble stones of the Chausee. Panzerreiter (heavily armed cavalry)
gallop into battle along the edge of the forest where a moment before
the French had directed their attack but now where gone. The 7th
Kurassier and the 16th Ulanen struck right into the middle of the
French to practically dissolve themselves in a suicide attack. During
the slashing of the sabers and prancing of the lances the infantry
now has a chance to regroup their forces and retreat towards the
village of Dionville. The 6th and 7th companies arrive first back at
the village. The idea now is to just hold the ground. This is proving
more and more difficult in the Thronville Forest as the French are
again attacking there. 1st Lt. von Napolski moves the 2nd and 3rd
companies back to the edge of the forest. In the process Lt. Koch is
shot dead. Musketiers Schnittger and Kerkhof of the 2nd stay with him
until it is dark when they can move his body back. The 5th and 8th
companies are back in the forest too.
The German movement towards Rezonville, as well as the French
counterattack against Vionville is over for the moment but the French
have a 7 to 1 numerical majority and will continue to attack.
The regimental history records the names of the men who stood their
ground until the very last and did some especially heroic deed:
2nd - Non-Comm (Unteroffizier) GRABOW, Sargeant PUNDT, Corporal
GERDES, Musketier GRUNDING, DIERKE & BUNJE
3rd - Sargeant BUDDE, Sargeant DIERKS, Corporal OSTERLOH,
5th - Non-Comm T�LLNER, Musketiers POPHANKEN & JAN�SEN
8th - Sargeant DR�CKHAMMER, Vice-Sargeant M�LLER, Sargeant GEHL,
Corporal LAMPING
9th - Sargeant SCHUMANN, Fuseliers SALLER, CHRISTIANS & KREYE
11th - Medic (Unterlazarettgeh�lfe) EMKEN,
Also the flag officers of the 1st and 2nd Battalions: Sargeants
WILLENBROCK of the 4th and Non-commissioned officer ROHDE of the 1st
company as well as Sargeant MOOCK of the 5th. The flag of the 2nd Bat
was damaged by gunfire as a memento to the bravery of the troops.
The French attack continues against the bush and little by little the
Oldenburgers retreat towards Vionville. The last to leave the thicket
are the Fuseliers Lt. SPRENGER, Vice-Sargeant BERGM�LLER and Non-Comm
REYERSBACH of the 12th company then came 1st LT. v. NAPOLSKI with the
2nd and 3rd companies.
Now the French were in the bush and it was the Germans' turn to rain
cannon fire upon them. They too can't get out and progress toward
Vionville as now the 20th division arrives from Thiaucourt to attack
the forest themselves and partially take it again.
During the evening hours a new attack was ordered mainly to show the
French that the troops still had fighting capability. They did not
want to look defeated. The 6th and 7th companies were sent out to
fain this attack towards Rezonville. As darkness prevailed both sides
started to take a break and retreat towards a needed night's sleep.
The count at the end of the day for the regiment which was now
commanded by 1st Lt. von Napolski had 465 men missing. Many of the
wounded had to be left behindin the forest or simply got lost. Among
the missing were Lts. SCHMIDT, WILLICH & BOSSE. It was assumed that
many became prisoners of war. Later counts of the dead reported 141
troops and 13 officers.
to be continued
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