This is a scan of old Fritz's instructions for his generals on the conduct of war. I will be sending in more of them if there is a demand for such. Thought it would be fun for those contemplating a campaign to see how an 18th century master of war looked on things.

The scans are from a 1762 book in my collection translated by "an officer". I suspect the officer was actually a royal, but do not know for sure.

PREFACE

LORD Littleton, in his dialogue between Pope and Boileau, makes our English poet, in speaking of the preterit king of Prussia, exclaim thus,-" What an astonishing compass and force must there be in his mind, what an heroic tranquility and firmness of heart, that he can, one day, compose an Ode or Epistle, in the most elegant verse, and the next fight a battle, with the conduct and courage of a Gustavus Adolphus"! To which Boileau replies-"I envy Voltaire so noble a subject, both for his verse and his prose. But if that Prince will write his own Commentaries, he will want no Historian."

This volume, with which I have the pleasure to present my brethren of the English army, may, with the greatest propriety, be considered as Commentaries of the former campaigns of his Prussian Majesty; and therefore cannot fail of being both entertaining and instructive to every military reader of taste and judgment.

Our Royal Author has indeed thought fit to range his instructions under a variety of distinct heads, manifestly with a view to perspicuity; but his references to his own actions are so frequent, that it would require very little trouble to throw the whole into the form of commentaries, like those of Caesar.

Capt. Faucit, of the guards, obliged us, some time ago, with a translation of the King of Prussia's Regulations for the discipline of his army; but those Regulations are calculated principally for the instruction of Non-commissioned and Subaltern Officers, Adjutants, and Majors: Their contents, tho' essential to the service, can only be considered as the rudiments of the art of war, and therefore it is difficult to suppose, that so sublime a genius, as his present Prussian Majesty, could possibly waste his time in composing them. He certainly did not. The Regulations were originally the work of his father, who was an excellent Adjutant, and who, tho' a man of no genius at all, by the discipline of his troops, laid the foundation of his son's greatness.

The Prussian army being obliged to act, in separate corps, and it being impossible for the King to command in person more than one of these, his Majesty sketched out the instructions which form this volume, for the use of those Generals, who should be entrusted with the command of the detached parts of his army. These instructions were delivered in M S S. to each of his General Officers, with strict orders to preserve them carefully, and to refer to them in all cases of doubt, when it was impossible to consult the King.

By what means they have transpired, is of no importance to an English reader. If he understands the subject, he will entertain no doubt of their authenticity. Whether they came into the world under sanction of the law, or whether they are to be considered as illegitimate, it matters not. A man's child is no less his offspring, because its mother was a whore.

But tho' the book was intended, by its author, for the use of Generals only, it will be found infinitely serviceable to those of every rank. We all entertain some hopes of rising to the top of our profession; tho' in the nature of things, but a small number of us can ever obtain even the command of a regiment. Nevertheless, the ambition of a soldier, in this respect, is undoubtedly a virtue, and, very frequently, the cause of his preferment.'

If officers, of an inferior rank, were to read no other books than those which treat merely of military discipline, they would find themselves very ill qualified for command, if ever they should rise to any considerable rank in the army. No man was ever born a General, no more than a Mathematician. A man may bring into the world with him a strong propensity, or genius, towards a particular art or science; but he can become master of it only by study and application. When we talk of men being born poets or painters, we mean nothing more than that nature has endowed them with certain faculties, which, if properly cultivated, will enable them to excell in those arts. Native Genius, there-fore, means nothing more than a soil adapted to the produce of certain fruits, which nevertheless cannot be produced without labour and attention.'

Our language does not abound with books on the art of war, tho' we are sufficiently provided with treatises on military discipline. Captain Otway has indeed lately favoured us with the translation of a very excellent Essay from the French, of the celebrated Count Turpin. The French have many books upon this subject: But that which has made the most noise among them, deserves the least applause. I mean the elaborate performance of the Chevalier Folard. Beyond all doubt, he was a man of much military erudition; but he is so intolerably prolix, so full of repetition, and so extravagantly chimerical, that no reader of common understanding, can possibly attend to him with patience. I will venture to affirm, that his whole system, together with all his discoveries, might be comprized in a smaller volume than this: And I will add, that these few practical instructions, if properly attended to, will be of more real use to an officer, than the ideal impracticable manoeuvres of all the French writers that ever were published. 

As to the particular contents of this work, I must beg leave to differ from the common plan of a Preface, and refer the reader to the book itself. If he has judgment, I should be glad to find him pleased with the Translation. I with it may afford him both entertainment and profit,

And am, his most obedient Servant, The TRANSLATOR:

Just Published,

Neatly printed in a Pocket Size, sewed One Shilling and Sixpence.

A SHORT Account of the most common DISEASES incident to A R M I E S, viz. Coughs, Sore Throat, the Pleurisy, Peripneumany, Rheumatism and Rheumatic Pains, Intermitting Fevers, Spring Intermittents, Autumnal Intermittents, the Jaundice, the Dropsy, Vomiting; Colera Morbus; a Diarrhaea, the Dysentery, Inflammations of the Intestines, Phrenzy, Haemorrhage of the Nose, a continued Fever, the Scurvy, the Gangrene, the Venereal Disorder, the Itch, of Worms, with the Method of Cure.

Written by Baron Van SWIETEN, Physician to their Imperial Majesties.

Printed for T. BECKET and P. A. de HONDT, at Tully's Head, in the Strand.

The Author lays down a few simple preventive Aphorisms, and the Means of preserving the Soldiers Health: He relates the distinguishing Symptoms of the prevailing Diseases of the Camp and Army, with great Exactness, Fidelity, and Precision. The Method of Cure, which he proposes, is simple, and the Medicines choice, few i n Number, and easily procured. The Tables o f Medicines are those the most used in Practice, with the proper Quantities ascertained, and the Manner of their being administered prescribed. This little Volume, therefore, will prove a useful Vade Mecum, to Camp Surgeons and Physicians; Military Instructions

ARTICLE I: Of the Prussian troops, their defects and advantages.

THE troops in my service require infinite attention in their commanders. It is necessary to make them observe the most exact discipline, and to omit nothing that may contribute to their preservation: it is particularly requisite that they should be better subsisted than almost any other troops in Europe.

Our regiments are composed of part natives and part foreigners, who have received inlisting money; the latter of these having no attachment wait only for the first opportunity to desert; this therefore we must endeavour to prevent.

Several of our Generals are of opinion, that one man is as good as another, and that if the vacancy be filled up, the change has no influence upon the whole; but, in this respect, my army will bear no comparison with any other.

If the place of a well disciplined soldier be supplied by another who is equally disciplined, we sustain no loss; but if a man deserts who has been constantly exercised for two years together, and be replaced by an awkward fellow, or not replaced at all, in time, the consequence will be extreamly perceptible.

We have seen, by the negligence of officers in the minute branches of their duty, that some regiments have not only been considerably weakened by desertion, but have entirely lost their reputation. These losses enfeeble the army at a time when it is most necessary that it should be compleat; and thus our best troops must diminish beyond resource, unless prevented by your special attention.

Though my dominions are populous, the number of men of a proper stature is not great; but even supposing it were sufficient, men are not soldiers till they are disciplined. From these considerations, one of the most essential duties of a general officer who commands an army, or a detached corps, is to prevent desertion; which must be done,

1. By not encamping too near a wood or forest, unless the situation of your enemy should require it.

2. By calling the roll several times a day.

3. By sending frequent patrols of Hussars round the environs of your camp.

4. By posting small parties of Hunters in the corn, and doubling the posts of Cavalry as soon as it grows dark in order to strengthen the chain. 

5. By obliging the officers to conduct their men regularly when they go for water or straw.

6. By punishing marauders with the utmost rigour; for that is the source of every disorder.

7. By not calling in your out-guards on the day of marching till your troops have stood to their arms.

8. By strictly forbidding the men to quit their ranks during the march, and by punishing the disobedient with the utmost severity.

9. By not marching in the night, unless in cases of absolute necessity.

10. By sending patrols of Hussars to the right and left, during your passage through a wood.

11. By placing officers at the entrance and opening of every defile, who shall oblige the men to take up their ranks as soon as they have passed.

12. By concealing from the soldiers every retrograde-march you may be obliged to make, under some pretext, which may keep up their spirits.

13. By being particularly careful, that your troops are in no want of bread, meat, spirits and beer.

14. When desertion shall begin to creep into a company or regiment, by making particular enquiry into the cause; by informing yourself whether the men have received their due, and whether their officers may not have been guilty of some bad practices. They must not only be just, but attentive to the discipline of their men. Perhaps it may be said, that the Colonel will take care of that; but this is not sufficient. In an army every thing should tend towards perfection, and shew that the whole is the work of one man.

Armies are composed chiefly of indolent people: if the Commander is not constantly attentive to the duty of every individual, the machine, which being artificial cannot be perfect, will soon be dislocated, and in a little time you will have an army disciplined only in idea.

It is therefore necessary that we should be indefatigable; for we are convinced by experience, that there are many abuses which require redress, but which are never perceived by those who are inattentive to their duty.

Such continual application may appear a little hard to some of our Generals; but they will find themselves sufficiently recompenced by its consequences; for what advantages may not be expected from brave and well disciplined troops? A Commander who in other nations might be thought rash, will in our army appear to act rationally; in every enterprise, he may reasonably expect all that men are capable of executing.

I have seen officers, and even private men, who, though they have been dangerously wounded, have refused to quit their ranks. With such troops it were possible to conquer the whole world, if our victories were not often as fatal to us as to the enemy. With such troops you might undertake any thing provided they were never suffered to want subsistance. Upon the march, you are certain to be on before the enemy; if you attack him in a wood, you will certainly force him to retire; if you attempt to scale a mountain, you are sure to carry your point; if you attack with your Cavalry, your opponents must infallibly be cut to pieces.

But as good troops of themselves are not sufficient, and as a General may by his ignorance lose every advantage, I shall speak, in the succeeding article, of the qualifications necessary in a general officer, and lay down some rules which I have partly learned from my own experience, and partly from that of other Commanders.

ART. II. Of magazines, subsistance, &c.

IT was said by a certain General, that in order to have a good army you must begin by providing well for the belly, which is the main spring of every operation. I shall divide this subject into two separate branches; in the first of which I shall mention the places where, and the manner how, to establish your magazines, and in the other I shall consider the method of using and transporting them.

The first general rule is, to establish your most considerable magazine in the rear of your army, and, if possible, in a fortified place. When Silesia and Bohemia were the theatres of war, we fixed our grand magazine at Breslau, on account of the Oder, which enabled us to recruit it with facility.

If your magazines are in the front of your army, they are in danger of being lost upon the least rebuff; but if you fix them one in the rear of the other, you act prudently, and a small misfortune cannot cause your entire ruin. In the Electorate of Brandenbourg, the best places for magazines are Spandau and Magdebourg: the latter on account of the Elbe, would be most convenient in case of an offensive war with Saxony; but in a war against Bohemia, Schweidnitz is the best place.

It is necessary to be very circumspect in the choice of commissaries; for if these gentlemen happen to be rascals the state will suffer considerably: you must therefore endeavour to find a superintendant of known probity, who will frequently and minutely examine their proceedings.

There are two methods of forming magazines: the first is by ordering the nobility and the peasants to supply the necessary quantity of grain, for which they are paid according to the tax of the Finance-Chamber, or by deducting the sum from their contribution; but if the country happens not to abound in forage, you must agree with some Entrepreneur for the quantity required: this is the commissary's business, who must sign the agreement.

It is likewise necessary to construct proper vessels for transporting corn and forage. 

These Entrepreneurs should never be employed but in cases of absolute necessity; for in general they are such nicer Jews, as to enhance the price of provisions, and sell them as dear as they possibly can.

Your magazines should be formed as early as possible, that your army may be provided with every thing before it takes the field. If you wait too long, you will be hindered by the ice, or by the badness of the roads from forming your magazines, except with the greatest difficulty.

Besides your regimental bread-waggons, the commissary should be provided with caissons capable of conveying a month's subsistance.

But if there are navigable rivers, we must avail ourselves of them, for without these there can be no plenty of provisions in an army.

Your waggons should be drawn by horses. We have tried oxen, but to our disadvantage. Your waggon-masters must take great care of their horses, to which particular it is necessary, that the General should be attentive; for by a loss of horses the number of your waggons is diminished, and consequently the quantity of subsistance.

There is yet another reason, viz. that your horses not being well fed, are unable to bear fatigue, in consequence of which you will lose upon the march not only the horses themselves, but the waggons and the meal or bread they may contain. Such losses frequently repeated will disconcert the most rational projects; therefore a prudent General, knowing this detail to be important in its consequences, will not think it beneath his attention.

In a war with Saxony, you must convey your subsistance upon the Elbe, and in Silesia, upon the Oder. In Prussia you have the sea; but in Bohemia and Moravia, you must have recourse to waggons.

It is sometimes necessary to establish three or four magazines on the same line, as we did in Bohemia in 1742. We had one at Pardubitz, one at Nienbourg, one at Podjebrod, and another at Brandeis, that we might be able to march in a line with the enemy, and follow him to Prague, in case he had thought proper to take that rout.

During our last campaign in Bohemia, Breslau supplied Schweidnitz, and that place furnished Jaromirtz, and from thence we conveyed subsistance to the army.

Besides waggons we had several iron ovens, the number of which not being found sufficient, was afterwards augmented. You should bake bread as often as you halt. On every expedition you should be provided with bread or biscuit for ten days. Biscuit is an excellent thing; but our soldiers do not like it in their soup, and are in general unacquainted with the use of it.

When you march in an enemy's country, your meal must be deposited in some neighbouring town, where you will place a garrison. In the campaign of 1745, our magazine of meal was first at Neustadt, then at Jaromirtz, and afterwards at Trautenau. If we had advanced farther, our next place of security would have been Pardubitz.

I have ordered a hand-mill to be provided for each company, which they will find to be extremely useful: the soldiers who work these mills are to carry the meal to the baker, and to receive bread in return. Thus you will not only spare your magazines; but will, by this means, be frequently enabled to continue in a camp, which otherwise you would have been obliged to quit: besides, fewer convoys will be required.

Having mentioned convoys, I shall here add what is necessary upon that subject. Your escort must be stronger, or weaker, in proportion to your apprehensions from the enemy. It is proper to post detachments of Infantry in the towns, through which the convoy is to pass, in order to relieve the escort during their halt. Sometimes it is requisite to cover your convoy by strong detachments; as was the case in Bohemia.

In a mountainous, woody, or inclosed country, your convoys must be escorted by Infantry, attended by a small number of Hussars, which are to give notice of those places where the enemy may form an ambuscade. I have even employed Infantry upon this duty in an open country, and have had reason to be satisfied.

I refer you to my printed Regulations, for what concerns the detail of escorts. A General of an army can never use too much precaution for the security of his convoys: one good method is to send detachments to a considerable distance in front, in order to secure the defiles, through which your convoy is to pass, and to push your escort a league from the line of march, towards the enemy. This will mask your convoy and secure it.

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