Austria. On 5 May 1866, he wrote to Prince Frederick
Charles:
Does not expect the Austrian main attack to
be aimed at Silesia, which would not strike the
center of the monarchy and would give Prussia
the time to bring up the 1st Army to help the
2nd, either north of the Giant Mountains or, by
a bolder and more effectual advance, south of
them. More probable an advance of all the avail-
able Austrian forces against the 1st Army; but
not the whole Austrian army would be available;
50,000 men would have to watch the 2nd Army.
At the beginning of June, [General Ludwig Ritter
von] Benedek could not have more than 130,000
men, the strength of our 1st Army, which on
the fourth day will be further strengthened....
Against the Saxons VII [Corps] and VIII [Corps]
are an ample force, whether they stand at Zeitz or
Düben. The concentration of our forces, which
at the beginning are separated in consequence of
our geographical position, the direction of our
railways and by considerations of defense, can be
obtained in a few marches if they move forwards;
if they remain where they are it will be more
difficult.The war quickly ended when the Prussians won a
stunning victory at Königgrätz (also known as Sadowa,
3 July 1866), ending the war after less than two months
of fighting. In recognition of his service, Moltke was
granted a large award (approximately $50,000), which
he used to purchase an estate at Kreisau in the prov-
ince of Silesia (now in Poland). In 1867, he wrote the
official government report on the conflict, Der Feldzug
von 1866 in Deutschland (The Campaign of 1866 in Ger-
many, English translation 1872). Moltke was praised for
the innovations he brought to the Prussian military, in-
cluding the use of railways to shuttle troops and matériel
into battle and new technology such as the breech-load-
ing gun. With the support of Otto von Bismarck and
Albrecht von Roon, the minister of war from 1859, he
brought about a new, effective Prussian army.
Although the Seven Weeks’ War had demonstrated
Moltke’s strategic skill, it was not until the Franco-Prus-
sian war of 1870 that his innovations and theories were
fully implemented. Bismarck saw France and its leader,
Emperor Napoleon III, as Prussia’s rival. In a series of re-
ports, Moltke pointed out to Bismarck how weak France
was militarily and how it could be quickly defeated. In
July 1870, Bismarck tricked France into declaring war
on Prussia, whose troops were already mobilized and in
position. Within a few weeks, Moltke’s plan succeeded,
as the Prussians outmaneuvered the French at Sedan on
1 September 1870. Historian George Bruce writes:The French, 20,000 strong, with 564 guns, under
Marshal de macmahon, who was wounded
early in the action, were driven from all of their
positions by the 200,000 Germans, with 774
guns, under General von Moltke, and compelled
to retire into Sedan where they laid down their
arms. The Emperor Napoleon III was among the
prisoners, and one of the results of the surrender
was his dethronement and the proclamation of
a republic in Paris. The battle is remarkable for
the desperate charge of the Chasseurs d’Afrique
under General Margeuritte. The brigade was cut
to pieces and the general killed. The Germans
lost in the action 460 officers and 8,500 men;
the French 3,000 killed, 14,000 wounded and
21,000 prisoners, while 83,000 subsequently sur-
rendered in Sedan. The Germans took 419 guns,
139 fortress guns and 66,000 rifles, marched on
Paris.Another key Prussian victory came at the fortress of
Metz, which fell on 26 October 1870 following a three-
month siege. The French defeat led to the end of the
Second Empire, and at Versailles on 18 January 1871,
the German Empire, a consolidation of the Prussia, its
client North German states, and some captured French
territory, was declared. Kaiser Wilhelm I made Moltke a
count following the declaration, and Moltke continued
his service on the General Staff, serving as its chief from
1871 until his retirement in 1888.
As chief of the General Staff, Moltke saw Prussia/
Germany as a nation threatened by France in the west and
Russia in the east, and he formed plans for what he felt
was an inevitable conflict. On his retirement in 1888, he
was named chair of the committee for national defense,
but by then his patron Wilhelm I was dead, and Wilhelm
II did not share his father’s faith in Moltke and Bismarck.
Moltke served as a member of the German Reichstag, or moltke, helmuth kARl beRnARD, count von moltke