Frederick Great Case

As early as the conquests of the Roman Empire, the western way of war has been a driving force in the evolution of warfare across the globe. Even in today’s conflicts, all of the principles of western warfare can be credited for the development and tactics of the American Army, our allied and coalition counterparts, and our enemies. One of the periods of conflict that most clearly demonstrates these elements at work is Frederick the Great’s conquests during the mid-18th century. Though all of the principles of the western way of war are evident during the age of Frederick the Great the two that best characterize the development of warfare at the time are the predominance of the infantry and technological superiority.

Throughout the mid-18th century, the infantry soldier was the premier fighting force in the western army. With each campaign of The Seven Years War, European armies introduced new tactics which increasingly relied upon the speed and maneuver of the infantry, particularly the light infantry. A large, well-formed infantry could break the will of the enemy by intimidation; well-trained infantry could destroy the enemy with effective fires.

Entering the first battles of the Silesian Wars, the majority of Frederick’s armies consisted of infantry with cavalry in the supporting roles . Similar to other European armies, over two thirds of the Prussian armies were infantry. The tradition of the infantry at this time relied more heavily upon the heavy infantry more so than employment of skirmishers. Frederick believed that aggressive maneuver supported by violent mass of fires delivered by the infantry was the recipe for winning wars. At Mollwitz, Frederick relied heavily on his grenadier battalions to defeat and eventually route the more superior Austrian cavalry forces . To counter the Prussian front, the Austrians attempted to split the Prussians by enveloping them, destroying the cavalry flanks and stopping their advance. While this strategy saw early signs of success, it did not prevail. Though the maneuver left Frederick’s right flank temporarily exposed, the grenadiers, under the direction of Kurt von Schwerin, reconstituted effectively disrupting the Austrian’s efforts. Ultimately, maneuver coupled with the rapid volley fires from the infantry defeated the Austrian counterattack.

The mid-18th century saw a gradual shift away from strict reliance on the heavy infantry to a greater employment of light tactics. The French and the Austrians increasingly used skirmishers to counter the more disciplined and mechanical Prussian army. In 1744, Frederick fought in Mollwitz for a second time. Capable skirmishers under the direction of Austrian commander Marshal Otto von Traun caught Frederick’s armies off guard. Their “guerilla” tactics capitalized on the flexibility and agility of the light infantry causing Frederick to fight a close fight that his troops