The Operational Perspective: American Observations of the Franco-Prussian War

This presentation examines the experiences of American military and political figures who were present in France for the Prussian victory in 1870-71 over Napoleon III, as well as the observations of newspaper editors and columnists in the United States opining on military events overseas. Some of these observers were veterans of the American Civil War. Their commentary offers a window into how warfare in Europe, including the innovations of Helmuth von Moltke and the Prussian army, compared with American understandings of large-scale military operations.

Zachery A. Fry is an associate professor of military history at the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the author of A Republic in the Ranks: Loyalty and Dissent in the Army of the Potomac (University of North Carolina Press, 2020). He taught history previously at the U.S. Military Academy West Point. Fry’s research focuses on politics in Civil War armies, and his work has received the Coffman Prize from the Society for Military History, the Hay-Nicolay Prize from the Abraham Lincoln Institute / Abraham Lincoln Association, and the Hubbell Prize from Civil War History.

The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.