Book Review: A Generous and Merciful Enemy

Cover Art

Dear Readers,

Until the advent of the "New Military History," most historians focused on the campaigns, battles, and great leaders of history. In the past fifty years, military historians have begun to examine previously unexplored aspects of military history, including prisoners of war.  Historian Daniel Krebs has recently covered the role of prisoners of war for the western German auxiliary soldiers during the American War of Independence. This book, an expansion of his dissertation, is entitled:  A Generous and Merciful Enemy: Life for German Prisoners of War during the American Revolution. 

Confused who exactly these German soldiers in the American Revolution were? Click here for an explanation! 

In his book, Krebs discusses all portions of life for the German prisoners of war. He gives excellent coverage to all portions of prisoner experience. His writing style is easy to read and engaging, a spectacular feat for a non-native English writer. Krebs divides the book into three sections: German soldiers in British Service, Into Captivity, and Prisoners of War.

In practical terms, the first section discusses recruitment and social composition of the subsidy soldiers. The second section explains the rituals of surrender and the difference between capture and surrender. Finally, the third section discusses the experiences of the various groups of German prisoners in the American War of Independence, and their eventual return to their native states. 

Krebs indicates that his overall goal is to write- Geschichte aus den Perspektive des gemeiner Soldat, or, history from the from the bottom up. Krebs amply succeeds in this goal, through a use primary source accounts, extensive German secondary literature, and statistical data.

This is not a book covering the military actions of the western German soldiers in the Revolution. For coverage of the campaigns of the "Hessians," the best work is still Rodney Atwoods' The Hessians. However, Krebs provides historians and historical hobbyists with an essential reference work for understanding the life of the western Germans who traveled to fight in the American Revolution.

For any serious student of the western German auxiliaries, or even of the American Revolution as a whole, this book is a must read. You can buy it here.

Thanks for reading,


Alexander Burns

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Shameless Promotion: 12 Years a Slave

Promotional Poster

Dear Readers,

I think you know me well enough to realize that I don't usually use this blog to promote products. I don't advertise. But I think that you should all make an effort to go see the upcoming film 12 Years a Slave. I will justify this in a few points.

1. This is a film based on the reading of a primary source document. As opposed to other historical drama's, which are set in history, but based on fiction (such as Last of the Mohicans) 12 Years a Slave is based on the historical account of Solomon Northup. This is one of the best sources we have for antebellum slavery, and is often quoted in scholarly publications.

2. American Slavery was truly awful. When I first entered college, I had no idea how terrible American Slavery was, and I don't think I will ever fully comprehend it. These people lived, breathed, and had wants and desires just like us, and they were enslaved. Hessian soldiers saw the hypocrisy of the colonists who wanted to be free from Britain, but not address the issue of slavery. Americans should be confronted with this aspect of our heritage. 

3. Many modern American's think that slavery was some kind of joke. I recall speaking to one of my acquaintances growing up, trying to convince me that it would be cool to own a slave. I could not quite buy it, even at a young age. All that most people remember about the Civil War is that General Lee was good at fighting. 600,000 Americans died to free these enslaved  African Americans.  

4. Some individuals are claiming that Obamacare is the next worst thing to happen since American Slavery. This cannot be believed by anyone who has read anything historical, and those people need to watch this movie. 

Anyway, enough with the promo. Here is a link to the trailer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=vUQNjfhlREk#t=21

Thanks for reading,

Alex Burns 

"Popular" History: The reenactor, the wargamer, and the professional historian

A picture of the Regiment von Reidesel, taken shamelessly from their Facebook page

Dear Reader,


I have been thinking a lot about the role of the historian lately. It is my heart's desire to be a traditional professional historian/college professor. Specifically, my field of interest, (as you might have guessed, reading this blog) is military history of the Kabinettskriege period. (Unsure of what Kabiettskriege means? click here for an explanation.)

In the first post of this blog, I claimed that the warfare of the Kabinettskriege era should not be the exclusive domain of hobbyists and enthusiasts. This is my opinion, not because there is anything wrong with the hobbies associated with warfare, but because the past is a different country, and it requires research from professional historians to understand the past, and make that understanding available to the public.

The more I read, and the more I travel to historical events, the more apparent it is that there is a rift between professional historians, and historical impressionists, such as reenactors and wargamers. (For an interesting post about this, see the blog of historian Paul Lockhart.)

I mean, come on, who doesn't want to play with these guys?

Historians' complaints about Reenactors/Wargamers:

There are three common complaints I hear from historians about those in the historical hobby community.

The first complaint is that they are doing more harm then good by repeating historical myths to the public. This complaint is a legitimate concern. Despite an excellent monograph stating to the contrary, people still claim that "Baron" von Steuben was not a member of the nobility. While he wasn't a "baron" in the tradition sense (the German word is Freiherr), he was a member of the Prussian aristocracy, a sort of noble middle manager. History is incredibly complex, and the subtleties are often lost in wargaming and reenacting.

The second complaint is that reenactors (and wargamers) often claim to be historians, when they don't have the training or the intelligence to actually be historians. One definition of an historian, from the Princeton online dictionary is: "A person who is an authority about history, and studies and writes about it." In my experience, reenactors and wargamers usually meet two of the requirements: they study the past and are regarded by the general population as authorities on history.

Finally, and most worryingly in my opinion, reenactors and wargamers seemingly glorify war and violence. This is especially concerning when examining more modern reenactors, such as World War 2 reenactors. However, with that being said, the reenactors and wargamers I know realize that the past was awful. Dying on an eighteenth century battlefield would have been one of the most horrific things imaginable. With this in mind, what is the right response? Ban reenactments? wargames? non-accurate historical films?

Dr. Christopher Duffy lecturing at a wargame convention

A change in tactics is the answer:

I view myself as a professional historian: someone who makes the acquiring and distribution of historical knowledge into a career. Most reenactors or wargamers might say that they are historians, but they would never claim to be making a career out of being an historian. (Unless of course, they were also professional historians.)

I think that professional historians are looking at reenactors and wargamers entirely the wrong way. As opposed to viewing them as an annoyance, or as the perverters of the past, we should attempt to come alongside reenactors and other historical hobbyists. They are an incredible opportunity-they are fun, interesting, and their activities are exciting-everything we lack as historians.

The reenactment and wargaming community has a wide base: much wider than the readership of historical monographs. Reenactors and wargamers give professional historians a chance to reach the general public. If they are telling the public about non-factual events, it is our responsibility to get the right information into the hands of these historical enthusiasts.

Historical hobbyists are NOT our enemies-and they have the potential to become our allies. Dr. Christopher Duffy has been taking this approach for a long time, by coming to the Seven Years' War convention in South Bend, Indiana. If more historians followed his example, perhaps there would not be such a disconnect between professional historians and historical hobbyists.

The fact of the matter is, history is not interesting to most people. Declining numbers in history departments around the country tell us this. We can only appeal to the mind through writing. Reenactors are historians of the senses, the give us the sight, smell sound and touch of history. When combined with historical writing, this can help the general public to better understand the past. It also allows us to sell more books- never a bad thing.

Sorry, this one got a bit long. More on the actual Kabinettskriege period to come.

Thanks for reading,

Alex Burns

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Special Report: Feast of the Hunters' Moon

Dear Reader,

Yesterday I had the singular good fortune of participating in the 46th Annual Feast of the Hunter's Moon. I marched with unit of Brunswicks (Regiment von Reidesel/Zastrow) I met at Koh-Koh-Mah, (See that post here)

Sadly, I was unable to take any pictures, as I had my hands full with a British land pattern musket. I was able to find one video of us marching by! You can see myself and the other Brunswickers at 00:35 to 00:42 of the following link.

 http://www.jconline.com/article/20131005/NEWS/310050027/Lafayette-Harvest-Feast-Moon-History-Culture

Thanks for reading,

Alex Burns

Soldatenhandel oder Subsidientruppen?

Contemporary drawing of a Hessian by a British newspaper

Dear Reader,


In American society today, we tend to have a negative view of mercenaries. Many Americans who support the American military distrust or dislike the idea of mercenary soldiers. The United Nations Mercenary Convention prohibits the use of mercenaries, and has been signed by thirty two countries. Why do we have such a negative opinion about this line of work?

As you might have guessed, the answer can be found in the eighteenth century. Throughout the eighteenth century, western German states such as Hesse-Kassel and Brunswick rented out their armed forces. In the American Revolution, roughly 1/3rd of the total forces employed by the British were regiments of these German soldiers. Horace Walpole referred to these soldiers as Great Britain's Triarii: her last line of defense. In America, these soldiers have become known as, "Hessians," despite the fact that they came from six different German states, not just Hesse-Kassel.

Understandably, the Americans took a much less favorable view of German, "mercenary" involvement in their fight for independence. According to the American newspapers, the Germans were hideous monsters who fought for pay, and wanted to despoil the riches of Americans.  According to Hessian Lt. Jakob Piel, captured Germans attracted much attention from local Americans. Piel made a note of this in his diary:

•               "There was no gentlemen in the entire region who did not come riding to see the Hessians, about whom he had heard so many stories. But, in most faces, one could see that they regretted the effort. They had come to see strange animals, and to their disgust, we looked like human beings. It seemed comical, but it is true, that they had formed such an idea of Hessians, but in the beginning they would not believe our words, that we were really Hessians." 

Piel makes it clear that public opinion in America was firmly against the Hessians. Nineteenth century authors described this rental arrangement of soldiers in terms of a Soldatenhandel, or, "a trade in soldiers." According to nineteenth century German historians, the Hessian soldiers were sold into a form of slavery, and suffered greatly from this abuse.

Bennington by Don Troiani

 However, this is not true, strictly speaking. The western German states were connected to Britain via dynastic ties, as well as a recent alliance in the Seven Years' War. Most of the German soldiers who served in America despised the American rebels. They saw the relative prosperity of the average American, and claimed that poor Americans lived better than the nobles in Germany. These soldiers were subsidized allies. Modern German scholars like to use the word, Subsidientruppen. This is a false cognate for subsidy, the word actually means, "support troops." These soldiers fought as the allies of Great Britain, not as mercenaries, or slave soldiers.

Many of these soldiers had more sympathy for Native Americans than the British or Americans, showing a precursor to Karl May in the German imagination. Most of all, the Germans condemned African slavery. Some wrote with ideas about racial equality far ahead of their time. An example of this is Captain Andreas Wiederholdt, who claimed that, "if the blacks were taught...many would exceed whites in intelligence."

The Germans who served in the American War of Independence were far from the simple, greedy villains which have been portrayed in American popular culture. They were not mercenaries in a traditional sense, they were allies of the British, as a result of dynastic connections and a monetary subsidy. These soldiers impacted the American view of mercenaries, and even up to the time of the Civil War, calling someone a "Hessian" meant that they were only concerned about financial gain. These soldiers provide historians with an interesting view of Colonial America, which in many ways, is more progressive than that of revolutionary-era Americans.

Thanks for reading,

Alex Burns

Some modern day "Hessians" (actually from Brunswick) prepare for battle. How can you not love these guys?

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Report: Koh-Koh-Mah 2013

Ukrainian Dragoons? How strange to find them in Indiana.

Dear Reader,

Today I had the singular fortune to be able to attend the 2013 annual gathering at Koh-Koh-Mah. This reenactment is held to show off a Seven Years' War type military encampment and tactical display. In addition to the regular mix of French, British, civilian, and Native American impressions, Koh-Koh-Mah 2013 saw two units from the European Seven Years' War: Brunswicker Regiment Riedesel from Germany, and a mixed unit representing Russian Seven Years' War forces from Ukraine.

I'll write more in the next few weeks, but in short, Koh-Koh-Mah was a wonderful reenactment, and well worth the trip for any Kabinettskriege enthusiast. It was an added plus that the British, Brunswickers and their allies one the Saturday morning battle! Score one up for the good guys. Here are some of the pictures and a video I recorded at Koh-Koh-Mah.

Members of the 42nd, 77th, and 78th Highland regiments march past.

Highlanders and Rangers

Brunswickers

Here is a link to a video I recorded on my iphone from the morning battle on Saturday. You can see one of my classmates as the poor fellow, "dead," in the stream.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mt22dKG4cE

In addition to the battle, the Russian dragoon's provided an example of Russian cavalry training during the pre-Seven Years' War period.

Here, the cavalryman attempts to deflect, "bayonet" thrusts at the horse.

And yet more deflecting. The horse, a veteran of the Great Northern War, appears to be asleep. 

In training, the trooper eschews the standard tricorne hat for a more versatile ushanka.

However, I would be lying if I said that the high point of the day for me wasn't the Brunswickers. After all, I am writing a masters thesis on these guys. 

Getting ready for battle: gloves are important. 

Der Feldwebel, "Zuckerhosen" und seiner Soldaten.

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Book Review: The Seven Years' War in Europe

Dear Reader,

Today, we are going to take a look at the most recent monograph on the Seven Years' War: Franz A. J. Szabo's The Seven Years' War in Europe. This book covers the European theatre of the pivotal conflict in the Kabinettskriege era.

Sadly, for the reader, Szabo does not begin his story in the Kabinettskriege era. Instead, he takes us to 1945, and the last days in the Fuhrer bunker, where Adolf Hitler sat and stared at a portrait of King Frederick II of Prussia. Throughout the book, Szabo attempts to lay the crimes of German militarism, and Nazi Germany, squarely on the shoulders of Frederick II. Szabo pulls no punches in his attacks on Frederick, and assaults range from his abilities as a monarch, and his skill as a general all the way down to his proficiency as a flute composer and poet. Even his dental hygiene is addressed. The fact of the matter is, Frederick was an eighteenth century monarch, with plans to expand his realm. In this way, he was more like Louis XIV than Hitler. Laying the crimes of Nazi Germany at Frederick's feet show that Szabo has failed to understand the context of eighteenth century society and warfare. Frederick II of Prussia was not a nice man, historian Christopher Duffy best describes him as "spiky." This does not mean he was a Nazi forerunner.

However, despite these crippling biases, Szabo creates a readable narrative of the events of the Seven Years' War. He clearly favors the Austrians, and this book might be seen as an attempt at apologetics from the Austrian standpoint.  His narrative is primarily political and economic, he falls in trouble when discussing social and military affairs. An excellent example of this is his discussion of the Battle of Sandershausen in 1758, where he misunderstands other secondary sources, and fails to give an accurate depiction of the battle.

The book clearly outlines the causes of war, moves on to the war itself, and ends with the conclusion of peace in 1763. According to Szabo, the allies failure to dismantle Prussia was a tragedy for European civilization, and led Germany in an inexorable path to 1945. However, he fails to clearly show how the legend of Frederick the Great was used in order to cause the rise of twentieth century Germany, as that would show that a variety of factors, not merely Frederick, caused the rise of Nazi Germany.

Thanks for reading,

Alex Burns


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