( At the age of twelve, Dresden-born Maurice de Saxe (169...)
At the age of twelve, Dresden-born Maurice de Saxe (16961750) entered the Saxon army, beginning a long and successful military career that culminated in his promotion to Marshal of France, where he retained full command of the main army in Flanders directly under Louis XV. Again and again, de Saxe achieved enormous victories over his enemies, becoming one of the greatest military leaders of the eighteenth century. Combining his memoirs and general observations with brilliant military thinking, Reveries on the Art of War was written in a mere thirteen days. Introducing revolutionary approaches to battles and campaigning at a time of changing military tactics and leadership styles, it stands as a classic of early modern military theory. De Saxe's Reveries offered numerous procedural innovations for raising and training troops. His descriptions for establishing field camps were soon standard procedure. His ideas advanced weapon technology, including the invention of a gun specially designed for infantrymen and the acceptance of breech-loading muskets and cannons. De Saxe heightened existing battle formations by introducing a specific attack column that required less training, and he rediscovered a military practice lost since the ancient Romans the art of marching in cadence. He even delved into the minds and emotions of soldiers on the battlefield, obtaining a deeper understanding of their daily motivations. Written by a military officer of great acumen, Reveries on the Art of War has deeply impacted modern military tactics. Enduringly relevant, this landmark work belongs in the library of anyone interested in the history, tactics, and weapons of European warfare.
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( The 18th century was a wealth of knowledge, exploration...)
The 18th century was a wealth of knowledge, exploration and rapidly growing technology and expanding record-keeping made possible by advances in the printing press. In its determination to preserve the century of revolution, Gale initiated a revolution of its own: digitization of epic proportions to preserve these invaluable works in the largest archive of its kind. Now for the first time these high-quality digital copies of original 18th century manuscripts are available in print, making them highly accessible to libraries, undergraduate students, and independent scholars. Rich in titles on English life and social history, this collection spans the world as it was known to eighteenth-century historians and explorers. Titles include a wealth of travel accounts and diaries, histories of nations from throughout the world, and maps and charts of a world that was still being discovered. Students of the War of American Independence will find fascinating accounts from the British side of conflict. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition identification: ++++ British Library T097717 Translated by Sir William Fawcett. With an errata slip. London : printed for J. Nourse, 1757. 2,x,195,1p.,plates ; 4°
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Maurice de Saxe who is known as Marshal Saxe, was born in Dresden on Oct. 28, 1696, the first of the 354 acknowledged illegitimate children of Augustus II, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. His mother was the Countess Aurora von Konigsmark.
When he was twelve years old, Saxe entered the Saxon army. He fought in the battle of Malplaquet under the Duke of Marlborough and Eugene of Savoy. By the time of the Peace of Utrecht, he had participated in four campaigns in Flanders and Pomerania and had commanded a cavalry regiment. He served under Eugene in the war against the Turks, and in 1717 he took part in the capture of Belgrade. In 1720 Saxe went to Paris, becoming a camp marshal to the Duc d'Orléans. When his father died, he was offered the command of the Saxon army, but he preferred to remain in France. Saxe fought in the War of the Polish Succession (1733 - 1738) as a lieutenant general. In the War of the Austrian Succession (1740 - 1748), after leading his troops in a successful surprise attack on Prague in 1741, he restrained them from pillaging the city. In 1743, made marshal of France, Saxe was placed in command of an army assembling at Dunkirk for a proposed invasion of England. When France declared war on England in 1744, he took operational command of the main army in Flanders, led personally by Louis XV. Later Saxe took full control. In May 1745 Saxe led his army of about 70, 000 men to Tournai and invested the city, which was defended by 50, 000 English troops. On May 10 he moved 52, 000 troops to Fontenay to block an allied relief force, which he defeated. Then he took Tournai, Ghent, Bruges, Audenarde, Ostende, and Brussels. These battles, plus Rascoux in 1746 and the capture of Maastricht in 1748, firmly established Saxe's reputation. In gratitude for his services, Louis XV gave him life tenure of the château of Chambord. There Saxe wrote Mes rêveries (My Reveries), his reflections on the art of war. His descriptions of how to raise and train recruits and how to establish garrison and field camps soon became standard procedure. Saxe stimulated acceptance of breech-loading muskets and cannon and invented a gun capable of accompanying the infantry. He rediscovered and initiated the practice of marching in cadence, lost since the Romans. He also modified the normal linear battle formations and tactics of his day by using an embryonic form of attack column that required less training and became the usual assault method a hundred years later. He died at Chambord on November 30, 1750.
( At the age of twelve, Dresden-born Maurice de Saxe (169...)
( The 18th century was a wealth of knowledge, exploration...)
Quotations:
"Altogether, Cavalry operations are exceedingly difficult, knowledge of the country is absolutely necessary, and ability to comprehend the situation at a glance, and an audacious spirit, are everything. "
"It is not big armies that win battles, it is the good ones. "
"Every unit that is not supported is a defeated unit. "
"Everyone has seen people dancing all night. But take a man and make him dance for a quarter of an hour without music and see if he can bear it. "
"We (soldiers) are like cloaks, -one thinks of us only when it rains. "
"Hope encourages men to endure and attempt everything; in depriving them of it, or in making it too distant, you deprive them of their very soul. "
Like his father in "his fabulous strength, the immensity of his appetites, and his limitless lust, " Saxe also possessed a high intelligence. Maurice de Saxe was a fearless man in battles and he led a dissolute life of between campaigns.
On 12 March 1714 Maurice de Saxe was married Countess Johanna Viktoria Tugendreich von Loeben. The next year (21 January 1715), Johanna gave birth to a son, called August Adolf after his grandfather; the child only lived a few hours. On 21 March 1721 the couple divorced.
12 May 1670 - 1 February 1733
28 April 1662 - 16 February 1728
1699 - 1747
1748 - 1821
January 21, 1715 - January 21, 1715
