THE WORLD'S ARMIES.
THE EFFICIENT GERMAN ORGANIZATION--THE LANDWEHR AND LANDSTURM--GENERAL
FORMS OF MILITARY ORGANIZATION--THE BRAVE FRENCH TROOPS--THE PICTURESQUE
ITALIAN SOLDIERY--THE PEACE AND WAR STRENGTH--AVAILABLE FIGHTING
MEN--FORTIFICATIONS.
No one scoffs at the military organization which Germany has developed
through the years--yes, almost centuries--of moulding and training, for
Germany has proved herself efficient, even if egotistical and
domineering. She built up what at the beginning of the war was
recognized as the most powerful, most efficient and well balanced
military organization the world has ever known. And it was not an army
in the sense that America has been taught to think of armies. It was a
trained nation for war--a nation armed--rather than a small, compact
fighting machine.
The strength of the German army on October 1, 1913, has been given in
fairly authentic reports as 790,788 men and 157,916 horses. Of the men
30,253 were officers and 2,483 sanitary officers. There were 104,377
non-commissioned officers and 641,811 common soldiers. The general
divisions were 515,216 infantry and 85,593 cavalry, 126,042 artillery,
and the rest in the general service, including the commissary and
quartermasters' departments, as these are known in America. The
estimated army on a war footing is more than four times this number and
approximates about 4,000,000, while the entire available force was given
at probably 8,000,000.
The infantry is designated as the main body of the army. The infantrymen
carry the "98" gun, already referred to, which is an improved Mauser,
and the non-commissioned officers and ambulance drivers carry revolvers.
There are several classes of infantrymen, a distinction being made
between the sharpshooters, and some of the others, variously known as
grenadiers, musketeers and fusileers.
The cavalry is armed with lance, saber and carbine. There are
distinctions in this branch of the service, too, among the cavalry units
being cuirassiers, hussars, uhlans and dragoons. The field artillery
carries batteries of cannon and light howitzer, and the drivers are
armed with a sword and revolver. The cannoneers have a short knife or
dagger as well as the revolver.
The communication troops are what parallel the engineers in the United
States army. They build the roads, put up the telegraph lines and
telephone service, construct bridges and make the travel possible.
STRENGTH OF GERMAN ARMY.
While the full strength of the German army is given at 4,000,000 on a
war footing, the total availables from the nation's reserve is double
that sum. These forces are gathered from three sources: the first line,
with an estimated strength of 1,750,000; the Landwehr 1,800,000, and the
Landsturm 4,500,000.
All who enter the service pass into the Landsturm after 19 years and
remain until they are 45. The cavalry service is three years with the
colors and four years in the army reserve. The horse artillery are
subject to the same service, while those in other branches serve two
years with the colors and five with the army reserve. The soldier passes
from the army reserve into what is described as the Landwehr, where
artillerymen and cavalrymen remain three years; those of other branches
of the military five years. The soldier passes from the first division
or class of Landwehr to the second, where he remains until his 39th
birthday.
The Landsturm of the first class includes those between the ages of 17
and 39, who have not reached the age of service, and those who have not
been called into active service because the ranks were full and there
was no room for them in the regular army. The second class includes
those who have passed through the other branches and whose ages are
between 39 and 45.
There is a wide difference between the military organizations of the
different countries. Whereas the United States army regiment
approximates 1500 men, the German army regiment contains almost 3000. In
the German army six battalions form an infantry regiment. Two regiments
form a brigade, two brigades a division, and two divisions an army
corps. There are 10 divisions composed of 3 brigades each, but of course
the whole organization was augmented when war broke out. Adding the
necessary auxiliary troops, viz: an artillery brigade of 12 batteries
composed of 6 guns each--or 4 in the case of the horse Batteries--a
regiment of cavalry of 4 squadrons, an engineer battalion, sanitary
troops, etc., a German 3-brigade division at war strength numbers about
21,000, and an army corps--to which are further attached 4 batteries of
howitzers and a battalion of rifles--about 43,000 combatants. The
cavalry division is composed of 3 brigades of 2 regiments each and 2 or
3 batteries of horse artillery, a total of 24 squadrons and 8 to 12
guns.
In a general way it may here be interpolated that the organization of an
army is given in the military manuals as follows:
INFANTRY.
A squad is 8 men under the command of a corporal.
A section is 16 men under the command of a sergeant.
A platoon is from 50 to 75 men under a lieutenant.
A company is 3 platoons, 200 to 250 men, under a captain.
A battalion is 4 or more companies under a major.
A regiment is 3 or more battalions under a colonel, or a
lieutenant-colonel.
A brigade is 2 or 3 regiments under a brigadier-general.
A division is 2 or more brigades under a major-general.
An army corps is 2 or more divisions, supplemented by cavalry,
artillery, engineers, etc., under a major-general or lieutenant-general.
CAVALRY.
A section is 8 men under a corporal.
A platoon is 36 to 50 men under a lieutenant, or junior captain.
A troop is 3 to 4 platoons, 125 to 150 men, under a captain.
A squadron is 3 troops under a senior captain, or a major.
A regiment is 4 to 6 squadrons under a colonel.
A brigade is 3 regiments under a brigadier-general.
A division is 2 or 3 brigades under a major-general.
ARTILLERY.
A battery is 130 to 180 men, with 4 to 8 guns, under a captain.
A group or battalion is 3 or 4 batteries under a major.
A regiment is 3 or 4 groups (battalions) under a colonel.
When regiments are combined into brigades, brigades into divisions, and
divisions into army corps, cavalry, artillery, and certain other
auxiliary troops, such as engineers, signal corps, aeroplane corps,
etc., are joined with them in such proportions as has been found
necessary. Every unit, from the company up, has its own supply and
ammunition wagons, field hospitals, etc.
THE UNITED STATES ARMY.
Prior to 1915 the regular United States army was a mere police body as
compared with the armed forces of other countries. It was concededly
highly efficient, but for the purpose of entering into conflict with
such forces as those presented by Germany, France and some of the other
European countries it was admittedly inadequate.
The entire force consisted of 5,004 officers and 92,658 men. The forces
were divided into 15 regiments of cavalry and 765 officers and 14,148
men; 6 regiments of field artillery, with 252 officers and 5,513 men;
the coast artillery with 715 officers and 19,019 men, and 30 regiments
of infantry, with 1,530 officers and 35,008 men. The Philippine scouts
had 182 officers and 5,733 men; the Military Academy 7 officers and
6,266 men and the Porto Rico regiment of infantry with 32 officers and
591 men.
The signal corps had 106 officers and 1,472 men, and the engineer corps
237 officers and 1,942 men. There were also about 6000 recruits in the
various branches of the service under training.
The marine corps, under the direction of the Secretary of the Navy, had
346 officers and 9,921 enlisted men.
THE REGULAR ARMY.
The regular army was supplemented by the National Guards of the various
States which had 7,578 regiments with 9,103 commissioned officers and
123,105 enlisted men, or a total organization of 132,208. The "reserve
militia," which was in fact little more than a name, consisted of the
availables for service between the ages of 18 and 45 years, and
estimated on the basis of population, numbered about 20,000,000.
Before there was any real indication that the country would become
actively involved in the world war steps were taken to reorganize and
develop an efficient army, and under the Act which became effective on
July 1, 1916, and which provides for the establishment of basic units
for the army, the War Department orders and regulations fixed the basis
of the organization as follows:
Sixty-four infantry regiments, 25 cavalry regiments, 21 regiments of
artillery, a coast army corps, the brigade division, army corps, and
army headquarters, with their detachments and troops. A general staff
corps, adjutant general's department, inspector general department,
judge advocate general department, quartermaster corps, medical
department, corps of engineers, and ordnance department, signal corps,
officers of the bureau of insular affairs, militia bureau and detached
officers.
The law specifies that the total armed force shall include the regular
army, volunteer army, officers' reserve corps, enlisted reserve corps,
and the National Guard of the various States, subject to call for duty
within the borders of the United States.
The reorganization of the army was being effected at the time Uncle Sam
was called to fight for humanity, and only an approximation of the
condition can be made, for about two-thirds of the National Guard had
been taken into the regular service incident to the trouble with Mexico,
when the Guardsmen were summoned to the border to protect the country,
and recruiting was proceeding in all branches of the service to bring
all the regiments up to a war footing.
UNITS ON WAR FOOTING.
The various units, on a war footing, are: Infantry regiment, 1,800 men;
cavalry regiment, 1,250 men; field artillery, light regiment, 1,150;
field artillery, horse regiment, 1,150; field artillery, heavy regiment,
1,240; field artillery, mountain regiment, 1,100; engineers, pioneer
battalion, 490; engineers, pioneer battalion, mounted, 270; engineers,
pontoon battalion, 500; signal troops, field battalion, 160; signal
troops, field (cavalry) battalion, 170; signal troops, aero squadron, 90
men. Trains--infantry division: ammunition, 260; supply, 190; sanitary,
530; engineer, 10. Cavalry: ammunition, 60; supply, 220; sanitary, 300.
A division of infantry consists of 3 brigades of infantry, 1 cavalry
regiment, 1 artillery brigade, 1 regiment of engineers, 1 field signal
battalion, 1 aero squad, 1 ammunition train, 1 supply train, 1
engineer's train and 1 sanitary train, and comprises approximately
22,000 men and 7,500 horses and mules, and 900 vehicles, including guns.
The latter figures are, however, changed by reason of the introduction
of motor trucks, and automobiles, there being a consequent reduction in
the number of horses and mules and a slight increase in the number of
men.
A cavalry division consists of 3 cavalry brigades, 1 regiment of field
artillery, 1 battalion of mounted engineers, 1 field signal battery,
mounted; 1 aero squadron, 1 ammunition, 1 supply, 1 engineer and 1
sanitary train.
A brigade, in the main, consists of three regiments, the infantry having
5,500 men, cavalry brigade 2,500 and artillery brigade 2,500 men.
Under the reorganization plan the United States army would have about
293,000 in the service, but with the advent of the country's entrance
into the conflict of world powers Congress passed the Conscription bill
authorizing the drafting, for military purposes, all young men between
the ages of 21 and 31 in the country.
MILLIONS NOT IN THE COUNTRY'S SERVICE.
The registration of those subject to call under this bill showed that
there were about 11,000,000 men in the country, not in the army, navy or
supporting branches, available. The bill designed to produce, within a
year from the time of the signing of the law by President Wilson, of a
national army of more than 1,000,000 trained and equipped men, backed by
a reserve of men and supplies and by an additional 500,000 under
training.
Meantime the State authorities were authorized to fill up the National
Guard units and regiments to full war strength, so that with the regular
army there would be a total of 622,954--293,000 regular and 329,954
guardsmen, to be taken over by the War Department. This was the physical
state of the army when the country found it necessary to ship men into
France to assist the Allies in their fight against the German and
Austrian forces, and General Pershing was sent to command the American
troops.
The United States army and all of the military branches are armed with
the Springfield magazine rifle, which holds five cartridges. It shoots a
pointed bullet of tin and lead and is of .30 inch caliber. The Colt
automatic pistol is used as the service weapon by officers and those
requiring this sort of arm. It is a .45 caliber pistol with a magazine
holding seven cartridges, which can be fired successively by simply
holding the trigger back.
THE FRENCH ARMY.
Military spirit in France has had an almost incredible resurrection
within the past few years. The increase in the standing army of Germany
was watched closely, and as new units were added to the standing army of
the latter country France retaliated by lengthening the term of military
service from two to three years. This accomplished practically the same
purpose without causing a ripple of excitement, and as France determined
to recover her lost provinces of Alsace and Lorraine her fight is to the
limit of her endurance.
There were, at the outbreak of war, 869,403 men in the National Army of
France, which was composed of the Metropolitan army, having a total of
753,403 men, of the Colonial army, numbering 116,000 men. These figures
do not include the personnel of the Gendarmerie, or military police,
which numbered 25,000 men.
Military service is compulsory in France and all males between the ages
of 20 and 48 years must serve three years in the army, the only cause
for exemption being physical disability. Following the active service
the soldier passes to the reserve for 11 years, after which he is seven
years in the Territorial army and seven years in the Territorial
reserve. The training in the active reserve consists of two periods of
training and maneuvers which last for four weeks each, in the
Territorial army one period of two weeks, and in the Territorial
reserve, no fixed period. There are more than 2,000 reservists per
battalion produced by the length of the reserve service, and when the
troops are mobilized the active units can be easily maintained at full
war strength. The number available in this way gives enough men for each
battalion and regiment in the field with enough men left over for
routine home guard work.
FRENCH MILITARY DIVISIONS.
There are two infantry regiments, composed of from six to eight
battalions, to the brigade, in the French army, with two brigades to a
division and two divisions to an army corps. A field artillery regiment,
consisting of nine batteries of four guns each, is attached to each
division. With nine field and three howitzer batteries and six
reinforcing batteries added under mobilization, each corps on a war
footing has 144 guns. There is also added to every army corps in the
field one cavalry brigade of two regiments, one cavalry battalion,
engineer companies and sanitary and service troops. The cavalry
divisions are composed of three brigades of two regiments each--together
with three batteries of horse artillery. There is in an army corps, when
mobilized, approximately 33,000 combatants, and in a cavalry division
4,700 men. An aeronautical corps in the French army consists of 334
aeroplanes and 14 dirigibles.
In the Reserve army at the time of mobilization there were two divisions
in each region, corresponding to those in the active army. When they
were mobilized the 36 reserve divisions contained virtually the same
organization and strength as the troops of the line. There were a large
number of troops for garrisoning the various fortresses when the
regional regiments, engineers and foot artillery were utilized for this
work.
The Territorial army also consists of 36 divisions and garrison troops.
When the remaining men of the Reserve and Territorial armies were
summoned to the depots they were available to maintain the field army at
full strength.
In the French field army there were 20 army corps, a brigade consisting
of 14 battalions, and 10 divisions of cavalry, when war was declared.
When this was raised to its full war strength the active army numbered
1,009,000 men, the reserves and depots 1,600,000, the Territorial army
818,000, and the Territorial Reserve 451,000, a grand total of 3,878,000
soldiers. At this critical time, therefore, France had at her command
about 5,000,000 trained men.
Lebel magazine rifles of .315 inches caliber are used by the infantry,
while the cavalry uses the Lebel carbine. The field piece is a
rapid-fire gun of 7.5 centimeters, or 2.95 inches, of the model of 1907,
and is provided with a shield for the protection of the gunners. A
howitzer of 12 or 15.5 centimeters is the type used by the French army.
The French artillery is generally admitted to be in a class by itself,
and the commissariat is excelled by none other. The infantry is most
deceptive in appearance, but the ability of the French to march and
attack has never been surpassed.
THE RUSSIAN ARMY.
There are 1,284,000 men in the Russian army in times of peace, while the
war strength is 5,962,306. The young man of Russia is compelled to enter
the army at the age of 20 years, the military service being compulsory
and universal, terminating at the age of 43 years. The period of service
in the active army is three years in the case of the infantry and
artillery, and four years in other branches of the service. The soldier
then passes to the reserve, where he serves for 14 or 15 years, during
which period he receives two trainings of six weeks each. After 18 years
in the active and reserve armies he is transferred to the Territorial
army for five years. There also exists a modified system of volunteers
for one year who supply the bulk of officers required for the reserve
upon mobilization.
The Russian army is divided into three forces, the army, of the
European Russia, the army of the Caucasus and the Asiatic army. There
are 1,000 men in a Russian battalion, 4 battalions constituting a
regiment, 2 regiments a brigade and 2 brigades a division.
RUSSIAN FIELD BATTERIES.
The field batteries are composed of 8 guns, the horse batteries of 6.
The ordinary army corps is made up of 2 divisions, a howitzer division
and one battalion of sappers, and has a fighting strength of
approximately 32,000 men. The rifle brigades form separate organizations
of 8 battalions with 3 batteries attached. The Cossacks, who hold their
lands by military tenure, are liable to service for life, and provide
their own equipment and horses. At 19 their training begins; at 21 they
enter the active regiment of their district; at 25 they go into what is
termed the "second category" regiment, and at 29 the "third category"
regiment, followed by 5 years in the reserve. After 25 years of age,
their training is 3 weeks yearly. In European Russia the field army
consists of the Imperial Guard and Grenadier Corps, 27 line army corps
and 20 cavalry divisions; in the Caucasus of 3 army corps and 4 cavalry
divisions. The Asiatic army is composed of Russians with a few Turkoman
irregular horse, and is mainly stationed in East Siberia. Since the
Russian-Japanese war these forces have been increased and reorganized
into a strong army which, at the outbreak, was capable of mobilizing,
together with auxiliary troops, more than 200,000 men.
The small-arm of the infantry is the "3-line" rifle of the 1901 model.
It has a magazine holding five cartridges, a caliber of .299 inches, a
muzzle velocity of 2,035 foot seconds, and is sighted to 3,000 yards.
The arm of the cavalry and Cossacks has a barrel 2-3/4 inches shorter,
but uses the same ammunition, and is provided with a bayonet which no
other mounted troops use. The field piece is a Krupp rapid-fire,
shielded gun, of the 1902 model, with a muzzle velocity of 1,950 foot
seconds, the shell weighing 13-1/2 pounds.
AUSTRIA-HUNGARIAN ARMY.
There are 472,716 men in the army of Austria-Hungary during times of
peace, with a war strength of 1,360,000 soldiers. Military service is
universal and compulsory, beginning at the age of 19 years, and ending
at the age of 43 years. The term of service in the common or active arm
of the service is for two years in the case of the infantry and three
years in the cavalry and horse artillery.
There is a Landwehr, or first reserve, in which the term of service is
10 years in the infantry, and seven for the cavalry or horse artillery,
which service is followed by that in the Landsturm, or second reserve,
in which the soldier serves until his forty-second birthday. Hungary
possesses a separate and distinct Landwehr and Landsturm, which
constitute the Hungarian National army. There is also a supplementary
reserve intended to maintain the units of the common army at full
strength.
The Empire is divided into 16 army corps districts, each presumed to
furnish a complete army corps of two divisions to the active army. Every
infantry division is composed of two brigades of 8 battalions each, 1
artillery brigade and 10 batteries of six guns, a regiment of cavalry,
and a rifle battalion. The army corps also contains a regiment of field
artillery or howitzers, a pioneer battalion and a pontoon company, and
numbers about 34,000 combatants.
There are 6 permanent cavalry divisions, each made up of 2 brigades--24
squadrons, 3 batteries of horse artillery and a machine-gun detachment
numbering about 4,000 men. It is estimated that the war strength is,
active army, 1,360,000; Austrian Landwehr, 240,000; Hungarian Landwehr,
220,000; Landsturm, 2,000,000 and reserve of 500,000, or a grand total
of 4,300,000.
The infantry carries the Mannlicher magazine rifle, .315-caliber and a
cavalry carbine of the same make. The field gun is a Krupp which uses a
14-1/2-pound shrapnel and the field howitzer is a 10.5 centimeter piece
which fires a 30-pound shell. The Hungarian cavalry is accounted fine,
but the main force is not regarded as efficient as the German or French.
THE ITALIAN ARMY.
The army of Italy on a peace footing is only about 250,860 men,
exclusive of the troops in Africa, but the country is able to mobilize a
large force, and some of its branches of service are the most efficient
in the world. Service is compulsory and general, beginning at the age of
20 years. After two years in the standing army there are six years in
the reserve, four years in what is known as the mobile militia and seven
years in the territorial militia.
There is compulsory training in both the reserve and the territorial
militia, ranging from two weeks to six weeks. In organization each
division of the army consists of 2 brigades composed of 2 regiments,
comprising 3 battalions, together with a regiment of field artillery,
with 5 batteries. The division has a war strength of 14,156 officers and
men and 30 guns. The cavalry division comprises 2 brigades of 4
regiments and 2 horse batteries. Each army corps has two divisions in
which are included a regiment of field artillery, 3 heavy batteries, a
regiment of cavalry and one of light infantry.
There is available for army service the military police, known as the
Carabinieri, besides the aeronautical corps, with half a dozen or more
companies, 30 aeroplanes and a dozen airships. There are also the
frontier troops organized for defense of the mountains, and which troops
waged heroic and picturesque warfare in the mountain passes. There are
in these troops 8 regiments of Alpine infantry, comprising 26
battalions, and 2 regiments of 36 mountain batteries.
The army strength approximates 2,600,000, made up of 700,000 active
army, 400,000 mobile militia, which is the second line of defense, and
the territorial militia, about 1,500,000. The infantry is armed with a
magazine rifle of 6.5 millimeters caliber known as the Mannlicher
Carcano, but up to the beginning of the war the territorials used a
different type.
GREAT BRITAIN'S ARMY.
The military establishment of Great Britain consists of the Regular army
and the Territorial army, aside from the Indian army and the local
forces in the various colonies. These armies are recruited from youth
between the ages of 18 and 25 years, who are recruited by voluntary
enlistment. The enlistment period is for 12 years, although it can be
prolonged under certain circumstances to 21 years.
Three to nine years is the period with the colors, and the remainder of
the enlistment is with the Army Reserve. Many men elect to serve seven
years with the colors and five with the reserve. Recruits are subjected
to five months' training, and each year are called out for six weeks,
supplemented by six days' musketry practice for the infantry.
The Home army consists of 9,740 officers and 172,610 men, the Army
Reserve of 147,000 and the Special Reserve of 80,120, and the
Territorial army of 313,485, a total of 724,955 men. Raised to war
strength, these forces would number 29,330 officers, 772,000 men and
2,072 guns, the batteries being of six guns, except the heavy batteries
and those of the Territorial army, which have four. During the Boer War
England put more than 1,000,000 men in the field.
The United Kingdom is divided into seven "commands," and the London
district, all of which include from two to three territorial divisions,
and one to four territorial cavalry brigades, in addition to detachments
of varying size from the Regular army. Two nearly full divisions are
stationed at Aldershot and in Ireland, one complete division in the
Southern and one in the Eastern "command." There are also six aeroplane
squadrons, each with 18 aeroplanes.
The Lee-Enfield rifle, caliber .303, is the arm of the infantry and
cavalry. In the Regular army the field artillery has an 18-pounder
Armstrong gun, the horse artillery a 13-pounder, the field howitzers are
40-pounders, and the heavy batteries are armed with 60-pounders.
The Territorial army was organized along the lines of the American
militia, and could scarcely be expected to distinguish itself when
pitted against the German regulars.
BELGIAN ARMY PEACE FOOTING.
The Belgian army peace footing is 3,542 officers and 44,061 men, with a
war strength estimated at from 300,000 to 350,000. The infantry is armed
with the Mauser rifle, the artillery with a shielded Krupp quick-fire
piece of 7.5-centimeter caliber.
In 1913 the Netherlands had in its standing army 1,543 officers and
21,412 men and 152 guns. On a war footing it could probably be raised to
270,000 men. The small arm is the Mannlicher rifle and carbine, the
field gun is the same as that of Belgium.
Servia has 10 divisions, divided into 4 army corps. The peace footing is
160,000, and the war strength about 380,000. The rifle is the Mauser
model of 1899, and the field piece a quick-firing gun of the French
Schneider-Canet system.
Bulgaria has a peace army of about 3,900 officers and 56,000 men. It is
armed with the Mannlicher magazine rifle, the Mannlicher carbine, the
Schneider quick-fire gun and a light Krupp for the mountain batteries.
On a war footing the country musters 4 army corps and 550,000 men.
Roumania's army is about 5,460 officers and 98,000 men. On a war footing
it has 5 army corps and 580,000 men. The infantry uses the Mannlicher
magazine rifle and the cavalry the Mannlicher carbine. The field and
horse batteries are armed with the Krupp quick-fire gun of the model of
1903.
In 1912 Greece had a peace establishment of 1,952 officers and 23,268
men, but the recent war has caused her to augment them to 3 army corps,
and her war footing is not far from 250,000 men. The infantry is armed
with the Mannlicher-Schonauer rifle of the 1903 model and the field
artillery with Schneider-Canet quick-fire guns.
Japan has a peace strength of 250,000 men, with a reserve of 1,250,000,
and a total war strength of 1,500,000 men, out of a total available
force capable of fighting of approximately 8,239,372 men.
SPAIN'S STANDING ARMY.
The standing army of Spain is 132,000 men. The reserves are estimated at
1,050,000, and the total war strength at 1,182,000. The total available
unorganized force is 2,889,197 men.
The army of Denmark on a peace footing is 13,725 men, with a reserve of
71,609. The total war strength is a little more than 85,000 men, and the
total fighting population is approximately 470,000.
Sweden has a peace strength in excess of 75,000 men, and a reserve of
more than 500,000, giving an estimated war strength of 600,000 men. The
total available unorganized force is about 500,000.
Norway has a standing army a little larger than that of Denmark--about
18,000 men--with 90,000 reserves, giving a total war strength of about
110,000 men. The unorganized force available is about 360,000 men.
Portugal has a peace strength of 30,000 men, with a reserve of 225,000,
making a total war strength of more than one-quarter of a million. The
unorganized fighting material is more than 800,000.
Turkey, which reorganized its forces within recent years, has a peace
strength of 210,000 men, about 800,000 reserves, giving a war strength
of over a million, and has a total available unorganized force to call
upon of more than 3,000,000.
The little army of Montenegro is a permanent body of about 35,000 men.
There are no trained reserve forces, but there is an available fighting
population of 68,000, outside of the army, to call upon.
CHINA'S MILITARY RESOURCES.
Recent events throw some doubt on the figures regarding China's military
resources, but the last available figures credited the great Republic of
the East with a force of 400,000 men, augmented by 300,000 reserves.
With this total war strength of 700,000 soldiers, estimates of the
available unorganized fighting material reaches the stupendous figure of
63,000,000.
Brazil has a peace strength of 33,000, with more than 500,000 reserves,
with more than 4,000,000 unorganized available material.
As relating to the armed strength of the nations abroad, some reference
to the system of fortifications which protect the various countries is
interesting at this point. Following years--in fact, centuries--of
study, Central Europe has been strongly fortified with a system of
embattlements which have reached the limits of human ingenuity.
In the east of France, along the frontier where France, Switzerland and
Germany meet, there are the first-class fortresses of Belfort, Epinal,
Toul and Verdun in the first line, reinforced by Besancon, Dijon,
Langres, Rheims, La Fere and Maubeuge in the second line, with smaller
fortifications close to the German frontier at Remirement, Luneville,
Nancy and other points. Along the Italian frontier the fortresses are
situated at Grenoble, Briancon and Nice, with Lyons in the rear. There
are strong forts at all naval harbors, the defense of Paris consisting
of 97 bastions, 17 old forts and 38 forts of an advanced type, the
whole forming entrenched camps at Versailles and St. Denis.
On that line of the German frontier which faces France there are the
fortresses of Neu-Breisach, Strassburg, Metz and Diedenhofen, in the
first line, with Rastatt, Bitsch and Saarlouis in the second line, and
Germershein in the rear. Situated opposite Luxemburg is Mainz, with
Coblentz and Cologne opposite Belgium and Wesel opposite Holland.
All along the northern coast, from Wilhelmshafen to Memmel, the German
coast is strongly fortified. Memmel is the pivot point of the northern
and eastern frontier, the latter frontier being protected by Konigsberg
and Allenstein, of the first line, and Danzig, Dirschau, Graudenz, Thorn
and the Vistula Passages, of the second line. South of this point are
Posen, Glogau and Breslau, which face Poland, while beginning at Neisse
the strong defense against Austria consists of fortifications at Glatz,
Ingolstadt and Ulm, the approaches to Berlin being guarded by Magdeburg,
Spandau and Kustrin.
POLISH QUADRILATERAL.
Along the line of the Russian frontier which guard that country from
attacks by the Germans are the fortresses of Libau, on the Baltic;
Kovna, Ossovets and Ust-Dvinsk, in the Vilna district, and in Poland
there are situated Novo-Georgievsk, Warsaw and Ivangorod, on the
Vistula, and Brest-Litovsk, on the Bug--four strongholds known as the
Polish Quadrilateral. Guarding Petrograd are the smaller fortifications
of Kronstadt and Viborg, with Sweaborg midway down the Gulf of Finland
near Helsingfors. Sebastopol and Kertch, in the Crimea, and Otchokov,
near Odessa, are the fortifications which guard the Black Sea.
Along the Austrian frontier are the strong embattlements of Cracow and
Przemysl, on the road to Lemberg in Galicia. These forts face Poland. In
Hungary there are Gyula-Fehervar and Arad, on the Maros River, and which
guard the approach from the angle of Roumania. On her frontier facing
Servia there are Alt-Orsova and Peterwardein, on the Danube, and
Sarajevo, in Bosnia, with Temesvar and Komorn blocking the approach to
Vienna from the southeast. On the Adriatic are Cattaro, on the edge of
Montenegro, and the naval arsenals of Pola and Trieste. All the Alpine
passes of the Tyrol are fortified, but neither Vienna nor Budapest has
any defenses.
The fortifications of Italy, aside from those on her coasts, extend in a
line from Venice, through Verona, Mantua and Piacenza to Alessandria and
Casale, which face the French frontier.