1-204850 Barry, Quintin THE ROAD TO KONIGGRATZ: Helmuth von Moltke and the Austro-Prussian War 1866 Before the War of 1866 the name of Helmuth von Moltke was scarcely known outside the Prussian army. His appointment as Chief of the General Staff was in many ways surprising, and he certainly did not himself expect it. He was thus put at the head of a military institution that was already to some extent superior to its counterparts elsewhere; he was to turn it into a formidable machine that became, in his hands, very nearly invincible. This was due to number of factors which coincided with his appointment. Among these were the many advances in military technology and logistics on the one hand, and on the other the emergence of Otto Von Bismarck as Minister-President of Prussia, with whom Moltke had a crucial, if occasionally uneasy, relationship.

This book follows Moltke's part in the course of the campaign at the end of which his name had become a household word. It traces his rise to the position of Chief of the General Staff, against the background of the political situation of Prussia in the middle of the 19th Century, and the way in which he developed the functions of the General Staff. Moltke's contribution to the allied campaign of Prussia and Austria against Denmark in 1864 was an important part of his own development, before the inevitable war between the successful allies in 1866.

As the book shows, the triumphant success of his strategy in Bohemia was supplemented by the boldness of his campaign in western Germany, in which a small Prussian army overcame a huge numerical disadvantage. By the end of the Seven Weeks' War, Moltke had made Prussia the strongest military power in Europe. The Campaign of 1866 in Bohemia is covered in great detail, including the most extensive coverage of the Battle of Koniggratz yet published in English.

The author has made full use of an extensive number of German language sources. His detailed text is accompanied by a number of black and white illustrations (a significant number of which are previously unpublished) and battle maps. Orders of battle are also provided. 1 vol, 522 pgs 2014 UK, HELION AND COMPANY
NEW-softcover ......$40.00 with a discount of 15%

1-23440 Craig, Gordon A. BATTLE OF KONIGGRATZ, THE:1866 Prussia's victory over Austria, b/w maps, chapternotes, biblio, index. 1 vol, 224 pgs 2003 PHILADELPHIA
NEW-pb ......$19.00

1-210130 Embree, Michael TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE: The Campaign in West and South Germany, June-July 1866 In the spring of 1866, the so-called German Confederation, then a loose organization of autonomous states, was thrown into crisis by a rift between the two largest members, the Austrian Empire, and The Kingdom of Prussia. Since the founding of the Confederation in 1815, it had been tacitly accepted that Austria was the overseeing authority. Now, however, a more belligerent Prussia sought a leading role. Under a new and ambitious Chancellor, Prince Otto von Bismarck, Prussia would no longer accept a secondary role.

This vital question of leadership naturally affected all member states, and none could ignore it. Matters, however, had moved beyond discussion, and, in June, hostilities began, with the Prussian invasion of the Kingdom of Hanover, and the Electorate of Hesse-Cassel.

This volume chronicles the conflict over the unification of Germany. The campaign in southern and western Germany ensured that political control of German affairs would be firmly in Prussian hands, controlled by Bismarck, in much the same way that the great battles between Prussia and Austria in the east would exclude Austria from German affairs altogether.

The detailed story of this, the war of unification within Germany itself, is narrated here, compiled from numerous published and unpublished sources, including many contemporary and first-hand accounts, as well as official reports. The importance of the campaign, far too often ignored, is told here. This is an invaluable resource for any student of European military history of the mid-19th Century.

Key topics include the historical background to the conflict, the political crisis of 1866 in the German Parliament and the build-up to war, full descriptions of all military forces involved, the various phases of the campaign. The book includes comprehensive orders of battle, informative maps, numerous illustrations (some in color) and photographs, many informative charts and diagrams. The author also presents a detailed analysis of contemporary and later sources.

This hardback is a strictly limited edition printing of 750 copies, each individually numbered and signed by the author on a decorative title page. Includes 16 pages of color illustrations. 1 vol, 0 pgs 2015 UK, HELION AND COMPANY
NEW-dj, available late December 2015 ......$60.00 with a discount of 15%

1-235030 Ernst, Heidrich THE BATTLE FOR THE SWIEPWALD: Austria's Fatal Blunder at Koniggratz -- The Climactic Battle of the Austro-Prussian War, 3 July 1866 Translation of Heidrich's brilliant monograph takes us through the fighting, hour by hour and foot by bloody foot.

The battle of Koniggratz was the largest battle ever fought in western Europe until 1914 and its political consequences were no less epic -- the demise of Austria as a European Great Power, the loss of her historic pre-eminence among the German nations, and the final, incontestable rise of Prussia. Whether Austria could have prevailed at Koniggratz on 3 July 1866 and salvaged her Great Power status is debatable. What is not is the part the struggle for the Swiepwald played in her ultimate defeat.

The insubordination of two Austrian Corps Commanders, and the decision to engage in their epic struggle for control of the Swiepwald forest, would leave 12,000 men dead or wounded within its shattered environs, and the Austrian right flank wide open to the Crown Prince of Prussia's advancing Second Army. 1 vol, 134 pgs 2022 UK, HELION AND COMPANY
NEW-pb, available late October 2022 ......$45.00 with a discount of 15% inc

1-49360 Hozier, H.M. SEVEN WEEKS WAR, THE Originally published in 1867 in two volumes, this classic work covers the 1866 Austro-Prussian War in detail. The entire Bohemian campaign, the Western theatre of operations, the Italian front, naval operations---the great battles of Gitschin, Trautenau, Nachod, Skalitz, Langensalza, Koniggratz, Custozza, Lissa and many others are thoroughly investigated. Full descriptions of all the combatants (large and small) and orders of battle are included along with a dozen maps (eight of which fold-out; one is over-sized). 1 vol, 416 pgs 1997 MINNEAPOLIS, ABSINTHE PRS
NEW-softcover, o/p, found more copies ......$25.00 rct

1-43880 Lackey, Scott W. REBIRTH OF THE HAPSBURG ARMY, THE Friedrich Beck and the Rise of the General Staff, covers the years from 1860-1890, a must for the serious student of the military affairs of Austro-Hungary, extensive notes, biblio, index. 1 vol, 253 pgs 1995 WESTPORT, GREENWOOD PRESS
NEW-hardcover ......$68.00

1-914165 various VAE VICTIS # 165: Trautenau and Soor 1866 (Wargame) Magazine includes wargame of June 27-28 1866 Battle of Trautenau-Soor, second in the Battles in the time of Napoleon III series.

One turn: one hour
Counters: regiments and battalion
Map: one hex = 750m
Complexity: 5/10
Solo play: 7/10
Duration of a game: 2 to 4 hours depending on the scenario

After several months of growing tensions, war broke out between Austria and Prussia for control of the primacy in Germany. Prussia plans to take its troops through the Sudetenland and into Bohemia through four different passes, with the goal of facing the Austrian main army in a decisive Napoleonic battle.

The end of one of these passages is located here, near the town of Trautenau. On June 27, the 10th Austrian corps pushed back the 1st Prussian corps there. But this tactical victory, the only one for Austria in Bohemia, obtained at the cost of heavy losses will have no strategic consequences: the next day, the 10th Corps is swept away by the Prussian Guard during the Battle of Soor. 1 vol, 84 pgs 2022 FRANCE, CERIGO EDITIONS
NEW-pb, available late October 2022 ......$28.00 rct

1-41620 Wawro, Geoffrey AUSTRO-PRUSSIAN WAR, THE Austria's war with Prussia/Italy in 1866 details the panic that overtook the Austrian army and the blundering of its commanders. Includes b/w illust, 21 maps, biblio, and index. 1 vol, 368 pgs 1997 NY, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY
NEW-softcover ......$33.00