Austrian Army (Die osterreichische Armee). Army of the Austrian Empire Armament and equipment

Chapter 3 The Russian Navy in the early 1880s Thus, by the beginning of the 80s of the 19th century, the Russian fleet, under the pressure of economic factors and due to insufficient coordination of plans of various departments, continued to develop within the framework of the concepts developed

Lieutenant Colonel Prishchepa S.V.
( The author expresses gratitude to Stepanushkin D.A. for consultations)

Austria-Hungary is a state in Central Europe that existed from 1156 to 1918. ( Naturally, this refers to the Habsburg states, since Austria-Hungary, as a unique state entity, existed only in 1868–1918. - hereinafter notes by D.V. Adamenko ). Being the largest in territory among European countries (after Russia), it was one of the great world powers, and its armed forces played an important role in the foreign and domestic policies of the state.

Dual monarchy

Austria-Hungary was often called the "dual monarchy". This name reflected the fact that it consisted of two formally equal union states ( The state emblem (black double-headed eagle) is interpreted precisely as a symbol of a dual state ( Undoubtedly, the double-headed eagle, which the Austrian Empire inherited from the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation, was borrowed by the latter back in the 15th century from the Byzantine Empire. The Hungarian kingdom had its own coat of arms. The coat of arms of Austria-Hungary, as a dual monarchy, was a heraldic composition of three independent coats of arms: Austria, Hungary and the dynastic Habsburgs of Lorraine ). Upon ascending the throne, the Austrian emperor swore allegiance to the people twice, first in German - before the chambers of the Austrian Reichsrat, and then in Hungarian - before the Hungarian Diet): Austria proper (Austrian Empire or Cisleithania) - 44% of the country's area, and Hungary (Kingdom of Hungary or Transleithania) - 56%. In reality, both components of the state, in turn, consisted of many more or less isolated regions, often differing greatly in natural and economic conditions, national composition of the population, its traditions and cultural level. Many of them were in the past independent states or part of neighboring countries. The multinational empire united up to 10 main nationalities, with the Slavs (Czechs, Poles, Slovaks, Slovenes, Rusyns, Serbs and Croats) making up up to 45% of the population, Germans - up to 25%, Hungarians - up to 20%.

These political and national features could not but affect the organization of the armed forces, having a significant impact on their combat effectiveness.

Army organization

The Austro-Hungarian Empire and the division of its territory into corps districts. 1914 (the modern names of the city centers of the corps districts are indicated in red).

The Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the country's Armed Forces was a monarch from the Habsburg dynasty: from 1848 to 1916 he was Emperor Franz Joseph I ( with the outbreak of war, the emperor and king delegated his powers as supreme commander to his brother General Archduke Frederick ), after his death - by his nephew Charles I.

In general, the armed forces were organized according to the Prussian Landwehr system ( This is a common mistake that occurs due to a misunderstanding of the “two-pronged system” and the identical terms “Landwehr”. Initially, the Austrian and Hungarian Landwehr were indeed intended only for the “defense” of their states, but they soon began to perform the same functions as the “general” army, losing almost all differences. The Prussian system meant the Landwehr to have a first-stage reserve ) and consisted of:

regular army(line troops) ( it is better to call it a “common army”, since it was replenished by residents of both states that were part of the dualistic monarchy ) with a reserve for replenishing units during mobilization and a recruit reserve (ersatz reserve) intended to replenish losses in wartime);

Landwehr(reserve troops) also with reserve and recruit reserves. The Landwehr was intended to strengthen the regular army if necessary, as well as for the “internal defense of the country” ( again, the duties of “internal defense of the country” were performed by the entire army );

Landsturm(militia), formed in wartime.

A citizen who has reached the age of 21 ( In principle, conscription age was 19 years old, when those recognized as liable for military service were drawn by lot. During the war, the conscription age was lowered to 18 years ), meeting the health requirements and having a height of at least 155 cm, was subject to general, personal and non-replaceable military service. The total service life was 12 years, including:

in the regular army - 3 years on active service ( Before the First World War, in an effort to increase the number of military personnel, the period of active military service in the general army was reduced to 2 years. Only in the cavalry and artillery the service life remained the same ), 7 years in the reserve, and then another 10 years in the recruit reserve ( The term is used incorrectly - it means land assault. This also applies to Landwehr );

in the Landwehr - 1 year in Austria and 2 years in Hungary in active service, 11 and 10 years respectively in the reserve, and then 12 years in the recruit reserve;

the Landsturm consisted of all citizens aged 19 to 42 years, “capable of bearing arms” and not in other categories of military service.

For persons exempted from military service for any reason (clergy, public school teachers and others) a special military tax was established ( priests and teachers were exempted from military service free of charge ).

Those with a certain educational qualification served for 1 year as volunteers, that is, on preferential terms, after which they passed an exam to become an officer candidate. Volunteers were accepted for service starting at the age of 17 years.

The annually drafted contingent of recruits remained the same for a long time and amounted (with some deviations) to 122,500 people. From 1912 this number began to gradually increase and in 1913 130,650 people were drafted.

However, this harmonious system was significantly complicated by national characteristics. In fact, there were three armies, each controlled by a separate ministry:

Junior infantry non-commissioned officer in wartime uniform. May 1915 (on his chest is the Jubilee Cross for Servants of the Court of His Imperial and Royal Majesty, which may indicate that in 1908 he served in one of the guards units, staffed by volunteers with the rank of non-commissioned officer).

imperial war ministry (since Austria, unlike the Kingdom of Hungary, was an empire, it is better to use a direct translation - “imperial and royal military ministry” ), which reported directly to the emperor and was in charge of the affairs of the regular army and navy. When recruiting line troops, the principle of constant replenishment of units with either Austrian or Hungarian recruits was maintained,

Austrian Ministry of People's Defense, engaged in the Austrian Landwehr, Landsturm and Corps of Gendarmes,

Hungarian Ministry of People's Defense, which dealt with the Hungarian Landwehr (Honved), Landsturm and gendarme corps.

Due to such features, it was most convenient to recruit the armed forces according to the territorial system. To do this, the entire territory of the country was divided into 105 districts, each of which was supposed to replenish 1 infantry regiment of the imperial army, and the regiments always received recruits from the same district. Other types of troops were replenished from several districts, but also mainly from the same localities. To replenish the Landwehr, Austria was divided into 39 regimental districts (117 battalion areas), and Hungary into 94 Honved battalion areas. In addition, Tyrol was divided into 3 sections, from which 4 rifle regiments were replenished, and Dalmatia recruited the 22nd infantry and 2nd Landwehr infantry regiments.

The region of Bosnia and Herzegovina was divided into 4 districts and consisted of 4 regiments and 1 battalion. Bosnians were drafted at the age of 19 and served: 2 years in active service, then 10 years in the 1st category reserve, up to 37 years in the 2nd category reserve, up to 42 years in the 3rd category reserve (actually two the latter categories corresponded to Landsturm). Those eligible for service, but not called up for military service, were enrolled in the recruit reserve for 12 years, then also transferred to the 2nd or 3rd category reserve.

Land Army of the Austrian Empire, 1909

Depending on the predominant representatives of a particular nationality in the regiment, 1-2 so-called “regimental languages” were established, most often German, Hungarian or Polish ( there were 2 command languages ​​(German and Hungarian) and many regimental languages ​​- according to the number of nationalities in the empire ).

The system of military ranks and ranks in the Austrian army had a complex structure, since special ranks were assigned not only to combat officers, military officials and doctors, but also to supply service officials, treasurers, auditors (military lawyers) and others. A simplified version of the system is shown in the table.

All units of the regular troops were consolidated into brigades, divisions and corps. In peacetime, the corps was not so much a combat unit as a territorial-administrative unit. The commander was subordinate not only to the units that were part of the corps, but also to all military institutions and educational institutions located within the boundaries of the corps' territorial district.

It was assumed that regiments should be deployed within their corps districts, and, if possible, in their regimental districts (that is, where reinforcements were called for), but in practice this was often not observed; in the regimental district, as a rule, everything remained in order turn one of the battalions of the regiment, regimental emergency reserves for mobilization were also stored there ( that is, there was a regimental depot ). Every spring there was a change of garrisons, both within the corps area and outside it ( this was pursued at least two goals: to acquaint military personnel with terrain that is unusual for them (and often provide mountain training), and also for police actions to have forces that are not connected either nationally or politically with local residents ).

As a result, the infantry regiment turned out to be a symbolic unit in peacetime, since infantry brigades were made up of separate battalions of various regiments, sometimes with the addition of rifle, pioneer or engineer battalions. In total, there were 60 infantry and 14 mountain brigades with continuous numbering throughout the army.

Infantry divisions consisted, as a rule, of 2 brigades and 2 artillery regiments. Landwehr divisions had a similar composition, but their artillery consisted of 2 divisions. Honved divisions were formed in wartime and did not have assigned artillery.

Cavalry divisions consisted of 1–2 brigades (2–3 cavalry regiments each) and a horse artillery division.

In total, the corps consisted, as a rule, of 2 infantry and 1 cavalry division, 1 landwehr or honved division and support and reinforcement units. However, in reality this composition could vary significantly depending on many factors.

Infantry

By the beginning of the war, the regular army consisted of:

infantry regiments(Nos. 1–102) 4 battalions, that is, a total of 408 battalions. The battalions consisted of 4 companies, the company - of 4 platoons. Composition of the company in wartime: 4 officers, candidate for officer rank, 35 non-commissioned officers, 183 privates, 4 sappers, 3 porters, 4 orderlies, non-commissioned officer of the treasury service, trumpeter. The wartime battalion had 19 officers and 1,062 lower ranks. The regiment has, respectively, 84 and 4,327 military personnel, including 305 non-combatants

rifle (jaeger) regiments (and battalions): Tyrolean regiments (Nos. 1–4), also 4 battalions each, due to the nature of recruitment and training, considered elite, and 26 rifle battalions (Nos. 1–26). In total, therefore, the army had 42 rifle battalions, with a regular wartime strength of 22 officers and 1,075 soldiers and non-commissioned officers (in companies of 240 people each).

bOsnian infantry units (correctly Bosnian-Herzegovinian ): 4 regiments (Nos. 1–4) and 1 rifle battalion; composition is similar to line infantry.

A group of infantry non-commissioned officers. 1914. The two outermost and the one sitting on the right are dressed in peacetime uniforms, and the characteristic red fez of the 4 soldiers indicates that they belong to the Bosnian infantry. The one standing in the center is a candidate for officer rank (The one standing in the center is Fenrich. The first and fifth from the left are dressed in ceremonial uniforms, as evidenced by the presence of buttons on the uniform and the absence of breast pockets on it. In addition, the fifth one has clearly visible “shoulder pads ", poorly visible on the first one, who, moreover, as if on purpose, also put on an everyday headdress. The rest wear everyday uniforms, it’s just that the last one on the left has an old style and is made of dark blue cloth)

In each regiment (except the Bosnian ones), in peacetime there was a reserve of personnel soldiers of 7 officers and 24 lower ranks for the formation of reserve and marching battalions upon mobilization.

During wartime, the following were additionally formed: 6 rifle battalions (Nos. 27–32); 2 Bosnian rifle battalions; 6 Bosnian border companies from older reservists.

The Landwehr infantry in peacetime consisted of 37 infantry regiments (Nos. 1–37) of 3 battalions each (a battalion had 18 officers and 243 lower ranks) and 3 Tyrolean people's rifle regiments. In 1917, all Landwehr infantry regiments began to be called rifle regiments.

The Honved infantry consisted of 28 infantry regiments (Nos. 1–28), including 18 with 3 battalions and 10 with 4 battalions (18 officers and 208 lower ranks per battalion), consolidated into 14 Honved brigades. By 1917, the number of regiments reached 32.

The Landsturm during the war consisted of 41 Austrian and 47 Hungarian regiments.

Shortly before the start of the war, companies of scooter riders (cyclists) began to be formed under some rifle battalions. By the beginning of the war there were 4 companies and several more were being formed, so that by 1915 they were consolidated into 3 scooter battalions.

Weapons and equipment

The main weapon of the Austrian infantryman was a repeating rifle of the Mannlicher system with a bladed bayonet. This model with a five-round magazine was adopted for service back in 1886, initially chambered for the 11-mm Witterly system cartridge ( perhaps the author is confusing the Witterli and Werndl cartridges, but the editor does not have sufficient information to claim that this is an error ), filled with black powder. Two years later, the M.1888 model appeared with a caliber reduced to 8 mm, initially also with black powder. Previously manufactured rifles were redesigned for a new cartridge and received the designation M. 1886/90 (replacement of the barrel for 8 mm caliber) and M. 1888/90 (change of the chamber). Weapons immediately manufactured for the new cartridge were designated M.1890.

The last model before the war was put into service in 1895. It, like the previous ones, was manufactured in three versions:

infantry rifle M.1895 (or M.95);

cavalry carbine M.1895. This weapon had a shortened barrel, the gun belt fastening ensured comfortable carrying of the carbine in the “behind the back” position, the bayonet and the part for its fastening were absent (the gendarme version had a permanently folding needle bayonet);

fitting M.1895. It was a variant of a carbine with a part for attaching a bayonet.

Armament and equipment of the Austrian infantry: 1 - bayonet and scabbard with a blade, 2 - ersatz bayonet, 3 - non-commissioned officer bayonet with lanyard, 4 - offensive hand grenade, 5 - defensive hand grenade, 6 - brass knuckles, 7 - cutting pliers wire, 8 - trench dagger

Mannlicher's weapon had some characteristic details of the device: the magazine box protruding from the stock on early samples was made as a separate part, later (starting with the M.1890 carbine) it began to be made integral with the trigger guard; on the M.1890 infantry rifle, the bayonet was not attached to the bottom, as usual, but to the left side of the barrel; rifles and fittings had an additional detail - a small metal peg with a ball at the end, which served to hook the rifles together when putting them together into sawhorses. Loading was done in batches, that is, the magazine did not need to be filled from the clip, since the cartridges were put into it all at once along with a metal pack; When the last cartridge was used up, the pack fell down through a special window. This, undoubtedly, gave a gain in loading time compared to the Mauser or Mosin rifle, but the packs slightly increased the total weight of the ammunition carried with the same number of cartridges.

With the start of production of the new M.95 rifle, the earlier models in service were subject to gradual replacement. The outbreak of war disrupted this order and led to the fact that many regiments of the regular army were armed with older rifles than the Landwehr and Landsturm units formed upon mobilization. In addition, the production of national arms factories was not able to cover the needs of the active army and not only the above-mentioned models of rifles and carbines, but even older ones were used. In total, at the beginning of the war the following were available:

118,000 rifles and carbines of the Werndl M.67/77 and M.73/77 system;

1,300,000 Mannlicher rifles, samples M.86/90, M.88/90, M.90, and M.95;

80,000 M.90 carbines;

850,000 M.95 carbines and fittings.

We had to use non-standard samples:

about 75,000 Mannlicher M.93 rifles and carbines, manufactured for Romania for the 6.5 mm caliber cartridge, were adapted to fire the 8 mm cartridge by drilling out the barrel and chamber, as well as altering the magazine;

about 80,000 rifles of the Mauser M.14 system, manufactured for Mexico, Colombia and Chile (differing only in the coats of arms stamped on the receiver) chambered for 7 mm caliber were used with original cartridges, the production of which was established;

about 9,000 rifles of the Mannlicher-Schönauer M.03/14 system, manufactured for Greece chambered for 6.5 mm caliber, were also used without alterations, with “native” ammunition.

Uniforms and equipment of the Austrian infantry: 1 - steel helmet "Bernsdorfer" (correctly "Berndorf"), 2 - steel helmet of the German model M.1916 (here Austrian M.17), 3 - cap of mountain rifle units, decorated with rooster feathers, 4 - caps of infantry units, 5 - summer blouse M.1909, 6 - cavalry headdresses, 7 - straight-cut trousers, 8 - boots of mountain rifle units, 9 - boots of infantry units, 10 - early version of the waist belt, 11 - late version waist belt (cavalry belt), 12 windings

Some weapons came from the Allies:

• 72,000 Mauser-Mannlicher rifles of the 1888 model, 7.9 mm caliber; the alteration of which was limited only to changing the fastening of the gun belt;

a small number of German and Turkish Mauser rifles of 7.65 mm caliber.

Armament and equipment of the Austrian infantry: 1 - Mannlicher M.95 rifle, 2 - waist belt, 3 - metal pack with 8 mm cartridges, 4 - cardboard pack with cartridges, 5 - M.1895 cartridge bag, 6 - automatic pistol system Steira M.1912

Necessity also forced the use of captured weapons:

about 45,000 Russian Mosin rifles of the 1891 model were converted to the Austrian 8-mm cartridge; a significant number of Russian rifles were used in front-line units without modification with captured ammunition. By the way, in the same way, in the Russian army, entire divisions on the Southwestern Front were armed with Austrian rifles, and combatants recalled that with regard to the supply of ammunition they often found themselves in an even better position than others;

Italian rifles of the Mannlicher-Carcano system, model 1891, 6.5 mm caliber; some of them were converted to a Greek cartridge of the same caliber;

French and English rifles were used in small quantities.

Layout of the equipment of an Austro-Hungarian infantryman: 1 - a backpack of the 1887 model, 2 - a roll of an overcoat wrapped on top with a cloth of a camp tent, 3 - a waist belt of a peacetime model (in the Austro-Hungarian army, belts were not divided into peacetime and wartime models), 4 - M.95 cartridge bag, 5 - wartime waist belt (cavalry belt), 6 - trench dagger, 7 - German-style gas mask with box, 8 - flask options (on the left is a flask, on the right is possibly one of the options for a box for a gas mask) , 9 - small pickaxe, 10 - cracker bag, 11 - small shovel, 12 - bayonet-knife in a sheath with a blade, 13 - cartridge satchel

The infantryman's wearable ammunition consisted of 200 rounds of ammunition, including 40 pieces in two cartridge bags. Several types of cartridge bags were used:

M.1888 made of black leather, with a lid that opened outwards and was fastened with straps on pegs on the sides of the bag; There were two compartments inside, each containing 2 clips, a total of 20 rounds;

M.1890 made of brown leather, opening inward, with 1 strap fastening and a peg at the bottom of the bag; accommodated 2 clips (10 rounds). These bags were intended for cavalry and gendarmerie, but in wartime they could be issued to infantrymen;

• M.1895 was a double bag of M.1890 and was intended for infantry; two lids were fastened with straps, each on its own peg; capacity - 4 clips (20 rounds);

During the war, in conditions of a shortage of leather raw materials, production began of ersatz pouches made of fiber or plywood, painted in a gray protective color, as well as from canvas, type M.1890, with the same fastening with a leather strap ( should be added and stamped from iron ).

Thanks to the design feature of the clip for the Mannlicher rifle. all of the listed types of cartridge bags had a characteristic asymmetrical trapezoidal shape. They are all from the back...

Uniform of the Austro-Hungarian infantry: A - corporal of the 13th infantry regiment in a field uniform of the 1911 model, B - sergeant major of the Bosnian infantry regiment in a wartime field uniform ( Some non-commissioned officers were armed not with bayonets, but with sabers, worn in black leather sheaths, which were inserted into a leather blade worn on the waist belt. Only graduate officers and standard bearers were armed with officer's sabers, which is somewhat incorrectly depicted here (the guard should be like in the photo on the right on page 13). If the non-commissioned officer wore a saber, then the biscuit bag was worn on the right. From January 1917, all officers, graduate officers, some categories of non-commissioned officers, military officials and chaplains, that is, military personnel armed with sabers, were ordered to change the latter to non-commissioned officer bayonets ), B - company sapper of the 22nd Infantry Regiment in field equipment (wartime blouse, on the cap - “field badge”, that is, a green branch of a tree, usually oak ( both the bread bag and the spatula should be worn on the left. The “field sign” was an oak branch in summer, and a spruce branch in winter. There were no other options. This badge was worn on the left side of the cap, for which two factory-made loops were provided behind the lapel. If a soldier wears windings, then this is a wartime uniform, therefore the cockade must be painted in a protective color. In the description of the equipment, a metal enameled bowler hat made of two parts (deep and shallow), attached to the top of an overcoat tied to the backpack, is missing. It came in two models - a truncated cone and a truncated pyramid. The latter is shown in this figure. Only the handles were completely different. On the deep part there were simply two side ears, and on the shallow part there was a holder in the form of a metal loop. This applies to both models ), G-private of the 44th Infantry (Hungarian) Regiment in peacetime dress uniform with full equipment; a “shooting cord” is visible on the chest - the insignia of the best shooter ( The shoulder rolls were printed cloth, and not “fluffed”, as shown in the picture. It would not be amiss to note once again that the knots and “edgings” on the Hungarian trousers were made of yellow-black cord and the eagle on the shako was always brass, and not the color of regimental instrument metal, as it might seem. The buttonhole on the cuff is drawn incorrectly - it is necessary to “cut off” its right part and remove the cutout at the bottom of the central one. True, this last part, no longer the central part, had a slight bevel towards the outside. In general, there was no “ceremonial wartime uniform” or “ceremonial uniform without full equipment.” Therefore, it is better to simply indicate that the soldier is wearing full dress uniform. Naturally, taking into account the above corrections ), D - company sapper in winter field uniform in an overcoat, E - Tyrolean rifleman in wartime field uniform with mountain equipment, awarded with a "shooting cord", 1 - cockade on the cap of the line infantry, 2 - button of soldiers of the 30th Infantry Regiment, 3 - coat of arms on the shako of the linear infantry, 4 - flap on the collar of the overcoat for the lower ranks of rifle regiments, 5 - steel helmet of the German model M.1916 with a “field badge” made of tin, 6 - option for placing the insignia of the staff sergeant on the collar of the field blouse (after 1916), 7 — belt badge of the 1910 model, 8 — non-commissioned officer’s lanyard, 9 — imperial monogram for the headdresses of Tyrolean riflemen.

1. Infantryman of the 10th Infantry Regiment.
2. Corporal of the 13th Infantry Regiment.
3. Corporal of the rifle regiment.
4. Junior non-commissioned artillery officer.
5. Sergeant of convoy units.
6. Non-commissioned officer-cadet of pioneer units.
7. Senior non-commissioned officer of engineer units.
8. Candidate for officer rank of the 30th Infantry Regiment.
9. Fehnrich 90th Infantry Regiment.
10. Lieutenant of the 24th Infantry Regiment.
11. First Lieutenant, 7th Dragoons
12. Captain of the General Staff.
13. Major of the 2nd Lancer Regiment.
14. Lieutenant Colonel of the Landwehr.
15. Colonel of rifle units.
16. Corporal of the field gendarmerie.
17. Major General.
18. Lieutenant General.
19. General of the Infantry.
20. Colonel General.
21. Field Marshal.
22. Official of the engineering and artillery service.
23. Engineer 3rd class of military construction service.
24. Junior veterinarian.
25. Official 3rd class of the Military Geographical Institute.
26. Cashier 1st class treasury service.
27. Military clerk.

... had straps fastened with pegs, with the help of which the cartridge bags were put on the waist belt (this fastening made it possible to remove and put on the pouches without unfastening). Metal loops were sewn into the upper part of the straps for samples M.1890, M.1895 and ersatz pouches ( or rather the rings to which the carabiners of the shoulder straps were attached ), to which the shoulder straps of the equipment were attached.

The rest of the equipment consisted of the following items:

black ( actually painted in brown ) leather waist belt of the 1910 model, with a yellow metal plaque, on which was a stamped or applied double-headed eagle (for Austrian units) or the Hungarian coat of arms (for Honvéd) ( Since 1916, a new coat of arms on buckles has been introduced for the entire army - from three armorial shields (two large Austrian and Hungarian monarchies and the small coat of arms of the Habsburgs of Lorraine) and the motto “One and Indivisible” in Latin. By the middle of the war, buckles began to be made not from expensive brass, but from iron and painted in a protective color ); During the war, so-called ersatz buckles in the form of a frame were also used ( in reality they were just cavalry belts with a single-pin frame buckle );

backpack model 1887;

cartridge backpack model 1888 - it contained 6-8 cardboard packs of cartridges, each with 2 clips, that is, a total of 60-80 cartridges; the remaining cartridges were placed in the main backpack ( it is still more likely that only personal belongings were stowed in the main backpack, and the rest of the ammunition was transported in the ammunition train. This can also be confirmed by the fact that the M. 1887 backpack was intended only for campaigns, and the M. 1888 was included in combat equipment ). Both knapsacks were made, as in the 18th century, from brown calf or horse skin, with the lids with the wool facing outward, which prevented water from entering the knapsack.

bread bag - originally made of leather, during the war it began to be made of canvas ( originally made from canvas ); could be worn either suspended from a waist belt using two loops and a metal hook, or on a shoulder strap; inside it was divided by partitions into three parts: for a flask, canned food and dry rations.

an infantry shoulder blade in a leather case covering the edges of the metal part; A bayonet scabbard was attached to the case for camping equipment;

flask, worn either on a strap over the shoulder or in a cracker bag, enameled metal ( Such flasks were much better than domestic ones and owning a captured flask was the dream of every Russian infantryman), or glass, covered with cloth ( The enameled flask was placed in a cloth or felt case and a metal enameled glass, approximately half the height of the flask, was attached to it from below with straps. This glass was absolutely identical in shape to the bottom of the flask, only, naturally, larger in size. In 1909, an oval lightweight aluminum flask was introduced ).

Infantryman in field uniform. 1915. A private wears a non-commissioned officer's bayonet (with lanyard hook). The blouse issued during wartime is slightly too big.

With full camping equipment, the cartridge pack was fastened to the waist belt at the back at lumbar level and supported from below by the main pack. Both backpacks were connected to each other by a special plate ( or rather using a system of leather belts ). The shoulder straps were fastened at one end to the back wall of the main backpack, and at the other they were threaded under the shoulder straps and hooked with special hooks onto metal belt loops ( that is, with carbines for the rings) on pouches. The rolled up overcoat was attached to the main backpack. After the march, before the attack, the backpack with the roll could be removed and only cartridges could be carried into battle.

There was also a version of lightweight equipment, when only a cartridge backpack was put on, and the overcoat roll and shoulder straps were fastened to it.

The soldier had to carry with him: a set of underwear, a pair of spare lightweight shoes, a knitted sweater to wear under his overcoat in winter, a bowler hat and a spoon, an emergency supply of food (2 cans of canned food), personal belongings and toiletries. Depending on the type of equipment, these things were placed in one of the backpacks or in a cracker bag. The total weight of the equipment reached 28 kg.

Company sappers were also required to carry a portable entrenching tool: a large shovel, a pick and a coil of rope were attached to the backpack ( and the carpenters carried either a lumberjack's ax with an ordinary ax, or a lumberjack's ax with a two-handed saw ). Usually in wartime, company sappers of a regiment were combined into a sapper platoon ( Sappers never belonged to regimental companies, although in the field they could be assigned to them. An engineer platoon (after the reorganization of the army - an engineer company) was part of the regimental headquarters ).

An innovation introduced into infantry equipment during wartime was the widespread use, from mid-1915, of so-called Tyrolean backpacks instead of satchels. They were made of gray-green or brown tarpaulin and previously replaced backpacks only in mountain rifle units, which included Tyrolean riflemen, folk riflemen and some Landwehr regiments.

Scooter riders were also equipped with these backpacks and did not carry cracker bags; they usually fastened small shoulder blades to their backpacks.

In peacetime, the infantry regiment had two machine gun squads with 2 heavy machine guns each. Schwarzloze» M.07 or 07/12 each (1 officer, 34 lower ranks). Landwehr and Honved regiments had 1 machine gun per battalion; rifle battalions also had 1 machine gun. In 1913, machine gun squads were also formed at scooter companies, and machine guns were transported on motorcycles ( looks like it's only on bicycles ).

In 1915, it was officially approved that each infantry battalion had a machine gun team of 4 machine guns, and from 1916 their number increased to 8. In 1918, it was planned to form additional platoons of light machine guns, armed with models copied from captured Italian “ Vilar-Revelli“, but due to the end of the war, this measure was implemented only to a small extent.

In 1915, the formation of infantry mortar and trench gun units began at infantry regiments.

At the end of 1916, the command of the Austro-Hungarian army began to create assault troops based on the German model ( There was 1 assault squad (battalion) for each infantry division (two assault platoons (Sturmpatrouillen) were part of each infantry company, and the platoons were combined into army battalions - usually these were 4 infantry companies, a machine gun company, engineer, mortar and flamethrower teams) ), designed for close combat in trenches when breaking through fortified enemy positions. They selected the best soldiers, usually volunteers, who were assigned the most dangerous tasks: to be the first to attack enemy fortifications, or to counterattack an enemy who had penetrated the defenses. It is possible that the use of assault groups by the Austrians was a spontaneous reaction to the use of assault units by the Italians. arditi» ( the Austro-Hungarians borrowed this idea from the Germans, and the Italians, in turn, from the Austro-Hungarians ).

Stormtroopers needed to carry a large number of hand grenades with them in battle, for which they used various canvas bags and bags ( in reality, each grenade bag required carrying three grenades of different systems ). In addition, rifle grenades were also used ( The Austrian corn grenade was converted into a rifle grenade by removing the wire handle and attaching a tube that was inserted into the rifle barrel ). Instead of rifles, the soldiers wore rifles that were lighter and more convenient in close combat, and as additional weapons for hand-to-hand combat they had trench clubs of various types, brass knuckles and daggers ( After the end of the war and the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a large number of trench daggers fell into the hands of the Italians. The weapons were not left in warehouses: these daggers were used in the 1930s. units of the fascist police were armed ). Steel helmets were necessarily used to protect the head; other equipment was standard, and the attack aircraft continued to wear the uniforms of the units from which they were sent.

Outfit

To designate military ranks and ranks and combinations of stars and different types of braid were used, sewn onto the front ends of the collar, over instrument-colored flaps (buttonholes).

In peacetime, infantry wore either a uniform or a blouse. The first was used in full dress; the second was introduced at first only For the field uniform, then they were allowed to wear it as a casual uniform, and during the war, the blouse finally replaced the uniform, which was occasionally found only in the rear units of the Landsturm.

A group of Austrian infantrymen in a trench. The parapets are made of bags filled with stones. Italian Front, 1917

Uniform The infantry model was a single-breasted, 6-button, dark blue cloth jacket. The low, slightly beveled stand-up collar had flaps of a regimental (instrument) color, and the cuffs were the same color ( the ENTIRE collar, cuffs, shoulder straps and shoulder pads were instrument color ). There were 28 different colors of instrument cloth in use, including 11 shades of red. An additional difference between the regiments were buttons - white or yellow metal, with the regiment number. The shoulder straps were cut out of uniform cloth, longer than the shoulder; the excess length was folded inward and, thus, the shoulder straps appeared to be made of two layers of fabric. In addition to shoulder straps, special bolsters were sewn into the shoulder seams, designed to keep the equipment belts from slipping. The bolsters were lined with instrument-colored cloth and during the First World War they already had a mainly decorative purpose. There were no pockets on the uniform, with the exception of one inside on the chest. A black cloth tie was traditionally worn under the uniform, the cut of which has not changed since the 18th century. ( it was no longer a “bib”, but a collar identical to the collar of Catholic priests. A white collar was sewn to it )

The uniform in the Hungarian and German regiments at this time was almost the same cut; with the exception of the buttonholes on the cuffs in the Hungarian regiments ( in the “German” regiments the uniform had a straight (“Swedish”) cuff, and in the “Hungarian” regiments there was a “Polish” cuff, that is, with a toe ). The traditional difference in the style of trousers worn with the uniform also continued to be preserved. German regiments wore trousers straight cut, with a field uniform that had a cuff at the bottom, fastened with two buttons ( trousers were part of the ceremonial uniform and were worn without cuffs ). The Hungarian and Honved regiments were entitled to Hungarian trousers, somewhat narrowed at the bottom and tucked into the shoes. Both pantaloons and trousers were cloth, light blue in color with instrument-colored piping in the outer seam: Hungarian trousers, in addition, had a pattern of red cord on the front half of the legs above the knee in the form of a traditional pattern of knots and loops ( in the Honved, both the edgings and the “Hungarian knots” on the hips were really red, but in the Hungarian regiments of the general army they were sewn from black and yellow cord ).

Junior non-commissioned officer of the Tyrolean riflemen - mountain guide. The military specialty is indicated by a sleeve patch with the letter “B”. A steel helmet and canvas grenade bags under the armpits indicate belonging to an assault unit; note the use of a canvas holster in wartime (If the photograph is not accurately identified (for example, by the owner’s signature), then nothing says that the character belongs to the Tyrolean riflemen. Just the fact that he is a mountain guide does not mean anything, since before the war at least one battalion of the regular army regiment managed to receive mountain training, and by the middle of the war all units had it. The Tyrolean riflemen always had an “edelweiss” badge attached to their collar (or earlier, to their flap). from the letters “B” and “F” (Bergfuehrer) and the alpenstock between them. The latter is clearly visible in the photograph).

Shoes As a rule, boots with laces served; occasionally there were boots with short tops, which were in use in the 19th century. When out of formation, even ordinary soldiers often wore light civilian-style boots ( Lightweight boots made of leather and canvas were used as replacement shoes and for work within the barracks. ).

The ceremonial headdress was shako sample 1869 made of black cloth with a leather visor, chin strap and bottom, on a solid base. On the front it was decorated with a metal coat of arms (Austrian double-headed eagle or Hungarian coat of arms) in German or Hungarian regiments respectively ( The Hungarian coat of arms on the shako was used only in Honvéd. Everyone else who owned the shako wore the imperial eagle ). Above the coat of arms was attached a cockade - a brass disk with the emperor’s initials cut into it: “FJI” ( Franz Josef I) - in the regular army and Landwehr, " IJF» ( Ferenc Jozsef) - in Honvéd ( The cockades described were part of everyday and field caps. On the ceremonial shako, the lower ranks wore a stamped brass cockade with radial levels and a painted black center ).

Rifle units since the 19th century. Traditionally, all uniforms were worn in a light gray color with a bluish tint." hechtgrau"and with grass-green cuffs, collars, shoulder straps, shoulder pads and piping. The buttons were of yellow metal, and the rifle battalions were distinguished by the numbers stamped on them; the Tyrolean arrows had smooth buttons, and the regiments were distinguished by the number on their shoulder straps. The ceremonial headdress of the riflemen was a round black felt hat with a brim, decorated with a plume of green rooster feathers and a metal image of a hunting horn - a widespread emblem of light infantry.

The infantrymen's outerwear in cold weather was double-breasted overcoat made of brown cloth ( Before the introduction of khaki-colored uniforms, the overcoats of most branches of the military were made of coarse, undyed cloth and were closest in color to Soviet soldiers' overcoats. Brown overcoat - belonging to artillery and cavalry ), loose fit, with a turn-down collar, length just below the knee. Belonging to a specific military unit was indicated by characteristic shaped buttonholes on the front ends of the collar.

Blouse, introduced in 1869, had a looser cut than a uniform, two side pockets covered with characteristically shaped three-arm flaps and a hidden fastener with 5 buttons ( the 1869 model blouse also had welt breast pockets. It is not mentioned that before the 1908 model, made of protective cloth, the 1906 model, identical in cut, that is, with patch breast pockets, but from dark blue cloth, appeared ). Initially, the color of the blouse did not differ from the uniform, but with the introduction of khaki-colored field uniforms in 1907, “hechtgrau” began to be used as such. As in other armies, this measure, the necessity of which was proven by the experience of the Anglo-Boer and Russian-Japanese wars, met in Austria-Hungary with strong opposition in military-court circles, among people accustomed to seeing the army mainly at reviews, parades and other ceremonial events. However, the Chief of the Austrian General Staff, General Konrad von Götzendorf, insisted on the introduction of a field uniform, and it was his insistence that the uniform field uniform of the 1908 model owed its appearance ( its individual elements began to be used back in 1906–1907. )

Its composition for infantry units was as follows:

cap model 1908. The cut was almost no different from the headdress of the 1873 model ( Before the introduction of protective uniforms, casual uniforms included a cap made of light blue cloth with buttons the color of regimental instrument metal ), previously used for everyday and field uniforms, was made of cloth and had a cloth backplate, which, folded in half, rose upward and was fastened in front above the visor with two small buttons. The visor was originally made of black patent leather; during wartime, visors made of pressed cardboard, as well as cloth with a cardboard insert, became widespread. A cockade was attached to the front top, the same type as on the shako, but smaller in size. Since 1917, the letter “K” was written on it as the initial of the new emperor. In wartime, buttons and cockades were painted in a protective gray color, or made from various ersatz materials of a suitable color and texture;

field blouse. Single-breasted, with a hidden fastening with 6 buttons, it had, in addition to the side ones, two more large chest patch pockets. All pockets were covered with three-arm, slightly outward sloping flaps. A ribbon was sewn into the belt to regulate the fullness of the waist. The shoulder straps were like a uniform, and a bolster had to be put on the right shoulder strap using a belt loop to prevent the gun belt from slipping off the shoulder (it was practically not used in wartime). Instrument-colored buttonholes were sewn on the collar, as well as on the uniform. Since February 1916, in order to save money, they were replaced with a strip of instrument cloth, sewn at the rear edge of the buttonhole ( or rather, in the place of the rear edge of the former buttonhole ).

Infantry lieutenant in field blouse. The field cap is similar in shape to the peacetime shako, sharply contrasting with the soft soldier's headdresses.

The cut of the blouse changed during the war. In mass production, in conditions of shortage of many types of raw materials, simplicity and low cost of production came to the fore. This gave rise to the 1916 model blouse - an extremely simplified version with a turn-down collar, without breast pockets and side pockets without flaps, fastened with 7 buttons without a hidden fastener ( in fact, the regulations of 1915 legalized the use of the German “feldgrau” color in protective uniforms, and the regulations of 1916 introduced a turn-down collar instead of a stand-up collar. All other options known to us are deviations from the regulations ).

Numerous photographic documents indicate that different versions of field blouses were worn in wartime by the infantry;

straight-fit trousers and Hungarian trousers. They had two side inner pockets and were worn with high leggings that had lacing on the side or gaiters made of canvas buttoned up with buttons ( gaiters were worn in the cold season, and in the warm season the cuffs mentioned above were worn. In addition, the Honvéd’s protective field uniform did not include Hungarian trousers - “Hungarian knots” made of khaki-colored cord were sewn onto ordinary trousers on the hips ). During wartime, from the beginning of 1916, cloth windings became widespread;

overcoat remained the same cut, under which a knitted woolen sweater could be worn for insulation.

Mountain rifle units wore durable shoes, the edges of the soles of which were equipped with iron hooks; in addition, gaiters were used, knitted from coarse wool, and the windings were put on over them. During the war, other infantry units were sometimes supplied with such shoes.

Soldiers serving on horseback (riders and others) were equipped with leather leggings fastened with straps with buckles;

Basically, the re-uniforming according to this new model was completed in 1911.

As mentioned above, all field uniform items were supposed to be made from “hechtgrau” colored cloth. However, in wartime this situation did not remain unchanged. At the turn of 1914–1915 new samples of cloth for the army were approved, but it turned out that due to the deterioration in the quality of raw materials, the continuation of the production of hechtgrau-colored fabrics was impossible. “feldgrau” – gray with a greenish tint – was approved as the new color for the field uniform. In fact, gray cloth of any shade was used to make uniforms, and even captured Italian dark green “grigio-verde”.

Literature:

Military encyclopedia. T. I. St. Petersburg, 1911.

Marzetti P. Elmetti di tutto il monde. Parma. 1984.

Mollo A., Turner P. Army uniforms of World War I. Poole, 1977.

Muller. Kunter: Europäische Helme. Berlin. 1984.

Nowakowski T. Armia austro-wegierska. 1908-1918. Warsaw, 1992.

Rosignoli G. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of military insignia of the 20th century. London. 1997.

La Gazette des Uniformes No. 148.

Militaria magazine No. 42 1989.

Military Advisor. 51 1993-94. 64 1995.

Throughout XIX century in Hungary there was a process of rethinking the history of the early modern period and the formation of a national myth. The most important question for the Hungarians was what needed to be done to recreate the territorial unity and state sovereignty of the Hungarian Kingdom, which ceased to exist at the beginning XVI century. And by the end of the XIX century, it began to seem to many that the most important thing that had been done in this direction was the anti-Habsburg campaigns of the Transylvanian princes and, first of all, the War of Liberation of Ferenc Rakoczi began XVIII century.

In 1526, the Battle of Mohács took place in Hungary, which the Hungarian army lost to the Ottomans. After this, the Kingdom of Hungary was divided into three parts.

The central part came under the rule of the Sultan.

The northern, northwestern and northeastern parts of the kingdom formed the so-called Royal Hungary, which became part of the possessions of the House of Austria - that is, they came under the rule of the Habsburg dynasty. At the same time, Royal Hungary retained many signs of its own statehood. The Habsburgs, as Hungarian kings, were separately crowned with the Hungarian crown of St. Stephen, which means that formally and symbolically this part of Hungary remained a separate kingdom. Fundamental laws that determined the nature and principles of the state structure continued to be in force in the country. The bicameral State Assembly remained, and no royal decree could become law unless it approved it. Thanks to this, the relationship between the politically empowered part of Hungarian society and the central government was largely based on agreement and the search for compromise. At meetings of the State Assembly, taxes were voted on; for example, it was the estates that gave the Habsburgs money for military expenses, and there was a constant debate about what kind of laws and state institutions Hungary needed.

Finally, the third part of the Hungarian kingdom separated and formed the Transylvanian Principality, which recognized vassal dependence on the Ottoman Empire, but in a relatively mild form: the Sultan could arbitrarily appoint and remove princes chosen by the estates, received tribute and demanded that the Transylvanian army participated in his campaigns, but did not interfere in the internal life of the principality. As a result, the Transylvanian princes managed to preserve the princely court, which was based on the politically strong Hungarian nobility, their own legislation and the Hungarian language: the Transylvanian political elite converted to Protestantism, and the Hungarian language (and not Latin, like the Catholics) became their language not only of worship, but also of education, literature and art. Thus, the Transylvanian princes were able to realize their concept of Hungary, albeit under Ottoman rule.

Liberation campaigns of the Transylvanian princes

The idea of ​​reviving a united sovereign Hungary has never lost its relevance. At the same time, the Transylvanian political elite believed that the Ottoman Porte was a lesser evil than the Habsburg monarchy, and the Hungarian state needed to be recreated around the Transylvanian principality.

In the 17th century, the period of anti-Habsburg campaigns of the Transylvanian princes began. In them, the personal ambitions of politicians were closely intertwined with the geopolitical interests of the Habsburgs, the Portes and various groups within the Hungarian elite. In 1604-1606, István Bocskai, a formerly loyal Hungarian nobleman from Transylvania who was elected prince in 1605, rebelled against Vienna under the banner of defending the political and religious rights trampled upon by the Habsburgs. In the 1620s, the Transylvanian prince Gabor Bethlen went on campaigns against Hungary three times and participated in the Thirty Years' War on the side of the Habsburgs' opponents - the Evangelical Union, without hiding the fact that he was acting in the interests of the Sultan. At the turn of the 1670s and 1680s, the dissatisfied Hungarian nobleman Imre Thököly gathered the dissatisfied under his banner, promising the Ottomans to transfer all of Hungary under their rule.

In general, the fact that the Habsburgs did not eliminate the remnants of the sovereignty of the Hungarian estates and recognized the rights of Protestant denominations on paper is the undoubted merit of such an irritating factor as Transylvania.

In 1683, the Sultan’s troops (which included units from Transylvania) reached Vienna and besieged it, but the united European states managed to defend it, launch a counter-offensive and eventually liberate a significant part of Hungary from the Ottomans.

The Principality of Transylvania came under Habsburg rule. Now, formally and legally, it again formed a single whole with the Kingdom of Hungary, but was controlled from Vienna: the Austrians introduced a fairly strict military-fiscal order there, part of the political elite voluntarily returned to Catholicism.

The acceleration of centralization and the onset of the Counter-Reformation caused discontent in Transylvania. In 1703, when the international situation seemed to be favorable for this, the Transylvanian prince Ferenc II Rakoczi rebelled. It soon grew into a broad social movement - the war of liberation, which lasted until 1711. The rebels managed to conquer significant territories, but there they had to create institutions of a centralized state and collect taxes from the population exhausted by the war in order to continue the fight, so they began to lose support within the country; their hopes for broad international support also did not materialize.

On the other hand, the Habsburgs realized that they had to make concessions. As a result, part of the rebels, led by General Sándor Károlyi, agreed with the Habsburgs that the war would be ended under the terms of a complete amnesty. Ironically, the emperor was represented at the negotiations by the Hungarian Count János Pálfi.

Some of the rebels laid down their arms, and the most irreconcilable went into exile. Rakoczi himself refused to accept these conditions and took refuge in Turkey. A period of peaceful development and conflict-free integration into the Habsburg Monarchy began in Hungary.

Revolution and agreement

At the end of the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century, the ideas of the Enlightenment and early liberalism began to penetrate into the country. This caused increased censorship and a rather suspicious attitude towards dissent throughout the Habsburg monarchy, but especially in Hungary - since in Vienna it was believed that it was always ready for a new uprising.

The bulk of the Hungarian provincial nobility was politically apathetic. But by the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, a narrow layer of educated nobles had formed in the country, who, being generally loyal to the House of Austria, actively participated in political life: both locally and in the State Assembly they argued about pressing social reforms, improving the well-being of the people, and the cultural development of the country and nation. Throughout the first half of the 19th century, they constantly discussed that in Western Europe the entrepreneurial class was growing rich and thanks to it industry, society and culture were developing, while in Hungary feudalism was flourishing and numerous obstacles prevented the development of industry and trade. In addition to the State Assembly, these issues were discussed in the so-called casinos - aristocratic clubs, where people came primarily to talk about politics, aristocratic salons and reading clubs, where metropolitan newspapers were sent. Among these people, liberal ideas that came from the West found fertile ground.

In March 1848, when unrest began to rise one after another in European capitals, news came to Vienna that in Pest people were also taking to the streets, demanding the introduction of bourgeois freedoms. In response to this, the Habsburgs, having no other choice, sanctioned almost all bourgeois reforms - by adopting the so-called April Laws. But soon the onslaught of counter-revolution began throughout Europe, and the Viennese court, having secured the support of the Russian Tsar, began to crack down on the revolution; the army began to restore order. The revolution in Hungary grew into a national liberation war, one of the culminating moments of which was the overthrow of the Habsburgs: the revolutionary government in exile formally severed the country's relations with the dynasty, which by that time had ruled Hungary for 300 years.

In the end, the revolution was suppressed, and the fighting revolutionary generals were executed. Historical differences in the administration of different territories of the Austrian Empire were abolished, all power was concentrated in Vienna, and local executive powers were transferred to government commissioners.

This continued until the early 1860s, and then constitutional experiments and the search for solutions that could suit all parties began again. In 1867, this process ended with an agreement: the Austrian Empire turned into the so-called dualistic Austro-Hungarian monarchy, divided into two parts: on the one hand, the lands of the Austrian imperial crown, on the other, the lands of the crown of St. Stephen (Hungary, reunited with Transylvania, and the Kingdom of Croatia and Slavonia “associated” with it). At the head of both parts there was still one emperor-king.

Within the framework of this dual state, the Hungarians received the maximum possible sovereignty, and the politically active part of society began to organize the Hungarian state.

Formation of a myth

In parallel with the construction of the state, there was an active study of national history, including the search for its national meaning.

Here we must remember that on the territory of Hungary there were many peoples who preserved their traditions and languages, and they all demanded for themselves almost the same thing that the Hungarians achieved from the Viennese court. But liberals of the 19th century believed that only large nations with their own state and political tradition had the right to sovereignty. In the Hungarian context, these were ethnic Magyars who claimed that they were the bearers of the most developed culture and language and that it was they who created the country and therefore are the guarantors of its free and fair structure and territorial unity. According to the law on nationalities, on the one hand, all subjects of the kingdom constituted a single political Hungarian nation, on the other, non-Magyar peoples could realize national aspirations (use of their native language, association in cultural and educational societies, etc. . p.), but without obtaining the rights of collective subjects - that is, they, for example, could not create an autonomous district on a national basis.

As a result, Hungarian historians formed such a construction.

The main goal of national history since 1526 has been to recreate the territorial unity of Hungary. In 1867 this goal was finally achieved. The main oppressor and strangler of Hungarian freedom was Vienna - since, having received territories and material and human resources, the court cared little about expelling the Ottomans. In fact, the Habsburgs were an even greater evil than the Ottomans. The main advocates of Hungarian freedom and Hungarian reunification were the Transylvanian princes with their anti-Habsburg campaigns. And the most important episode of this struggle was the War of Liberation under the leadership of Rakoczi.

Of course, this is a somewhat paradoxical situation: it was the Habsburgs who created such a spiritual and political climate that allowed the elite to blame them for all sins, while continuing to be an integral part of their state.

The image of the heroic movements that fought to realize the Hungary that only came into existence in 1867 was formed not only in scientific, but also in popular and fiction literature, and in the 1890s was also promoted as part of the Millennium celebrations - large-scale celebrations on the occasion of the thousandth anniversary of the arrival of the Magyar tribes in the Carpathian basin. It is interesting that politicians and scientists used to designate the Hungarians who occupied different sides in this struggle, the same names that were in use during the liberation campaigns: the fighters against Habsburg absolutism were called Kurucs (according to the most common version, this word comes from from crux- “cross”), and the servants of the Habsburgs - Labans, a word that had a contemptuous connotation. The Hungarian historian (as well as poet and politician) Kalman Tali, not so much from a lack of materials as from an excess of admiration for the heroes of the past, himself composed “songs of the Kurucs” and published them as sensational finds.

Which existed under the name "Imperial-Royal Army" from 1745 to 1804, from 1804 to November 14, 1868 under the name Army of the Austrian Empire, before the transformation of the Austrian Empire into the dualistic Austro-Hungarian Empire.

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  In addition, the company had three musicians and a carpenter. The total strength of the line company was 120-230 people, and the grenadier 112-140.

  In 1805, under the leadership of Karl Mack von Leiberich, a new organization was created, which included six battalions, each of four companies.

  Cavalry

  The cuirassier regiments of the Austrian Army wore almost identical white uniforms with red instrumentation (except for the Modena Regiment, which had blue instrumentation). The differences boiled down to the color of the buttons and their location on the sides of the uniforms and camisoles, which was completely hidden by the chest plate of the cuirass. The carabinieri, companies of which were in each cavalry regiment since 1715 (similar to the grenadiers in the infantry), differed only in their weapons, which consisted of a blunderbuss (instead of a carbine) and a long saber (instead of a broadsword).

  Fourteen dragoon regiments, according to the regulations of 1749, were required to have white uniforms with blue equipment. The regiment of Landgrave Ludwig of Hesse-Darmstadt is the only dragoon regiment that did not have lapels on its uniforms. The uniforms and camisoles of other regiments fully corresponded to the cut of the infantry regiments. The grenadiers of the dragoon regiments had the same differences as the infantry regiments. Horse ammunition in the Austrian army was the same for all, both dragoon and cuirassier regiments.

  The hussar regiments of the Austrian army have preserved their traditional uniform. The rule was that the dolman, collar, cuffs, and mantik in the regiment were the same color. Hussar trousers were the same color, except when the color was one of the shades of green. In the latter case they were red. The colors assigned to the regiments in 1768 lasted until the end of the 19th century.

  Artillery reform

  In 1807, Archduke Charles finally took away the regimental guns and battle guns from the infantry to form artillery regiments, except for the Border Guard regiments, which continued to have two light guns per battalion. A new artillery system that is able to concentrate units to form Grand Batteries (like the French). n

  If we compare the countries participating in the First World War from different military-political blocs, then a comparison of Austria-Hungary with the Russian Empire suggests itself. In some respects, the Ottoman Empire can be placed in the same camp. All three empires were great continental powers that united dozens of nationalities and were in need of socio-economic modernization. Like Russia, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were burdened with complex internal political problems, among which social and national issues stood out. However, if in Russian Empire the social issue was more acute, then in the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires the main problem was the national problem. In Austria-Hungary, the titular nations (German-Austrians and Hungarians) did not make up even half of the total population. The national question became a “mine” for Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, which crushed the two powers; only a “fuse” was needed, which was the First World War. External forces interested in the collapse of old empires actively used the national map to their advantage.

  The situation on the Balkan Peninsula played a major role in the national question in Austria-Hungary (as well as in Turkey). Greeks, Serbs, Montenegrins and Bulgarians gained independence and recreated states. This was a prerequisite for the development of corresponding trends in the territory of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. Russia had its own interests in the Balkans. The main stumbling block in the Balkans was Serbia. Russia and Serbia had a special relationship; the Serbs were closest to the Russians in their mentality. At the same time, the Serbian kingdom, which successfully withstood two Balkan wars of 1912-1913, created huge problems for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Serbian elite hatched plans to build a “Greater Serbia” at the expense of the Slavic possessions of Austria-Hungary (these plans were secretly supported by external forces hoping to set Europe on fire). In Serbia they hoped to unite all the South Slavic peoples.

  
  For the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the implementation of such plans was a disaster. In addition, Serbia was an economic competitor, undermining Hungarian agriculture. Belgrade's resolve was given by the support of St. Petersburg. All this irritated the Austro-Hungarian elite, most of whom were increasingly inclined to solve the problem by force. Many in Austria-Hungary wanted to start a preventive war, not wait for the South Slavic peoples to rise up, and defeat Serbia. Militarily, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was much stronger than Serbia, and if the war could be contained to one Balkan front, Vienna hoped to achieve rapid success. According to the Austro-Hungarian elite, this victory was supposed to eliminate the threat to the integrity of the empire and restore the position of leader in the Balkan region.

  Decline of the Empire. Army

  The traditional pillars of the House of Habsburg were the army and the bureaucracy. The army was the monarch's "favorite toy". However, the army gradually lost its former unity. The national composition of the “imperial and royal army” became more and more diverse. At the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, of the 102 infantry regiments in the army, 35 were Slavic, 12 German, 12 Hungarian, 3 Romanian, and the rest were of mixed composition. As separate types of ground forces, there were Austrian (Landwehr) and Hungarian (Honved) territorial armed formations, as well as militia (Landsturm), which were called up during general mobilization. By the beginning of the 20th century, 29% of the army personnel were Germans, 18% - Hungarians, 15% - Czechs, 10% - South Slavs, 9% - Poles, 8% - Rusyns, 5% - Slovaks and Romanians each, and 1% - Italians . At the same time, Germans and Hungarians predominated among the officers, and the Slavs were mainly Poles, Croats and Czechs, the rest were few.

  In the general imperial army there were “safeties” against friction between representatives of different nationalities. Thus, if in any regiment representatives of a particular nationality made up more than 20% of the unit’s personnel, their language was recognized as the regimental language and its knowledge (at the level necessary for normal service) was recognized as mandatory for officers and non-commissioned officers. The command language for all branches of the army, except for the Hungarian Honvéds, was German. Every soldier, not to mention officers, had to know German at least at the level of basic commands and military terms. German was also the official language of the army, correspondence was conducted in it, it was used by military courts, logistics and economic services, etc. The commander-in-chief of the armed forces was the emperor. In fact, initially the army in Austria-Hungary was a supranational structure based on “Germanness”. The main defender of this principle was the emperor. The separation of national units in the army led to general degradation and destruction of the empire's building.

  Soldiers of the 28th (Czech) Infantry Regiment

  By the beginning of the First World War, the processes of depriving the army of unity gradually gained momentum. The democratization of the army officer corps intensified this process. The aristocracy gradually lost its leading positions in the army and state apparatus. So, in 1880-1910. the share of majors in the imperial army who had a noble title decreased from 37.7% to 18.2%, lieutenant colonels - from 38.7% to 26.8%, colonels - from 46.7% to 27%. If in 1859 90% of the Austrian generals were nobles, then by the end of the First World War - only every fourth general. Although in general the military elite remained loyal to the throne, gradually nationalist and democratic sentiments penetrated the stronghold of the empire.

  This was especially evident after the 1914 campaign, when, after a series of unsuccessful battles that led to the massive death of army personnel and general mobilization at the front, the majority of the officer corps began to be represented by reservists - yesterday's teachers, lecturers, doctors, lawyers, shopkeepers, students and etc. By October 1, 1918, out of 188 thousand Austrian and Hungarian officers, only 35 thousand were career military officers. This led to a sharp increase in nationalist and democratic sentiments in the army. We can see a similar situation in the Russian Empire, where the death of the core of the regular army on the battlefields of the First World War predetermined the death of the empire and the fall of the House of Romanov. The army, instead of a stabilizing factor that stopped destructive trends, itself became a factor of general destabilization.

  The army was recruited by conscription. The conscription age in the general imperial army was 21 years. The service period was: a) for those conscripted into the general imperial army, 3 years of service, 7 years in the army reserve, 2 years in the Landwehr reserve, b) for those conscripted into the Landwehr, 2 years of service and 10 years in the Landwehr reserve. In numerical and qualitative terms, the Austro-Hungarian army was seriously inferior to the French, German and Russian armies. However, it clearly had an advantage over the armies of Italy, the Ottoman Empire and the Balkan states. In 1902, 31 infantry and 5 cavalry divisions were divided into 15 corps (mostly two infantry divisions each) dispersed throughout the empire. Thus, the 1st Corps was located in Krakow, the 2nd Corps in Vienna, the 3rd Corps in Graz, the 4th Corps in Budapest, etc.

  The size of the army in peacetime in 1905 was 20.5 thousand officers, about 337 thousand lower ranks with 65 thousand horses and 1048 guns. At that time, 3.7 million people were liable for military service, but only about a third had satisfactory military training. This was a weakness of the Austro-Hungarian army, which had a small trained reserve and was not prepared for a long war. For example, the German Empire already in 1905 had more than 4 million trained military personnel.

  The big problem was the technical supply of the army. The troops lacked new types. Budget expenditures on armies clearly did not correspond to the military-political situation in Europe and especially in the Balkans. Military expenditures of Austria-Hungary in 1906 amounted to 431 million German marks, France in the same year spent 940 million marks on military needs, Germany - about 1 billion marks, Russia - more than 1 billion marks.

  Until 1906, the armed forces were headed by Friedrich von Beck-Rzykowski. Beck was the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Austria-Hungary from 1881. Beck was informally called the “Vice Kaiser” under Franz Joseph in the field of defense policy, since he concentrated the leadership of the armed forces in the General Staff. Beck was a cautious figure who balanced between the progressive liberal movement and the conservative camp. The new head of the General Staff was Franz Conrad von Hötzendorff (Götzendorf), who was the soul of the “hawk party”. Hötzendorf played a big role in the fact that Austria-Hungary unleashed a great war in Europe. As the head of the “war party,” he advocated intensifying Vienna’s foreign policy, unleashing a preventive war with Serbia and Montenegro, and hegemony in Albania. Not trusting Italy (it was then part of the Triple Alliance), he called for strengthening the Austro-Italian border. Hötzendorf energetically developed and rearmed the army, strengthened the artillery (especially heavy artillery).

  

  Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Austria-Hungary in 1881-1906. Count Friedrich von Beck-Rzykowski
  

  

  
  Chief of the General Staff of the Austro-Hungarian troops on the eve and during the First World War Franz Conrad von Hötzendorff

  Hötzendorf was literally obsessed with a preventive war against Serbia or Italy, or better yet both. Once, during a conversation with Emperor Franz Joseph, in response to the warlike thoughts of the Chief of the General Staff, the monarch said that “Austria never started the war first” (obviously sinning against the historical truth), Conrad replied: “Alas, Your Majesty!” Thanks to the efforts of the Chief of the General Staff and heir to the throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, who was the Emperor’s deputy in the supreme command of the army (he also did not like the Serbs, but was opposed to preventive war, restraining the “hawks”), the all-imperial army in 1906-1914. made a big step forward in the field of technical equipment and combat training of troops. According to the law of 1912, the size of the regular army in wartime increased from 900 thousand people to 1.5 million soldiers and officers (not counting territorial armed formations, reserve units and Landsturm militia). Military spending increased noticeably, programs for the construction of new fortifications, the rearmament of the fleet and the development of combat aviation were approved.

  So, in 1907 they began to build a series of battleships of the Radetzky type. A total of 3 ships were built: “Archduke Franz Ferdinand” (1910). “Radetsky” and “Zriny” (both 1911). Total displacement 15845 tons, maximum length 138.8 m, beam 24.6 m, draft 8.2 m. Power of steam engines 19800 liters. s., speed 20.5 knots. Armor protection: belt 230-100 mm, anti-torpedo bulkhead 54 mm, main caliber turrets 250-60 mm, 240 mm turrets 200-50 mm, casemates 120 mm, deck 48 mm, wheelhouse 250-100 mm. Armament: twelve 305 mm and 150 mm guns, twenty 66 mm cannons, 4 torpedo tubes. In 1910, construction began on a series of new, more modern battleships: Viribus Unitis, Tegetthof (1913), Prinz Eugen (1914) and Szent Stephen (1915). Total displacement 21,595 tons, maximum length 152.2 m, beam 27.3 m, draft 8.9 m. Turbine power 27,000 l. s., speed 20.3 knots. Armor belt 280-150 mm, turret armor 280-60 mm, casemate 180 mm, deck 48-30 mm, arm 280-60 mm. Armament: twelve 305 mm and 150 mm guns, twenty 66 mm cannons, 4 torpedo tubes.

  

  
  Battleship "Radetzky", Austria-Hungary, 1911
  

  

  
  Battleship "Viribus Unitis", Austria-Hungary, 1912.

  It is worth noting another feature of the Austro-Hungarian army. The all-empire army had not fought for almost half a century. After defeat in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, the Austrians did not fight. The operation in Bosnia in 1878 was local in nature and did not add combat experience. The lack of combat experience and military victories could not but affect the moral and psychological state of the imperial army. It was not for nothing that Archduke Franz Ferdinand believed that, despite the overall impressiveness of the Austro-Hungarian army, it was incapable of prolonged combat with a strong enemy. Konrad von Hötzendorff thought differently. The heir to the throne and the Chief of the General Staff argued over this issue. As a result, the war showed that Franz Ferdinand's assessment was correct.

  The Austro-Hungarian army was good at parades, posed a threat to its neighbors, cemented the unity of the empire, but prolonged hostilities affected it in the most negative way. The Habsburg military had not fought or won for a long time, which affected their morale. The officers and soldiers of the all-empire army were not cowards, but the army, having forgotten the taste of victory, found itself at a disadvantage when confronted with the enemy. The weak point of the Austro-Hungarian army (as well as the Russian one) was the generals, who lacked the aggressiveness (activity), determination and initiative necessary for the military. The “peacetime” generals did not know how to fight.

  To be continued…