Prussia
The landwehr in Prussia was first formed by a royal edict of 17 March 1813, which called up all men capable of bearing arms between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, and not serving in the regular army, for the defence of the country. After the peace of 1815 this force was made an integral part of the Prussian army, each brigade being composed of one line and one landwehr regiment. This, however, retarded the mobilization and diminished the value of the first line, and by the re-organization of 1859 the landwehr troops were relegated to the second line.
Read more about this topic: Landwehr
Famous quotes containing the word prussia:
“It is reported here that the King of Prussia has gone mad and has been locked up. There would be nothing bad about that: at least that might of his would no longer be a menace, and you could breathe freely for a while. I much prefer madmen who are locked up to those who are not.”
—Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl Chesterfield (1694–1773)
““Austria the shield and Prussia the sword!” Too bad that they are attached to the wrong arm: The right one holds the defiantly glistening shield, and the left one is supposed to wield the sword.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)