It is stated in our late English telegrams that Prince Arthur had delivered a very successful lecture, in the military town of Dover, on the Kriespiel, or German war-game.
The following description of this intricate military game is from the Pall Mall Gazette: It is somewhat remarkable that this game, or rather method of instruction, which has been in use in Germany for many years, has not only never been introduced, but has been until recently almost unknown in England. It was first invented by a Prussian gentleman who was interested in the study of campaigns, and who found that the best method of acquiring knowledge of the movement of troops was to imitate them on the map by means of moveable blocks. He then endeavored to work out problems of evolutions, laying down rules for the guidance of sham armies. His son, a Prussian officer, seized upon the idea and enlarged upon it, until the game became an imitation of war fought by small blocks, made according to scale to represent battalions, companies, regiments of cavalry, squadrons, batteries, pontoon trains and even skirmishers and patrols. The game soon became popular among Prussian officers, and was used in the war schools as one of the principal me as of instruction in strategy and tactics. General Eyrye, hearing of its merits from General Von Blumenthal, sent for the necessary apparatus from Germany, and brought it before the notice of the War Office. Here, however, an instructor in the mimic war was required, and Major Boerdans [Roerdans?], the military attaché of the German Embassy, kindly volunteered to explain it. On December 22, at the United Service Institution, before a large audience comprising many distinguished military and naval officers, he again exhibited the game, and rules, which are somewhat complicated, but pointed out in a masterly manor the uses to which it might be turned. . He showed how necessary is instruction in tactics, and how few officers ever hive opportunities of their simplest rules beyond the evolutions of the drill book. At the same time he pointed - out how much might be acquired by learning to move troops over carefully executed maps. The war-game aims at affording this instruction.
The apparatus' necessary are maps prepared on a scale of 6in. or 8in. to a mile, carefully contoured and distinctly colored, together with boxes of metal blocks to represent the opposing armies, also every arm of the service, and made of sizes on a scale proportioned to that of the map. This may be considered to be the materiel of the game.
The personnel consist of at least six officers -vis., a general of each army, an officer to command the advanced troops on either side, and above all an umpire and his aide-de-camp. These officers must not only be well acquainted with the rules of the game, but must-be able to read maps, and must understand thoroughly the principles of commanding and maneuvering troops. The umpire, above all, should be an officer well instructed in every branch of the service and of a decided character.
The method of playing is as follows: The map to represent the theatre of war, possibly 15 or 20 miles square, firmly stretched on blocks, is placed on a table. It is first carefully studied by the players, who may also avail themselves of private maps for reference, Short general directions are given by the umpire, stating the purpose of the campaign, together with private orders giving broad directions for each of the opposed generals. The troops represented by the red and blue blocks, numbering perhaps 10,000 men on either side, are handed over to the players, who place them separately on the board in the positions indicated by the umpire as the localities from which the armies are to commence the campaign. The first practice, therefore, is the arrangement of the outposts and of the bivouac. Neither player sees his opponent's army, excepting as far as he can ascertain its disposition by pushing forward patrols and advanced guards. The umpire alone sees the whole disposition of the forces. The time of year is settled upon, as on it various conditions of the tactics, such as the length of the day, the state of the roads, etc. depend.
Each player move in turn, the adversary leaving the room until the move or moves are completed, and the portion of the map occupied by the troops out of sight of his patrols is covered up. The moves represent the space over which artillery, cavalry, aid infantry can march at the various paces of each arm in a give time - i.e. two minutes. The orders issued to the officer or officers of detached portions of the armies - say, the advanced guard, must be given precisely by the general, who can only convey his order by aid-de-camps moving over the map at a fixed rate of speed. As the armies approach each other, and the troops come under fire, a new phase of the game develops itself - The losses have to be estimated, and these are calculated by carefully prepared tables, the various circumstances, such as troops being covered by entrenchments, or a wrong estimate distance at which fire is opened being taken into consideration. The element of chance, or rather of conditions which are not governed by rules, is imitated by employing dice, The chances for or against the particular regiment, squadron, or battery, being taken from the tables, and then settled by lot. Thus the action gradually develops itself as each portion of the army comes on the battle field, and it is decided, as in real battle, by the success or defeat of various detachments. The more the game is made to represent real service, the more instructive and interesting it becomes. It must be played under the rules of strict discipline, and the decision of the umpire must be regarded as unimpeachable.
The Kreigspiel is not only used in the war schools, but it is the amusement of Generals Von Moltke, Von Blumenthal. and Prince Frederick Charles, and other officers whom the last great European wars have brought prominently forward. As Major Roerdans [Boerdans?] pointed out, it is not suited for young officers, but in the hands of instructed soldiers becomes a means of acquiring knowledge which no other method affords. The very questions which arise during the game lead up to discussions on the most difficult of military problems, and direct the attention of officers to the details of their profession. General Napier, who took the chair at the meeting, stated that our War Office was preparing the necessary apparatus suited for the tactical formation of English troops, and hoped soon to introduce the game generally into our army, commencing with the Staff College at Sandhurst. Should it prove as useful in England as it has been in Germany, our officers will owe a debt of gratitude to Major Boerdans for so carefully explaining its rules and illustrating its practical working by means of so instructive a lecture as that which he delivered at the United Service Hotel.
Source: Queanbeyan Age 23 May 1872
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