Adliger Stand und militärischer Rang. Konflikt- muster hochadliger Offiziere in der brandenburgisch- preußischen Armee (1713–1786)

Abstract

Abstract During the 18th century, the officers of the European standing armies were usually of noble origin. The requirements the army had towards the officers conflicted with their own self understanding. It was requirement of them to leave their »lone soldier « attitude behind and subordinate into a hierarchically system. The officer corps of the early modern times were dominated by nobles and the aforementioned conflicts had an impact of different intensity on the relation between the point d’honneur and the requirements of the military service. As for the Prussian example, it was assumed that this conflict between noble origin and military rank was less virulent than in the French army. Reason for that believe was mainly that the majority of the Prussian officers originated from the gentry. It was also assumed that the monarch was able to impose a better discipline among his officers. One group of officers, members of the high nobility, has been completely ignored so far. That comes as a surprise given the fact that they accounted for 10 percent of all generals. Those princes had a protestantic background, served in the army for several reasons and were preferentially promoted. Their service in the army did not come without potential conflicts which required the monarch to compromise and using different strategies to solve them.