レルヒによる高田でのスキー講習開催までの経緯

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the historical currents and background, both in Austria-Hungary and Japan, that relate most directly to the specific conditions that allowed Major Theodore von Lerch to start conducting the first ski lessons for the Takada Division in 1911. The historical materials used here are the official documents preserved at the General Staff Office in Vienna with additional materials also accessed from archives in Japan. The results of this study can be summarized as follows:When Austria-Hungary notified the Department of the Army in Japan of von Lerch's arrival in Japan in the summer of 1910, they asked the Quartermaster from the Department of the Army to find skis and ski books in preparation for ski lessons. Within a month, the Quartermaster planned the ski lessons and submitted the plans to the Department of the Army in November.von Lerch notified the Department of the Army of his intention of being attached by official order to the particular army division for training where he would be able to ski early in December. Putz from the Austria-Hungary Embassy applied to the Department of the Army regarding the set permission to hold the ski lesson on the 10th of December.The Department of the Army discussed hosting von Lerch's ski lessons based on this situation as of the 12th of December, and this plan was approved, endorsed and then forwarded to the Takada Division by the 17th of December.The Takada Division obtained notice from the Ministry of the Army after the 18th, upon which the Takada Division implemented its own rules and regulations for the study of skiing, governing the conduct of training for the soldiers who would participate.The divisional commander, Gaishi Nagaoka, then ordered the start of official ski training in accordance with the rules and regulations that had been posted on the 27th, but upon von Lerch's arrival this had not yet begun.