[LoGH] So who's this "seekt" guy?
JC (jcollis@wam.umd.edu)
Wed, 18 Apr 2001 13:41:26 -0400 (EDT)
Glad you asked.
The following comes from my notes for History 225 at the University of
Maryland (Modern Military History after 1860) Lecture #21.
1920: Hans von Seekt
-Chief of staff of the German army from WWI until 1920
1920-1926: Head of the German Army during the Reichswehr
-Emphasized maneuverability and mobility over firepower in warfare
-Believed in the skill of personell being greater than machines
-Spends more money on the army than any other great power at the time
-Imposed a ruthless merit system for officers
Officers under Seekt:
-1920: All officers must have gone to university
-1 year of officer's cadet training was increased to a 3.5 year officer
school
-Training in officer's school was thorough and technical
-Officers were also encouraged to spend a year studying engineering and
economics in civilian universities
-Officers were also sent to other countries to learn about new
developments.
-Officers had high social status at this time (as did all soldiers)
-They were also the highest paid officers in all of Europe
Seekt's army performed intensive formation training
-great attention was paid to basic level training
-perry and thrust became the standard basic maneuver
-Seekt's general staff was made to think critically about warfare
-400 people on his general staff did R&D and writing about war
-Because of this they were able to build on what they did before and
during WWI
-Devolution of control occured, and NCO's and lower officers were made to
be competent and take initiative.
Seekt's army tested new theories in full scale exercises
-They were the only army in Europe at this time to do so.
-The Germans learned that horses in cavalry when the rest of the army is
mechanized doesn't work.
-Cavalry takes the initiative and mechanizes itself.
Seekt believes in mobile warfare.
-Superiority of maneuverability (sp?) over firepower
-War of movement
Empahsis on jointness
-Air power was seen to be a multiplier of force rather than a threat.
-Unlike the UK and France there was little interservice rivalry
1926: Seekt leaves the army.
Hope this helps explain something.
--jc
