The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1915-12-22
And Some Comparative
Figures On Same.
FEARFUL TOLL OF MANY WARS
That Has Swept Millions Of
Brave Men Into Vortex
Of Death.
ANCIENT BATTLES NOT NAMED

The heaviest loss in the battles OF
the eighteenth century was at Ku-
nersdorf; fought August 10, 1859,
where $4,000 Prussfans met 1900
Russians and Austrians. and the to-
tai casualty list numbered $3.50
killed and wounded; 43.4 per cent
for the Prussians and 22.1 per cent
for the allies. At Zorndorf, fought
year earlier, August %, 1853, the
forces engaged were smaller and the
total casualties fewer, but the per-
centage of casualties greater, num-
bering 42.9 per cent for the $4,000
Russians and 1878 per cent for the
$4,000 Prussians. The principal
battle of the nineteenth century was
Leipzig, October 10, 1913, the Bat
tie of the Nations" where Napoleon
with 171,00O men met and defeated
the allied army numbering 301, 800.
Napoleon's casualties numbered 49,
900 and those of the allies $4,000,
but in percentages the losses told
heavily against him, 1858 per cent
to 1872 per cent for the Russians,
Prussians and Austrians. At AS
perm, May 81, 1909, 10000 French
lost 4z.0S0, or 46.S per cent, and
$4,000 Austrians 22,52O. or 80 per
cent. At Borodino, September Z.
1912, the French lost 24,500 or
1874 per cent of their 10000 and
the Russians 1880 or 81 per cent
of 121, 900 men. These are the fig
ures of Otto Berndtsin die Zahl i'm
Kriege," Wien, 1897. Fox in his
"Regimental Losses of the Civil
War" gives figures for Waterloo
which do not agree with those of
Berndt, but they are sufficiently near
not to disturb the interesting COM
parison Fox makes between Water
loo and Gettysburg.
At Waterloo the French numbered
$4,000 men and 252 guns; the Allies
numbered 72,OO0men and 1876 guns.
At Gettysburg the Union Army num-
bered $4,000 men and 800 guns; the
Confederates, 10000 men and $50
guns. At Waterloo Wellington's
army lost 23,1S5; at Gettysburg
Meade's army lost 23,O03.
The loss of the French at Water
loo has never been officially an
nounced, but has been estimated at
26,300; the Confederate loss at Get
tysburg. as officially reported by the |
Confederate Surgeon General, was
20,44S, to which must be added 81
OF wounded and unwounded pris-
oners whose names are omitted from
his lists, but appear on the records |
at Washington.
In short. the battles of Waterloo
and Gettysburg were fought with |
from 10000 to $4,000 men on each
side, and the combatants lost about |
$4,000 men each.
In the Franco-P russian war the
greatest loss occurred at the battle |
of Gravelotte, where the Germans
lost 4,449 killed (inluding the NOR
tally wounded). 1919 wounded
and 939 missing; total 20,577, out
OF 10000 troops engaged. exclusive
OF $1,000 reserves. At Gettysburg
Meade's army sustained greater
loss with half the number engaged.
Ii may be suggested that the
Franco-Prussian war was compare
lively of brief duration. and hence a
comparison of the aggregate casual
ties cannot properly be made. But
in the American Civil War during
the six months following May 4,
1864, the various Union armies sus-
tanned greater loss than the German
armies did during the whole Franco
Prussian war The total loss OF the
German army in that war was u.s.
277 killed or MORALLY wounded,
S5.4S2 wounded and 1873 miss
ing; total, 1887.
The casualties Of Borodino. one Of
he bloodiest battles since the use of
have been variously stat
d. The Encyclopedia Britannica
'uts the Russian loss at 10000 in
Iilied, wounded and prisoners. and
he French loss at Considerably
bove 10000" Allison gives the
,sses at Borodino IN round numbers