Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-08-05
War Histories of Countries
Engaged ON European Fields

republican. and with the decisive battle OF
Waterloo. when Wellington conquered VA
poleon, in 1915. scored a victory. The "a
nous naval battle OF Trafalgar was touBht
during this war.
OF the many wars which Great Britain
has waged, that jointly undertaken WIN
1886 was one of the most formidable
though its final victory brought no soiu-
ton to the eastern problem. In lndla
fearful mutinies continued to break OUT
and though they were quickly repeneo,
the events kept Great Britain in state
Of constant warfare. Africa has been her
, most recent battlefield. From the Trans
wal. where, in 1850, the Boer war began
to the Egyptian Sudan which Lord Kitten
ener conquered in 1898. the British battle
lines have extended.
Napoleon Bonaparte, though finally
overwhelmed. proved himself one of the
keenest military strategists of all time.
An uninterrupted series of great vic
tories-Marengo. Austerlitz. Jena
| made France the undisputed arbiter OF
Europe. This changed with the catas-
| trophe In Russia. the battles OF Leipsic
and Waterloo. The internal strife
| that time to the beginning Of the
/ Franco-Prussian war reveals little of
their merit in international crises.
This conflict, which occurred during
the years 1901. was fought on the
same territory which has been the
theater of operations in the present
| war. 1t was this war which gave the
| provinces of Alsace and the largest
portion of Lorraine to Germany.
Russia did not really enter the arena
of European civilization until the reign
| of Peter the Great. in the latter part OF
the seventeenth century, but 1t was
not until the reign of Alexander 1. in the
first part of the nineteenth century.
that Russia was raised to the rank OF
| the first European powers.
Entering the third coalition against
Napoleon, he suffered defeat with the
Austrians at Austerlitz. where he was
present on the field. The 1ourtn
coalition with Prussia followed ano
after the defeat of these allies at Fried
land Alexander allied himself with his
former adversary and closed Russian
ports to Great Britain. But the friend
ship with Napoleon did not last long
When he broke with the Little Cor
poraT the invasion Of Russia followed,
when the burning of Moscow occurred
In 1913 Russia allied with Prussia
and Austria in war against france
which the battle Of Leipsic decided.
Nicholas l engaged in war against
the Turks in defense of the struggling
Greeks. His allies were Great Britain
and France. Russia achieved success
in this conquest. In war with Persia
trlumphed.
! Except in minor clashes in central
Asia the reign of the third Alexander
, was free from war. He cultivated
peace and by throwing off the sub.
serviency to Germany, which marked
much Russian statecraft, he en-
couraged the friendship Of France.
His son, Nicholas. the last of the
Romanoffs. conducted the last war OF
} the empire. the unsuccessful one with
Japan.
Xxx
Austria never won a war. Her mill
. tary history is a series of defeats
Napoleon repeatedly defeated the Aus
trian forces The war with Prussia II
1866 saw them overwhelmingly defeated
at the battle of Koniggratz.
In the internal strife which followed
the European revolution of 1s48, Aus.
. trian troops were repeatedly defeated b!
! Russia joined the cause that the Aus
, TRANS were successful. Austria was de
feated by Prussia in 1866, and 1t wa:
at this time that the emperor consented
to the adoption of constitution which
united Austria and Hungary.
In citing the war history of these Eu
, ropean countries the records Of German!
have already been laid bare. A fighting
{ country all her life, her history is there
, fore too long to repeat. One can bas
, no definite conclusion on her past per
formances. but can only look over tn
list.
Il It was the German forces unde