romikgosai/squad_modified_2 huggingface dataset:
The Prussian army was controlled by the General Staff, under Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke. The Prussian army was unique in Europe for having the only such organisation in existence, whose purpose in peacetime was to prepare the overall war strategy, and in wartime to direct operational movement and organise logistics and communications. The officers of the General Staff were hand-picked from the Prussian Kriegsakademie (War Academy). Moltke embraced new technology, particularly the railroad and telegraph, to coordinate and accelerate mobilisation of large forces.

Q1: What entity controlled the Prussian army?
A1: the General Staff
Q2: Who commanded the General Staff?
A2: Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke
Q3: What was the unique purpose of the Prussian Army during peacetime?
A3: to prepare the overall war strategy
Q4: The officers of the General Staff were hand-selected from which place?
A4: Prussian Kriegsakademie (War Academy)
Q5: What new technologies in particular were courted by Moltke?
A5: the railroad and telegraph
General Frossard's II Corps and Marshal Bazaine's III Corps crossed the German border on 2 August, and began to force the Prussian 40th Regiment of the 16th Infantry Division from the town of Saarbrücken with a series of direct attacks. The Chassepot rifle proved its worth against the Dreyse rifle, with French riflemen regularly outdistancing their Prussian counterparts in the skirmishing around Saarbrücken. However the Prussians resisted strongly, and the French suffered 86 casualties to the Prussian 83 casualties. Saarbrücken also proved to be a major obstacle in terms of logistics. Only one railway there led to the German hinterland but could be easily defended by a single force, and the only river systems in the region ran along the border instead of inland. While the French hailed the invasion as the first step towards the Rhineland and later Berlin, General Le Bœuf and Napoleon III were receiving alarming reports from foreign news sources of Prussian and Bavarian armies massing to the southeast in addition to the forces to the north and northeast.

Q1: On which date did Frossard's and Bazaines's troops cross the German border?
A1: 2 August
Q2: What proved its worth against the Dreyse rifle?
A2: The Chassepot rifle
Q3: Which regiment did their respective corps force from the town of Saarbrucken?
A3: the Prussian 40th Regiment of the 16th Infantry Division
Q4: How many casualties did the French suffer at Saarbrucken?
A4: 86 casualties
Q5: How many casualties did the Prussians suffer at Saarbrucken?
A5: 83 casualties
According to some historians, Bismarck adroitly created a diplomatic crisis over the succession to the Spanish throne, then edited a dispatch about a meeting between King William of Prussia and the French ambassador, to make it appear that the French had been insulted. The French press and parliament demanded a war, which the generals of Napoleon III assured him that France would win. Napoleon and his Prime Minister, Émile Ollivier, for their parts sought war to solve their problems with political disunity in France. On 16 July 1870, the French parliament voted to declare war on the German Kingdom of Prussia and hostilities began three days later. The German coalition mobilised its troops much more quickly than the French and rapidly invaded northeastern France. The German forces were superior in numbers, had better training and leadership and made more effective use of modern technology, particularly railroads and artillery.

Q1: A dispatch was edited about a meeting between the French ambassador and what Prussian king?
A1: King William
Q2: What was the purpose of editing the dispatch?
A2: to make it appear that the French had been insulted
Q3: On which date did the French parliament vote to declare war on Prussia?
A3: 16 July 1870
Q4: What diplomatic crisis was Bismarck credited with skillfully creating?
A4: succession to the Spanish throne
Q5: Where did the quickly mobilised troops first invade in France?
A5: northeastern France
The fighting within the town had become extremely intense, becoming a door to door battle of survival. Despite a never-ending attack of Prussian infantry, the soldiers of the 2nd Division kept to their positions. The people of the town of Wissembourg finally surrendered to the Germans. The French troops who did not surrender retreated westward, leaving behind 1,000 dead and wounded and another 1,000 prisoners and all of their remaining ammunition. The final attack by the Prussian troops also cost c. 1,000 casualties. The German cavalry then failed to pursue the French and lost touch with them. The attackers had an initial superiority of numbers, a broad deployment which made envelopment highly likely but the effectiveness of French Chassepot rifle-fire inflicted costly repulses on infantry attacks, until the French infantry had been extensively bombarded by the Prussian artillery.

Q1: Which town's people surrendered to the Germans?
A1: Wissembourg
Q2: In which direction did the French troops who did not surrender head?
A2: westward
Q3: How many dead troops leave behind?
A3: 1,000 dead
Q4: How many prisoners did the French leave behind?
A4: 1,000 prisoners
Q5: What weapon once again increased the effectiveness of the infantry attacks?
A5: French Chassepot
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War (German: Deutsch-Französischer Krieg, lit. German-French War, French: Guerre franco-allemande, lit. Franco-German War), often referred to in France as the War of 1870 (19 July 1870 – 10 May 1871), was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the German states of the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. The conflict was caused by Prussian ambitions to extend German unification. Some historians argue that the Prussian chancellor Otto von Bismarck planned to provoke a French attack in order to draw the southern German states—Baden, Württemberg, Bavaria and Hesse-Darmstadt—into an alliance with the North German Confederation dominated by Prussia, while others contend that Bismarck did not plan anything and merely exploited the circumstances as they unfolded.

Q1: What is the Franco-Prussian War also known as?
A1: Franco-German War
Q2: What was the war often referred to in France as?
A2: the War of 1870
Q3: In the conflict, who lead the German states of the North German Confederation?
A3: the Kingdom of Prussia
Q4: Whose ambitions are credited with causing the conflict?
A4: Prussian ambitions
Q5: Which Prussian chancellor's motives in the conflict are still disputed?
A5: Otto von Bismarck
The immediate cause of the war resided in the candidacy of a Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, a Prussian prince, to the throne of Spain. France feared encirclement by an alliance between Prussia and Spain. The Hohenzollern prince's candidacy was withdrawn under French diplomatic pressure, but Otto von Bismarck goaded the French into declaring war by altering a telegram sent by William I. Releasing the Ems Dispatch to the public, Bismarck made it sound as if the king had treated the French envoy in a demeaning fashion, which inflamed public opinion in France.

Q1: In whose cadidacy did the immediate cause of war reside?
A1: Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
Q2: What did France fear by an alliance between Prussia and Spain?
A2: encirclement
Q3: Who goaded the French into war by editing a telegram sent by William I?
A3: Otto von Bismarck
Q4: What was the name of the famous telelgram?
A4: Ems Dispatch
Q5: What was the reaction of the French people to the deceptively crafted offense in the Ems Dispatch?
A5: inflamed public opinion
The Battle of Wörth (also known as Fröschwiller or Reichshoffen) began when the two armies clashed again on 6 August near Wörth in the town of Fröschwiller, about 10 miles (16 km) from Wissembourg. The Crown Prince of Prussia's 3rd army had, on the quick reaction of his Chief of Staff General von Blumenthal, drawn reinforcements which brought its strength up to 140,000 troops. The French had been slowly reinforced and their force numbered only 35,000. Although badly outnumbered, the French defended their position just outside Fröschwiller. By afternoon, the Germans had suffered c. 10,500 killed or wounded and the French had lost a similar number of casualties and another c. 9,200 men taken prisoner, a loss of about 50%. The Germans captured Fröschwiller which sat on a hilltop in the centre of the French line. Having lost any hope for victory and facing a massacre, the French army disengaged and retreated in a westerly direction towards Bitche and Saverne, hoping to join French forces on the other side of the Vosges mountains. The German 3rd army did not pursue the French but remained in Alsace and moved slowly south, attacking and destroying the French garrisons in the vicinity.

Q1: What battle began when two armies collided in the town of Froschwiller?
A1: The Battle of Wörth
Q2: On what date did the Battle of Worth begin?
A2: 6 August
Q3: What was the estimated number of troops in Prussia's 3rd Army?
A3: 140,000 troops
Q4: What number of troops did France have to contend with?
A4: 35,000
Q5: Instead of pursuing the French as they retreated, the Germans decided to remain where?
A5: Alsace
In Prussia, some officials considered a war against France both inevitable and necessary to arouse German nationalism in those states that would allow the unification of a great German empire. This aim was epitomized by Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck's later statement: "I did not doubt that a Franco-German war must take place before the construction of a United Germany could be realised." Bismarck also knew that France should be the aggressor in the conflict to bring the southern German states to side with Prussia, hence giving Germans numerical superiority. Many Germans also viewed the French as the traditional destabilizer of Europe, and sought to weaken France to prevent further breaches of the peace.

Q1: In which country was a war against France condsidered desirable?
A1: Prussia
Q2: What was the overarching Prussian motive in starting a war with France?
A2: unification of a great German empire
Q3: Who had no doubts that a Franco-German war was totally necessary?
A3: Chancellor Otto von Bismarck
Q4: Who did Bismarck feel needed to be viewed as the aggressor in the conflict?
A4: France
Q5: In bringing the southern German states to align with Prussia, what tactical outcome was achieved?
A5: Germans numerical superiority
On 18 August, the battle began when at 08:00 Moltke ordered the First and Second Armies to advance against the French positions. By 12:00, General Manstein opened up the battle before the village of Amanvillers with artillery from the 25th Infantry Division. But the French had spent the night and early morning digging trenches and rifle pits while placing their artillery and their mitrailleuses in concealed positions. Finally aware of the Prussian advance, the French opened up a massive return fire against the mass of advancing Germans. The battle at first appeared to favor the French with their superior Chassepot rifle. However, the Prussian artillery was superior with the all-steel Krupp breech-loading gun. By 14:30, General Steinmetz, the commander of the First Army, unilaterally launched his VIII Corps across the Mance Ravine in which the Prussian infantry were soon pinned down by murderous rifle and mitrailleuse fire from the French positions. At 15:00, the massed guns of the VII and VIII Corps opened fire to support the attack. But by 16:00, with the attack in danger of stalling, Steinmetz ordered the VII Corps forward, followed by the 1st Cavalry Division.

Q1: On what date did the battle begin?
A1: 18 August
Q2: Who order the First and Second armies to advance against the French?
A2: Moltke
Q3: Which general opened the battle with artillery from the 25th Infantry Division?
A3: General Manstein
Q4: Who did the battle first appear to favor?
A4: the French
Q5: Who was the commander of the First Army?
A5: General Steinmetz
French infantry were equipped with the breech-loading Chassepot rifle, one of the most modern mass-produced firearms in the world at the time. With a rubber ring seal and a smaller bullet, the Chassepot had a maximum effective range of some 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) with a short reloading time. French tactics emphasised the defensive use of the Chassepot rifle in trench-warfare style fighting—the so-called feu de bataillon. The artillery was equipped with rifled, muzzle-loaded La Hitte guns. The army also possessed a precursor to the machine-gun: the mitrailleuse, which could unleash significant, concentrated firepower but nevertheless lacked range and was comparatively immobile, and thus prone to being easily overrun. The mitrailleuse was mounted on an artillery gun carriage and grouped in batteries in a similar fashion to cannon.

Q1: What modern, mass-produced weapon were the French infantry provided?
A1: Chassepot rifle
Q2: What was the maximum effective range of the Chassepot rifle?
A2: 1,500 metres (4,900 ft)
Q3: In which type of warfare did the French best utilize the Chassepot?
A3: trench-warfare
Q4: What precedent of the machine gun did the French troops also possess?
A4: the mitrailleuse
Q5: On what was the mitrailleuse mounted?
A5: on an artillery gun carriage
On 1 September 1870, the battle opened with the Army of Châlons, with 202 infantry battalions, 80 cavalry squadrons and 564 guns, attacking the surrounding Prussian Third and Meuse Armies totaling 222 infantry battalions, 186 cavalry squadrons and 774 guns. General De Wimpffen, the commander of the French V Corps in reserve, hoped to launch a combined infantry and cavalry attack against the Prussian XI Corps. But by 11:00, Prussian artillery took a toll on the French while more Prussian troops arrived on the battlefield. The French cavalry, commanded by General Marguerite, launched three desperate attacks on the nearby village of Floing where the Prussian XI Corps was concentrated. Marguerite was killed leading the very first charge and the two additional charges led to nothing but heavy losses. By the end of the day, with no hope of breaking out, Napoleon III called off the attacks. The French lost over 17,000 men, killed or wounded, with 21,000 captured. The Prussians reported their losses at 2,320 killed, 5,980 wounded and 700 captured or missing. By the next day, on 2 September, Napoleon III surrendered and was taken prisoner with 104,000 of his soldiers. It was an overwhelming victory for the Prussians, for they not only captured an entire French army, but the leader of France as well. The defeat of the French at Sedan had decided the war in Prussia's favour. One French army was now immobilised and besieged in the city of Metz, and no other forces stood on French ground to prevent a German invasion. Nevertheless, the war would continue.

Q1: On which date did the battle begin with the Army of Chalons attacking various Prussian divisions?
A1: 1 September 1870
Q2: Who commanded the French V Corps in reserve?
A2: General De Wimpffen
Q3: As the French were hard-hit by the Prussian artillery, what continued to show up to the battlefield?
A3: more Prussian troops
Q4: Which commander of the French calvary led three desperate attacks on Floing?
A4: General Marguerite
Q5: How many casualties did the French suffer?
A5: over 17,000 men
A pre-war plan laid out by the late Marshal Niel called for a strong French offensive from Thionville towards Trier and into the Prussian Rhineland. This plan was discarded in favour of a defensive plan by Generals Charles Frossard and Bartélemy Lebrun, which called for the Army of the Rhine to remain in a defensive posture near the German border and repel any Prussian offensive. As Austria along with Bavaria, Württemberg and Baden were expected to join in a revenge war against Prussia, I Corps would invade the Bavarian Palatinate and proceed to "free" the South German states in concert with Austro-Hungarian forces. VI Corps would reinforce either army as needed.

Q1: Pre-war, who planned for a strong French offensive?
A1: Marshal Niel
Q2: From Thionville towards Trier, what was the final destination of the offensive?
A2: the Prussian Rhineland
Q3: Niel's plan was cast aside in favour of a plan by General Frossard and what other general??
A3: Bartélemy Lebrun
Q4: The new plan called for which army to remain in a defensive grouping at the German border?
A4: Army of the Rhine
On the French side, planning after the disaster at Wissembourg had become essential. General Le Bœuf, flushed with anger, was intent upon going on the offensive over the Saar and countering their loss. However, planning for the next encounter was more based upon the reality of unfolding events rather than emotion or pride, as Intendant General Wolff told him and his staff that supply beyond the Saar would be impossible. Therefore, the armies of France would take up a defensive position that would protect against every possible attack point, but also left the armies unable to support each other.

Q1: Which disaster made French planning supremely essential?
A1: the disaster at Wissembourg
Q2: Which general was determined to go on the attack over Saar?
A2: General Le Bœuf
Q3: Planning for the next battle was less based on emotion and more focused on what?
A3: the reality of unfolding events
Q4: Who told LeBoeuf that supply beyond the Saar would be impossible?
A4: General Wolff
Q5: What did the French armies decide on to protect against every possible attack point?
A5: a defensive position
Following the Army of the Loire's defeats, Gambetta turned to General Faidherbe's Army of the North. The army had achieved several small victories at towns such as Ham, La Hallue, and Amiens and was protected by the belt of fortresses in northern France, allowing Faidherbe's men to launch quick attacks against isolated Prussian units, then retreat behind the fortresses. Despite access to the armaments factories of Lille, the Army of the North suffered from severe supply difficulties, which depressed morale. In January 1871, Gambetta forced Faidherbe to march his army beyond the fortresses and engage the Prussians in open battle. The army was severely weakened by low morale, supply problems, the terrible winter weather and low troop quality, whilst general Faidherbe was unable to command due to his poor health, the result of decades of campaigning in West Africa. At the Battle of St. Quentin, the Army of the North suffered a crushing defeat and was scattered, releasing thousands of Prussian soldiers to be relocated to the East.

Q1: What army's defeats turned Gambetta to the Army of the North?
A1: Army of the Loire's
Q2: Who led the Army of the North?
A2: General Faidherbe
Q3: Several smaller victories were acheived by the protection of what?
A3: belt of fortresses
Q4: The belt of fortresses were in what area of France?
A4: northern France
Q5: This position in the north allowed whose men to launch fast attacks against Prussian units?
A5: Faidherbe's
Despite odds of four to one, the III Corps launched a risky attack. The French were routed and the III Corps captured Vionville, blocking any further escape attempts to the west. Once blocked from retreat, the French in the fortress of Metz had no choice but to engage in a fight that would see the last major cavalry engagement in Western Europe. The battle soon erupted, and III Corps was shattered by incessant cavalry charges, losing over half its soldiers. The German Official History recorded 15,780 casualties and French casualties of 13,761 men.

Q1: What odds were at stake for the attack launched by the III Corps?
A1: four to one
Q2: What town were the III Corps able to capture?
A2: Vionville
Q3: In capturing Vionville, what was further blocked in the west?
A3: escape attempts
Q4: With battle at Metz, what factor shattered the efforts of III Corps?
A4: incessant cavalry charges
Q5: The Germans recorded how many causualties in the battle?
A5: 15,780
With the defeat of the First Army, Prince Frederick Charles ordered a massed artillery attack against Canrobert's position at St. Privat to prevent the Guards attack from failing too. At 19:00 the 3rd Division of Fransecky's II Corps of the Second Army advanced across Ravine while the XII Corps cleared out the nearby town of Roncourt and with the survivors of the 1st Guards Infantry Division launched a fresh attack against the ruins of St. Privat. At 20:00, the arrival of the Prussian 4th Infantry Division of the II Corps and with the Prussian right flank on Mance Ravine, the line stabilised. By then, the Prussians of the 1st Guards Infantry Division and the XII and II Corps captured St. Privat forcing the decimated French forces to withdraw. With the Prussians exhausted from the fighting, the French were now able to mount a counter-attack. General Bourbaki, however, refused to commit the reserves of the French Old Guard to the battle because, by that time, he considered the overall situation a 'defeat'. By 22:00, firing largely died down across the battlefield for the night. The next morning, the French Army of the Rhine, rather than resume the battle with an attack of its own against the battle-weary German armies, retreated to Metz where they were besieged and forced to surrender two months later.

Q1: Which prince ordered an artillery attack against Canrobert?
A1: Prince Frederick Charles
Q2: Which army's defeat compelled Prince Charles to attack?
A2: defeat of the First Army,
Q3: As the Second Army pushed into Ravine, the XII Corps cleared out which adjacent town?
A3: Roncourt
Q4: The surving soldiers of the 1st Guards Infantry Division launched a new attack against what?
A4: ruins of St. Privat
Q5: Which army was forced to retreat to Metz and surrender two months later?
A5: French Army of the Rhine
When the war began, the French government ordered a blockade of the North German coasts, which the small North German navy (Norddeutsche Bundesmarine) with only five ironclads could do little to oppose. For most of the war, the three largest German ironclads were out of service with engine troubles; only the turret ship SMS Arminius was available to conduct operations. By the time engine repairs had been completed, the French fleet had already departed. The blockade proved only partially successful due to crucial oversights by the planners in Paris. Reservists that were supposed to be at the ready in case of war, were working in the Newfoundland fisheries or in Scotland. Only part of the 470-ship French Navy put to sea on 24 July. Before long, the French navy ran short of coal, needing 200 short tons (180 t) per day and having a bunker capacity in the fleet of only 250 short tons (230 t). A blockade of Wilhelmshaven failed and conflicting orders about operations in the Baltic Sea or a return to France, made the French naval efforts futile. Spotting a blockade-runner became unwelcome because of the question du charbon; pursuit of Prussian ships quickly depleted the coal reserves of the French ships.

Q1: A blockade of what coastline was ordered by the French government at the start of the war?
A1: North German coasts
Q2: The small North German navy had how many ironclads at their disposal?
A2: only five
Q3: What was the name of the only turret ship that was able to conduct operations?
A3: SMS Arminius
Q4: How many ships was the French navy able to dispatch to sea?
A4: 470
Q5: In pursuing Prussian ships, what resource was quickly depleted?
A5: coal reserves