Working out like a prussian – Gymnastics in the german imperial Army before and in World War I

This article sheds light on sport, or more precisely gymnastics, in the Imperial Army and how it was mainly practiced by soldiers before the First World War. You can also download the service regulations here. If you would like to watch the exercises in moving images, you can do so in the video here:

Sources on gymnastics

Gymnastics was reflected in various written works. On the one hand, there were manuals for (prospective) recruits, such as “Das Handbuch der Kavallerie” from 1911 or “Drei Jahre im Sattel” from 1905. There have been numerous editions of these over the years and they were published privately, although the authors were long-serving army officers.

There were also official army documents on gymnastics and physical training, such as service regulations entitled “Gymnastics regulations for the infantry” or “Gymnastics regulations for the cavalry”. These evolved over time and were generally adapted to reflect new findings and ideologies. Although differences can be found between the various editions, the core ideas and ideals remained the same. Especially between the turn of the century and the outbreak of war, the development of weapons, tactics and uniforms was turbulent, so that various changes were inevitable. During the war itself, there was another far greater transformation, which will not be discussed here, but will be the subject of further blog posts in the future.

The book “Reiterdienst” from 1910, for example, shows the conflicts between traditions and the requirements of modern warfare. Many infantry and cavalry exercises were similar, but the cavalry still had special horse-related exercises.

The service regulations and rules were of great importance overall, as they not only regulated the training and conduct of the soldiers, but also translated the content of abstract laws and court decisions into applicable rules. This is not a German or Prussian peculiarity or even tradition, but quite simply necessary tools to regulate such a large and complex organization as an army or authority.This type of regulation can also be found in other armies and states.

In addition to the official regulations, there were many private individuals with connections to the army, often many (former) officers, who published their own material. This was often an addendum to the regulations, with many things being presented more concisely. This additional material was often supported by the army and the relevant authorities. The manuals were not only used in the army, but also in the private sector. These handbooks were often gifts from the family to young recruits to give them a first insight into the upcoming compulsory military service.

Now back to the content of the books: what were the aims of these regulations and how were they applied in practice?

The most obvious aims of gymnastics were to keep the soldiers fit and to teach them discipline. (See more detailed: Nicolas Schillinger: Chinesisch-preußische Körperschmiede – Die deutsche Militärgymnastik und ihre Adaption im Qing-Reich um die Jahrhundertwende, in: Body Politics 8 (2020), Heft 12, S. 187–213, bes. S. 189-198.) Gymnastics was an important part of basic training to build up strength and endurance. It was the officer’s duty to get and keep the recruits fit. Training took place in the barracks yard, in the barracks or in the gymnasium, if one was available.

We will now take a closer look at the 1912 cavalry gymnastics regulations, proceeding chapter by chapter to give us an impression of these specific regulations. Some gymnastic exercises are also described here so that they are easy to imitate.

The structure of the service regulations and gymnastics exercises

The first chapter begins with general comments on why exactly the gymnastics training was carried out. The reasons given were: Increasing “strength, agility, body control and good posture, courage, self-confidence and willingness to make sacrifices” (cf. Gymnastics regulations for mounted troops dated October 17, 1912, p.1). The teams were to be taught “desire and love for the cause” and a “healthy ambition was to be aroused” (ibid.). The officer should therefore know what he is doing, so “for this purpose […] the military gymnastics organization should train younger, particularly talented officers, whose use as teachers in the units is likely for several years”. (Gymnastics regulations for the mounted troops dated October 17, 1912, pp. 1-2)

Overall, it was recommended that the gymnastics sessions be held regularly, both for the non-commissioned officers and for the gymnasts. These were to be organized by the senior officers. In winter, there should be more lessons in gymnastics and fencing for lieutenants and first lieutenants.

NCOs and senior gymnasts were to set an example. They were therefore allowed to take part in training sessions run by competent clubs of the German Gymnastics Federation (DTB). The exercises were to be varied, interesting and, if the soldiers behaved well, without hard drills. Overall, the exercises should involve the whole body and become progressively more difficult.

Gymnastic exercises were held throughout the service, while special games were good for agility. Running, on the other hand, was considered good for the lungs. To start off easy, recruits began in the second gymnastics class. Once they had improved their skills and met all the requirements, the recruits were moved to the second class of gymnastics.

Either competitions were to be held or the officers were to be present at the games in order to have a beneficial effect on development. After duty hours it was allowed to do some gymnastic exercises, but it became compulsory if the supervising officer had set a time and the superior was present. Anyone who was ill was to be sent to the doctor and possibly excused from some exercises.

Any suit could be worn for gymnastics, from the drillich suit to the cloth uniform. In the meantime, there were plans to introduce the Litewken as a gymnastics jacket, but this was made obsolete by the Drillich. If the normal cloth uniform was worn for gymnastics, it was permitted to open the hooks on the collar and the bottom three buttons.

After the regulations, the second chapter dealt with calisthenics. These could be performed with or without commands. These exercises were also warm-up exercises. These were the basis for all further gymnastic exercises.

Gymnastics exercises

Arm stretches:

Command: Arms forward (upwards, sideways) – Stretch!

Arms down – stretch!

The upper arms are placed against the upper body and the lower arms are bent against them so that the hands touch the shoulders. The muscles of the upper arm are very tense. On command, the arms are moved quickly and jerkily in the direction indicated without the upper body moving. The arms should remain shoulder-width apart from when moving sideways.

Torso bends:

Command: Bend your trunk forward (backward)! – Stretch!

Here, first the head and then the upper body with loose neck and back vertebrae should be slowly bent to such an extent that it is possible without loosening the bent knees. Regular breathing in the bent posture should prevent the rush of blood to the head. When stretching, on the other hand, first the torso and then the head is slowly straightened.

Squats and stretches:

Command: Knees – bend! – Stretch!

The aim of this exercise was to slowly bend the knees to a right angle and keep the heels on during this movement. Return to the starting position by evenly stretching the knees and lowering the heels.

The games

Now that we have looked at the gymnastics, some of which correspond to current exercises, let’s take a look at the games.

One of the games was the relay race, whereby the distances and number of people could vary. A stick was used as a baton, which had to be passed each time. Catch is also one of the games, which could be played with around 10-15 men per side. Tug of war was another game that was an Olympic event from 1900-1920.

Probably the best known of these games was soccer. It was to become very popular behind the lines during the war and slowly replace gymnastics. The reasons for this will be explored in a separate article. But here lies the origin of soccer’s popularity in Germany, which is still so great today.

The last part

The last part of the regulation contains exercises for telegraph operators. It was important to carry them out safely, silently and quickly. The main focus was on overcoming obstacles of all kinds and difficult terrain. The main focus was on

• A Balance exercises
• B Climbing and scrambling

 We will go into these exercises in more detail another time.

Conclusion

To summarize, many of the exercises seem quite modern and are still performed in the same way today. Probably different in intensity and of course with different clothing, but still the same. The games, such as tag and especially soccer, are also interesting. During the war, there was a shift from gymnastics and gymnastics to soccer as a preferred sport, but we will deal with this in another article.

The regulations were very important and we will come across them in many other articles, as they were instructions for teaching content, procedures, planning, etc. in order to be able to organize the army properly.

Sources

von Bernhardi: Reiterdienst. Kritische Betrachtungen über Kriegstätigkeit, Taktik, Ausbildung und Organisation der Kavallerie, Berlin 1910.

Turnvorschrift für die berittenen Truppen vom 17. Oktober 1912, Berlin 1912.

Turnvorschrift für die Infanterie vom 28. Oktober 1895, Berlin 1895.

Eisenhart-Rothe/Schauwecker: So war die alte Armee, Berlin 1935.

Michael Krüger und Florian Wittmann, Turnen und Sport im Kaiserreich: Aufbruch in die Moderne? Stadion, Bd. 46, 2/2022, S. 224–258, DOI: 10.5771/0172-4029-2022-2-224

Nicolas Schillinger: Chinesisch-preußische Körperschmiede – Die deutsche Militärgymnastik und ihre Adaption im Qing-Reich um die Jahrhundertwende, in: Body Politics 8 (2020), Heft 12, S. 187–213.
 

There is a short article on gymnastics in the German Empire on the DTB website:

https://www.dtb.de/der-verband/wir-ueber-uns/geschichte/turnen-zur-zeit-der-reichsgruendung-und-in-der-kaiserzeit

A somewhat older article on gymnastics in the German Empire:

https://www.bpb.de/shop/zeitschriften/apuz/archiv/531307/jugend-und-militaer-zur-sozialgeschichte-militaerischer-erziehungsinstitutionen-in-deutschland/