Jakob Meckel

Klemens Wilhelm Jacob Meckel (28 March 1842 – 5 July 1906) was a general in the Prussian army and foreign advisor to the government of Meiji period Japan.

Biography

Meckel was born in Cologne, Rhine Province, Prussia and joined the Prussian Army in 1860 as part of the 68th Infantry Regiment. He served in the Austro-Prussian War, fighting at Königgrätz, and was a veteran of the Franco-Prussian War. During the latter he was decorated with the Iron Cross.

The Chile government had Meckel as their first choice when they sought a German military official to help modernize the Chile military. However, Meckel had accepted the Japanese government's offer, which led the Chile government to hire Emil Körner instead.

In Japan

After the government of Meiji period Japan decided to model the Imperial Japanese Army after the Prussian army, following the German victory over the French in the Franco-Prussian War, Meckel (with the rank of major at the time) was invited to Japan as a professor at the Army Staff College and as an advisor to the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff. In response to a Japanese request, Prussian Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke selected Meckel. He worked closely with future Prime Ministers General Katsura Tarō and General Yamagata Aritomo, and with army strategist General Kawakami Soroku. Meckel made numerous recommendations which were implemented, including reorganization of the command structure of the army into divisions and regiments, thus increasing mobility, strengthening the army logistics and transportation structure, with the major army bases connected by railways, establishing artillery and engineering regiments as independent commands, and revising the universal conscription system to abolish virtually all exceptions.