The campaign of 1870-1871 in the West: an assessment of the health disaster

Based on archival reports published by veterans as well as civilians, the following paper presents how the sanitary conditions were evolving on the Western French battleground in the midst of the raging fights during the winter of 1870-1871. Although official statistical data remains scattered for the period under study, the description of the sanitary conditions during the fall and wintertime reveals the existing issues on how to maintain an appropriate level of sanitary protection. This paper also offers an innovative view on how armies, specifically in the Loire region, may have contributed to spread out viral diseases such as smallpox and consequently suggest a potential new approach about the French-Prussian war demographic outcome.