1st Landwehr Division (German Empire)
Encyclopedia
The 1st Landwehr Division (1. Landwehr-Division) was an infantry division of the Imperial German Army
German Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...

 during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. It was formed on mobilization of the German Army in August 1914 under the "Higher Landwehr Commander 1" (Höherer Landwehr-Kommandeur 1) and also referred to initially after its commander as the "Landwehr-Division Goltz". The Landwehr
Landwehr
Landwehr, or Landeswehr, is a German language term used in referring to certain national armies, or militias found in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Europe. In different context it refers to large scale, low strength fortifications...

 was the third category of the German Army, after the regular Army and the reserves. Thus Landwehr divisions were made up of older soldiers who had passed from the reserves, and were intended primarily for occupation and security duties rather than heavy combat.

Organization at mobilization

On mobilization, the 1st Landwehr Division was created by aggregating four mixed Landwehr brigades (gemischte Landwehr-Brigaden), each of which generally included its own infantry, cavalry and artillery. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:
  • 33. gemischte Landwehr-Brigade
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 75
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 76
    • 2.Garde-Landwehr-Eskadron
    • 1.Landwehr-Eskadron/IX. Armeekorps
    • 1.Landwehr-Batterie/IX. Armeekorps
  • 34. gemischte Landwehr-Brigade
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 31
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 84
    • 3.Garde-Landwehr-Eskadron
    • 2.Landwehr-Eskadron/IX. Armeekorps
    • 2.Landwehr-Batterie/IX. Armeekorps
  • 37. gemischte Landwehr-Brigade
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 73
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 74
    • 2.Landwehr-Eskadron/X. Armeekorps
    • II. Landwehr-Feldartillerie-Abteilung/X. Armeekorps
  • 38. gemischte Landwehr-Brigade
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 77
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 78
    • 3.Landwehr-Eskadron/X. Armeekorps


The 33rd and 34th Mixed Landwehr Brigades were raised in the IX Corps area (the Province of Schleswig-Holstein
Province of Schleswig-Holstein
The Province of Schleswig-Holstein was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946. It was created from the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, which had been conquered by Prussia and the Austrian Empire from Denmark in the Second War of Schleswig in 1864...

, part of the Province of Hanover
Province of Hanover
The Province of Hanover was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946.During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position, along with some other member states of the German Confederation...

, the Grand Duchies of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1348, when Albert II of Mecklenburg and his younger brother John were raised to Dukes of Mecklenburg by King Charles IV...

 and Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy and later grand duchy in northern Germany, consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district , and the western exclave of the former Bishopric of Ratzeburg in modern...

, and the Hanseatic Cities of Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...

, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...

, and Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...

). The 37th and 38th Mixed Landwehr Brigades were raised in the X Corps area (the Province of Hanover
Province of Hanover
The Province of Hanover was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1868 to 1946.During the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover had attempted to maintain a neutral position, along with some other member states of the German Confederation...

, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, and the Duchy of Brunswick
Duchy of Brunswick
Brunswick was a historical state in Germany. Originally the territory of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the Holy Roman Empire, it was established as an independent duchy by the Congress of Vienna in 1815...

).

Combat chronicle

The 1st Landwehr Division began the war on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War I)
The Eastern Front was a theatre of war during World War I in Central and, primarily, Eastern Europe. The term is in contrast to the Western Front. Despite the geographical separation, the events in the two theatres strongly influenced each other...

. In 1914-15, it participated in the battles of Gumbinnen
Battle of Gumbinnen
The Battle of Gumbinnen, initiated by forces of the German Empire on August 20, 1914, was the first major German offensive on the Eastern Front during the First World War...

, the Tannenberg
Battle of Tannenberg (1914)
The Battle of Tannenberg was an engagement between the Russian Empire and the German Empire in the first days of World War I. It was fought by the Russian First and Second Armies against the German Eighth Army between 23 August and 30 August 1914. The battle resulted in the almost complete...

, and 2nd Masurian Lakes
Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes
The Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes, also known as the Winter Battle of the Masurian Lakes, was the northern part of the Central Powers' offensive on the Eastern Front in the winter of 1915...

. It then took part in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive
Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive
The Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive during World War I started as a minor German offensive to relieve Russian pressure on the Austro-Hungarians to their south on the Eastern Front, but resulted in the total collapse of the Russian lines and their retreat far into Russia...

. The division was then employed primarily in positional warfare until the armistice on the Eastern Front. It was then transported to the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...

 in early 1918. It was again employed primarily in positional warfare in Flanders and Alsace-Lorraine.

Late World War I organization

Divisions underwent many changes during the war, with regiments moving from division to division, and some being destroyed and rebuilt. During the war, most divisions became triangular
Triangular division
A triangular division is a designation given to the way divisions are organized. In a triangular organization, the division's main body is composed of three regimental maneuver elements. These regiments may be controlled by a brigade headquarters or directly subordinated to the division commander...

 - one infantry brigade with three infantry regiments rather than two infantry brigades of two regiments (a "square division
Square division
A square division is a designation given to the way military divisions are organized. In a square organization, the division's main body is composed of four regimental elements. Since a regiment could be split into separate battalions for tactical purposes, the natural division within a division...

"). In the case of Landwehr divisions, the mixed Landwehr brigades were converted to regular infantry brigades before being triangularized, and were often used to form new units. The 1st Landwehr Division's order of battle on January 15, 1918 was as follows:
  • 34. Landwehr-Brigade:
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 31
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 33
    • Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 84
    • 3. Eskadron/Jäger-Regiment zu Pferde Nr. 12
  • Artillerie-Kommandeur 128:
    • Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 96
  • Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 401:
    • 1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Pionier-Bataillon Prinz Radziwill (Ostpreußisches) Nr. 1
    • 2.Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie/II. Armeekorps
    • Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 301
  • Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 501
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