The Guard Ersatz Division (Garde-Ersatz-Division) was a 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...

. Ersatz is German for "replacement"; the division was formed from companies of the replacement battalions (Ersatz-Bataillone) of the regiments of Prussian Guards and several other Prussian regiments. The division was formed on the mobilization of the German Army in August 1914.

The Guard Ersatz Division fought in the opening phases of the war in the Battle of the Frontiers

Battle of the Frontiers

The Battle of the Frontiers was a series of battles fought along the eastern frontier of France and in southern Belgium shortly after the outbreak of World War I. The battles represented a collision between the military strategies of the French Plan XVII and the German Schlieffen Plan...

 and then participated in the Race to the Sea

Race to the Sea

The Race to the Sea is a name given to the period early in the First World War when the two sides were still engaged in mobile warfare on the Western Front. With the German advance stalled at the First Battle of the Marne, the opponents continually attempted to outflank each other through...

. In 1916, the division fought in the Battle of Verdun

Battle of Verdun

The Battle of Verdun was one of the major battles during the First World War on the Western Front. It was fought between the German and French armies, from 21 February – 18 December 1916, on hilly terrain north of the city of Verdun-sur-Meuse in north-eastern France...

. In 1917, the division participated in the Second Battle of the Aisne

Second Battle of the Aisne

The Second Battle of the Aisne , was the massive main assault of the French military's Nivelle Offensive or Chemin des Dames Offensive in 1917 during World War I....

. In July 1917, the division was sent to 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...

, where it fought in the Baltic region. It returned 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 September, entering the line in October near Verdun. The division remained on the Western Front until the Armistice on November 11, 1918.

Order of battle on mobilization

• 1. gemischte Garde-Ersatz-Brigade:
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 1
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 2
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 3
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 4
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 5
  • Garde-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 6
  • Garde-Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Berlin (later Garde-Kavallerie-Eskadron Nr. 1)
  • 1.Garde-Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung
  • 2.Garde-Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung
  • 1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Garde-Pionier-Bataillon
• 5. gemischte Garde-Ersatz-Brigade:
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 5
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 6
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 7
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 8
  • Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Pasewalk (II. Armeekorps)
  • Vorpommersches Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 38
  • Hinterpommersches Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. Nr. 53
  • 1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 2
• 17. gemischte Garde-Ersatz-Brigade:
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 17
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 18
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 19
  • Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 20
  • Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Posen (V. Armeekorps)
  • Posensches Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 20
  • Niederschlesisches Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 41

Order of battle on |March 8, 1918

• Garde-Ersatz-Brigade:
  • 6. Garde-Regiment
  • 7. Garde-Regiment
  • Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 399
  • MG-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 29
• 5. Eskadron/2.Garde-Ulanen-Regiment
• Garde-Artillerie-Kommandeur 6:
  • 7. Garde-Feldartillerie-Regiment
  • Fußartillerie-Bataillon Nr. 89
• Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 501:
  • Garde-Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 301
  • Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 302
  • 7. Garde-Minenwerfer-Kompanie
• Garde-Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 551