About the Grand Duchy
The Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach was the largest of the Thuringian states, a term for the group of smaller
duchies and principalities in the Thuringia Forest region of Germany, sandwiched between the Kingdom of Bavaria
to the south, the Kingdom of Saxony to the east, Prussian Saxony to the north, and Prussian-ruled Hesse-Nassau
to the west. Although the largest of these states, it was not large overall, having a 1905 population of 387,892.
It was composed of several enclaves spread out over Thuringia and into Prussian Saxony, the largest of which were
around Eisenach in western Thuringia, Weimar in the north-central Thuringia, and Neustadt an der Orla in eastern
Thuringia. There were also about 7 smaller enclaves.
All of the various Saxon duchies underwent a variety of permutations over the centuries.
The Duchy of Saxe-Weimar was established in 1566. In 1741, the Duchies of Saxe-Eisenach and Saxe-Weimar were
united in a personal union and the duke was styled the Duke of Saxe-Weimar and Eisenach. In 1809
the duchies were officially united as the Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, routinely called just
Saxe-Weimar. On April 21, 1815, the duchy was elevated to a grand duchy. In 1877, it was officially
renamed the Grand Duchy of Saxony, but Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Saxe-Weimar continued in common use.
The last Grand Duke, Wilhelm-Ernst, abdicated in 1918. In 1919, a National Assembly met in Weimar, avoiding
the unrest in Berlin, and established what came to be known as the Weimar Republic. In 1920, the former grand duchy
was incorporated into the State of Thuringia, of which it continues to be a part to this day.
Weimar, the capital of the grand duchy, became the home of Germany's two greatest literary figures. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe lived
there for 50 years. Attracted by the cultural climate fostered there under the patronage of
Duke Carl August, Friedrich Schiller moved there a few years before his death.
The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche also spent his last few years there. Weimar is considered
emblematic of the contradictions of the German soul, as Buchenwald concentration camp was located just a few
miles from the city, near a former ducal hunting lodge.
The Armed Forces of the Grand Duchy
The main contribution of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach to the German Army was the
5. Thüringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 94 (Großherzog von Sachsen) (IR94). On the
eve of World War One, IR94 consisted of three battalions: the 1st Battalion,
headquartered (along with the regiment) at Weimar; the 2nd Battalion,
headquartered at Eisenach; and the 3rd Battalion, headquartered at Jena.
There was also a Landwehr-Regiment 94. IR94, along with another Thuringian regiment, IR96
(made up of soldiers from Reuss and Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt), belonged to the 83rd Infantry
Brigade of the 38th Infantry Division of the XI Army Corps.
IR94's origins lay in the early 18th century. In 1702, the Duke of Saxe-Weimar had
established a company of Garde zu Fuß, and a second company was added in 1714.
The unit was expanded to a regiment in 1729. By 1790, the unit was no longer known as the
Garde zu Fuß, or even as a regiment, but was called the Scharfschützen-Bataillon
("Sharpshooters Battalion"), and had a strength of 600 men in four companies. In 1796,
the battalion, as part of the Hessian Corps, served in the fighting between France and
Austria.
In 1806, the battalion was placed under Prussian control and was attached to a light
infantry brigade of the Prince of Orange's Division. In October 1806, the war came to
Saxe-Weimar, as Napoleon's armies met the allies at Jena and Auerstedt. The
Scharfschützen-Bataillon, located on the far right flank of the Allied army at Auerstedt,
participated in the losing battles on October 14, when Napoleon won a resounding victory
at Jena and Marshal Davout won at Auerstedt. Reportedly, the battalion comported itself well and
suffered relatively few casualties, earning praise from Napoleon himself. The battalion
helped cover the Allied retreat. After Napoleon's victory, Saxe-Weimar became part of
the Confederation of the Rhine, and the Weimar Sharpshooters were combined with troops
from the other Saxon duchies to form the Rheinbund-Regiment "Herzöge von Sachsen".
The regiment fought in Tirol in 1809 and in the Peninsular Campaign in Spain in 1810-11.
In 1812, the regiment joined the Grande Armée in Napoleon's ill-fated invasion of Russia.
In all those campaigns and in the retreat from Russia, the regiment suffered heavy casualties.
In 1813, Napoleon demanded that a new Thuringian Marsch-Bataillon be formed. The
battalion went into the Thuringian Forest on an exercise, and was promptly taken prisoner
by a force of 50 Prussian hussars. The Thuringians apparently had no stomach to fight for
Napoleon, and immediately entered Prussian service. They served under Blücher at the
Battle of the Nations (Völkerschlacht).
In 1814, a Weimar line battalion (Linien-Bataillon) was reconstituted, joined by
a Landwehr battalion, a detachment of volunteer Jäger zu Fuß and a detachment of volunteer
Jäger zu Pferd. At Waterloo, the Weimar troops stood on Wellington's left flank. Due to a shortage of personnel , the Weimar battalions would
spend most of the next few decades doing little more than exercises, but they did participate
in the 1848-49 fighting against Denmark in Schleswig-Holstein.
In 1866, Saxe-Weimar sided with Prussia against Austria, but apparently took little or no
part in the fighting. As with the other German states, Saxe-Weimar entered into a military
convention with Prussia in 1867 placing its troops under Prussian control. It was then
that it was designated the 5. Thüringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 94 (Großherzog von Sachsen).
In the Franco-Prussian War, the regiment fought at Wörth, Sedan, and Orléans. Soldiers and
officers of the regiment won 9 Iron Crosses 1st Class and 319 Iron Crosses 2nd Class.
In August 1914, IR94 was sent to the Belgian front and went into action at Namur. In September, the
regiment was deployed with the XI Army Corps to the Eastern Front, where it would spend the next 12 months,
until returning to the Western Front in late 1915. IR94 found itself embroiled in the bloody
battles at Verdun. Towards the end of 1916, the regiment was withdrawn from Verdun and transferred to
another circle of hell - the Somme. After fighting in the Somme, IR94 was sent to Flanders in 1917,
where it was reorganized as shock troops (Stoßtruppen). In the Third Battle of Ypres
in July 1917, the regiment stood in the path of the British main assault, and took massive
casualties. Thirty-two officers and 1,137 NCOs and enlisted men were killed or missing, and only
200 men were left. The regiment was reconstituted and returned to the Somme line. On
September 1, 1918, the regiment stood on Mont St.Quentin in the path of the 2nd Australian
Division. The Australians took the village, leaving 5 German divisions in disarray. Among
the casualties that day was Hauptmann Ferdinand Prinz zu Solms-Hohensolms-Lich, at the time the
commander of the 1st Battalion of IR94. The prince had spent almost the entire war with the battalion.
As an Oberleutnant, he was the battalion adjutant when the war broke out. He soon took command of
the 1st Company and later the entire battalion. Among his decorations, most of which are visible in the photograph
below, were the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, the Knight's Cross of the Prussian House Order
of Hohenzollern, the Commander's Cross with Swords of the Ducal Saxe-Ernestine House Order, the
Grand Cross of the Hessian Order of Philip the Brave, the Hessian
Warrior Honor Decoration and the Saxe-Weimar Wilhelm-Ernst War Cross.
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Hauptmann Ferdinand Prinz zu Solms-Hohensolms-Lich
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Another highly decorated veteran of IR94 was its longtime commander,
Oberst Friedrich von Taysen. At the start of the war, then-Major von Taysen
commanded the 3rd Battalion. He soon took command of the regiment, and in late 1917, the
83rd Infantry Brigade. He was the first recipient of the Wilhelm-Ernst War Cross in 1915,
and received the cross "mit Brillanten" in 1918. He was decorated with the Pour le Mérite
on January 6, 1918. Other awards included the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, the
Commander with Swords of the Oldenburg House and Merit Order, both classes of the Oldenburg
Friedrich August Cross, the Commander's Cross with Swords of the Saxe-Weimar Order of the White
Falcon, Commander's Cross with Swords of the Ducal Saxe-Ernestine House Order, the Reuss
Honor Cross 1st Class with Swords and the Schwarzburg Honor Cross 1st Class with Swords.
The end of the war found the regiment in Brussels, Belgium. It marched all the way back
to Weimar, arriving in December 1918, and was demobilized on January 10, 1919. Over the
course of the war, the regiment lost 152 officers and 4,542 NCOs and enlisted men.
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