An Overview of the Army of the Grand Duchy of Hesse in the First World War25. (Großherzoglich Hessische) Infanterie-DivisionThe Grand Duchy of Hesse was the sixth-largest state in the German Empire, after Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Württemberg and Baden. Its population was slightly more than half that of Württemberg's though, so it was not expected to maintain an entire corps like Baden and Württemberg were. In the peacetime army, Hesse was responsible for maintaining one division - the 25. (Großherzoglich Hessische) Infanterie-Division. The majority of the division's units were from the Grand Duchy. Its peacetime organization was as follows:
On mobilization in August 1914, the division converted to its war organization. The 25. Kavallerie-Brigade was detached from the division and assigned to the 3. Kavallerie-Division; for divisional cavalry, a Prussian unit, Magdeburgisches Dragoner-Regiment Nr. 6, was assigned. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168 was detached from the 49. Infanterie-Brigade and assigned to the 25. Reserve-Division. Divisional pioneers came from another Prussian unit, the 1. Nassauisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 21, raised in nearby Mainz in the former Duchy of Nassau. The 25. Infanterie-Division's organization on mobilization was as follows:
The division was part of the XVIII. Armeekorps along with the 21. Infanterie-Division (made up primarily of troops from Nassau and the former Electoral Hesse, or Hesse-Kassel). On mobilization, XVIII. Armeekorps became part of 4. Armee. It went into battle on the Western Front, advancing through Luxembourg and France. In September 1914, it was reassigned to 2. Armee and went into battle at Reims. At the end of the month, the corps was reassigned, and the 25. Infanterie-Division was split. It and the bulk of the XVIII. Armeekorps went to the 6. Armee and fought on the Somme, while the 50. Infanterie-Brigade was detached to 7. Armee. The brigade soon rejoined the division, and by October the division had settled into mainly positional warfare. As the war progressed, German divisional organizations changed. In March 1915, the 25. Infanterie-Division converted from a "square" (two brigades of two infantry regiments) to a "triangular" (one brigade of three infantry regiments) structure. The 50. Infanterie-Brigade was dissolved. Infanterie-Leibregiment Nr. 117 was assigned to the division's 49. Infanterie-Brigade, while Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118 was transferred to the newly formed 112. Infanterie-Brigade of the 56. Infanterie-Division. The 25. Infanterie-Division remained in the trenches throughout 1915 and into 1916, in positional warfare west of St. Quentin, France. In February 1916, the division went into the Battle of Verdun. In September, it joined German forces in the ongoing Battle of the Somme. After that battle concluded in November, the division remained on the line in the Somme in defensive battles until early 1917, when the German high command began the organized withdrawal to the Siegfriedstellung (known to the Alies as the Hindenburg Line). In February 1917, the division underwent further reorganization, as the 25. Feldartillerie-Brigade was converted into an artillery command, Artillerie-Kommandeur 25. In September 1917, the divisional signals command, Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 25, was created. In the fall of 1917, the division fought in Flanders in the Third Battle of Ypres. The 25. Infanterie-Division spent the winter of 1917-18 in positional warfare in Flanders and in preparation for the 1918 Spring Offensive, Germany's last big gamble to break the stalemate in the West before growing American and Allied combat power tipped the balance irretrieveably against the Central Powers. By early 1918, its organization was as follows:
In the wake of the failure of the German offensive, the division spent the summer and fall months in a series of defensive battles in northern France and Belgium. When the Armistice went into effect on November 11, 1918, the division was in a fighting retreat through Belgium before the Antwerp-Meuse line (Antwerpen-Maas-Stellung).
25. Reserve-DivisionThe other major unit from the Grand Duchy of Hesse formed on mobilization was a reserve unit, the 25. Reserve-Division. The 25. Reserve-Division was not officially designated as "Grand Ducal Hessian" (Großherzoglich Hessisch) like the 25. Infanterie-Division, as it included a number of Prussian elements, but it was mainly from the Grand Duchy. Besides the regular Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168 which, as mentioned above, was transferred on mobilization from the 25. Infanterie-Division, the division included two reserve infantry and one reserve field artillery regiment from the Grand Duchy. Divisional cavalry came from Silesia. One reserve infantry regiment and two reserve pioneer companies came from Electoral Hesse, while one battalion of that reserve infantry regiment came from the Principality of Waldeck. On mobilization, the division was organized as follows:
Just as the 25. Infanterie-Division became part of the XVIII. Armeekorps, the 25. Reserve-Division became part of the XVIII. Reservekorps, along with the 21. Reserve-Division (like the 21. Infanterie-Division, made up primarily of troops from Nassau and Electoral Hesse). XVIII. Reservekorps was also assigned to 4. Armee. The division participated in the German Western Front offensive, culminating in the Battle of the Marne, and then settled into positional warfare in the Champagne region. In October 1914, the division was assigned to the XIII. Armeekorps and transferred to Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria's 6. Armee. The division was soon involved in the race to the sea and the heavy fighting in Flanders around Lille, Ypres and Armentieres, and changed corps assignments several more times. At the end of November 1914, the division was withdrawn from the line and transferred to the Eastern Front. Assigned to the 9. Armee, it participated in the final phases of the fighting around Lodz and then into 1915 in the fighting between Lodz and Warsaw. In the spring and summer of 1915, the division moved south and fought in Galicia. In May 1915, the 25. Reserve-Division triangularized, as had the 25. Infanterie-Division shortly before. The 49. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade was dissolved, and Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116 was transferred to the newly-formed 205. Infanterie-Brigade of the 103. Infanterie-Division. The division participated in the summer counteroffensive where German and Austro-Hungarian forces recaptured the territories of Austrian Galicia lost in 1914. It fought in the Battle of Lvov (Lemberg) and the drive north to Cholm in Russian Poland. In August, it took part in the attack on and capture of the fortified city of Brest-Litovsk. In September, the division went into army reserve for rest and refit, and then moved south to join the offensive against Serbia. It drove across Serbia and settled on the Macedonian front in November. In December 1915, the division began its return trip to the Western Front. Arriving in mid-December, it immediately went into fighting in the Argonne Forest, where it would remain in action until July 1916. In July, it went into combat at Verdun. From November 1916 to January 1917, the division occupied trenchlines in the Champagne region, and then returned to Verdun, where it engaged in positional warfare until August 1917. In August, it defended against Allied attacks at Verdun, and then moved into positional warfare in Lorraine and near Reims, where it would remain into 1918. By early 1918, the division was organized as follows:
The 25. Reserve-Division spent the rest of 1918 in heavy fighting in France until October, when, its ranks depleted, it was dissolved. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 83 was also dissolved, its troops used to replenish the regular Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 82 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 83 of the 22. Infanterie-Division. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118 was dissolved, with its battalions divided among the regiments of the 48. Reserve-Division. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168 was transferred to the 21. Reserve-Division.
48. Reserve-DivisionIn October 1914, the German Army raised 13 new reserve divisions. One of these was the 48. Reserve-Division. The division was originally formed as a square division. Its organization in January 1915 is as follows:
Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 221's cadre was an entirely Grand Ducal Hesse unit, from the Ersatz battalions of Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 115, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 222's cadre was primarily from the Grand Duchy, from the Ersatz battalions of Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116, Infanterie-Leibregiment Nr. 117 and 2. Nassauisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 88. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 223's cadre was from Nassau and Electoral Hesse, while Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 224's cadre was from Prussian Saxony (Thuringia) and the Thuringian states (Saxe-Weimar, Reuß and the Schwarzburg principalities). Reserve-Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 20 was raised in Bückeburg from the Ersatz battalion of Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 7, a Schaumburg-Lippe unit, and war volunteers. The war volunteers who filled the ranks of these regiments were mainly from throughout Hesse (Grand Ducal, Electoral and Nassau), but also from other parts of the Reich like Alsace-Lorraine. The division initially fought in France, getting its baptism of fire in the Battle of Lille. It then fought in the First Battle of Ypres in early November 1914. At the end of the month, it was transferred to the Eastern Front. Like the 25. Reserve-Division, it participated in the final phases of the Battle of Lodz. It then spent the next two and a half years fighting on the southern part of the Eastern Front, in Galicia and the Carpathian Mountains, mainly attached to Austro-Hungarian field armies. In April 1917, the 95. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade was detached from the division and Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 224, the Thuringian regiment, was transferred to the 215. Infanterie-Division. In May, the 48. Reserve-Division entrained for the Western Front, where it entered the trenches before Verdun. From September 1917 to February 1918, the division was involved in positional warfare in Lorraine and Alsace, and then, after a period in the army reserve to rest and refit, it went into the line in Flanders and the Artois in April. By early 1918, the division was organized as follows:
Like 25. Infanterie-Division, the division spent the summer and fall months in a series of defensive battles in northern France and Belgium. When the Armistice went into effect on November 11, 1918, the division was also in a fighting retreat through Belgium before the Antwerp-Meuse line (Antwerpen-Maas-Stellung).
Other Grand Ducal Hesse units
Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 186 and the 56. Infanterie-DivisionInfanterie-Regiment Nr. 118, after its detachment from the 25. Infanterie-Division, had been assigned to the newly-formed 56. Infanterie-Division. This was a mixed unit, including, besides the Hessians, an infantry regiment from Brandenburg (Füsilier-Regiment Nr. 35), an infantry regiment from Nassau (Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 88), and a cavalry squadron from Brunswick (4./Husaren-Regiment Nr. 17). The division was increasingly from Hesse (Grand Ducal, Electoral and Nassau), however, as the war progressed. In early 1917, Füsilier-Regiment Nr. 35 was replaced by Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 186. This regiment was one of the first new regular regiments formed in the war, having been raised in March 1915 in the XVIII. Armeekorps area. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 186 was a Hesse regiment in the grand sense: it was formed by companies contributed by different regiments of XVIII. Armeekorps. Its I. Bataillon was all-Electoral Hesse, formed from elements of Füsilier-Regiment Nr. 80 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 81; its II. Bataillon was half-Nassau, half-Grand Ducal Hesse, formed from 1. Nassauisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 87 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116; its III. Bataillon was all-Grand Ducal Hesse, formed from from Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 115 and Infanterie-Leibregiment Nr. 117. Initially, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 186 had formed part of Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 185, along with Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 185, a Baden unit raised at the same time (and formed the same way). Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 185 was a separate brigade until June 1916, when it became the nucleus of the 185. Infanterie-Division. The regiments fought on the Western Front, and when formed into the 56. Infanterie-Division, spent the balance of the war there, ending up in Belgium at the time of the Armistice.
Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116As noted above, in May 1915 Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116 was transferred from the 25. Reserve-Division to the newly-formed 103. Infanterie-Division. This division was a mixed formation, with two Thuringian infantry regiments (2. Thüringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 32 from Saxe-Meiningen and 3. Thüringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 71 from Prussian Saxony and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen), a Silesian Jäger batallion and Prussian cavalry among its units. The division fought in Serbia in 1915, and then, after a period on the Greek border in Macedonia, went to the Western Front in April 1916. It remained in combat on the Western Front until the Armistice.
25. (Großherzoglich Hessische) Kavallerie-BrigadeOn mobilization, the 25. (Großherzoglich Hessische) Kavallerie-Brigade, like all divisional cavalry brigades, was detached from its division. It was, as noted above, assigned to the 3. Kavallerie-Division. The division conducted cavalry reconnaissance and screening operations during the advance into France, but like the rest of German cavalry never got the opportunity for the grand exploitation they were awaiting. By December, the division had moved into occupation duty in Belgium. In early 1915, the 3. Kavallerie-Division was sent to the Eastern Front, where the terrain was more favorable for cavalry operations. On September 1, 1916, the 3. Kavallerie-Division was dissolved and 25. Kavallerie-Brigade joined the 2. Kavallerie-Division at the end of the month. In November-December 1916, the division went into battle in Romania, where it remained until being transferred to the Western Front. The division arrived in Flanders in early 1917 and was tasked with border security on the Belgian-Dutch frontier. In September 1917, the division returned once again to the Eastern Front, where it fought until the armistice with Russia went into effect in December. From February to June 1918, the division served in Ukraine, supporting a Ukrainian provisional government against various factions.
Other Infantry RegimentsInfanterie-Regiment Nr. 358: On mobilization, each of the Ersatz battalions of the regular infantry regiments had contributed companies to form what were called brigade Ersatz battalions (Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillone). Each Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon was numbered according to the brigade that formed it. Thus, Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 50 was formed by the Ersatz battalions of the 50. Infanterie-Brigade, Infanterie-Leibregiment Nr. 117 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118. On mobilization, Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 50 formed part of the 41. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade of the 8. Ersatz-Division. In the summer of 1915, the Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillone were organized into regiments. Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 50 joined two Pomeranian battalions to form Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 358. Initially, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 358 was attached to the Garde-Ersatz-Division, but in September 1916, the 214. Infanterie-Division was formed and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 358 was transferred to it. It is unclear whether, when it became a battalion of Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 358, Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 50 continued to draw from Hesse. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 365: Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 49 was formed from the Ersatz battalions of the infantry regiments of the 49. Infanterie-Brigade, Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 115, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168. On mobilization, Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 49 formed part of the 41. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade of the 8. Ersatz-Division. In the summer of 1915, it joined the brigade Ersatz battalions from Nassau and Electoral Hesse, also part of the 41. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade, to form Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 365. Initially, the regiment remained part of the reorganized 8. Ersatz-Division. It later was part of an independent brigade and then, in May 1915, when 94. Infanterie-Division was reorganized, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 365 became part of that division, where it remained until the end of the war. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 433: Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 433 was raised on October 1, 1916 by XVIII. Reservekorps. It was formed from three Landsturm battalions, older reservists generally used for labor and prisoner-of-war guard duties. Two of the three Landsturm battalions forming Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 433 were from Darmstadt, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Hesse (the third was Prussian). The regiment formed part of the 215. Infanterie-Brigade of the 93. Infanterie-Division. The division served on the Eastern Front and in Ukraine. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 88: The 21. Reserve-Division's Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 88 was primarily an Electoral Hesse unit, with its regimental headquarters and two battalions in Hanau. However, the II. Bataillon was a Grand Ducal Hesse unit, located in Worms. The regiment stayed with the 21. Reserve-Division for the entire war, and spent the duration on the Western Front. Großherzoglich Hessisches Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 254: In November 1914, the War Ministry had ordered the formation of field battalions (Feldbataillonen), which were originally intended to form the fourth battalion of field regiments. In December, it was decided to create new regiments instead. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 254 was raised in Darmstadt by XVIII. Armeekorps from Feldbataillonen 70, 71 and 72. These field battalions were raised by the Ersatz battalions of Leibgarde-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 115, Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116 and Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 168. It was assigned to the 76. Reserve-Division, where it remained for the duration of the war. The division fought on the eastern front until 1916, then in Romania until the end of the war there, and then on the Western Front from March 1918 to the Armistice.
Großherzoglich Hessische LandwehrHesse, like the other states, raised Landwehr regiments from its soldiers who had moved out of the ready reserve due to age. Landwehr units included infantry, artillery, cavalry and pioneers. On mobilization, most of the Grand Duchy's Landwehr was organized into the Großherzoglich Hessische 49. gemischte Landwehr-Brigade. The brigade was organized as follows:
The brigade was assigned to 4. Armee and served as security and lines of communication troops during the campaign in France. In February 1915, the brigade was reorganized as a provisional division called the Division Mühlenfels. On 14 February, Division Mühlenfels was redesignated as the 9. Landwehr-Division. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 118 remained with the brigade and the division for the duration of the war. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 116 had been detached at some point in 1914, and did not rejoin the division until later in the war. By the end of the war, the 9. Landwehr-Division was primarily a Grand Ducal and an Electoral Hesse formation. Another Landwehr unit was Landwehr-Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 42, raised from Landwehr men of the 21. Infanterie-Division and the 25. Infanterie-Division. The unit was, then, a mix of Nassau, Electoral Hesse and Grand Ducal Hesse.
Großherzoglich Hessischer LandsturmAs mentioned above under Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 433, Landsturm units were generally made up of older reservists suitable only for labor and prisoner-of-war guard duties. Others were considered suitable for frontier guard duties along the long border with the Russian Empire and on the Swiss frontier. In 1915, several of the mobilized Landsturm battalions were organized into regiments. Generally, these were mixed formations, with Landsturm battalions from different parts of the Reich.Landsturm-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 10 was raised in June 1915 by the X. Armeekorps. Its III. Bataillon was raised by the XVIII. Armeekorps. This battalion, Landsturm-Infanterie-Ersatz-Bataillon XVIII/44, or the 44th Landsturm battalion of the XVIII. Armeekorps area, was formed of Landsturm men from the five regular Grand Ducal Hesse regiments and from two Electoral Hesse regiments. Landsturm-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 20 was formed from Landsturm battalions activated at different times over the course of the first year of war. The III. Bataillon of the regiment was formed from Landsturm-Infanterie-Bataillon XVIII/45, also from the Grand Duchy, while the regiment's replacement unit was 2. Landsturm-Infanterie-Ersatz-Bataillon XVIII/36 Darmstadt. |