1st Bavarian Landwehr Division

1st Bavarian Landwehr Division (1. Bayerische Landwehr-Division) 1914-1919 Kingdom of Bavaria/German Empire Army Infantry World War I: Battle of the Frontiers The 1st Bavarian Landwehr Division (1. Bayerische Landwehr-Division) was a unit of the Bavarian Army, part of the Imperial German Army, in World War I. The division was formed on August 21, 1914, as the "Reinforced Bavarian Landwehr Division" (Verstärkte Bayerische Landwehr-Division) and was also known initially as the Wening Division (Division Wening), named after its commander, Otto Wening.1. Bayerische Landwehr-Division (Chronik 1914/1918) It became the 1st Bavarian Landwehr Division in September 1914. The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. The division was formed from various separate Landwehr units. Although called Bavarian, the division initially included several non-Bavarian units: the 14th Landwehr Infantry Brigade included one Bavarian and one Württemberg regiment; the 60th Landwehr Infantry Brigade (initially commanded by Lt. Gen. Hans von Blumenthal, who had come out of retirement) comprised a regiment formed in Alsace-Lorraine and another formed in Thuringia (which included Prussians and soldiers from the principalities of the Reuss Junior Line and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen). The 60th Landwehr Infantry Brigade would be transferred to the newly formed 13th Landwehr Division in May 1915. In January 1916, the 1st Bavarian Landwehr Division was reorganized and became all-Bavarian. Combat chronicle The 1st Bavarian Landwehr Division served on the Western Front, initially seeing action in the Battle of the Frontiers. From September 1914 to the end of May 1915, it fought south of Dieuze. From June 1915 to November 1918, the division occupied the line in Lorraine. Allied intelligence rated the division as fourth class; it was considered primarily a sector holding unit and remained generally on the defensive except for various raids.45-46 Order of battle on formation The 1st Bavarian Landwehr Division was formed as a two-brigade square division, and received a third brigade in September 1914. The order of battle of the division on December 4, 1914, was as follows:Hermann Cron et al., Ruhmeshalle unserer alten Armee (Berlin, 1935). 13. Bayerische Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 8 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 10 14. Bayerische Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade Kgl. Württemb. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 122 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 15 60. Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 60 Thüringisches Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 71 Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung/2.Garde-Ulanen-Regiment 1. Landwehr-Eskadron/II. Bayerisches Armeekorps Ersatz-Abteilung/2. Westfälisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 22 Ersatz-Abteilung/Straßburger Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 84 Kgl. Bayerische Landsturm-Batterie Landau 1. Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie/II. Bayerisches Armeekorps Late-war order of battle The division underwent a number of organizational changes over the course of the war. It was triangularized in September 1916. Cavalry was reduced, artillery and signals commands were formed, and combat engineer support was expanded to a full battalion. The order of battle on February 15, 1918, was as follows:Cron et al., Ruhmeshalle. 5. Bayerische Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 4 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 6 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 7 Maschinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 6 3. Eskadron/Kgl. Bayer. 8. Chevaulegers-Regiment Kgl. Bayer. Artillerie-Kommandeur 22 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 1 Stab Kgl. Bayer. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 24 Kgl. Bayer. Reserve-Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 18 Kgl. Bayer. Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 1 Kgl. Bayer. Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 301 Kgl. Bayer. Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 501 References 1. Bayerische Landwehr-Division (Chronik 1914/1918) - Der erste Weltkrieg Hermann Cron et al., Ruhmeshalle unserer alten Armee (Berlin, 1935) Hermann Cron, Geschichte des deutschen Heeres im Weltkriege 1914-1918 (Berlin, 1937) Günter Wegner, Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1825-1939. (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1 Notes y y Category:Landwehr divisions of Bavaria in World War I Category:Military units and formations established in 1914 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 Category:1914 establishments in Germany