The 13th Reserve Division (''13. Reserve-Division'') was a unit of the Imperial German

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The division was formed on the mobilization of the German Army in August 1914.13. Reserve-Division (Chronik 1914-1918)
/ref> The division was disbanded in 1919, during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. The division was a reserve division of the VII Reserve Corps and was recruited primarily in the Province of Westphalia.

Combat chronicle

The 13th Reserve Division fought on the Western Front, participating in the opening German offensive which led to the Allied

Great Retreat The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western Fro ...

, including the capture of Maubeuge. Thereafter, the division remained in the line in the Aisne region until December 1915, when it went to the Verdun region. It entered the

Battle of Verdun The Battle of Verdun (french: Bataille de Verdun ; german: Schlacht um Verdun ) was fought from 21 February to 18 December 1916 on the Western Front in France. The battle was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north ...

in February, and remained there until September. After the battle, the division remained in the line at Verdun. It went to the Champagne region at the end of 1916, and remained there into 1917, fighting in the Second Battle of the Aisne, also called the Third Battle of Champagne, in April–May 1917. After a few months near Reims, the division returned to the Verdun region in September, remaining there until April 1918 except for a month in Army reserve. The division then went to Belgium, and was in Flanders until the war's end. Allied intelligence rated the division as mediocre in 1917, but first class in 1918.

Order of battle on mobilization

The order of battle of the 13th Reserve Division on mobilization was as follows: * 25. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 13 ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 56 * 28. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 39 ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 57 ** Reserve-Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 7 * Reserve-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 5 * Reserve-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 13 * 4.Kompanie/Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7

Order of battle on July 12, 1918

The 13th Reserve Division was triangulated in March 1915. Over the course of the war, other changes took place, including the formation of artillery and signals commands and a pioneer battalion. The order of battle on July 12, 1918, was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle''. * 28. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 13 ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 39 ** Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 57 * 3.Eskadron/Reserve-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 5 * Artillerie-Kommandeur 100 ** Reserve-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 13 ** I.Bataillon/Reserve-Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 22 * Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 313 ** 4.Kompanie/Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7 ** Pionier-Kompanie Nr. 287 ** Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 213 * Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 413

References

13. Reserve-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 1815-1939.'' (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1 * ''Histories of Two Hundred and Fifty-One Divisions of the German Army which Participated in the War (1914-1918), compiled from records of Intelligence section of the General Staff, American Expeditionary Forces, at General Headquarters, Chaumont, France 1919'' (1920)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:13 Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 1914 establishments in Germany