The 19th Ersatz Division (''19. Ersatz-Division'') was a unit of the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
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 ...
, in
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.
[19. Ersatz-Division (Chronik 1914/1918)](_blank)
/ref> The division was disbanded in 1919, during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I.
Formation and recruitment
The 19th Ersatz Division was formed on mobilization from 11 brigade replacement battalions (''Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillone''). Each brigade replacement battalion was numbered after its parent infantry brigade, and was formed with two companies taken from the replacement battalion of each of the brigade's two infantry regiments. One brigade replacement battalion was formed by three regiments. Thus, collectively, the 11 brigade replacement battalions represented troop contributions from 23 different infantry regiments.
The units of the 21st Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the VI Army Corps area, which covered most of the Prussian Province of Silesia
The Province of Silesia (german: Provinz Schlesien; pl, Prowincja Śląska; szl, Prowincyjŏ Ślōnskŏ) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1919. The Silesia region was part of the Prussian realm since 1740 and established as an official p ...
. These units were disbanded after the opening fighting in Lorraine, with their troops sent to other units in mid-September 1914. Alternatively, it is possible that the brigade remained in Silesia and was attached to the 4th Landwehr Division. The sources are in conflict. On 26 August the brigade was with the 4th Landwehr Division in the east. The other two brigades of the division were from the Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was formed from the Electorate of Saxon ...
. The units of the 45th Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps
The XII (1st Royal Saxon) Army Corps / XII AK (german: XII. (I. Königlich Sächsisches) Armee-Korps) was a Saxon corps level command of the Saxon and German Armies before and during World War I.
The Corps was formed as the Royal Saxon Corps on 1 ...
area, which covered eastern Saxony. The units of the 47th Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the XIX (2nd Royal Saxon) Corps
The XIX (2nd Royal Saxon) Army Corps / XIX AK (german: XIX. (II. Königlich Sächsisches) Armee-Korps) was a Kingdom of Saxony, Saxon corps level command of the German Empire, German German Army (German Empire), Army, before and during World War I. ...
area, which covered western and southern Saxony. Thus, after the dissolution of the 21st Mixed Ersatz Brigade, the division became a fully Saxon unit.
Combat chronicle
The 19th Ersatz Division fought on the Western Front in World War I. It fought in the Battle of the Frontiers
The Battle of the Frontiers (, , ) comprised battles fought along the eastern frontier of France and in southern Belgium, shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. The battles resolved the military strategies of the French Chief of Staff ...
, seeing action in Lorraine. With occasional rests, it remained in the trenchlines in Lorraine until October 1916. It was then in the line near Verdun until July 1918. That month, it went into the line near Reims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded by ...
. It was there when it met the Allied Aisne-Marne Offensive, part of the Second Battle of the Marne
The Second Battle of the Marne (french: Seconde Bataille de la Marne) (15 July – 18 July 1918) was the last major German offensive on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First World War. The attack failed wh ...
. After the severe fighting there, the division left the line for rest and reconstruction. In late August, it fought against the Allied Oise-Aisne Offensive. It was then returned to a quiet sector in Lorraine, where it remained until the end of the war. Allied intelligence rated the division as third class.[''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), pp. 303-305.]
Order of battle on mobilization
The order of battle of the 19th Ersatz Division on mobilization in August 1914 was as follows:[Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle''.]
*21. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade (detached to 4 Landwehr Division)
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 21
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 22
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 23
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 24
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 78
**Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Breslau/VI. Armeekorps
**Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 6 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 6)
**Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 57 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 57)
*Kgl. Sächsische 45. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 45
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 46
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 63
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 64
**Kgl. Sächsische Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Dresden/XII. Armeekorps
**Kgl. Sächsische Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 28 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 28)
**Kgl. Sächsische Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 48 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 48)
**1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Kgl. Sächsisches 1. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 12
*Kgl. Sächsische 47. gemischte Ersatz-Brigade
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 47
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 48
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 88
**Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 89
**Kgl. Sächsische Kavallerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Leipzig/XIX. Armeekorps
**Kgl. Sächsische Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 32 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 32)
**Kgl. Sächsische Feldartillerie-Ersatz-Abteilung Nr. 77 (Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 77)
**1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Kgl. Sächsisches 2. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 22
Order of battle on July 12, 1918
The division underwent several structural changes as the war progressed. As noted above, the Silesian brigade was dissolved early in the war. The other Saxon mixed Ersatz brigades were converted to Ersatz infantry brigades as cavalry, artillery, and pioneer Ersatz units were grouped and reorganized. The brigade replacement battalions were grouped into Ersatz infantry regiments. The 19th Ersatz Division was triangularized in October 1916. Cavalry was reduced, pioneers were increased to a full battalion, and an artillery command and a divisional signals command were created. The division's order of battle on July 12, 1918, was as follows:
References
19. Ersatz-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:19
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