The 14th Reserve Division (''14. 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 1914.14. 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 The Province of Westphalia () was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946. In turn, Prussia was the largest component state of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918, of the Weimar Republic and from 1918 ...

and the

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...

. The division included an active infantry brigade from the 14th Division.

Combat chronicle

The 14th 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 Fr ...

, including the capture of

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

and

Maubeuge Maubeuge (; historical nl, Mabuse or nl, Malbode; pcd, Maubeuche) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is situated on both banks of the Sambre (here canalized), east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border ...

. Thereafter, the division remained in the line in the Aisne region until October 1915, and then went into Army reserve for two months. It fought in 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 ...

from February to September 1916, and remained in the line at Verdun thereafter. It went to the Somme region at the end of 1916 and to the Champagne region in late January 1917, fighting in the

Second Battle of the Aisne The Second Battle of the Aisne (french: Bataille du Chemin des Dames or french: Seconde bataille de l'Aisne, 16 April – mid-May 1917) was the main part of the Nivelle Offensive, a Franco-British attempt to inflict a decisive defeat on the Germa ...

, also called the Third Battle of Champagne, from April to May. After a few months near

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, the division went to the region along the Ailette River. In 1918, it participated in the German spring offensive. It was then primarily on the defensive, resisting various Allied offensives including those of the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

. Allied intelligence rated the division as first class.

Order of battle on mobilization

The order of battle of the 14th Reserve Division on mobilization was as follows: *28. Infanterie-Brigade **Niederrheinisches Füsilier-Regiment Nr. 39 **8. Lothringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 159 *27. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade **Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 16 **Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 53 *Reserve-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 8 *Reserve-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 14 *1. Reserve-Kompanie/Westfälisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7 *2. Reserve-Kompanie/Westfälisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7

Order of battle on January 1, 1918

The 14th Reserve Division was triangularized 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 January 1, 1918, was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle''. *27. Reserve-Infanterie-Brigade **Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 16 **Reserve-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 53 **8. Lothringisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 159 *1.Eskadron/Reserve-Husaren-Regiment Nr. 5 *Artillerie-Kommandeur 102 **Reserve-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 14 *Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 314 **1.Reserve-Kompanie/Westfälisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7 **2.Reserve-Kompanie/Westfälisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 7 **Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 214 *Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 414

References

14. 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:14 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