The 3rd Landwehr Division (''3. Landwehr-Division'') was an infantry division of the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (german: Deutsches Heer), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the l ...

during

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 ...

. It was formed on the mobilization of the German Army in August 1914 under the "Higher ''Landwehr'' Commander 3" (''Höherer Landwehr-Kommandeur 3''). The

Landwehr ''Landwehr'', or ''Landeswehr'', is a German language term used in referring to certain national army, armies, or militias found in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Europe. In different context it refers to large-scale, low-strength fortif ...

was the third category of the German Army, after the regular Army and the reserves. Thus Landwehr divisions were made up of older soldiers who had passed from the reserves, and were intended primarily for occupation and security duties rather than heavy combat. While the division was a

formation, at the beginning of the war it also had an attached Ersatz infantry brigade, made up of cadres from various regimental replacement battalions (this brigade was dissolved in September 1914). The division was primarily raised in the Prussian provinces of Posen, Lower Silesia, and West Prussia. The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I.

Combat chronicle

The 3rd Landwehr Division fought on the Eastern Front in World War I. It was on the front in Poland from the early days, and participated in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive, crossing the Vistula in July and advancing toward the Bug, and eventually reaching the line between the Servech and Shchara rivers, where the front stabilized. It remained in the line there until the armistice on the Eastern Front in December 1917. Thereafter, the division served in the Ukraine and in the German occupation forces in Russia until late September 1918, when it went to the Western Front, serving in the Flanders area until the end of the war. Allied intelligence rated the division as fourth class and of mediocre combat value.

Order of battle on mobilization

The order of battle of the 3rd Landwehr Division on mobilization in August 1914 was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle''. *17.Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 6 **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 7 *18.Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 37 **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 46 *17.Ersatz-Infanterie-Brigade **Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 17 **Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 18 **Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 19 **Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 20 **Brigade-Ersatz-Bataillon Nr. 77 *Landwehr-Kavallerie-Regiment Nr. 1 *1.Landsturm-Batterie/V.Armeekorps *2.Landsturm-Batterie/V.Armeekorps *Ersatz-Abteilung/1. Posensches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 20 *Ersatz-Abteilung/2. Niederschlesisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 41 *Ersatz-Kompanie/Niederschlesisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 5 On September 25, 1914, the 17th Ersatz Infantry Brigade was dissolved and its constituent units used to replace losses suffered by the 4th Landwehr Division in the

Battle of Tarnawka Battle of Rawa (also written as ''-Rava'', ''-Rawa-Ruska'', ''-Rava-Ruska'', or ''-Rava-Russka'') was an early stage World War I battle between Austria-Hungary and Russia, between September 3–11, 1914. The Russian armies had defeated their oppo ...

(7–9 September 1914) as follows: :17th Brigade ''Ersatz'' Battalion absorbed into III Battalion, 23rd ''Landwehr'' Infantry Regiment :18th Brigade ''Ersatz'' Battalion absorbed into III Battalion, 51st ''Landwehr'' Infantry Regiment :19th Brigade ''Ersatz'' Battalion absorbed into III Battalion, 22nd ''Landwehr'' Infantry Regiment :20th Brigade ''Ersatz'' Battalion absorbed into III Battalion, 22nd ''Landwehr'' Infantry Regiment :77th Brigade ''Ersatz'' Battalion absorbed into III Battalion, 11th ''Landwehr'' Infantry Regiment

Order of battle on March 18, 1918

The division underwent several structural changes as the war progressed. It was triangularized in September 1916, sending the 18th Landwehr Infantry Brigade to the 217th Infantry Division. The 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 March 18, 1918, was as follows: *17.Landwehr-Infanterie-Brigade **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 6 **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 7 **Landwehr-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 46 *1.Eskadron/Dragoner-Regiment von Bredow (1. Schlesisches) Nr. 4 *Artillerie-Kommandeur 130 **Landwehr-Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 3 *1.Ersatz-Kompanie/Niederschlesisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 5 *Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 503

Notes

References

* 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) * {{DEFAULTSORT:3rd Landwehr Division (German Empire) 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