The VI Army Corps / VI AK (german: VI. Armee-Korps) was a
corps
Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...
level command of the
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
n and then the
Imperial German Armies
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 ...
from the 19th Century to
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 ...
.
Originating in 1815 as the General Command for the
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 ...
with headquarters in
Breslau (now Wrocław in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
).
The Corps served in the
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
. During the
Franco-Prussian War it was assigned to the 3rd Army.
In peacetime the Corps was assigned to the
VIII Army Inspectorate but joined the
4th Army at the start of the
First World War
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 still in existence at the end of the war. The Corps was disbanded with the demobilisation of the German Army after
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 ...
.
Austro-Prussian War
VI Corps fought in the
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
in 1866, seeing action in the
Battle of Königgrätz
The Battle of Königgrätz (or Sadowa) was the decisive battle of the Austro-Prussian War in which the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire. It took place on 3 July 1866, near the Bohemian city of Hradec Králové (German: Königgrä ...
.
Franco-Prussian War
During the
Franco-Prussian War, the Corps was initially held back in
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
against the possibility of intervention by
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
. It only moved up to join the 3rd Army in August 1870. It then participated in the
Siege of Paris and the
Battle of Chevilly.
Peacetime organisation
The 25 peacetime
Corps
Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...
of the German Army (Guards, I - XXI, I - III Bavarian) had a reasonably standardised organisation. Each consisted of two
divisions with usually two infantry brigades, one field artillery brigade and a cavalry brigade each. Each brigade normally consisted of two regiments of the appropriate type, so each Corps normally commanded 8 infantry, 4 field artillery and 4 cavalry regiments. There were exceptions to this rule:
:
V, VI,
VII VII or vii may refer to: the Roman numeral 7
Art and entertainment
* The Vii, a video game console
* vii, leading-tone triad, see diminished triad
* ''VII'' (Blitzen Trapper album)
* ''VII'' (Just-Ice album)
* ''VII'' (Teyana Taylor album)
* ...
,
IX and
XIV Corps 14 Corps, 14th Corps, Fourteenth Corps, or XIV Corps may refer to:
* XIV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
* XIV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World ...
each had a 5th infantry brigade (so 10 infantry regiments)
:
II,
XIII
XIII may refer to:
* 13 (number) or XIII in Roman numerals
* 13th century in Roman numerals
* XIII (comics), ''XIII'' (comics), a Belgian comic book series by Jean Van Hamme and William Vance
** XIII (2003 video game), ''XIII'' (2003 video game), a ...
,
XVIII and
XXI Corps had a 9th infantry regiment
:
I, VI and
XVI Corps had a 3rd cavalry brigade (so 6 cavalry regiments)
:the
Guards Corps had 11 infantry regiments (in 5 brigades) and 8 cavalry regiments (in 4 brigades).
Each Corps also directly controlled a number of other units. This could include one or more
:Foot Artillery Regiment
:
Jäger Battalion
:
Pioneer
Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land.
In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and de ...
Battalion
:
Train
In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...
Battalion
World War I
Organisation on mobilisation
On mobilization, on 2 August 1914, the Corps was restructured. The 11th and 12th Cavalry Brigades were withdrawn to form part of the
5th Cavalry Division and the 44th Cavalry Brigade was broken up and its regiments assigned to the divisions as reconnaissance units. The 23rd Infantry Brigade was assigned to the
11th Reserve Division with
VI Reserve Corps
The VI Reserve Corps (german: VI. Reserve-Korps / VI RK) was a corps level command of the German Army in World War I.
Formation
VI Reserve Corps was formed on the outbreak of the war in August 1914 as part of the mobilisation of the Army. It ...
. Divisions received engineer companies and other support units from the Corps headquarters. In summary, VI Corps mobilised with 25 infantry battalions, 9 machine gun companies (54 machine guns), 8 cavalry squadrons, 24 field artillery batteries (144 guns), 4 heavy artillery batteries (16 guns), 3 pioneer companies and an aviation detachment.
Combat chronicle
On mobilisation, VI Corps was assigned to the
4th Army forming part of centre of the forces for the
Schlieffen Plan
The Schlieffen Plan (german: Schlieffen-Plan, ) is a name given after the First World War to German war plans, due to the influence of Field Marshal Alfred von Schlieffen and his thinking on an invasion of France and Belgium, which began on 4 ...
offensive in August 1914 on the
Western Front.
It was still in existence at the end of the war.
Commanders
The VI Corps had the following commanders during its existence:
The Prussian Machine
Accessed: 31 May 2012
See also
*Franco-Prussian War order of battle This is an order of battle of the French and German Armies at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870.
France
Order of battle at the beginning of the war:
Army of the Rhine
Commander in Chief: Emperor Napoléon III
Chief of Staff: Mars ...
*German Army order of battle (1914)
This is the German Army order of battle on the outbreak of World War I in August 1914.
Commanders and locations of the German Army
The overall commander of the Imperial German Army was Kaiser Wilhelm II. The Chief of the General Staff was General ...
*List of Imperial German infantry regiments
This is a list of Imperial German infantry regiments before and during World War I. In peacetime, the Imperial German Army included 217 regiments of infantry (plus the instruction unit, ''Lehr'' Infantry Battalion). Some of these regiments had a ...
*List of Imperial German artillery regiments
This is a list of Imperial German artillery regiments before and during World War I. In peacetime, the Imperial German Army included 100 regiments of Field artillery (plus the Lehr instruction unit) and 24 regiments of Foot artillery (plus anoth ...
*List of Imperial German cavalry regiments
This is a List of Imperial German cavalry regiments before and during World War I. In peacetime, the Imperial German Army included 110 regiments of cavalry. Some of these regiments had a history stretching back to the 17th century but others w ...
Footnotes
:a.This might be a typographical error in the source, as II Btn is also listed (alongside I Btn) as 5th Army Artillery
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:6th Corps (German Empire)
Corps of Germany in World War I
Military units and formations established in 1815
Military units and formations disestablished in 1919