The 23rd Division (''23. Division''), also known as the 1st Division No. 23 (''1. Division Nr. 23'') was a unit of the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

and then 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 ...

. The division was headquartered in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the XII (1st Royal Saxon) Army Corps (''XII. (1. Königlich Sächsisches) Armeekorps''). The 1st Division No. 23 was officially formed on April 1, 1867. However, this was as part of the convention which integrated the division with the Prussian-led army of the

North German Confederation The North German Confederation (german: Norddeutscher Bund) was initially a German military alliance established in August 1866 under the leadership of the Kingdom of Prussia, which was transformed in the subsequent year into a confederated st ...

. The division already existed as part of the autonomous Saxon Army. It was originally formed in 1849 as the 1st Division and from July 1, 1850, the 1st Infantry Division. It became the 1st Infantry Division No. 23 on April 1, 1867, and the 1st Division No. 23 on April 1, 1887. On mobilization for

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 ...

in August 1914 it again became the 1st Infantry Division No. 23, although it was for convenience referred to outside Saxony as the 23rd Infantry Division or the 23rd (1st Royal Saxon) Infantry Division. The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. The division was recruited in eastern Saxony, especially around Dresden.

Combat chronicle

Saxony fought as an ally of Austria 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 ...

. The Saxon Army Corps, including the 1st and 2nd Saxon Divisions, fought in several of the war's battles, including the decisive

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 ...

. In the Franco-Prussian War, Saxony was allied with Prussia. The 23rd Infantry Division fought in the battles of

Gravelotte Gravelotte (; german: Gravelotte) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in north-eastern France, 11 km west of Metz. It is part of the functional area (''aire d'attraction'') of Metz. Its population is 827 (2019). From 1871 u ...

and

Beaumont Beaumont may refer to: Places Canada * Beaumont, Alberta * Beaumont, Quebec England * Beaumont, Cumbria * Beaumont, Essex ** Beaumont Cut, a canal closed in the 1930s * Beaumont Street, Oxford France (communes) * Beaumont, Ardèche * ...

, and in the major

Battle of Sedan The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War from 1 to 2 September 1870. Resulting in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and over a hundred thousand troops, it effectively decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, ...

. It then participated in the Siege of Paris. During World War I, the division fought on the Western Front, seeing action in 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 ...

which culminated in the

First Battle of the Marne The First Battle of the Marne was a battle of the First World War fought from 5 to 12 September 1914. It was fought in a collection of skirmishes around the Marne River Valley. It resulted in an Entente victory against the German armies in the ...

. In 1916, it fought in the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

. In 1918, it participated in the German spring offensive, including the

Second Battle of the Somme The Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought during the First World War on the Western Front from late August to early September, in the basin of the River Somme. It was part of a series of successful counter-offensives in response to th ...

and 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 ...

. The division was rated as very good in 1917, but third class by 1918; however, Allied intelligence noted that "its use... would seem to warrant a higher rating."

Order of battle in the Franco-Prussian War

The organization of the 23rd Infantry Division in 1870 at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War was as follows: *1. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 45 (45. Infanterie-Brigade) **1. (Leib-)Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 100 **2. Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 101 *2. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 46 (46. Infanterie-Brigade) **Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 102 **Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 103 **Schützen-Regiment Nr. 108

Pre-World War I organization

German divisions underwent various organizational changes after the Franco-Prussian War. The organization of the 23rd Division in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, was as follows:''Rangliste der Königlich Sächsischen Armee für das Jahr 1914'' (1914), pp.10-11 *1. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 45 (45. Infanterie-Brigade) **1. (Leib-)Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 100 **2. Grenadier-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen Nr. 101 *2. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 46 (46. Infanterie-Brigade) **Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Prinz Georg Nr. 108 **16. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 182 *1. Kavallerie-Brigade Nr. 23 (23. Kavallerie-Brigade) ** Garde-Reiter-Regiment **1. Ulanen-Regiment Kaiser Franz Joseph von Österreich, König von Ungarn Nr. 17 *1. Feldartillerie-Brigade Nr. 23 (23. Feldartillerie-Brigade) **1.Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 12 **4.Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 48 *Landwehr-Inspektion Dresden

Order of battle on mobilization

On mobilization in August 1914 at the beginning of

, most divisional cavalry, including brigade headquarters, was withdrawn to form cavalry divisions or split up among divisions as reconnaissance units. Divisions received engineer companies and other support units from their higher headquarters. The division was again redesignated an infantry division. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle'' *1. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 45 (45. Infanterie-Brigade) **1. (Leib-)Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 100 **2. Grenadier-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen Nr. 101 *2. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 46 (46. Infanterie-Brigade) **Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Prinz Georg Nr. 108 **16. Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 182 *3. Husaren-Regiment Nr. 20 *1. Feldartillerie-Brigade Nr. 23 (23. Feldartillerie-Brigade) **1.Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 12 **4.Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 48 *1. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 12

Late World War I organization

Divisions underwent many changes during the war, with regiments moving from division to division, and some being destroyed and rebuilt. During the war, most divisions became

triangular A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, any three points, when non- collinea ...

- one infantry brigade with three infantry regiments rather than two infantry brigades of two regiments (a "

square division A square division is a designation given to the way military divisions are organized. In a square organization, the division's main body is composed of four "maneuver," i.e., infantry regimental elements. Other types of regiments, such as artillery, ...

"). An artillery commander replaced the artillery brigade headquarters, the cavalry was further reduced, the engineer contingent was increased, and a divisional signals command was created. The 23rd Infantry Division's order of battle on February 17, 1918, was as follows: *1. Infanterie-Brigade Nr. 45 (45. Infanterie-Brigade) **1. (Leib-)Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 100 **2. Grenadier-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen Nr. 101 **Schützen (Füsilier)-Regiment Prinz Georg Nr. 108 **Maschinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 52 *1.Eskadron/3. Husaren-Regiment Nr. 20 *Artillerie-Kommandeur 23 **1. Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 12 **1.Bataillon/2. Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 19 *Stab 1.Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 12: **3.Kompanie/1. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 12 **6.Kompanie/1. Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 12 **Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 23 *Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 23

References

23. Infanterie-Division (Chronik 1914/1918) - Der erste Weltkrieg
* Claus von Bredow, bearb., ''Historische Rang- und Stammliste des deutschen Heeres'' (1905) * 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:23 Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I Military units and formations established in 1867 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919