101st Infantry Division (German Empire)

Last updated
101st Infantry Division (101. Infanterie-Division)
Active 1915–18
Country German Empire
Branch Army
Type Infantry
Size Approx. 12,500
Engagements

World War I

The 101st Infantry Division (101. Infanterie-Division) was a unit of the Imperial German Army in World War I. The division was formed on May 3, 1915, and organized over the next few weeks. [1] It was part of a wave of new infantry divisions formed in the spring of 1915. The division was reduced to a division staff for special purposes (Divisions-Stab z.b.V.) without troops in July 1917 and dissolved in January 1918.

German Empire empire in Central Europe between 1871–1918

The German Empire, also known as Imperial Germany, was the German nation state that existed from the unification of Germany in 1871 until the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1918.

German Army (German Empire) 1871-1919 land warfare branch of the German military

The Imperial German Army was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. The term Deutsches Heer is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the Bundeswehr. The German Army was formed after the unification of Germany under Prussian leadership in 1871 and dissolved in 1919, after the defeat of the German Empire in World War I.

World War I 1914–1918 global war originating in Europe

World War I, also known as the First World War or the Great War, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. Contemporaneously described as "the war to end all wars", it led to the mobilisation of more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, making it one of the largest wars in history. It is also one of the deadliest conflicts in history, with an estimated nine million combatants and seven million civilian deaths as a direct result of the war, while resulting genocides and the 1918 influenza pandemic caused another 50 to 100 million deaths worldwide.

Contents

The division was formed primarily from the excess infantry regiments of existing divisions that were being triangularized. The division's 201st Infantry Brigade was formerly the 75th Infantry Brigade of the 37th Infantry Division, and came to the division with the 146th Infantry Regiment. The 45th Infantry Regiment came from the 2nd Infantry Division and the 59th Infantry Regiment came from the 41st Infantry Division. [1]

Triangular division

A triangular division is a designation given to the way military divisions are organized. In a triangular organization, the division's main body is composed of three regimental maneuver elements. These regiments may be controlled by a brigade headquarters or directly subordinated to the division commander. By contrast, in a square division, there were typically two brigades of two regiments. Other structures are possible, such as a pentomic division, where the division commander controls five maneuver elements, which was used in the United States Army in the late 1950s, with the regiments replaced by combined arms battlegroups.

The 37th Division was a unit of the Prussian/German Army. It was formed between March 25 and April 1, 1899, in Allenstein. The division was initially subordinated in peacetime to the I Army Corps. In 1912, it was transferred to the newly formed XX Army Corps. The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. It was mainly recruited in the Prussian province of East Prussia.

The 2nd Division was a unit of the Prussian/German Army. It was formed in Danzig in March 1816 as a Troop Brigade (Truppen-Brigade). It became the 2nd Division on September 5, 1818. In 1890, the headquarters of the division was relocated to Königsberg, then the capital of East Prussia. In 1899, the headquarters was moved to Insterburg, further inland and closer to the border with the Russian Empire. From the latter's formation in 1820, the division was subordinated in peacetime to the I Army Corps. The 2nd Division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I.

Combat chronicle

The 101st Infantry Division served on the Eastern Front, seeing its first action in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive. It crossed the Dnestr in June 1915, participated in the battles on the Galician and Russian Poland border, and advanced to the Bug by August. The division was then transferred south to participate in the Serbian Campaign. It reached Priština in late November and advanced to the Greek border in December. For most of 1916, and into 1917, the division remained on the Macedonian front. It underwent several changes, losing units to other divisions and receiving various replacements, and in July 1917, the division was dissolved as a tactical headquarters, with its subunits sent to other units. Its headquarters remained as a division staff for special purposes, administering Bulgarian units, until it was dissolved. Allied intelligence rated the division as third class. [1] [2]

Eastern Front (World War I) part of World War I

The Eastern Front or Eastern Theater of World War I was a theatre of operations that encompassed at its greatest extent the entire frontier between the Russian Empire and Romania on one side and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and the German Empire on the other. It stretched from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south, included most of Eastern Europe and stretched deep into Central Europe as well. The term contrasts with "Western Front", which was being fought in Belgium and France.

Order of battle

The 101st Infantry Division was formed as a triangular division. The order of battle of the division on May 15, 1915, was as follows: [3]

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References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 101. Infanterie-Division (Chronik 1915/1918)
  2. ↑ 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. 582-583.
  3. ↑ Hermann Cron et al., Ruhmeshalle unserer alten Armee (Berlin, 1935).
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