1st Cavalry Division (German Empire)

1st Cavalry Division
active	August 2, 1914 to June 1919
Country	German Empire
Armed forces	Prussian Army
Type	Cavalry Division
structure	See: Outline
First World War	Eastern Front Skirmish at Stallupönen Battle of Gumbinnen Battle of Tannenberg Battle of the Masurian Lakes Winter battle in Masuria

The 1st Cavalry Division was a large unit of the Prussian Army , which existed for the duration of the mobilization on the occasion of the Sardinian War in 1859, the German War in 1866, the War against France in 1870/71 and the First World War .

structure

1866

• 1st Heavy Cavalry Brigade
  • Regiment of the Gardes du Corps
  • Guard Cuirassier Regiment
• 2nd Heavy Cavalry Brigade
  • Brandenburg Cuirassier Regiment No. 6
  • Magdeburg Cuirassier Regiment No. 7
• 3rd Heavy Cavalry Brigade
  • Guard Dragoon Regiment
  • 1st Guard Uhlan Regiment
  • 2nd Guard Uhlan Regiment

1870/71

• 1st Cavalry Brigade
• 2nd Cavalry Brigade

Organization of war during mobilization in 1914

• 1st Cavalry Brigade
  • Cuirassier Regiment "Graf Wrangel" (East Prussian) No. 3
  • Dragoon Regiment "Prince Albrecht of Prussia" (Litthauisches) No. 1
• 2nd Cavalry Brigade
  • Litthau Uhlan Regiment No. 12
  • Jäger-Regiment on Horseback No. 9
• 41st Cavalry Brigade
  • Cuirassier regiment "Duke Friedrich Eugen von Württemberg" (West Prussian) No. 5
  • Uhlan Regiment "von Schmidt" (1st Pomeranian) No. 4
• Riding division / field artillery regiment "Prince August of Prussia" (1st Litthauisches) No. 1
• MG Department No. 5
• Pioneer department

Division of War of March 4, 1918

• Leib-Hussar Brigade
  • 1st Leib-Hussar Regiment No. 1
  • 2. Leib-Hussar Regiment "Queen Victoria of Prussia" No. 2
• 2nd Cavalry Brigade
  • Litthau Uhlan Regiment No. 12
  • Jäger-Regiment on Horseback No. 9
• 18th Cavalry Brigade
  • Cuirassier Regiment "Graf Wrangel" (East Prussian) No. 3
  • Dragoon Regiment "Prince Albrecht of Prussia" (Litthauisches) No. 1
  • 1st and 2nd cycling company / Pomeranian Jäger Battalion "Fürst Bismarck" No. 2
  • Riding division / field artillery regiment "Prince August of Prussia" (1st Litthauisches) No. 1
  • Riding Division / 1st West Prussian Field Artillery Regiment No. 35
  • Cavalry Engineer Division No. 1

Battle calendar

The division was formed as part of the mobilization at the beginning of the First World War and was used exclusively on the Eastern Front. Here it remained after the peace of Brest-Litovsk as a German police power. It was first used in Livonia and Estonia and then came to Ukraine , where it remained through the end of the war until March 16, 1919.

1914

• August 17th - Battle at Stallupönen
• August 19-20 - Battle of Gumbinnen
• 23rd to 31st August - Battle of Tannenberg
• 0September 5th to 15th - Battle of the Masurian Lakes
• September 25-30 - Battle of the Nyemen
• 0October 1st to November 5th - trench warfare near Grajewo - Wizajny
• 0November 6th to 8th - Battle of Göritten
• November 13th to 16th - Battle of the Rominten Heath
• from November 15 - trench warfare for field positions near Lötzen and on the Angerapp

1915

• until February 7th - position battles for the field position Lötzen-Angerapp
• 0February 8-22 - winter battle in Masuria
• February 23 to March 6 - Battles on Bobr
• 0March 7-16 - Battles in the border position Sereye-Simno-Luchwinow and Mariampol
  • March 9-12 - Battles at Sejny
• March 25-30 - Skirmishes near Krasnopol and Krasne
• March 31 to July 20 - trench warfare between Augustow, Mariampol and Pilwiszki
• July 21st to August 7th - fights at Jesia and Wejwery
• 0August 8-18 - Siege of Kovno
• August 19 to September 8 - Battle of Nyemen
• 0September 9 - Szyrwinty
• 0September 9 to 24 - Battle of Vilnius
• September 24th to October 19th - Battles on the Myadsjolka and Dryswjata
• from November 6th - Coastal Protection North Courland

1916

• Coastal protection of North Courland

1917

• until August 22nd - Coastal Protection North Courland
  • January 23 to February 3 - Winter battle on the Aa
• 0September 1-5 - Battle of Riga
• 0September 6th to October 28th - trench warfare north of the Daugava
• from October 29th - occupation service at budget inspection 10

1918

• until March 10th - occupation service at budget inspection 10
• March 11th to May 2nd - Occupation of Livonia and Estonia as a German police force
• 0May 3 to June 21 - fighting in support of Ukraine
• June 22nd to November 15th - Occupation of Ukraine
• from November 16 - evacuation of Ukraine

1919

• until March 16 - evacuation of Ukraine

Commanders

Rank	Surname	date
Major general	Leopold Friedrich Karl August von Riedel	June 14th to July 25th, 1859
Major general	Hermann von Alvensleben	0May 8 to September 16, 1866
Lieutenant General	Julius von Hartmann	July 18, 1870 to May 19, 1871
Lieutenant General	Hermann Brecht	0August 2, 1914 to September 2, 1916
Lieutenant General	Hans von Heuduck	0September 3, 1916 to January 26, 1918
Major general	Anton von der Schulenburg	January 27, 1918 to 1919

literature

• Hall of Fame of our Old Army. Published on the basis of official material from the Reich Archives . Military Publishing House. Berlin 1927. pp. 78, 175.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Dermot Bradley (ed.), Günter Wegner: Occupation of the German Army 1815-1939. Volume 1: The higher command posts 1815–1939. Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück 1990, ISBN 3-7648-1780-1 , p. 417.