7th Cavalry Division (German Empire)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

7th Cavalry Division

active August 2, 1914 to January 1919
Country German EmpireGerman Empire (Reichskriegsflagge) German Empire
Armed forces Prussian Army
Branch of service cavalry
Type Cavalry Division
management
Commanders See list of commanders

The 7th Cavalry Division was a major unit of the Prussian Army that existed during the mobilization on the occasion of the Sardinian War in 1859 and during the First World War .

history

Lineup

For the duration of the mobilization on the occasion of the Sardinian War, the division existed for the first time from June 14th to July 25th, 1859. Only with the outbreak of the First World War was it set up again as part of the army cavalry in Saarlouis as part of the mobilization on August 2nd, 1914 subordinated to the 6th Army .

Skirmishes and combat operations

In August 1914, the division was deployed on the advance to Lorraine and in September was transferred by rail via Belgium to France to the right wing of the German front , where it took part in the race to the sea . At Zandvoorde , the division was used on foot for the first time. After that, she was first deployed in November in the Ypres - Armentières area in the incipient trench warfare and on November 15 came to resting quarters east of Lille. On January 19, 1915, the division was relocated to Lorraine. Here for the first time a rifle squadron was formed from two cavalry squadrons, each of which temporarily replaced individual battalions on the front (including at Bourdonnay , Avricourt , Bréménil ). The horses remained in the Saarburg area with a small number of keepers . During this time there was an initial training in machine guns and the use of rifle grenades . At the end of June the division was closed again at Leintrey / Manonviller , mainly to further expand the positions, and deployed at Amenoncourt in August . In October 1915 the division was relocated to Belgium, divisional headquarters in Brussels , the regiments distributed all over Belgium to monitor the high-voltage barrier by guards, to protect the railways and to monitor the country by patrols .

After Romania's declaration of war (on August 27, 1916), the division was relocated to the local front in early October 1916, initially in the area east of Timisoara . As part of the 9th Army , the division advanced to January 11, 1917 over the Transylvanian Alps (volcanic pass ) and on via Petrilla , Craiova , Stoeneşti am Olt , past Bucharest to almost the Sereth west of Galați .

From January 27 to February 8, 1917, the division was relocated back to Belgium by rail ( Klausenburg - Budapest - Prague - Dresden - Würzburg - Bruchsal - Saarbrücken - Liège - Beverloo ) in order to be replenished there by adding teams and horses. At the end of April, however, the horses had to be handed in - initially "temporarily for harvesting". At the beginning of May the division was moved to the area south of Colmar . From May 16, 1917, the regiments of the 26th Cavalry Brigade were reclassified into two rifle squadrons, trained as infantry and, from May 21, into positions with the 12th Bavarian. Landwehr regiment at the Tête des Faux (beech head, 1219 m, near Schnierlach ). Already on May 25th, the 26th Brigade was regrouped at Ingersheim in Dragoon Rifle Regiment 26 with 3 Rifle Squadrons (1st from 1st, 2nd and 5th Squadron Dragoon Regiment No. 26, 2nd from 1st Infantry Division) Squadron Dragoon Regiment No. 25 and 3rd Squadron Dragoon Regiment No. 26, 3rd from 2nd to 4th Squadron Dragoon Regiment No. 25) with simultaneous subordination to a Bavarian brigade until August 2nd. That day, the 26th Dragoon Rifle Regiment resigned to the 26th Cavalry Brigade and division. From the end of December 1917, the division gave up the remaining horses. In mid-May 1918 the division moved to the Saarburg area, where, after further training in infantry weapons, it was reclassified as the 7th Cavalry Rifle Division , and from June 1 it again occupied positions at Avricourt. In mid-July 1918, the division moved to the Courtrai area for further training and was in reserve as an intervention division from July 30th. From August, the division was involved in the defensive battles in Flanders with heavy losses. At the end of October the division was moved back to the Colmar area. After the armistice, the division was disbanded and its units marched back into the peace garrisons.

  • 26th Cavalry Brigade 1914

  • Württ. Troops in the 6th Army August 1914

  • 26th Cavalry Brigade 1914

  • Situation in Romania after the start of the war in 1916

  • 26th Cavalry Brigade in Romania 1916

  • 26th Dragoon Regiment west of Cambrai

  • March back in 1918

organization

Association membership

In 1914 the division belonged together with the Bavarian Cavalry Division to the Higher Cavalry Command 3 of the 6th Army. From October 1915 to October 1916 she was subordinate to the General Government of Belgium Colonel General Moritz von Bissing . From October 1916 to January 1917 she was employed in the Schmettow Cavalry Corps with the 9th Army under General of the Infantry Erich von Falkenhayn in Romania and on October 1, 1918, she was subordinated to the IV Army Corps .

structure

Organization of war in mobilization

  • Division command
Commander Lieutenant General von Heydebreck
First General Staff Officer, Major Freiherr von Rottberg
Second General Staff Officer, Captain Prausnitzer
Adjutant Rittmeister v. Oertzen
Machine gun - Division No. 3
Communications Department No. 7 (one heavy and two light radio stations)
Cavalry Engineer Division No. 7
1. Bavarian rifle battalion (with a cycling and a machine gun - Company)
Commander Major General Duke Robert von Württemberg (August 2, 1914 to July 30, 1916)
Dragoon Regiment "Queen Olga" (1st Württembergisches) No. 25
Dragoon Regiment "König" (2nd Württemberg) No. 26
2nd Rhenish Hussar Regiment No. 9
3rd Silesian Dragoon Regiment No. 15 in Haguenau
Uhlan regiment "Graf Haeseler" (2nd Brandenburg) No. 11
Schleswig-Holstein Uhlan Regiment No. 15
with light ammunition column

Division of war in October 1916

When moving to Romania, the 42nd Cavalry Brigade stayed in Belgium, but the 41st Cavalry Brigade came to the division.

  • Division command
Commander Major General Albert von Mutius
First general staff officer
  • Division troops
Cavalry News Department No. 3
Cavalry Engineer Division No. 7
two German and two Austrian fleet columns
  • 26th Cavalry Brigade
Commander Major General Achim Wehl July 30, 1916 until the end of the war
Dragoon Regiment "Queen Olga" (1st Württembergisches) No. 25
Dragoon Regiment "König" (2nd Württembergisches) No. 26
2nd Rhenish Hussar Regiment No. 9
3rd Silesian Dragoon Regiment No. 15
  • newly subordinated to 41st Cavalry Brigade (until mobilization with 42nd Division , in the war so far with 1st Cavalry Division)
Cuirassier regiment "Duke Friedrich Eugen von Württemberg" (West Prussian) No. 5
Uhlan Regiment "von Schmidt" (1st Pomeranian) No. 4

At the end of May 1917, the 26th Cavalry Brigade tactically became the 6th Bavarian until July 31st . Landwehr Division subordinated. On October 6, the staff of the 26th Cavalry Brigade moved to Macedonia, the Dragoon Regiment "Queen Olga" (1st Württembergisches) No. 25 became the 28th Cavalry Brigade, the Dragoon Regiment "König" (2nd Württembergisches) No. 26 subordinated to the 41st Cavalry Brigade.

From October 1917 to the end of May 1918, the division was reclassified to the 7th Cavalry Rifle Division after the horses had been surrendered .

Division of war in April 1918

  • Division command
Commander Major General Dietrich von Bodelschwingh
2nd Squadron Cuirassier Regiment “Emperor Nicholas I of Russia” (Brandenburg) No. 6
Pioneers, mine throwers, intelligence troops and columns as in the infantry divisions
  • Cavalry Rifle Command 28, Colonel Graf von Kageneck
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 11/28 (Uhlan Regiment "Graf Haeseler" (2nd Brandenburg) No. 11)
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 15/28 (Schleswig-Holstein Uhlan Regiment No. 15)
Cavalry Rifle Reserve Regiment No. 26 (Reserve Uhlan Regiment No. 4, Commander Major Braun of the Dragoon Regiment No. 26)
  • Cavalry Rifle Command 30, Colonel von Günther
    Adjutant Oberleutnant Gais, Mine thrower officer Oberleutnant d. R. Benary, both of the 26th Dragoon Regiment
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 15/30 (3rd Silesian Dragoon Regiment No. 15)
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 25/30 (Dragoon Regiment "Queen Olga" (1. Württembergisches) No. 25)
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 9/30 (2nd Rhenish Hussar Regiment No. 9)
  • Cavalry Rifle Command 41, Colonel Charisius
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 5/41 (Cuirassier Regiment "Duke Friedrich Eugen von Württemberg" (West Prussian) No. 5)
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 26/41 (Dragoon Regiment "König" (2nd Württembergisches) No. 26)
Cavalry Rifle Regiment No. 4/41 (Uhlan Regiment "von Schmidt" (1st Pomeranian) No. 4)
  • 1st Guard Field Artillery Regiment z. b. V. No. 1
Division details → Main article: Cavalry Rifle Division

Commanders

Rank Surname date
Major general August von Oelrichs June 14th to July 25th, 1859
Lieutenant General Ernst von Heydebreck 0August 2 to December 25, 1914
Major general Fritz von Unger December 26, 1914 to September 18, 1916
Major general Udo von Selchow September 19 to October 10, 1916
Major general Albert of Mutius October 11, 1916 to April 14, 1917
Dignity. Major general Arthur of Lupine April 15 to May 18, 1917
Lieutenant General Hermann Heidborn May 19 to July 21, 1917
Major general Dietrich von Bodelschwingh July 22, 1917 to May 22, 1918
Lieutenant General Hans von Heuduck May 23, 1918 to January 1919

Armament and equipment

Main armament

When the war started, the troopers led the carabiner 98 , the steel tube Lance M in 1889 and the cavalry sword M 98 as a weapon After Reclassification Cavalry shooters kept that the carabiner, the rifle grenade shooter received the infantry rifle 98 . A rifle squadron had six light MG MG 08/15 .

Other equipment

In the reclassification in cavalry protecting were packing bags and backpacks by knapsack , the breeches and boots by infantry long pants and infantry boots replaced (Knobelbecher) or Lace with putties. In addition, there was the normal equipment of an infantryman with bayonet, bread bag, canteen, canvas, short spade and gas mask.

References

See also

literature

  • Alfred Satter: The German cavalry in the First World War . Books on Demand GmbH, Norderstedt 1944, ISBN 3-8334-1564-9 ( limited preview in Google Book Search [accessed June 27, 2010]).
  • Otto von Moser : The Wuerttembergians in the World War . Belser, Stuttgart 1928, OCLC 258186957 .
  • [Achim] Wehl: Dragoon Regiment "König" (2nd Württ.) No. 26 in World War 1914–1918.
  • Hans Gais: With the Olga Dragoons 1914/18. Chr.Belsersche Verlagbuchhandlung, Stuttgart, 1920.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Moser, p. 129
  2. ↑ 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. 421.