Part 67
7. In consequence of the French attack of December 15 north of Verdun, the division was concentrated in the vicinity of Azannes. On December 17 it relieved the remnants of the 10th Division in the Chambrettes sector.
1917.
1. The 43d Reserve Division remained at Verdun until January 31, 1917, without being engaged in any important action. However, it suffered rather heavy losses there.
CHAMPAGNE.
2. After a rest in Alsace, the division was sent to Champagne, where, on February 22, it reenforced the front between Loivre and east of the Cavaliers du Courcy. The French attack of April 16 caused it serious losses.
ARGONNE.
3. Relieved at the end of April, and reorganized, it went back into line in the calm sector of Vauquois about May 9; the 12th Company of the 201st Reserve Infantry Regiment was filled up by the arrival of 100 men (1918 class; men from the 613th and 614th dissolved Infantry Regiments).
4. At the end of May the division was withdrawn from the Argonne. It was rested and reorganized first in the Ardennes, then in the vicinity of Laon.
CHEMIN DES DAMES.
5. From July 18 to 20, it went into the sector Panthéon-Épine du Chevregny (south of Pargny-Filain) and almost at once underwent the artillery preparation and the French attack of July 30 which caused it heavy losses, increased by the counterattacks which it attempted on July 31 and August 10. On July 30 the 12th Company of the 202d Reserve Infantry Regiment had only 5 noncommissioned officers and 56 men left (document). On August 10 the 201st Reserve Infantry Regiment was almost completely destroyed and left 124 men as prisoners south of La Royère.
6. The 43d Reserve Division was relieved from the Chemin des Dames on August 23 and sent to rest until the end of September in the vicinity of Laon. It was filled up and reorganized.
LA MALMAISON.
7. Receiving training at the beginning of October in view of an offensive which was to anticipate the expected French attack, the elements of the 43d Reserve Division were engaged, beginning with October 15, to reenforce weakened divisions at Vaudesson, La Malmaison, and Bruyeres. They underwent the attack of October 23, which caused them heavy losses (53 officers, 2,190 men, prisoners). The remnants of the division were relieved on the Ailette on October 28.
RUSSIA.
8. The division was sent to Russia soon afterwards, where it detrained on November 11, in the vicinity of Baranovitchi, after five days’ travel. It then relieved the 201st Division, scheduled to go to France.
RECRUITING.
The 43d Reserve Division was recruited, as was the guard in which it had its origin, from the whole of the Prussian territory. The trained men (returned, wounded, and sick), who figure in the reenforcements which it received, had the same origin (Guard, 1st Reserve Guard Division, 261st and 262d Reserve Guard Ersatz Divisions, Guard Landsturm Battalions, etc.). In April, 1917, the division absorbed a part of the 613th and 614th Regiments formed from the Guard recruit depots and dissolved on March 31.
VALUE—1917 ESTIMATE.
The 43d Reserve Division has always been considered a very good organization (December, 1917).
On August 10, 1917, south of La Royère, the 201st Ersatz Regiment attacked “with very great energy.”
In October, 1917, at La Malmaison, the 43d Reserve Division was brought up for reenforcement as an attacking division.
Because of its recent losses (in the attack of Oct. 3) the 43d Reserve Division needs to be completely reorganized before going into action (December, 1917).
It is to be noted that all the recruits of the division come from the Guard recruit depots. (After the losses suffered on Apr. 16, 1917, the division received 3,000 men from the depots of Brandenburg.)
The human material at the disposition of the division is of high quality.
1918.
1. The division left Russia on February 9 and arrived at the Camp Alten- Grabon near Magdeburg about the middle of February. After resting there about five weeks the division entrained on March 18 and traveled via Bielefeld-Gladbach-Aachen-Visé—Hasselt-Louvain-Brussels-Denderleeuw- Audenarde-Courtrai-Tourcoing to Lille, where the regiment detrained on the 22d, billeting at Loos. On the night of April 1–2 the 202d Reserve Infantry Regiment marched via Emmerin and Wattignies to Herrin, continuing on the night of April 2–3 via Chemy-Camphin-Ostricourt to Malmaison and thence to Herrin-Lietard. On April 4 the regiment proceeded to Noyelles-Godault, on the 5th back to Malmaison, and thence on the 7th to Billy Berclau.
LA BASSEE CANAL.
2. The division was engaged at Festubert on April 9. The objective of the division was to break through the enemy’s positions, force the passage of the Lawe and the La Bassee Canals, and capture the heights of Hinges and the town of Bethum. It was held up by British resistance at Festubert and did not penetrate farther. On April 29 it was relieved by the 9th Reserve Division.
SOMME.
3. After its relief, the division rested in the area south of Lille until June 24, when it relieved the 24th Reserve Division at Bouzencourt. Until August 8, it held the sector on the Somme. In the fighting in August, the division lost 600 prisoners. On August 20 it returned to line at Bray and was engaged until the end of the month. The total number of prisoners lost by the division in these two engagements was 1,100.
4. Early in September the division was broken up. The 203d Reserve Regiment was turned into the Guard Ersatz Division, the 202d Reserve Regiment to the 2d Guard Division.
VALUE—1918 ESTIMATE.
The division was rated as third class. Its complete failure on the La Bassee attack in April and its subsequently long retention in line on the Somme prepared the way for its dissolution about the first of September.
44th Reserve Division.
COMPOSITION.
─────────────┬───────────────────┬───────────────────┬─────────────────── │ 1914 │ 1915 │ 1916 ─────────────┼─────────┬─────────┼─────────┬─────────┼─────────┬───────── │Brigade. │Regiment.│Brigade. │Regiment.│Brigade. │Regiment. ─────────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────── Infantry. │87 Res. │205 Res. │87 Res. │205 Res. │87 Res. │205 Res. │ │206 Res. │ │206 Res. │ │206 Res. │88 Res. │207 Res. │88 Res. │207 Res. │88 Res. │207 Res. │ │208 Res. │ │208 Res. │ │208 Res. │ 16 Res. Jag. Btn. │ 16 Res. Jag. Btn. │ 16 Res. Jag. Btn. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Cavalry. │44 Res. Cav. Detch.│44 Res. Cav. Detch.│44 Res. Cav. Detch. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Artillery. │44 Res. F. A. Rgt. │44 Res. F. A. Rgt. │44 Reg. F. A. Rgt. │ (9 Btries.) │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼───────────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Engineers and│44 Pion. Co. │44 Res. Pont. Co. │44 Res. Pion. Co. Liaisons. │ │ │ │ │44 Res. Pion. Engs.│5 Field Co. 29 │ │ │ Pion. Rgt. │ │ │244 T. M. Co. │ │ │ │ │ │44 Res. Pont. Engs. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼───────────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Medical and │ │44 Res. Ambulance │ Veterinary.│ │ Co. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼───────────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Transports. │ │ │ ─────────────┴───────────────────┴───────────────────┴───────────────────
─────────────┬───────────────────┬─────────────────── │ 1917 │ 1918 ─────────────┼─────────┬─────────┼─────────┬───────── │Brigade. │Regiment.│Brigade. │Regiment. ─────────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼───────── Infantry. │87 Res. │205 Res. │87 Res. │205 Res. │ │206 Res. │ │206 Res. │ │208 Res. │ │208 Res. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼─────────┴─────────┼─────────┴───────── Cavalry. │44 Res. Cav. Detch.│4 Sqn. 7 Drag. Rgt. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Artillery. │(?) Art. Command: │44 Res. F. A. Rgt. │ │ │ 44 Res. F. A. Rgt.│2 Abt. 21 Ft. A. │ │ Rgt. (4 and 6 │ │ Btries.). │ │706 Light Am. Col. │ │828 Light Am. Col. │ │1322 Light Am. Col. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Engineers and│344 Pion. Btn.: │344 Pion. Btn.: Liaisons. │ │ │ 44 Res. Pion. Co. │ 5 Co. 29 Pions. │ │ │ 5 Field Co. 29 │ 44 Res. Pion. Co. │ Pion. Btn. │ │ 244 T. M. Co. │ 244 T. M. Co. │ 306 Searchlight │ 21 Searchlight │ Sect. │ Section. │ 444 Tel. Detch. │ 250 Searchlight │ │ Section. │ │444 Signal Command: │ │ 444 Tel. Detch. │ │ 86 Wireless Detch. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Medical and │526 Ambulance Co. │526 Ambulance Co. Veterinary.│ │ │73 Res. Field │71 Res. Field │ Hospital. │ Hospital. │238 Vet. Hospital. │75 Res. Field │ │ Hospital. │ │238 Vet. Hospital. ─────────────┼───────────────────┼─────────────────── Transports. │M. T. Col. │731 M. T. Col. ─────────────┴───────────────────┴───────────────────
HISTORY.
(3d Corps District—Brandenburg.)
1914.
YSER.
1. The 44th Reserve Division, formed between August and October, 1914, like the other division of the 22d Reserve Corps (43d Reserve Division), was trained at Jueterbog Camp and entrained on October 12. Detraining at Termonde, it was in action at Dixmude and at Bixschoote in October and November and lost very heavily. On November 9 the 3d Battalion of the 205th Reserve Infantry Regiment was reduced to 153 men. (Notebook.)
2. After the battle of the Yser, it occupied several sectors north of Ypres.
1915.
NIEUPORT.
1. The 44th Reserve Division remained on the Flanders front until the month of June, 1915.
2. On June 7 the division was relieved from the Lombartzyde-Nieuport sector and transferred to the Eastern Front.
RUSSIA.
3. Arriving in Russia in the middle of June, it took part in the Mackensen offensive—battles of pursuit on the Galician frontier (June 22-July 16); battle of Krasnostaw (July 19–28) and of Biskupice (July, 29–30); battles up to the Bug (July 31 to Aug. 19); taking of Brest- Litovsk on August 26.
SERBIA.
4. In October it was sent to Serbia and went through the entire campaign.
5. At the end of December, it was sent to rest in Hungary.
1916.
FRANCE.
1. At the end of January, 1916, the 44th Reserve Division entrained for France. (Itinerary: Inddis-Budapest-Vienna-Rosenheim-Cologne-Charleroi.) It detrained at Landrecies-Valenciennes on February 6. It did some work on the Somme front (the 306th Reserve Infantry Regiment near Peronne; the 208th Reserve Infantry Regiment remained at Mesle until Mar. 14) and then entrained at Landrecies on March 24.
VERDUN (MORT-HOMME).
2. Concentrated in the vicinity of Buzancy, at the end of March, the division went to the left bank of the Meuse. On April 11 the 86th Reserve Brigade went into line in the Mort-Homme sector. The 44th Reserve Division was in action beginning with April 25, and suffered very heavy losses (April-May).
3. On June 5 the 44th Reserve Division was withdrawn from the front, reorganized, and sent to rest in the vicinity of Sedan (replacements from the 3d and 5th Corps Districts).
SOMME.
4. Transferred to the Somme (July 2 and 3), the division sent some of its elements into action on the Estrees-Belloy front on July 4. It underwent the French attacks between these two villages (July 6–10) and launched a violent counterattack on the 7th and 8th. These engagements caused it severe losses (9 officers and 522 men as prisoners).
LASSIGNY.
5. Relieved on July 10, it spent a few days at rest, and on July 20 entered the line in the sector of Lassigny-Beuvraignes.
Between June 1 and July 15 the 205th Reserve Infantry Regiment, after it had received men from the Beverloo depot, had received at least 145 men for its 5th Company, 167 for its 8th; on July 14 the 1st Company of the 206th Infantry Regiment received at least 128 men; some (1917 class) had only been in the service since May 5.
SOMME.
6. Sent to rest in the middle of September, the 44th Reserve Division again went into action on the Somme (Berny en Santerre-Genermont), between October 9 and October 28, and again lost very heavily.
7. It then came back into the Lassigny sector, where it was reorganized (reinforcements of 300 to 400 men per regiment). It transferred the 207th Reserve Infantry Regiment to the 228th Division, a new organization.
1917.
LASSIGNY (RETREAT).
1. In March, 1917, the 44th Reserve Division took part in the German retreat and left the lines at Lassigny to take up its position between La Fère and Moy (Mar. 25).
LA MALMAISON (WOËVRE).
2. Sent into the reserve of the army at the end of March in the vicinity of Marle St. Gobert, the division was concentrated on April 15 in the vicinity of Monampteuil-Filain (Apr. 20). On the 21st, on both banks of the Oise-Aisne Canal, it relieved the remnants of the division decimated by the French offensive of April 16 and at La Malmaison received the new attack of May 5. Very much exhausted (1,670 prisoners), it was replaced at once (night of May 5–6) and transferred to the Woëvre first and then to the Côtes de Meuse northeast of St. Mihiel, where the division took over the sector of Chevaliers after being reorganized. It was withdrawn October 25.
FLANDERS.
3. On November 10 it went into line in Flanders, north of Passchendaele.
ARTOIS.
Relieved at the end of the month, it was sent to the sector of Neuve Chapelle. It was still there March 19, 1918.
RECRUITING.
The 44th Reserve Division was mixed at the time of its formation (one regiment from Hanover), but has since become purely Brandenburg by its reduction to three regiments. However, this does not prevent the occasional introduction of extraneous elements—for example, in July, 1916 (urgent call for available reserve at Beverloo). The 1917 class then made its appearance on July 12, 1916 (in the 208th Reserve Infantry Regiment); the 1918 class on April 13, 1917 (in the 205th Reserve Infantry Regiment).
VALUE—1917 ESTIMATE.
The 44th Reserve Division has been designated an assault division.
The 44th Reserve Division has not shown any great military value in the course of the battles which it went into north of the Aisne. Certain elements, however, fought well. One must note that the combat effectives of the division were very much reduced by the artillery preparation before the attack of May 5, 1917.
After the battle of the Aisne, the division made up for its losses with elements from the field recruit depots and two replacements, one coming from Warsaw (1917 class), and the other from the 5th Corps District (mostly returned wounded).
1918.
LA BASSEE CANAL.
1. About April 1st, the division was retired to the second line, from which it returned on the night of April 12–13 to attack near Locon on the 13th. It held a sector in that region until its relief by the 220th Division on May 6–7.
2. The division rested at Courrieres for three weeks. On May 26 it relieved the 39th Division west of Vieux Berqum. Here it remained until July 4, when it was relieved by the 207th Division.
SOMME.
3. The division moved to the area northwest of Tournai early in July. There it rested and received drafts until its return to line northeast of Martinpuich on August 26. The division fell back on Flers (27th), Beaulencourt (1st), Villers au Flos (2d), Ruyaulcourt (3d), southwest of Havrincourt (7th). It was withdrawn from line on September 10 after losing 700 prisoners.
4. It was out of line for four weeks and unconfirmed reports indicated its presence at Metz. However, it again appeared in line on the Cambrai- St. Quentin front on October 10, north of Montay. It fought around Le Cateau until the end of the month when it was withdrawn from line north of Robersart. About the fourth of November the division was back in line at Locquignol and in the closing days of the war it fell back to Maubeuge.
VALUE—1918 ESTIMATE.
The division was rated as first class. It was not used in any of the major offensives of 1918.
44th Landwehr Division.
COMPOSITION.
─────────────┬─────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────── │ 1916 │ 1917 ─────────────┼──────────────┬──────────────┼──────────────┬────────────── │ Brigade. │ Regiment. │ Brigade. │ Regiment. ─────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── Infantry. │Rosenberg. │93 Ldw. │44 Ldw. │81 Ldw. │ │382 Ldw. │ │93 Ldw. │ │ │ │382 Ldw. ─────────────┼──────────────┴──────────────┼──────────────┴────────────── Cavalry. │ │ ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Artillery. │ │Art. Command: │ │ 270 F. A. Rgt. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Engineers and│ │(444) Pion. Btn.: Liaisons. │ │ │ │ 411 T. M. Co. │ │ │ │ 544 Tel. Detch. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Medical and │ │274 Ambulance Co. Veterinary.│ │ │ │360 Field Hospital. │ │Vet. Hospital. │ │ ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Transports. │ │M. T. Col. ─────────────┴─────────────────────────────┴─────────────────────────────
─────────────┬─────────────────────────────┬───────────────────────────── │ 1918 │ 1918 ─────────────┼──────────────┬──────────────┼──────────────┬────────────── │ Brigade. │ Regiment. │ Brigade. │ Regiment. ─────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── Infantry. │44 Ldw. │81 Ldw. │ (?) │81 Ldw. │ │93 Ldw. │ │93 Ldw. │ │382 Ldw. │ │382 Ldw. ─────────────┼──────────────┴──────────────┼──────────────┴────────────── Cavalry. │3 Sqn. 2 Uhlan Rgt. │3 Sqn. 2 Uhlan Rgt. ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Artillery. │134 Art. Command: │134 Art. Command: │ 4, 5, 6, and 8 Abtl. 254 │ 61 Res. F. A. Rgt. │ Ldw. F. A. Rgt. │ │ 828 and 837 F. A. Btries. │ 822 Light Am. Col. │ │ 1268 Light Am. Col. │ │ 1321 Light Am. Col. ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Engineers and│(444) Pion. Btn.: │444 Pion. Btn.: Liaisons. │ │ │ 2 Landst. Co. 7 C. Dist. │ 4 Landst. Co. 7 C. Dist. │ Pions. │ Pions. │ 4 Landst. Co. 7 C. Dist. │ 244 Searchlight Section. │ Pions. │ │ 411 T. M. Co. │544 Signal Command: │ 544 Tel. Detch. │ 544 Tel. Detch. │ │ 63 Wireless Detch. ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Medical and │274 Ambulance Co. │274 Ambulance Co. Veterinary.│ │ │268 Field Hospital. │360 Field Hospital. │360 Field Hospital. │ │Vet. Hospital. │ ─────────────┼─────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────── Transports. │M. T. Col. │ ─────────────┴─────────────────────────────┴─────────────────────────────
HISTORY.
(81st Landwehr Regiment: 18th Corps District—Grand Duchy of Hesse and Hesse—Nassau. 93d Landwehr Regiment: 4th Corps District—Prussian Saxony. 382d Landwehr Regiment: 7th Corps District—Westphalia.)
1916.
LORRAINE.
1. The 44th Landwehr Division was formed in April, 1917, by the grouping of the 44th Landwehr Brigade (93d and 382d Landwehr Regiments) and the 81st Landwehr Regiment. The latter regiment had been successively attached to the 39th Reserve Division (area of St. Dié until the spring of 1916), to the Bavarian Ersatz Division (near Verdun until the end of 1916) and finally to the 54th Division (Flirey).