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

Saxony

The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....

 and then Imperial German

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

 Army

German Army (German Empire)

The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...

. The division was headquartered in Dresden

Dresden

Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....

. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the XII (1st Royal Saxon) Army Corps

XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps

The XII Army Corps was a Saxon corps of the Imperial German Army. It was formed on April 1, 1867 and was headquartered in Dresden, Saxony....

 (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

North German Confederation

The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...

. 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

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 in August 1914 it again became the 1st Infantry Division No. 23, although it was for convenience referred to outside of 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

Austro-Prussian War

The Austro-Prussian War was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with its German allies and Italy on the...

. 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

Battle of Königgrätz

The Battle of Königgrätz , also known as the Battle of Sadowa, Sadová, or Hradec Králové, was the decisive battle of the Austro-Prussian War, in which the Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire...

. In the Franco-Prussian War

Franco-Prussian War

The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...

, Saxony was allied with Prussia. The 23rd Infantry Division fought in the battles of Gravelotte

Battle of Gravelotte

The Battle of Gravelotte was a battle of the Franco-Prussian War named after Gravelotte, a village in Lorraine between Metz and the former French–German frontier.-Terrain and armies:...

 and Beaumont

Battle of Beaumont

The Battle of Beaumont on August 30, 1870 was won by Prussia during the Franco-Prussian War.It was fought between Fifth French Corps d'Armee under General Pierre Louis Charles de Failly, and the IV and XII Army Corps under Prince George of Saxony The Battle of Beaumont on August 30, 1870 was won...

, and in the major Battle of Sedan

Battle of Sedan

The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War on 1 September 1870. It resulted in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and large numbers of his troops and for all intents and purposes decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, though fighting continued under a new French...

. It then participated in the Siege of Paris

Siege of Paris

The Siege of Paris, lasting from September 19, 1870 – January 28, 1871, and the consequent capture of the city by Prussian forces led to French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War and the establishment of the German Empire as well as the Paris Commune....

.

During World War I, the division fought on the Western Front

Western Front (World War I)

Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...

, seeing action in the Allied Great Retreat

Great Retreat

The Great Retreat, also known as the Retreat from Mons, is the name given to the long, fighting retreat by Allied forces to the River Marne, on the Western Front early in World War I, after their holding action against the Imperial German Armies at the Battle of Mons on 23 August 1914...

 which culminated in the First Battle of the Marne

First Battle of the Marne

The Battle of the Marne was a First World War battle fought between 5 and 12 September 1914. It resulted in an Allied victory against the German Army under Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. The battle effectively ended the month long German offensive that opened the war and had...

. In 1916, it fought in the Battle of the Somme. In 1918, it participated in the German Spring Offensive

Spring Offensive

The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht , also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during World War I, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914...

, including the Second Battle of the Somme

Second Battle of the Somme (1918)

During the First World War, the Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought on the Western Front from the end of the summer, in the basin of the Somme River...

 and the Second Battle of the Marne

Second Battle of the Marne

The Second Battle of the Marne , or Battle of Reims was the last major German Spring Offensive on the Western Front during the First World War. The German attack failed when an Allied counterattack led by France overwhelmed the Germans, inflicting severe casualties...

. 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:

• 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
    1st Royal Saxon Guards Heavy Cavalry
    The 1st Royal Saxon Guards Heavy Cavalry was a heavy cavalry of the Royal Saxon Army. Established in 1680 as a cuirassiers unit, the regiment fought in the Battle of Vienna , the Nine Years' War, the War of the Spanish Succession, the Silesian Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, the Austro-Prussian War,...
    
    
  • 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 World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, 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:

• 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

Triangular division

A triangular division is a designation given to the way 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...

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

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 regimental elements. Since a regiment could be split into separate battalions for tactical purposes, the natural division within a division...

"). 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