The 26th Division formally the 26th Division (1st Royal Württemberg) (26. Division (1. Königlich Württembergische)), was a unit of the Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

n/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...

. It was headquartered in Stuttgart

Stuttgart

Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....

, the capital of the Kingdom of Württemberg

Kingdom of Württemberg

The Kingdom of Württemberg was a state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located in present-day Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which came into existence in 1495...

. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the XIII (Royal Württemberg) Corps

XIII (Royal Württemberg) Corps

The XIII Army Corps was a corps of the Imperial German Army. It was, effectively, also the army of the Kingdom of Württemberg, which had been integrated in 1871 into the Prussian Army command structure, as had the armies of most German states...

 (XIII. (Königlich Württembergisches) Armeekorps). The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after 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...

. The division was raised and recruited in the Kingdom of Württemberg.

Evolution of the 26th Division

The 26th Division was formed in 1817 as Württemberg's 1st Infantry Division. It was merged with Württemberg's 2nd Infantry Division on July 27, 1849 to form Württemberg's Infantry Division and was dissolved in 1868. The division was reestablished after the Franco-Prussian War on December 18, 1871 as the 26th Division (1st Royal Württemberg), taking its new numbering as part of the Prussian Army structure.

Combat chronicle

Although the 26th Division was not formed until 1871, its predecessors saw action 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...

 of 1866 against Prussia and in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71 on the side of Prussia against France. The Württemberg Infantry Division saw action in the Main campaign in 1866, suffering a reverse at Tauberbischofsheim

Tauberbischofsheim

Tauberbischofsheim is a German town in the north-east of Baden-Württemberg on the river Tauber with a population of about 13,000. It is the capital of the Main-Tauber district....

. During the Franco-Prussian War, the Württemberg Field Division fought at the battles of Wœrth and 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...

, and 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....

 and the battles of Villiers (November 30 and December 2, 1870).

During World War I, the division initially served 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...

. In 1914, led by Duke Wilhelm von Urach

Mindaugas II of Lithuania

Prince Wilhelm of Urach, Count of Württemberg, 2nd Duke of Urach was a German prince who was elected King of Lithuania with the regnal name Mindaugas II on 11 July 1918...

, it fought in the Battle of the Frontiers

Battle of the Frontiers

The Battle of the Frontiers was a series of battles fought along the eastern frontier of France and in southern Belgium shortly after the outbreak of World War I. The battles represented a collision between the military strategies of the French Plan XVII and the German Schlieffen Plan...

 and then participated in the Race to the Sea

Race to the Sea

The Race to the Sea is a name given to the period early in the First World War when the two sides were still engaged in mobile warfare on the Western Front. With the German advance stalled at the First Battle of the Marne, the opponents continually attempted to outflank each other through...

. It was then transferred to the Eastern Front

Eastern Front (World War I)

The Eastern Front was a theatre of war during World War I in Central and, primarily, Eastern Europe. The term is in contrast to the Western Front. Despite the geographical separation, the events in the two theatres strongly influenced each other...

, and fought in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive

Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive

The Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive during World War I started as a minor German offensive to relieve Russian pressure on the Austro-Hungarians to their south on the Eastern Front, but resulted in the total collapse of the Russian lines and their retreat far into Russia...

 and the invasion of Serbia

Serbian Campaign (World War I)

The Serbian Campaign was fought from late July 1914, when Austria-Hungary invaded Serbia at the outset of the First World War, until late 1915, when the Macedonian Front was formed...

. It returned to the Western Front and fought in the Battle of the Somme in 1916 and the Battle of Arras

Battle of Arras (1917)

The Battle of Arras was a British offensive during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British, Canadian, New Zealand, Newfoundland, and Australian troops attacked German trenches near the French city of Arras on the Western Front....

 in 1917. In late 1917, it was sent to the Italian Front, and fought in the Battle of Caporetto

Battle of Caporetto

The Battle of Caporetto , took place from 24 October to 19 November 1917, near the town of Kobarid , on the Austro-Italian front of World War I...

. Returning to the Western Front, the division served in the 1918 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...

 and the subsequent Allied counteroffensives, including the Hundred Days Offensive

Hundred Days Offensive

The Hundred Days Offensive was the final period of the First World War, during which the Allies launched a series of offensives against the Central Powers on the Western Front from 8 August to 11 November 1918, beginning with the Battle of Amiens. The offensive forced the German armies to retreat...

. Allied intelligence rated the division as first class.

Pre-World War I organization

The organization of the 26th Division in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, was as follows:

• 51. Infanterie-Brigade
  • Grenadier-Regiment Königin Olga (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 119
  • Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Friedrich, König von Preußen (7. Württembergisches) Nr. 125
• 52. Infanterie-Brigade
  • Infanterie-Regiment Alt-Württemberg (3. Württembergisches) Nr. 121
  • Füsilier-Regiment Kaiser Franz Josef von Österreich, König von Ungarn (4. Württembergisches) Nr. 122
• 26. Kavallerie-Brigade
  • Dragoner-Regiment Königin Olga (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 25
  • Dragoner-Regiment König (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 26
• 26. Feldartillerie-Brigade
  • 2. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 29 Prinz-Regent Luitpold von Bayern
  • 4. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 65

Order of battle on mobilization

On mobilization in August 1914 at the beginning of World War I, 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 26th Division was renamed the 26th Infantry Division. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:

• 51. Infanterie-Brigade
  • Grenadier-Regiment Königin Olga (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 119
  • Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Friedrich, König von Preußen (7. Württembergisches) Nr. 125
• 52. Infanterie-Brigade
  • Infanterie-Regiment Alt-Württemberg (3. Württembergisches) Nr. 121
  • Füsilier-Regiment Kaiser Franz Josef von Österreich, König von Ungarn (4. Württembergisches) Nr. 122
• Ulanen-Regiment König Wilhelm I (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 20
• 26. Feldartillerie-Brigade
  • 2. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 29 Prinz-Regent Luitpold von Bayern
  • 4. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 65
• 1.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13

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 26th Infantry Division's order of battle on March 20, 1918 was as follows:

• 51. Infanterie-Brigade
  • Grenadier-Regiment Königin Olga (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 119
  • Infanterie-Regiment Alt-Württemberg (3. Württembergisches) Nr. 121
  • Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Friedrich, König von Preußen (7. Württembergisches) Nr. 125
  • Maschinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 40
• 2.Eskadron/Ulanen-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 19
• Artillerie-Kommandeur 58:
  • Feldartillerie-Regiment Prinz-Regent Luitpold von Bayern (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 29
  • II./Niederschlesisches Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 5
• Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 143:
  • 1.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13
  • 5.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13
  • Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 26
• Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 26

See also

• 26th Infantry Division (Germany)
  26th Infantry Division (Germany)
  The 26th Infantry Division was a pre-Second World war German Infantry Division of the 1st mobilisation wave . It was mobilised for World War II on September 26, 1939, disbanded September 10, 1944 near Radom, reformed as the 26th Volksgrenadier Division The 26th Infantry Division (26....
  
   for the eponymous German division in the Second World war