The 27th Division (''27. Division''), formally the 27th Division (2nd Royal Württemberg) (''27. Division (2. Königlich Württembergische)''), was a unit of the

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

. It was headquartered in

Ulm Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city. Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...

in the eastern part of the

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg ( ) was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Electorate of Württemberg, which existed from 1803 to 1806. Geogr ...

. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the

XIII (Royal Württemberg) Corps The XIII (Royal Württemberg) Army Corps / XIII AK () 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 th ...

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

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The division was raised and recruited in the Kingdom of Württemberg. Among the most famous soldiers to serve in the division was

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

(later ''

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (; from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire, (''Reichsgeneralfeldmarsch ...

'') who fought as a lieutenant with the division on the Western Front before being transferred to the Württemberg mountain battalion.

Evolution of the 27th Division

The 27th Division was formed in 1817 as Württemberg's 2nd Infantry Division. It was merged with Württemberg's 1st Infantry Division on July 27, 1849, to form Württemberg's Infantry Division and was dissolved in 1868.Bredow, p.1128. The division was reestablished after the Franco-Prussian War on December 18, 1871, as the 27th Division (2nd Royal Württemberg), taking its new numbering as part of the Prussian Army structure.

Combat chronicle

Although the 27th Division was not formed until 1871, its predecessors saw action in the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War (German: ''Preußisch-Österreichischer Krieg''), also known by many other names,Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Second War of Unification, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), ''Deutsc ...

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. During the Franco-Prussian War, the Württemberg Field Division fought at the battles of Wœrth and Sedan, and then participated in the Siege of Paris and the Battle of Villiers (November 30 and December 2, 1870). During World War I, the division served on the Western Front. In 1914, it fought in the Allied

Great Retreat The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western F ...

. It fought in the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

in 1916 and the Battle of Arras in 1917. The division served in the 1918

German spring offensive The German spring offensive, also known as ''Kaiserschlacht'' ("Kaiser's Battle") or the Ludendorff offensive, was a series of German Empire, German attacks along the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First Wor ...

and the subsequent Allied counteroffensives, including the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front, the Allies pushed the Imperial Germa ...

and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Allied intelligence rated the division as one of the very best German divisions and described it as a first class shock unit.

Pre-World War I organization

The organization of the 27th Division in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, was as follows:''Rangliste der Königlich Preußischen Armee'' (1914), pp. 1162-1163. * 53. Kgl. Württembergische Infanterie-Brigade ** Grenadier-Regiment König Karl (5. Württembergisches) Nr. 123 ** Infanterie-Regiment König Wilhelm I (6. Württembergisches) Nr. 124 * 54. Kgl. Württembergische Infanterie-Brigade ** Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 120 ** 9. Württembergisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 127 ** 10. Württembergisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 180 * 27. Kavallerie-Brigade ** Ulanen-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 19 ** Ulanen-Regiment König Wilhelm I (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 20 * 27. Kgl. Württembergische Feldartillerie-Brigade ** Feldartillerie-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 13 ** 3. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 49

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 27th Division was renamed the 27th Infantry Division. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle'' * 53. Kgl. Württembergische Infanterie-Brigade ** Grenadier-Regiment König Karl (5. Württembergisches) Nr. 123 ** Infanterie-Regiment König Wilhelm I (6. Württembergisches) Nr. 124 * 54. Kgl. Württembergische Infanterie-Brigade ** Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 120 ** 9. Württembergisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 127 * Ulanen-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 19 * 27. Kgl. Württembergische Feldartillerie-Brigade ** Feldartillerie-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 13 ** 3. Württembergisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 49 * 2.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13 * 3.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 A triangle is a polygon with three corners and three sides, one of the basic shapes in geometry. The corners, also called ''vertices'', are zero-dimensional points while the sides connecting them, also called ''edges'', are one-dimensional ...

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

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 "maneuver," i.e., infantry regimental elements. Other types of regiments, such as artiller ...

"). 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 27th Infantry Division's order of battle on March 20, 1918, was as follows: * 53. Infanterie-Brigade: ** Infanterie-Regiment Kaiser Wilhelm, König von Preußen (2. Württembergisches) Nr. 120 ** Grenadier-Regiment König Karl (5. Württembergisches) Nr. 123 ** Infanterie-Regiment König Wilhelm I (6. Württembergisches) Nr. 124 ** Maschinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 53 * 5. Eskadron/Ulanen-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 19 * Artillerie-Kommandeur 27: ** Feldartillerie-Regiment König Karl (1. Württembergisches) Nr. 13 ** II./Hohenzollernsches Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 13 * Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13 ** 2.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13 ** 3.Kompanie/Württembergisches Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 13 ** Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 27 * Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 27

References

27. Infanterie-Division (Chronik 1914/1918) - Der erste Weltkrieg
* Claus von Bredow, bearb., ''Historische Rang- und Stammliste des deutschen Heeres'' (1905) * Hermann Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle unserer alten Armee'' (Berlin, 1935) * Hermann Cron, ''Geschichte des deutschen Heeres im Weltkriege 1914-1918'' (Berlin, 1937) * Günter Wegner, ''Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1815-1939.'' (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1 * ''Histories of Two Hundred and Fifty-One Divisions of the German Army which Participated in the War (1914-1918), compiled from records of Intelligence section of the General Staff, American Expeditionary Forces, at General Headquarters, Chaumont, France 1919'' (1920)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:27 Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I Military units and formations established in 1817 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919