The 5th Division (''5. Division'') 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 formed in Crossen in 1816 as a brigade, moved to

Frankfurt an der Oder Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (, ; Marchian dialects, Central Marchian: ''Frankfort an de Oder,'' ) is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Brandenburg after Potsdam, Cottbus and Brandenburg an der Havel. With a ...

in 1817, and became the 5th Division on September 5, 1818. The headquarters moved to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in 1840 and back to Frankfurt in 1845. The division was subordinated in peacetime to the III Army Corps (''III. Armeekorps''). The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. The division was recruited in the

Province of Brandenburg The Province of Brandenburg () was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1947. Brandenburg was established in 1815 from the Kingdom of Prussia's core territory, comprised the bulk of the historic Margraviate of Brandenburg (excluding Altmark) and ...

. The 10th Brigade of the 5th Division fought in the

Second Schleswig War The Second Schleswig War (; or German Danish War), also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War, was the second military conflict over the Schleswig–Holstein question of the nineteenth century. The war began on 1 Februar ...

of 1864, including the key

Battle of Dybbøl The Battle of Dybbøl (; ) was the key battle of the Second Schleswig War, fought between Denmark and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia. The battle was fought on the morning of 18 April 1864, following a siege that began on 2 April. Denmark suffered ...

, or Düppeler Heights. The division then fought 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 ...

in 1866, including the battles of Gitschin and Königgrätz.Hermann Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle unserer alten Armee'' (Berlin, 1935); Wegner, p.319 In the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

of 1870-71, the division saw action in the battles of Spicheren, Mars-la-Tour, Gravelotte, Beaune-la-Rolande,

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

, and in the Siege of Metz. The division was mobilized as the 5th Infantry Division in August 1914 and sent to the

west West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

for the opening campaigns of the war. In 1914 it fought in the Battle of the Marne and the

Race to the Sea The Race to the Sea (; , ) took place from 17 September to 19 October 1914 during the First World War, after the Battle of the Frontiers () and the German Empire, German advance into France. The invasion had been stopped at the First Battle of ...

. It then settled into positional warfare in the trenches along the Somme. 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 ...

and in the

Battle of Verdun The Battle of Verdun ( ; ) was fought from 21 February to 18 December 1916 on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in French Third Republic, France. The battle was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north ...

in 1916 and in the

Second Battle of the Aisne The Second Battle of the Aisne ( or , 16 April – mid-May 1917) was the main part of the Nivelle Offensive, a French Third Republic, Franco-British attempt to inflict a decisive defeat on the German Empire, German armies in France. The Entente ...

(also called the Third Battle of Champagne) in 1917. In mid-1917, it was sent to the Eastern Front in response to the Russian Kerensky Offensive. In October 1917, the division was transferred to the Italian Front, where it fought in the

Battle of Caporetto The Battle of Kobarid (also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, the Battle of Caporetto or the Battle of Karfreit) took place on the Italian front of World War I. The battle was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Central P ...

. It returned to the Western Front in December 1917, and remained there until war's end, participating in the

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 Allied offensives that followed. Until being bloodied in the offensives of 1918, the division was rated a first-class division by Allied intelligence.

Order of battle in the Franco-Prussian War

During wartime, the 5th Division, like other regular German divisions, was redesignated an infantry division. The organization of the 5th Infantry Division in 1870 at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War was as follows: *9. Infanterie-Brigade **Leibgrenadier-Regiment Nr. 8 **Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 48 *10. Infanterie-Brigade **Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 12 **Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 52 *Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 3 *Dragoner-Regiment Nr. 12

Pre-World War I organization

German divisions underwent various organizational changes after the Franco-Prussian War. The 5th Division was no exception, but unlike many divisions, there were no changes in the division's core infantry regiments. The organization of the division in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, was as follows:''Rangliste der Königlich Preußischen Armee'' (1914), pp. 60-61. *9. Infanterie-Brigade **Leib-Grenadier-Regiment König Friedrich Wilhelm III (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 8 **Infanterie-Regiment von Stülpnagel (5. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 48 *10. Infanterie-Brigade **Grenadier-Regiment Prinz Karl von Preußen (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 12 **Infanterie-Regiment von Alvensleben (6. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 52 *5. Kavallerie-Brigade **1. Brandenburgisches Dragoner-Regiment Nr. 2 **Ulanen-Regiment Kaiser Alexander II von Rußland (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 *5. Feldartillerie-Brigade **Feldartillerie-Regiment General-Feldzeugmeister (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 18 **Neumärkisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 54

Order of battle on mobilization

On mobilization in August 1914 at the beginning of

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 ...

, 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 5th Division was again renamed the 5th Infantry Division. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle'' *9.Infanterie-Brigade: **Leib-Grenadier-Regiment König Friedrich Wilhelm III (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 8 **Infanterie-Regiment von Stülpnagel (5. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 48 *10.Infanterie-Brigade: **Grenadier-Regiment Prinz Karl von Preußen (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 12 **Infanterie-Regiment von Alvensleben (6. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 52 **Brandenburgisches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 3 *"1/2" Husaren-Regiment von Zieten (Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 *5.Feldartillerie-Brigade: **Feldartillerie-Regiment General-Feldzeugmeister (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 18 **Neumärkisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 54 *1./Pionier-Bataillon von Rauch (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 *3./Pionier-Bataillon von Rauch (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3

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 5th Infantry Division's order of battle on March 9, 1918, was as follows: *10.Infanterie-Brigade: **Leib-Grenadier-Regiment König Friedrich Wilhelm III (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 8 **Grenadier-Regiment Prinz Karl von Preußen (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 12 **Infanterie-Regiment von Alvensleben (6. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 52 **Machinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 13 *3.Eskadron/ Husaren-Regiment von Zieten (Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 *Artillerie-Kommandeur 142: **Feldartillerie-Regiment General-Feldzeugmeister (2. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 18 **Fußartillerie-Bataillon Nr. 67 *Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 116: **1./Pionier-Bataillon von Rauch (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 **3./Pionier-Bataillon von Rauch (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3 **Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 5 *Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 5

References

5. Infanterie-Division - 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:5th Division (German Empire) Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I Military units and formations established in 1818 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919