The 83rd Infantry Division (''83. Infanterie-Division'') was a formation of the
Imperial German
(, literally translated ) is an archaic term for those ethnic Germans who resided within the German state that was founded in 1871. In contemporary usage, it referred to German citizens, the word signifying people from the German ', i.e., Imp ...
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 ...
in
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 formed in November 1914 as the "Division Posen 1", part of the Posen Corps (''Korps Posen''), and became the 83rd Infantry Division in June 1915. It was initially formed from the garrison infantry regiments of Fortress Posen (''Festung Posen''). The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I.
Combat chronicle
Division Posen 1 initially served on the
Eastern Front, fighting in Poland, including at the 1914
Battle of Łódź, and then spent most of the period until mid-1915 fighting along the Rawka and Bzura Rivers. On June 2, 1915, it became the 83rd Infantry Division. It fought on the Narew River in July and August 1915 and participated in the capture of Białystok on August 26, 1915, and the subsequent conquest of Grodno. Until April 1917, it occupied the line along the Berezina River and was then along the Servech and Shchara Rivers for several months. It remained in the Bukovina region until the armistice on the Eastern Front. In March 1918, the division was sent to the
Western Front, where it initially occupied the line in Lorraine and then moved to Flanders. It went to the Somme region in August and returned to Lorraine in September, where it was for the remainder of the war. Allied intelligence rated the division as fourth class.
Order of battle on formation
The 83rd Infantry Division was formed as 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 ...
. The order of battle of the division on June 14, 1915, was as follows:
*165. Infanterie-Brigade
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 329
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 330
*166. Infanterie-Brigade
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 331
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 332
*Ersatz-Eskadron/Ulanen-Regiment (1. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 3
*5.Landsturm-Eskadron/V. Armeekorps
*Stab Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 55
**Ersatz-Abteilung/2. Großherzoglich-Hessisches Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 61
**1. Ersatz-Abteilung/Feldartillerie-Regiment von Podbielski (1. Niederschlesisches) Nr. 5
**Fußartillerie-Bataillon Nr. 112
*Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie/XIX. Armeekorps
Late-war order of battle
The division underwent a number of organizational changes over the course of the war. It was
triangularized in September 1917, losing the 332nd Infantry Regiment. Cavalry was reduced, artillery and signals commands were formed, and combat engineer support was expanded to a full pioneer battalion. The order of battle on April 15, 1918, was as follows:
[Cron et al., ''Ruhmeshalle''.]
*165. Infanterie-Brigade
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 329
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 330
**Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 331
*3. Eskadron/Dragoner-Regiment von Wedel (Pommersches) Nr. 11
*Artillerie-Kommandeur 80
**Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr. 249
**III.Bataillon/Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 28
*Stab Pionier-Bataillon Nr. 83
**1.Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie/I. Armeekorps
**1.Landwehr-Pionier-Kompanie/V. Armeekorps
**Minenwerfer-Kompanie Nr. 83
*Divisions-Nachrichten-Kommandeur 83
References
Division-Posen-1 (Chronik 1914/1915) - Der erste Weltkrieg83. Infanterie-Division (Chronik 1915/1918) - Der erste Weltkrieg* 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 1825-1939.'' (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:83
Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I
Military units and formations established in 1914
Military units and formations disestablished in 1919
1914 establishments in Germany