The 37th Division (37. Division) was a unit of the Prussian/GermanArmy.[1] It was formed between March 25 and April 1, 1899, in Allenstein (now Olsztyn, Poland).[2] The division was initially subordinated in peacetime to the I Army Corps (I. Armeekorps).[3] In 1912, it was transferred to the newly formed XX Army Corps (XX. Armeekorps).[4] The division was disbanded in 1919 during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I. It was mainly recruited in the Prussian province of East Prussia.
Pre-World War I organization
The organization of the 37th Division in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of World War I, was as follows:[5]
73.Infanterie-Brigade
2. Masurisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 147
2. Ermländisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 151
75.Infanterie-Brigade
1. Masurisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 146
1. Ermländisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 150
37. Kavallerie-Brigade
Dragoner-Regiment König Albert von Sachsen (Ostpreußisches) Nr. 10
Dragoner-Regiment von Wedel (Pommersches) Nr. 11
37.Feldartillerie-Brigade
1. Masurisches Feld-Artillerie-Regiment Nr. 73
2. Masurisches Feld-Artillerie-Regiment Nr. 82
Landwehr-Inspektion Allenstein
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in August 1914 at the beginning of World War I, most divisional cavalry, including brigade headquarters, was withdrawn to form cavalry divisions or split up among divisions as reconnaissance units.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 37th Division was renamed the 37th Infantry Division. Its initial wartime organization was as follows:[6]
73.Infanterie-Brigade
2. Masurisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 147
2. Ermländisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 151
Jäger-Bataillon Graf Yorck von Wartenburg (Ostpreußisches) Nr. 1 (to 05.IX.1914)
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 – one infantry brigade with three infantry regiments rather than two infantry brigades of two regiments (a "square 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 37th Infantry Division's order of battle on February 20, 1918, was as follows:[9]
73.Infanterie-Brigade
2. Masurisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 147
1. Ermländisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 150
2. Ermländisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 151
Maschinengewehr-Scharfschützen-Abteilung Nr. 57
3.Eskadron/Jäger-Regiment zu Pferde Nr. 10
Artillerie-Kommandeur 37:
1. Masurisches Feld-Artillerie-Regiment Nr. 73
II.Bataillon/Lothringisches Fußartillerie-Regiment Nr. 16
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, online)
Footnotes
^From the late 1800s, the Prussian Army was effectively the German Army, as during the period of German unification (1866–1871) the states of the German Empire entered into conventions with Prussia regarding their armies and only the Bavarian Army remained fully autonomous.
^Günter Wegner, Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1815–1939. (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1, p.132; Claus von Bredow, bearb., Historische Rang- und Stammliste des deuschen Heeres (1905), p.234.
^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), pp. 425–428 (online).
