XIX (2nd Royal Saxon) Corps

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XIX (2nd Royal Saxon) Army Corps
XIX. (II. Königlich Sächsisches) Armee-Korps
Flag of the Staff of a Generalkommando (1871–1918)
Active1 April 1899 (1899-04-01)–1919 (1919)
Country Kingdom of Saxony /  German Empire
TypeCorps
SizeApproximately 44,000 (on mobilisation in 1914)
Garrison/HQLeipzig/Thomasring 2
PatronKing of Saxony
Shoulder strap pipingRed
EngagementsWorld War I
Battle of the Frontiers
Insignia
AbbreviationXIX AK

The XIX (2nd Royal Saxon) Army Corps / XIX AK (German: XIX. (II. Königlich Sächsisches) Armee-Korps) was a Saxon corps level command of the German Army, before and during World War I.

As the German Army expanded in the latter part of the 19th century and early part of the 20th century, the XIX Army Corps was set up on 1 April 1899 in Leipzig as the Generalkommando (headquarters) for the western part of the Kingdom of Saxony (districts of Leipzig, Chemnitz and Zwickau).[1] It took over command of 24th (2nd Royal Saxon) Division from XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps and the newly formed 40th (4th Royal Saxon) Division.

It was assigned to the II Army Inspectorate[2] which formed the predominantly Saxon 3rd Army at the start of the First World War. It was still in existence at the end of the war[3] in the 19th Army, Heeresgruppe Herzog Albrecht von Württemberg on the Western Front.[4]

Peacetime organisation[edit]

The 25 peacetime Corps of the German Army (Guards, I - XXI, I - III Bavarian) had a reasonably standardised organisation. Each consisted of two divisions with usually two infantry brigades, one field artillery brigade and a cavalry brigade each.[5] Each brigade normally consisted of two regiments of the appropriate type, so each Corps normally commanded 8 infantry, 4 field artillery and 4 cavalry regiments. There were exceptions to this rule:

V, VI, VII, IX and XIV Corps each had a 5th infantry brigade (so 10 infantry regiments)
II, XIII, XVIII and XXI Corps had a 9th infantry regiment
I, VI and XVI Corps had a 3rd cavalry brigade (so 6 cavalry regiments)
the Guards Corps had 11 infantry regiments (in 5 brigades) and 8 cavalry regiments (in 4 brigades).[6]

Each Corps also directly controlled a number of other units. This could include one or more

Foot Artillery Regiment
Jäger Battalion
Pioneer Battalion
Train Battalion

World War I[edit]

Organisation on mobilisation[edit]

On mobilization on 2 August 1914 the Corps was restructured. 40th Cavalry Brigade was withdrawn to form part of the 8th Cavalry Division[8] and the 24th Cavalry Brigade was broken up and its regiments assigned to the divisions as reconnaissance units. Divisions received engineer companies and other support units from the Corps headquarters. In summary, XIX Corps mobilised with 25 infantry battalions, 9 machine gun companies (54 machine guns), 8 cavalry squadrons, 24 field artillery batteries (144 guns), 4 heavy artillery batteries (16 guns), 3 pioneer companies and an aviation detachment.

Combat chronicle[edit]

On mobilisation, XIX Corps was assigned to the predominantly Saxon 3rd Army forming part of the right wing of the forces for the Schlieffen Plan offensive in August 1914 on the Western Front. It spent the entire war on the Western Front. It was still in existence at the end of the war[12] in the 19th Army, Heeresgruppe Herzog Albrecht von Württemberg.[13]

Commanders[edit]

The XIX Corps had the following commanders during its existence:[14][15]

Dates Rank Name
25 March 1899 to 21 April 1904 General der Infanterie Heinrich Leo von Treitschke
22 April 1904 to 26 November 1907 General der Infanterie Alexander Graf Vitzthum von Eckstädt
27 November 1907 to 27 November 1913 General der Artillerie Hans von Kirchbach
30 November 1913 to 20 July 1917 General der Kavallerie Maximilian von Laffert
8 August 1917 to 8 August 1918 General der Infanterie Adolph von Carlowitz
9 August 1918 to end of the war Generalleutnant Karl Lucius

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ German Administrative History Accessed: 10 May 2012
  2. ^ Cron 2002, p. 395
  3. ^ Cron 2002, pp. 88–89
  4. ^ Ellis & Cox 1993, pp. 186–187
  5. ^ Haythornthwaite 1996, pp. 193–194
  6. ^ They formed the Guards Cavalry Division, the only peacetime cavalry division in the German Army.
  7. ^ War Office 1918, p. 258
  8. ^ Cron 2002, p. 300
  9. ^ Cron 2002, pp. 310
  10. ^ With a machine gun company.
  11. ^ 4 heavy artillery batteries (16 heavy field howitzers)
  12. ^ Cron 2002, pp. 88–89
  13. ^ Ellis & Cox 1993, pp. 186–187
  14. ^ German Administrative History Accessed: 10 May 2012
  15. ^ German War History Accessed: 10 May 2012

References[edit]

  • XIX. Armeekorps (Chronik 1914/1918)
  • Claus von Bredow, bearb., Historische Rang- und Stammliste des deutschen Heeres (1905)
  • Günter Wegner, Stellenbesetzung der deutschen Heere 1815-1939. (Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück, 1993), Bd. 1

Further reading[edit]

  • Cron, Hermann (2002). Imperial German Army 1914-18: Organisation, Structure, Orders-of-Battle [first published: 1937]. Helion & Co. ISBN 1-874622-70-1.
  • Ellis, John; Cox, Michael (1993). The World War I Databook. Aurum Press Ltd. ISBN 1-85410-766-6.
  • Haythornthwaite, Philip J. (1996). The World War One Source Book. Arms and Armour. ISBN 1-85409-351-7.
  • 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. The London Stamp Exchange Ltd (1989). 1920. ISBN 0-948130-87-3.
  • The German Forces in the Field; 7th Revision, 11th November 1918; Compiled by the General Staff, War Office. Imperial War Museum, London and The Battery Press, Inc (1995). 1918. ISBN 1-870423-95-X.

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