XXII Reserve Corps explained
| Unit Name: | XXII Reserve Corps
XXII. Reserve-Korps |
| Dates: | October 1914 - post November 1918 |
| Type: | Corps |
| Size: | Approximately 32,000 (on formation) |
| Battles: | World War I Western Front
First Battle of Ypres
|
| Identification Symbol: | XXII RK |
| Identification Symbol Label: | Abbreviation |
The XXII Reserve Corps (German: '''XXII. Reserve-Korps / XXII RK''') was a corps level command of the German Army in World War I.
Formation
XXII Reserve Corps was formed in October 1914. It was part of the first wave of new Corps formed at the outset of World War I consisting of XXII - XXVII Reserve Corps of 43rd - 54th Reserve Divisions (plus 6th Bavarian Reserve Division). The personnel was predominantly made up of German: kriegsfreiwillige (wartime volunteers) who did not wait to be called up. It was still in existence at the end of the war.
Structure on formation
On formation in October 1914, XXII Reserve Corps consisted of two divisions but was weaker than an Active Corps
- Reserve Infantry Regiments consisted of three battalions but only had a machine gun platoon (of 2 machine guns) rather than a machine gun company (of 6 machine guns)
- Reserve Jäger Battalions did not have a machine gun company on formation, though some were provided with a machine gun platoon[1]
- Reserve Cavalry Detachments were much smaller than the Reserve Cavalry Regiments formed on mobilisation[2]
- Reserve Field Artillery Regiments consisted of three German: [[Abteilung|abteilungen]] (2 gun and 1 howitzer) of three batteries each, but each battery had just 4 guns (rather than 6 of the Active and the Reserve Regiments formed on mobilisation)
In summary, XXII Reserve Corps mobilised with 26 infantry battalions, 10 machine gun platoons (20 machine guns), 2 cavalry detachments, 18 field artillery batteries (72 guns) and 2 pioneer companies.
| Corps | Division | Brigade | Units |
|---|
| ROWSPAN=16 | XXII Reserve Corps | ROWSPAN=8 | 43rd Reserve Division | ROWSPAN=2 | 85th Reserve Infantry Brigade | 201st Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| 202nd Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| ROWSPAN=2 | 86th Reserve Infantry Brigade | 203rd Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| 204th Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| ROWSPAN=4 | | 15th Reserve Jäger Battalion[3] |
| 43rd Reserve Field Artillery Regiment |
| 43rd Reserve Cavalry Detachment |
| 43rd Reserve Pioneer Company |
| ROWSPAN=8 | 44th Reserve Division | ROWSPAN=2 | 87th Reserve Infantry Brigade | 205th Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| 206th Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| ROWSPAN=2 | 88th Reserve Infantry Brigade | 207th Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| 208th Reserve Infantry Regiment |
| ROWSPAN=4 | | 16th Reserve Jäger Battalion[4] |
| 44th Reserve Field Artillery Regiment |
| 44th Reserve Cavalry Detachment |
| 44th Reserve Pioneer Company |
|
Commanders
XXII Reserve Corps was commanded throughout its existence by General der Kavallerie Eugen von Falkenhayn,[5] [6] Prussian War Minister Erich von Falkenhayn's older brother.[7]
Bibliography
- Book: Cron, Hermann
. 2002 . Imperial German Army 1914-18: Organisation, Structure, Orders-of-Battle [first published: 1937] . Helion & Co . 1-874622-70-1.
- Book: Ellis . John . Cox . Michael . 1993 . The World War I Databook . Aurum Press Ltd . 1-85410-766-6.
- Book: Busche, Hartwig
. 1998 . Formationsgeschichte der Deutschen Infanterie im Ersten Weltkrieg (1914 bis 1918) . Institut für Preußische Historiographie . de.
- Book: 1920 . 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) . 0-948130-87-3 . .
- Book: 1918 . 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) . 1-870423-95-X . .
Notes and References
- Active Jäger Battalions had a machine gun company with the exceptions of the 1st and 2nd Bavarian Jäger Battalions
- Reserve Cavalry Regiments consisted of three squadrons
- With a machine gun platoon
- With a machine gun platoon
- Web site: German War History. 22 December 2012.
- Web site: Armee-Reserve-Korps . The Prussian Machine . 22 December 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120411130752/http://home.comcast.net/~jcviser/army/corps2.htm . April 11, 2012 .
- Web site: Eugen von Falkenhayn . The Prussian Machine . 22 December 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140729141910/http://home.comcast.net/~jcviser/aka/falkenhayneu.htm . July 29, 2014 .
