7th Army (German Empire)
| 7. Armee 7th Army | |
|---|---|
|
Flag of the Staff of an Armee Oberkommando (1871–1918) | |
| Active | 2 August 1914 – January 1919 |
| Country |
 German Empire |
| Type | Army |
| Engagements | |
The 7th Army (German: 7. Armee / Armeeoberkommando 7 / A.O.K. 7) was an army level command of the German Army in World War I. It was formed on mobilization in August 1914 from the II Army Inspection.[1] The army was disbanded in 1919 during demobilization after the war.[2]
History
Formed at the outbreak of World War I, 7th Army formed the extreme left (southern) wing of the German Armies on the Western Front. During the execution of the French Plan XVII, the 7th Army covered Alsace, successfully repulsing the French attack in the Battle of Lorraine. It then took part in the Race to the Sea, an attempt by both German and Anglo-French armies to turn each other's flank.
At the end of the war it was serving as part of Heeresgruppe Deutscher Kronprinz.[3]
Order of Battle, 30 October 1918
By the end of the war, the 7th Army was organised as:
| Organization of 7th Army on 30 October 1918[4] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Army | Corps | Division |
| 7th Army | XVII Corps | 24th Reserve Division |
| 86th Division | ||
| one third of 10th Reserve Division | ||
| III Corps | one third of 10th Reserve Division | |
| 26th Division | ||
| 227th Division | ||
| 3rd Naval Division | ||
| VIII Reserve Corps | 84th Division | |
| 19th Division | ||
| 2nd Bavarian Division | ||
| one third of 10th Reserve Division | ||
| 65th Corps (z.b.V.) | 5th Division | |
| 4th Guards Division | ||
| 216th Division | ||
| 50th Division | ||
| VII Corps | No units assigned | |
| Moving to Armee-Abteilung A | 24th Division | |
Commanders
The 7th Army had the following commanders during its existence.[5]
| From | Commander | Previously | Subsequently |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 August 1914 | Generaloberst Josias von Heeringen | II Army Inspectorate (II. Armee-Inspektion) | High Command of Coastal Defence |
| 28 August 1916 | General der Artillerie Richard von Schubert | XXVII Reserve Corps | Placed on inactive reserve status[6] |
| 27 January 1917 | Generaloberst Richard von Schubert | ||
| 11 March 1917 | General der Infanterie Max von Boehn | Armee-Abteilung C | Heeresgruppe Boehn |
| 22 March 1918 | Generaloberst Max von Boehn | ||
| 6 August 1918 | General der Infanterie Magnus von Eberhardt | X Reserve Corps | 1st Army |
| 15 October 1918 | Generaloberst Max von Boehn | Heeresgruppe Boehn |
Glossary
- Armee-Abteilung or Army Detachment in the sense of "something detached from an Army". It is not under the command of an Army so is in itself a small army.[7]
- Armee-Gruppe or Army Group in the sense of a group within an Army and under its command, generally formed as a temporary measure for a specific task.
- Heeresgruppe or Army Group in the sense of a number of armies under one commander.
See also
- 7th Army (Wehrmacht) for the equivalent formation in World War II
- German Army order of battle (1914)
- German Army order of battle, Western Front (1918)
- Schlieffen Plan
References
- ↑ Cron 2002, p. 395
- ↑ Cron 2002, p. 80
- ↑ Ellis & Cox 1993, p. 187
- ↑ Ellis & Cox 1993, p. 187
- ↑ Cron 2002, p. 395
- ↑ The Prussian Machine Accessed: 5 February 2012
- ↑ Cron 2002, p. 84
Bibliography
- 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.