19th Army (German Empire)

The 19th Army (German: 19. Armee / Armeeoberkommando 19 / A.O.K. 19) was an army level command of the German Army in World War I. It was formed in France on 4 February 1918 from the former South Army command. It served exclusively on the Western Front and was dissolved on 24 January 1919.[1]

19. Armee 19th Army
Flag of the Staff of an Armee Oberkommando (1871–1918)
Active	4 February 1918 – 24 January 1919
Country	German Empire
Branch	German Army
Type	Field army
Engagements	World War I Spring Offensive
Insignia
Abbreviation	A.O.K. 19

History

19th Army was one of three armies (along with 17th Army and 18th Army) formed in late 1917 / early 1918 with forces withdrawn from the Eastern Front. They were in place to take part in Ludendorff's Spring Offensive. The Germans had realised that their only remaining chance of victory was to defeat the Allies before the overwhelming human and matériel resources of the United States could be deployed. They also had the temporary advantage in numbers afforded by nearly 50 divisions freed by the Russian withdrawal from the war (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk). It was still in existence when the war ended,[2] serving on the Western Front as part of Heeresgruppe Herzog Albrecht von Württemberg.[3]

Order of Battle, 30 October 1918

By the end of the war, the majority of the units assigned were lower quality Landwehr Divisions indicative of the relatively quiet sector that the Army was operating in.

Organization of 19th Army on 30 October 1918[4]
Army	Corps	Division
19th Army	XIX Corps	84th Landwehr Brigade
		48th Landwehr Division
	66th Corps (z.b.V.)	2nd Bavarian Landwehr Division
		19th Ersatz Division
		17th Reserve Division
	XV Corps	1st Bavarian Landwehr Division
		83rd Division

Commanders

19th Army had the following commanders:[5]

19th Army

From	Commander	Previously	Subsequently,
4 February 1918	General der Infanterie Felix Graf von Bothmer	South Army	Adviser to the Bavarian Ministry for Military Affairs
9 April 1918	Generaloberst Felix Graf von Bothmer
8 November 1918	General der Infanterie Karl von Fasbender	I Bavarian Reserve Corps	Active reserve status[6]

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 a single commander.

See also

• 19th Army (Wehrmacht) for the equivalent formation in World War II
• German Army order of battle, Western Front (1918)

References

1. Cron 2002, p. 82
2. Cron 2002, p. 82
3. Ellis & Cox 1993, p. 187
4. Ellis & Cox 1993, p. 187
5. Cron 2002, p. 398
6. The Prussian Machine Archived 29 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine Accessed: 6 February 2012
7. 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.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Ellis, John; Cox, Michael (1993). The World War I Databook. Aurum Press Ltd. ISBN 1-85410-766-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)