The division was rated as first class. In 1918 it was used entirely on the defensive. At the end the regiments had been reduced to two battalions of three companies. Morale was very low in the fall. Between August 14 and the middle of October the division lost 2,473 prisoners on the Somme battle front.
21st Reserve Division.
COMPOSITION.
| 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brigade. | Regiment. | Brigade. | Regiment. | Brigade. | Regiment. | Brigade. | Regiment. | Brigade. | Regiment. | |
| Infantry. | 41 Res. | 80 Res. | 41 Res. | 80 Res. | 41 Res. | 80 Res. | 41 Res. | 80 Res. | 41 Res. | 80 Res. |
| 87 Res. | 87 Res. | 87 Res. | 87 Res. | 87 Res. | ||||||
| 42 Res. | 81 Res. | 42 Res. | 81 Res. | 42 Res. | 81 Res. | 88 Res. | (?). | |||
| 88 Res. | 88 Res. | 88 Res. | ||||||||
| Cavalry. | 7 Res. Drag. Rgt. (3 Sqns.). | 7 Res. Drag. Rgt. | 7 Res. Drag. Rgt. | 3 Sqn. 4 Res. Drag. Rgt. | 3 Sqn. 4 Res. Drag. Rgt. | |||||
| 1 Sqn. 7 Res. Drag. Rgt. | ||||||||||
| Artillery. | 21 Res. F. A. Rgt. (6 Btries.). | 21 Res. F. A. Rgt. | 21 Res. F. A. Rgt. (9 Btries.). | Art. Command: | 126 Art. Command: | |||||
| 21 Res. F. A. Rgt. (9 Btries.). | 21 Res. F. A. Rgt. | |||||||||
| 136 Ft. A. Btn. | ||||||||||
| 808 Light Am. Col. | ||||||||||
| 1286 Light Am. Col. | ||||||||||
| 1350 Light Am. Col. | ||||||||||
| Engineers and Liaisons. | 4 Field Co. 2 Pion. Btn. No. 11. | 4 and 5 Field Cos. 2 Pion. Btn. No. 11. | 4 and 5 Field Cos. 2 Pion. Btn. No. 11. | (321) Pion. Btn.: | 11 Pion. Btn.: | |||||
| 21 Res. Pont. Engs. | 221 T. M. Co. | 4 Co. 11 Pions. | 4 Co. 11 Pions. | |||||||
| 21 Res. Tel. Detch. | 21 Pont. Engs. | 5 Co. 11 Pions. | 5 Co. 11 Pions. | |||||||
| 21 Tel. Detch. | 221 T. M. Co. | 221 T. M. Co. | ||||||||
| 421 Tel. Detch. | 27 Searchlight Section. | |||||||||
| 421 Signal Command: | ||||||||||
| 421 Tel. Detch. | ||||||||||
| 129 Wireless Detch. | ||||||||||
| Medical and Veterinary. | 517 Ambulance Co. | 517 Ambulance Co. | ||||||||
| 51 Res. Field Hospital. | 51 Res. Field Hospital. | |||||||||
| 52 Res. Field Hospital. | 69 Res. Field Hospital. | |||||||||
| Vet. Hospital. | 421 Vet. Hospital. | |||||||||
| Transports. | 749 M. T. Col. | 719 M. T. Col. | ||||||||
| Attached. | 44 Anti-aircraft Section. | 21 Bav. Ft. A. Btn. (Staff, 1 and 3 Btries.). | ||||||||
| 1 Ft. A. Rgt. (Staff, 5 and 6 Btries.). | ||||||||||
| 821 Light Am. Col. | ||||||||||
| 90 Artillery Observation Section. (Flash Spotters.) | ||||||||||
| 103 Sound Ranging Detch. | ||||||||||
| 202 Balloon Sqn. | ||||||||||
| 208 Reconnaissance Flight. | ||||||||||
| 237 Carrier Pigeon Loft. | ||||||||||
| 364 Carrier Pigeon Loft. | ||||||||||
| Elements attached Aug. 24, 1918. | ||||||||||
HISTORY.
(18th Corps District—Hesse—Nassau and the south of Westphalia.)
1914.
1. At the outbreak of the war the 21st Reserve Division formed, with the 25th Reserve Division, the 18th Reserve Corps. It belonged to the 4th Army (Prince Albrecht of Wurttemberg). Detraining near Saarburg (Rhine Province) on August 10–12, it passed to the north of Luxemburg and entered Belgian Luxemburg, by Martelange.
Ardennes.
2. After fighting at Neufchateau on August 22, the 21st Reserve Division reached Carignan on the 25th, fought at Mouzon on the 28th, crossed the Meuse at that point, and from there, by Grandpré, skirting the Argonne to the west, it arrived at the Marne-Rhine Canal on September 6.