Laonnois.
8. After a rest in December, the 34th Division occupied the sector of Crandelain, on the Ailette, until January 7, 1918.
RECRUITING.
Because of the difficulty of recruiting in its own corps district (Lorraine), the 34th Division is composed mostly of Westphalians and men from the Rhine Province. The name of “Magdeburg” given to the 67th Infantry Regiment has only a historic value.
The men, as a rule, belong to the classes of 1912 to 1918.
The replacements received by the division in Lorraine (September, 1917) brought in an undetermined number of men more than 25 years of age, especially those of the Landsturm of about 30 years of age, withdrawn from the Russian front and trained for a while in a depot in the interior.
VALUE—1917 ESTIMATE.
The 34th Division was one of the good Divisions of the German Army. Nevertheless, at the time of our attack upon Thiamont on October 24, 1916, it had a period of genuine weakness.
Its attitude in the Brimont sector in April and May, 1917, was such that it must still be classed among the good divisions.
At Ypres, in August, 1917, charged with the defense of one of the most important sectors, it did not realize the hopes of the German High Command.