50th Reserve Division (German Empire) - Combat Chronicle

Combat Chronicle

The 50th Reserve Division initially fought on the Eastern Front, entering the line in mid-October. It fought in the Battle of Łódź in November–December 1914 and then spent most of the period until mid-1915 fighting along the Rawka and Bzura Rivers. In July and August 1915 it fought in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive and then participated in the follow-on battles and engagements until reaching the Berezina River at the end of September. The division was then transferred to the Western Front. It fought in the Second Battle of Champagne in October and November 1915 and remained in the line in the Champagne until late December, when it went to Flanders and the Artois, where it remained into 1916. It saw action in the Battle of the Somme later that year, and remained in the Somme until April 1917. In 1917, it fought in the Battle of Arras and the Battle of Passchendaele, and saw action at Cambrai. In 1918, it fought in the German Spring Offensive and the Second Battle of the Marne. It resisted the various Allied counteroffensives, including the Hundred Days Offensive, and was fighting in the Champagne and on the Meuse when World War I ended. In 1918, Allied intelligence rated the division as second class, and noted its tough fighting in numerous battles.