77th Reserve Division (German Empire) - Combat Chronicle

Combat Chronicle

The 77th Reserve Division initially fought on the Eastern Front, seeing its first action in the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes. It later fought in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive, including in the siege of Kovno and the battles of the Neman River, Grodno, and Vilnius. The division remained in the Courland region near Daugavpils throughout 1916 and until September 1, 1917. It then fought in the Battle of Riga and afterwards remained in positional warfare north of the Daugava River. After the armistice on the Eastern Front, the division briefly served in Livonia and Estonia, and then was transferred to the Western Front. It fought in the 1918 German Spring Offensive, seeing action in the First Battle of the Somme (1918), also called the Second Battle of the Somme (to distinguish it from the 1916 battle). After more fighting in the Somme region, the division went to the Woëvre region, between the Meuse and Moselle Rivers. The division was hit hard by the American attack on St. Mihiel, losing a large number of prisoners, and was dissolved shortly thereafter, with the remnants being distributed to other units. Allied intelligence rated the division as third class.