COMPOSITION.

HISTORY.

1917.

The 235th Division was formed in January, 1917, in the camps of the Warta and of Neuhammer, with elements from the 5th and 6th Corps District. Its regiments were made up mostly of men from the 1918 class (50 per cent) and the remainder from returned sick and wounded and men withdrawn from the front (initial strength, 230 to 235 men per company).

1. After six weeks of intensive training, the 235th Division was concentrated at Posen and sent to the Western Front on February 20, by way of Dresden-Aschaffenburg-Frankfort-Aix la Chappelle-Namur. It passed a new period of training in the Sissonne Camp, and on March 15 was sent to the St. Quentin area.

St. Quentin.

2. At the beginning of April it went into line in the Itancourt sector. Its losses were enormous, principally from the attack of April 13, which necessitated replacements of 2,216 men during the following weeks.

3. Relieved at the beginning of July, it was sent to rest east of St. Quentin (Fontaine Notre Dame).

Ypres.

4. On July 25 it entrained at Guise for Belgium. Concentrated in the vicinity of Iseghem-Roulers, it went to the Ypres front on July 28–31, east of Wieltje, received the artillery preparation and the British attack of the 31st, which caused it very heavy losses. The 454th Infantry Regiment had very heavy losses (4th Company was reduced to 31 men) and was filled up hastily from the resources of the large depot at Beverloo (about 60 men per company).

5. The 235th Division was withdrawn from the front on August 1 and spent a week at rest in Flanders.

6. In the course of August it was transferred to Laonnois, in the vicinity of Montcornet.

Aisne.

7. About September 10 it took over the sector of Juvincourt-Corbeny, where the French attack of November 21 again occasioned it serious losses (400 prisoners). A prisoner of the 456th Infantry Regiment declared that in this company not more than one-fourth of the men were left who composed it in January.

RECRUITING.

The 235th Division was recruited from the Provinces of Posen and of Silesia; consequently, contained a large number of Poles.

VALUE—1917 ESTIMATE.

The 235th Division appeared to have only mediocre offense value.

Following the battle of November 21, 1917, in the Juvincourt sector, the commander of the 456th Infantry Regiment and the commander of the 2d Battalion of the same regiment were relieved in disgrace.

The division received training in the warfare of movement during January and February, 1918.

1918.

1. The division entrained at Sierentz (Alsace) April 4–5 and traveled via Mulhausen, Strasbourg, Treves, Cologne, Lille, Brussels, and Ghent. It detrained at St. Andre, north of Lille, on the 8th–9th and rested in that vicinity until the 22d.

Flanders.

2. It entered line east of Robecq on the night of April 22–23 and remained in that sector until May 11. During this engagement the division lost very heavily.

3. The division entrained at Lille on the 12th and was railed via Ghent, Brussels, Namur, Charleville, and Sedan. It detrained north of Briey on the 14th.

Woevre.

4. It was engaged on the heights of the Meuse (Vaux les Palameix-Bois des Chevaliers) from May 24–25 to August 8. It was withdrawn from north of St. Mihiel on the 8th and dissolved at Conflans.

5. The 545th Regiment was drafted to the 10th Division. The 11th Division and 82d Reserve Division received elements of the 456th Regiment.

VALUE—1918 ESTIMATE.

The division was rated as third class. Its only active service in 1918 was near Armentieres, for which the division was commended by the Kaiser in his order dissolving the division.