# II Corps (German Empire)

The II Army Corps / II AK (German: II. Armee-Korps) was a corps level command of the Prussian and then the Imperial German Armies from the 19th Century to World War I.
It was established on 3 April 1820 with headquarters initially in Berlin. From 1837, the headquarters moved to Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland), back to Berlin in 1863, before finally settling in Stettin from 1870. The Corps catchment area included the Province of Pomerania, the district (Regierungsbezirk) of Bromberg from the Province of Posen and the Province of West Prussia. Later, the West Prussian districts were transferred to the new XVII Corps District.
In peacetime, the Corps was assigned to the VIII Army Inspectorate, which became the 1st Army at the start of the First World War. The Corps headquarters was upgraded to form the headquarters of the South Army on 10 January 1915.
The Corps was reformed post-war, before being finally disbanded in 1919.

## Austro-Prussian War

The II Corps formed part of Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia's 1st Army and fought in the Austro-Prussian War against Austria in 1866, including the Battle of Königgrätz.

## Franco-Prussian War

The Corps fought in the Franco-Prussian War against France in 1870-71 as part of the 2nd Army. It saw action in the Battle of Gravelotte, Battle of Villiers (playing a key part), the Siege of Metz, and the Siege of Paris, among other actions.

## Peacetime organisation

The 25 peacetime Corps of the German Army (Guards, I - XXI, I - III Bavarian) had a reasonably standardised organisation. Each consisted of two divisions with usually two infantry brigades, one field artillery brigade and a cavalry brigade each. Each brigade normally consisted of two regiments of the appropriate type, so each Corps normally commanded 8 infantry, 4 field artillery and 4 cavalry regiments. There were exceptions to this rule:
    V, VI, VII, IX and XIV Corps each had a 5th infantry brigade (so 10 infantry regiments)
    II, XIII, XVIII and XXI Corps had a 9th infantry regiment
    I, VI and XVI Corps had a 3rd cavalry brigade (so 6 cavalry regiments)
    the Guards Corps had 11 infantry regiments (in 5 brigades) and 8 cavalry regiments (in 4 brigades).
Each Corps also directly controlled a number of other units. This could include one or more
    Foot Artillery Regiment
    Jäger Battalion
    Pioneer Battalion
    Train Battalion
Peacetime organization of the Corps :
| Corps | Division | Brigade | Units | Garrison |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 5th Infantry Brigade | 2nd (1st Pomeranian) Grenadiers "King Frederick William IV" | Stettin |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 5th Infantry Brigade | 9th (2nd Pomeranian) Colberg Grenadiers "Count Gneisenau" | Stargard in Pommern |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 5th Infantry Brigade | 54th (7th Pomeranian) Infantry "von der Goltz" | Kolberg, III Bn at Köslin |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 6th Infantry Brigade | 34th (Pomeranian) Fusiliers "Queen Victoria of Sweden" | Stettin, II Bn at Swinemünde |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 6th Infantry Brigade | 42nd (5th Pomeranian) Infantry "Prince Maurice of Anhalt-Dessau" | Stralsund, III Bn at Greifswald |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade | 2nd (1st Pomeranian) Field Artillery | Kolberg, Belgard |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade | 38th (Vorpommersches) Field Artillery | Stettin |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Cavalry Brigade | 2nd (Pomeranian) Cuirassiers “Queen” | Pasewalk |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Cavalry Brigade | 9th (2nd Pomeranian) Uhlans | Demmin |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 7th Infantry Brigade | 14th (3rd Pomeranian) Infantry "Count Schwerin" | Bromberg |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 7th Infantry Brigade | 149th (6th West Prussian) Infantry | Schneidemühl, III Bn at Deutsch-Krone |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 8th Infantry Brigade | 49th (6th Pomeranian) Infantry | Gnesen |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 8th Infantry Brigade | 140th (4th West Prussian) Infantry | Hohensalza |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 4th Field Artillery Brigade | 17th (2nd Pomeranian) Field Artillery | Bromberg |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 4th Field Artillery Brigade | 53rd (Hinterpommersches) Field Artillery | Bromberg, Hohensalza |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 4th Cavalry Brigade | 3rd (Neumark) Mounted Grenadiers "Baron Derfflinger" | Bromberg |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 4th Cavalry Brigade | 12th (2nd Brandenburg) Dragoons "von Arnim" | Gnesen |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd (1st Pomeranian) Foot Artillery "von Hindersin" | Swinemünde, Emden |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 15th (2nd Pomeranian) Foot Artillery | Bromberg, Graudenz |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd (Pomeranian) Pioneer Battalion | Stettin |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd (Pomeranian) Train Battalion | Altdamm |

## World War I
### Organisation on mobilisation

On mobilization on 2 August 1914, the Corps was restructured. The 3rd Cavalry Brigade was withdrawn to form part of the 4th Cavalry Division and the 4th Cavalry Brigade was broken up and its regiments assigned to the divisions as reconnaissance units. The divisions received engineer companies and other support units from the Corps headquarters. In summary, II Corps mobilised with 24 infantry battalions, 8 machine gun companies (48 machine guns), 8 cavalry squadrons, 24 field artillery batteries (144 guns), 4 heavy artillery batteries (16 guns), 3 pioneer companies and an aviation detachment.
Initial wartime organization of the Corps :
| Corps | Division | Brigade | Units |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 5th Infantry Brigade | 2nd Grenadier Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 5th Infantry Brigade | 9th Grenadier Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 6th Infantry Brigade | 34th Fusilier Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 6th Infantry Brigade | 42nd Infantry Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade | 2nd Field Artillery Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade | 38th Field Artillery Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | | 3rd Horse Grenadier Regiment |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | | 1st Company, 2nd Pioneer Battalion |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | | 3rd Divisional Pontoon Train |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | | 1st Medical Company |
| II Corps | 3rd Division | | 3rd Medical Company |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 7th Infantry Brigade | 14th Infantry Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 7th Infantry Brigade | 149th Infantry Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 8th Infantry Brigade | 49th Infantry Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 8th Infantry Brigade | 140th Infantry Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 6th Field Artillery Brigade | 17th Field Artillery Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | 6th Field Artillery Brigade | 53rd Field Artillery Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | | 12th Dragoon Regiment |
| II Corps | 4th Division | | 2nd Company, 2nd Pioneer Battalion |
| II Corps | 4th Division | | 3rd Company, 2nd Pioneer Battalion |
| II Corps | 4th Division | | 4th Divisional Pontoon Train |
| II Corps | 4th Division | | 2nd Medical Company |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | I Battalion, 15th Foot Artillery Regiment |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 30th Aviation Detachment |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd Corps Pontoon Train |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd Telephone Detachment |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | | 2nd Pioneer Searchlight Section |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | Munition Columns and Train | I & II Munition Column Sections (4th Inf. & 9th Art. Munition Columns) |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | Munition Columns and Train | I/15th Foot Artillery Munition Section (with 8 Columns) |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | Munition Columns and Train | I & II Train Section (12 Field Hospitals, 6 Supply Columns, 7 Supply Parks, 2 Horse Depts.) |
| II Corps | Corps Troops | Munition Columns and Train | 2 Field Bakery Columns |

### Combat chronicle

On mobilisation, II Corps was assigned to the 1st Army, which was on the right wing of the forces for the Schlieffen Plan offensive in August 1914 on the Western Front. It saw action in the invasion of Belgium (Battle of Mons), the First Battle of the Marne, and the Race to the Sea (culminating in the First Battle of Ypres as part of the 6th Army). Thereafter, the Corps was transferred to the Eastern Front, joining the 9th Army. The Corps headquarters was upgraded to form the headquarters of the South Army on 10 January 1915.

## Commanders

The II Corps had the following commanders during its existence:
| From | Rank | Name |
| 1813 | General der Infanterie | Friedrich Graf Kleist von Nollendorf |
| 20 March 1820 | General der Infanterie | Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia |
| 30 March 1838 | Generalleutnant | Karl Heinrich von Block |
| 30 March 1839 | General der Kavallerie | Karl Friedrich Emil zu Dohna-Schlobitten |
| 7 April 1842 | Generalleutnant | Friedrich Graf von Wrangel |
| 3 November 1849 | General der Infanterie | Friedrich Wilhelm von Grabow |
| 7 May 1857 | General der Infanterie | Johann Georg von Wussow |
| 29 January 1863 | General der Infanterie | Karl Friedrich von Steinmetz |
| 18 May 1864 | General der Infanterie | Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia |
| 17 May 1866 | Generalleutnant | Stephan von Schmidt |
| 17 September 1866 | General der Infanterie | Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia |
| 18 July 1870 | General der Infanterie | Eduard von Fransecky |
| 20 March 1871 | General der Kavallerie | Otto Hann von Weyhern |
| 14 June 1881 | General der Infanterie | Ferdinand von Dannenberg |
| 15 January 1887 | General der Infanterie | Ernst von der Burg |
| 28 October 1891 | General der Infanterie | Hermann von Blomberg |
| 27 January 1898 | General der Kavallerie | Arnold von Langenbeck |
| 21 September 1906 | General der Infanterie | Josias von Heeringen |
| 1 September 1909 – 10 January 1915 | General der Infanterie | Alexander von Linsingen |
| 17 December 1918 | Generalleutnant | Richard von Kraewel |
| 23 June 1919 | Generalleutnant | Ernst von Oven |