4th Royal Bavarian Division The 4th Royal Bavarian Division was a unit of the Royal Bavarian Army which served alongside the Prussian Army as part of the Imperial German Army . The division was formed on November 27 , 1815 as an Infantry Division of the Würzburg General Command ( " Infanterie - Division des Generalkommandos Würzburg " ) . It was called the 4th Army Division between 1822 and 1848 , again between 1851 and 1859 , and again from 1869 to 1872 . It was called the 4th Infantry Division from 1848 to 1851 ( as well as during wartime ) and was named the Würzburg General Command from 1859 to 1869 . From April 1 , 1872 until mobilization for World War I , it was the 4th Division . In Bavarian sources , it was not generally referred to as a " Royal Bavarian " division , as this was considered self - evident , but outside Bavaria , this designation was used for it , and other Bavarian units , to distinguish them from similarly numbered Prussian units . The division was headquartered in Würzburg . The division was part of the II Royal Bavarian Army Corps . Combat chronicle . The division fought against Prussia and its allies in the Austro - Prussian War of 1866 , seeing action at Roßdorf and Roßbrunn . In the Franco - Prussian War of 1870 - 71 , the division fought alongside the Prussians . It saw action in battles of Weissenburg , Wörth and Sedan , and in the Siege of Paris . During World War I , the division served on the Western Front . It fought in the Battle of the Frontiers against French forces in the early stages , and then participated in the Race to the Sea , fighting along the Somme and in Flanders , including the First Battle of Ypres . It remained in the trenchlines in Flanders and the Artois , and fought in the Second Battle of Artois and the Battle of Loos in 1915 . In 1916 , the division fought in the Battle of the Somme . In 1917 , the division fought in Flanders , including in the Battle of Messines and the Battle of Passchendaele . For most of 1918 , the division remained in Flanders , fighting at Armentières , Kemmel , Hébuterne , and Monchy - Bapaume . Late in the year , the division went to the Champagne region , where it faced the Allied Meuse - Argonne Offensive . After more fighting along the Aisne and the Aire , the division was withdrawn from the line , and spent the last week of the war on border defense in southern Bavaria and Tyrol . Allied intelligence rated the division as first class and of the highest quality . Order of battle in the Franco - Prussian War . The order of battle at the outset of the Franco - Prussian War was as follows : Pre - World War I peacetime organization . In 1914 , the peacetime organization of the 4th Royal Bavarian Division was as follows : Order of battle on mobilization . On mobilization in August 1914 at the beginning of World War I , most divisional cavalry , including brigade headquarters , was withdrawn to form cavalry divisions or split up among divisions as reconnaissance units . Divisions received engineer companies and other support units from their higher headquarters . The 4th Bavarian Division was renamed the 4th Bavarian Infantry Division . Its regular 8th Bavarian Infantry Brigade was sent to the Main Reserve at Fortress Metz and replaced by a reserve formation , the 5th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Brigade with two reserve infantry regiments . The division ' s initial wartime organization ( major units ) was as follows : Late World War I organization . Divisions underwent many changes during the war , with regiments moving from division to division , and some being destroyed and rebuilt . During the war , most divisions became triangular - one infantry brigade with three infantry regiments rather than two infantry brigades of two regiments ( a " square division " ) . The 4th Bavarian Infantry Division was triangularized in March 1915 , sending the 8th Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment to the newly formed 10th Bavarian Infantry Division . An artillery commander replaced the artillery brigade headquarters , the cavalry was further reduced , and the engineer contingent was increased . Divisional signals commanders were established to better control communications , a major problem in coordinating infantry and artillery operations during World War I . The division ' s order of battle on April 1 , 1918 was as follows :