19th Ersatz Division ( German Empire ) The 19th Ersatz Division ( " 19 . Ersatz - Division " ) was a unit of the German Army , in World War I . The division was formed on the mobilization of the German Army in August 1914 . The division was disbanded in 1919 , during the demobilization of the German Army after World War I . Formation and recruitment . The 19th Ersatz Division was formed on mobilization from 11 brigade replacement battalions ( " Brigade - Ersatz - Bataillone " ) . Each brigade replacement battalion was numbered after its parent infantry brigade , and was formed with two companies taken from the replacement battalion of each of the brigade ' s two infantry regiments . One brigade replacement battalion was formed by three regiments . Thus , collectively , the 11 brigade replacement battalions represented troop contributions from 23 different infantry regiments . The units of the 21st Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the VI Army Corps area , which covered most of the Prussian Province of Silesia . These units were disbanded after the opening fighting in Lorraine , with their troops sent to other units in mid - September 1914 . The other two brigades of the division were from the Kingdom of Saxony . The units of the 45th Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the XII ( 1st Royal Saxon ) Corps area , which covered eastern Saxony . The units of the 47th Mixed Ersatz Brigade were raised from the XIX ( 2nd Royal Saxon ) Corps area , which covered western and southern Saxony . Thus , after the dissolution of the 21st Mixed Ersatz Brigade , the division became a fully Saxon unit . Combat chronicle . The 19th Ersatz Division fought on the Western Front in World War I . It fought in the Battle of the Frontiers , seeing action in Lorraine . With occasional rests , it remained in the trenchlines in Lorraine until October 1916 . It was then in the line near Verdun until July 1918 . That month , it went into the line near Reims . It was there when it met the Allied Aisne - Marne Offensive , part of the Second Battle of the Marne . After the severe fighting there , the division left the line for rest and reconstruction . In late August , it fought against the Allied Oise - Aisne Offensive . It was then returned to a quiet sector in Lorraine , where it remained until the end of the war . Allied intelligence rated the division as third class . Order of battle on mobilization . The order of battle of the 19th Ersatz Division on mobilization in August 1914 was as follows : Order of battle on July 12 , 1918 . The division underwent several structural changes as the war progressed . As noted above , the Silesian brigade was dissolved early in the war . The other Saxon mixed Ersatz brigades were converted to Ersatz infantry brigades as cavalry , artillery , and pioneer Ersatz units were grouped and reorganized . The brigade replacement battalions were grouped into Ersatz infantry regiments . The 19th Ersatz Division was triangularized in October 1916 . Cavalry was reduced , pioneers were increased to a full battalion , and an artillery command and a divisional signals command were created . The division ' s order of battle on July 12 , 1918 was as follows :