XIV Army Corps XIV. Armee-Korps |
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Flag of the Staff of a Generalkommando (1871–1918)
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Active | 30 September 1870 - March 1871 1 July 1871 - 1919 |
Country | Baden / German Empire |
Type | Corps |
Size | Approximately 44,000 (on mobilisation in 1914) |
Garrison/HQ | Karlsruhe |
Engagements |
The XIV Army Corps / XIV AK (German: XIV. Armee-Korps) was a corps level command of the German Army before and during World War I. It was, effectively, also the army of the Grand Duchy of Baden, which, in 1871, had been integrated into the Prussian Army command structure, as had the armies of most German states. Both divisions and the bulk of the corps' support units were from the grand duchy. The corps was established in 1870, after the Siege of Strasbourg.
It was assigned to the V Army Inspectorate, which became the 7th Army at the start of the First World War. It was still in existence at the end of the war as part of the 18th Army, Heeresgruppe Deutscher Kronprinz on the Western Front.
A siege corps was formed to besiege Strasbourg during the Franco-Prussian War under the command of General der Infanterie August von Werder. After the fall of Strasbourg, these troops were formed into a new XIV Corps by the All-highest Cabinet Order (Allerhöchste Kabinettsorder, AKO) of 30 September 1870.
Werder defeated the French at Dijon and at Nuits and proceeded to besiege Belfort. General Charles Denis Bourbaki assembled an army intending to relieve Belfort, leading to the Battle of Villersexel. On 15 January 1871, Bourbaki attacked Werder along the Lisaine River; however, after a three-day battle, he was repelled and his army retreated into Switzerland.