The organization of the various reserve categories of the German Army is somewhat complicated. Perhaps the simplest way to explain it is to give the career of a typical citizen-soldier during the long peace enjoyed by the German Empire between its foundation (1871) and the outbreak of World War I (1914). For the sake of the story, let us call him 'Hans'.
At age 17, Hans is enrolled in the Landsturm. For most practical purposes, this is the equivalent of registering for conscription. However, in case of dire emergency (invasion and such), he could be called out with the rest of the Landsturm.
At age 20, Hans presents himself for examination. If he is selected for active service, he serves with the colours for two or three years.
Upon finishing his term of active service, Hans passes into the Reserve. He will stay there for a period of time determined by the following formula: seven years minus the number of years served with the colours.
At the end of his time in the Reserve, Hans (who is now 27) passes into first levy (1. Ban) of the Landwehr. He serves in that capacity for five years.
After five years in the first levy of the Landwehr, Hans (at the age of 32) passes into the second levy (2. Ban) of the Landwehr, where he will serve until he reaches the age of 39.
At the age of 45, Hans returns to the Landsturm.
In the early days of the Empire, the distinction between the various classes of reserve service were reasonably important. There was, for example, a good chance that members of the Reserve and the 1. Ban of the Landwehr would be called out for several weeks worth of refresher training every few years. As time went by, however, these refresher exercises became less and less common, and the passing from one category to another was largely a matter of paperwork.
And what about training?
The second levy (2. Ban) of the Landwehr had no training commitment whatsoever. The training commitment of first levy (1. Ban) varied from one period of time to another, as well as from one arm to the other.
In the years immediately after 1871, most peacetime units in the German Army mobilised two wartime units - an active unit (composed of soldiers with the colours and reservists) and a Landwehr unit (composed of men from the Landwehr). After the introduction of two year service, however, the number of reservists produced by each peacetime unit increased considerably. This led to a situation where there were far more reservists than were needed to fill out the ranks of active units and far more Landwehr men than were needed to fill out the ranks of Landwehr units.
The writers of mobilisation plans responded to this 'embarassment of riches' by making provision for a third category of wartime units. Units of this category, which were known as Reserve units, were composed of older reservists and younger Landwehr men. As their members had, on average, served with the colours more recently than the members of old-fashioned Landwehr units, these Reserve units needed less in the way of refresher training. At the same time, they took over many of the more demanding tasks that had previously set aside for Landwehr units. This, in turn, reduced the requirement for refresher training forLandwehr men.
The periods of refresher training, which could last as long as eight weeks, were also increasingly unpopular with both the men who were called and their civilian employers. In 1871, a very large percentage of the German population was engaged in agriculture. Thus, a period of training that took place in the 'off season' offered both additional income and a welcome change of pace. In the years that followed, however, the progress of industrialisation and urbanisation converted this periods of training into an increasingly onerous burden for many reservists and Landwehr men. There was thus considerable political pressure to reduce both their frequency and duration.
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