One Year Volunteer-2
After completing his year of service, the OYV was granted leave from his service as a Gefreiter with the obligation of completing two reserve exercises of eight weeks each (exercises A and B) during the two following years; i.e., one session per year for two years after he took the reserve officer candidate test (Reserveoffizier-Aspirantenprüfung) and left active duty. During this first session, he learned how to be a platoon commander and took a test at the end of this eight-week session. After successful completion of exercise A, the reserve officer candidate had to pass the reserve officer’s examination and was promoted to the rank of Vizefeldwebel. In the event that he failed, but had showed good performance during his one year, he was retained as a reserve NCO with the rank of Gefreiter. During the following exercise B, he wore the rank of (Vizefeldwebel) but had to fulfill officer’s tasks. During both exercises A and B, the deputy regimental commander (usually a lieutenant colonel) had to train the reserve officer candidates for their later role as officers.
The reserve officers’ candidate test focused upon the following topics:
- Weapons handling of the respective arm,
- Formal drill,
- Leading a platoon,
- Successfully mastering a given tactical task with his platoon,
- Drawing tactical sketches,
- Good theoretical knowledge about battalion tactics in co-operation with other arms,
- Good knowledge of the tactical manual (Exerzier-Reglement) of his arm,
- Good knowledge of the general field service regulations (Feld-Dienstvorschrift).
After successfully completing exercise B, the regimental commander had to issue a certificate recommending the respective officer candidates for promotion to reserve officers of the respective regiment. Since the reserve officer candidates belonged to their regiment on the one hand, but also to the Landwehr–Bezirkskommando of their residence, the reserve officer corps of the respective Landwehr area voted as to whether or not they would become reserve officers. In preparation for this vote, the commanding officer of the Landwehr area had to examine whether the candidate’s civilian life-style and standard of living was up to the level the army expected of their officers. If all was in order, the commanding officer recommended the candidate for the vote. As a further prerequisite, the candidate had to commit himself for at least three further years of service as a reserve officer of his regiment—including extended reserve exercises that could interfere with his civilian job. After acceptance, the king promoted the candidate after a further recommendation by the military cabinet. He could remain with his regiment until the age of 27 and then was transferred by request to the second contingent of his Landwehr area.
Reserve officers formed the pool to produce military leaders for reserve formations and even active formations in case of mobilization. Their training had to be good enough to not only enable them to lead reserve or Landwehr platoons or companies, but also to also replace officers in active units after mobilization. Most reserve officers were first or second lieutenants; only few of them were captains. The rank of captain usually represented the limit to which reserve and Landwehr officers could be promoted. A very limited number of Landwehr officers had the chance to reach the rank of a major.
Reserve officer training usually focused upon practical aspects of military life. The cadets had to learn military history and fortification. Staff work and languages, which active officer candidates had to learn, were skipped for good reasons. The training of reserve officers had to focus upon topics necessary for a platoon and company commanders in case of war.
There was a conscious class distinction between the one-year volunteers and the “common soldiers.” The only way the “common soldiers” got revenge was to require the one-year volunteers to buy a round of drinks. For many of the one-year volunteers, military life was the first time they had come in contact with the lower levels of German society. One of the most common ways to differentiate these classes was that the one-year volunteers referred to each other using the formal Sie. Lower-class soldiers also use this form of address for one-year volunteers. “Common soldiers” used the more familiar du when addressing each other.
Religion played an important part in the acceptance process. It is instructive that in 1913, almost 46 percent of all Jewish soldiers were one-year volunteers. Compare this number to two percent of the Protestants and one and one-half percent of the Catholics. Because the Jewish soldiers were of higher social standing than many of the common soldiers, a certain jealous resentment ensued. Although there was basically no religious discrimination, the Prussian Army was essentially Protestant, and the Bavarian Army was mostly Catholic. Kaiser Wilhelm II was the protector of the Protestant order of St. John in Brandenburg (Protektor der Balley Brandenburg des Johanniterordens) and considered himself a dedicated Protestant monarch.
Jews were basically accepted as being almost equal in imperial Germany; there was no official anti-Jewish discrimination. But it was quite obvious that Jews played only a minor role in the Army. Jews generally belonged to well-educated bourgeoisie families but were basically excluded from officer’s positions in noble cavalry and guard regiments. Like other well-educated members of bourgeois families, they focused more upon technical branches such as engineers and artillery. At a higher level of German society, acceptance was even more elusive. A reserve commission was seen as a route to social mobility. The Jews often had the money to pay and were willing to do so to improve their own life chances. Traditionally, being tradesmen of higher social status, many Jews became reserve officers, preferably in train and medical formation, which in fact lead to quite a few discriminative jokes and cartoons.
An officer would remain in reserve status until he requested transfer into the Landwehr. This request was routinely approved. Likewise, officers moved between the first and second contingent of the Landwehr upon request. Many reserve officers preferred to stay in a functional organization where there was at least some training requirement. Officers who quit or were cashiered from the active army were enrolled into the reserve component appropriate to their age. Reserve officers were often identified by the presence of a Landwehr cross on their headgear. By 1914, there were 120,000 reserve officers.
Landwehr officers were trained similarly to reserve officers. The commander of the Landwehr area had to certify qualification to become a reserve officer. After successfully passing examinations, exercises, and election by the reserve officer corps of the Landwehr area, they were promoted to the rank of Leutnant der Landwehr and belonged to the first contingent of their Landwehr area. After reaching the age of 27, they were transferred to second contingent, together with the reserve officers.
A field grade officer who was semi-retired (z.D.), commanded each Landwehrbezirk. Berlin was an exception and had four (in 1914, six) Landwehrbezirke commanded by active officers. The adjutant of a Landwehrbezirk was a regular Oberleutnant or Leutnant. Assisting the commander were several officers, known as Bezirksoffiziere and responsible for all aspects of personnel replacement. The Bezirksfeldwebel was the main point of contact for reservists and Landwehr men within his company district.
