6th Division (Reichswehr)

The 6th Division was a unit of the Reichswehr, the German army between 1919 and 1935, during the Weimar Republic period. As part of the Treaty of Versailles limitations imposed on Germany after World War I, the Reichswehr was limited to a standing army of 100,000 men, organized into seven infantry divisions and three cavalry divisions. The 6th Division was one of these infantry divisions.

The division was headquartered in Münster and primarily drew its recruits from the Westphalia region of Germany. Its organization typically included three infantry regiments, an artillery regiment, and supporting arms such as signals, engineers, and medical units. The infantry regiments within the division were numbered and rotated over time, though the structure remained consistent.

The 6th Division participated in training exercises and internal security operations within the Weimar Republic. Officers who would later rise to prominence in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany, such as Erich von Manstein, served within its ranks. The division's role was crucial in maintaining order during the turbulent political and economic climate of the Weimar Republic, and it provided a foundational element for the future expansion of the German military under the Nazi regime. When the Reichswehr was expanded and transformed into the Wehrmacht in 1935, the 6th Division's personnel and structure were used as the basis for the formation of new divisions within the rapidly growing German army.