Schützen Regiment 26

The home of the 26th rifle regiment was in the eastern part of Styria, with centers in Marburg and Cilli. Today, this area is part of Slovenia, with the cities of Maribor and Celje. The crew of the regiment was accordingly mixed German and Slovenian. The regiment was in the 43rd Brigade with the 3rd Graz Regiment and was assigned to the 22nd Landwehr Division. Its command was also in Graz.

The regiments of the division were first deployed on the Russian front, but already in the fall of 1915 they were on the Italian front. The Italian advance to the east threatened the areas inhabited by Slovenes. The population of the Karst Plateau, for example, was almost exclusively of Slovene nationality. Thus, the German-Slovenian staff defended their own country, homeland with a great effort. The leadership of the Monarchy was satisfied with the performance of the Slovenian soldiers on the battlefield.

The regiment’s insignia shows three small coats of arms on the central part of the shield decorated with a double-headed eagle. These are the coats of arms of Marburg (Maribor), Cilli (Celje) on the right. Below is the coat of arms of Styria.