Barracks (IR 13)
The troops of the Münster garrison also included the Infantry Regiment Herwarth von Bittenfeld (1st Westphalian) No. 13.
The Infantry Regiment Herwarth von Bittenfeld (1st Westphalian) No. 13 was created in the context of strengthening the new Prussian army during the Wars of Liberation and was formed from four newly established battalions, namely from the III Battalion of the 1st East Prussian Infantry Regiment, the 1st and 2nd East Prussian Reserve Musketeer Battalions and the 1st Lithuanian Reserve Fusilier Battalion. Over time the regiment bore various names: from 1815 13th Line Regiment, from 1816 13th Infantry Regiment (1st Westphalian), from 1860 1st Westphalian Infantry Regiment No. 13 and from 1889 Infantry Regiment Herwarth von Bittenfeld (1st Westphalian) No. 13.
The unit's peacetime garrison from 1877 onwards was only Münster; previously parts of the formation were alternately stationed in Soest, Wesel and Paderborn. For example, the staff and the I Battalion garrisoned in Münster from 1817 to 1851, while the II Battalion was in the fortress of Wesel. In the years 1851–1856 the regiment was even entirely concentrated in Wesel.
The Infantry Regiment Herwarth von Bittenfeld (1st Westphalian) No. 13 was initially distributed among various garrisons and was mostly billeted in civilian quarters there. In the years 1818–20 the companies stationed in Wesel were barracked. In 1820 two companies were also accommodated in the Minoriten Barracks in Münster, but the remaining companies remained in civilian quarters.
Because this form of accommodation also caused various inconveniences for the households affected, the city of Münster offered to pre‑finance the construction of a barracks. The funds provided were to be repaid in 12 instalments. This proposal was approved at the highest level on 01.03.1827 and the foundation stone for the construction of the Ägidii Barracks was laid on 24.04.1828. In the autumn of 1831 the buildings could be occupied by six companies. Initially the accommodation of all three battalions in the new barracks had been planned, but this comprehensive plan was not realized. The planner was Engineer‑Captain v. Bütow. The barracks were finally executed as a four‑storey rendered brick building and consisted of two building parts meeting at right angles with hipped roofs. The northern building part was 88.58 m long and ran along Johannisstraße. The eastern building part along Ägidiistraße was slightly angled outwards and consisted of two lateral wings, each with a length of 45.90 m. The rooms for 10 men each had a floor area of 9.73 m x 4.39 m. Initially the barracks were equipped with a modern air‑heating system, but this did not work satisfactorily, so iron stoves had to be used again.
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Kriegsgeschichte
The Prussians are coming - The first occupation of Münster by the Prussians (1802 – 1806)
Kochendörffer describes the territorial situation of Westphalia around the turn of the century (1800) as follows: "If we look at a historical map of Westphalia from the beginning of the 19th century, the colourful mixture of territories from which today's Province of Westphalia is composed immediately stands out, many of which were legally sharply separated from one another: there are the two ecclesiastical principalities Münster and Paderborn, which in particular gave Westphalia its character, the former forming mainly today's Regierungsbezirk Münster, reaching to Prussian East Frisia, Paderborn to the east, which during the 17th and 18th centuries was several times, but only through the person of the common bishop, connected with Münster; then the Prussian "provinces" Mark, Minden and Ravensberg, Tecklenburg and Lingen, partly spatially separated from each other, also far removed from the heartlands of the Prussian monarchy and always regarded by its politics only as outposts, as compensation objects, furthermore the Electorate of Cologne's possessions, the Duchy of Westphalia and the Vest Recklinghausen, further south Siegen and the counties of Wittgenstein, then not yet belonging to Westphalia, and sprinkled into these compact territories counties e.g. Steinfurt, Rietberg, Gemen, Limburg, Dortmund, Herford, while from the north the related Osnabrück pressed in like a wedge between the Prussian provinces and the Münster upper and lower prince-bishoprics ...." (pp. 98/99).
Uniformierung & Ausrüstung
Cuirassier Regiment von Driesen (Westphalian) No. 4
Almost all branches of the armed forces were also represented in the Münster garrison. Some formations were particularly closely associated with the city of Münster as their garrison, namely: the Infantry Regiment Herwarth von Bittenfeld (1st Westphalian) No. 13, the, the 2nd Westphalian Field Artillery Regiment No. 22 and the Westphalian Train Battalion No. 7.
Heeressoziologie
Barracks (K 4)
The Cuirassier Regiment von Driesen (Westphalian) No. 4 (designation from 1889) arrived at its new garrisons in Westphalia in 1817: Münster, Hamm, Dortmund and Coesfeld. Later, individual squadrons were moved to Paderborn, Neuhaus, Lippstadt, Telgte and Warendorf. From 1871 the bulk of the regiment was assembled in Münster, while the 4th squadron was housed in Hamm and the 5th squadron in Telgte. From 1885 all squadrons were stationed in Münster. However, between 1833 and 1849 the regiment was detached to Silesia, and from 1866 to 1870 to Hanover.