The division was formed at the end of December 1914 and organized over the next month, arriving in the line in early February 1915.
The 77th Reserve Division initially fought on the Eastern Front, seeing its first action in the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes.
It later fought in the Gorlice-Tarnów Offensive, including in the Siege of Kaunas and the battles of the Nemunas, Grodno, and Vilnius.
The division was hit hard by the American attack on St. Mihiel, losing a large number of prisoners, and was dissolved shortly thereafter, with the remnants being distributed to other units.
Over the course of the war, other changes took place, including the formation of artillery and signals commands and the enlargement of combat engineer support to a full pioneer battalion.