It has been an honour to command this fantastic organisation doing its very best to support our people here in Germany. French, David. [12] The two central garrisons - Gtersloh and Paderborn - combined to form a single 'super garrison' called Westfalen Garrison in April 2014. It drew fuel from Dungeness on the coast of Kent and transported it across the Strait of Dover to a terminal near Boulogne. This took another five days. [4] German resistance was stubborn, and the British and Canadian advance much slower than planned until July,[5] when the American Operation Cobra broke through the German defences. Adjutant Generals Base AGDU Army Guard Dog Unit AGR Army General Reserve A.G.R.A. [74], The South Beveland Canal was opened on 19 February to allow inland water transport to reach the Dutch canal system when the western Netherlands were liberated. Similar Royal Air Force Germany, Royal Electrical and Mech, British Army, Royal Military Police, Army Air Corps. Although our understanding of the service has been considerably deepened by subsequent scholarship, the book provides the broader context for thinking about the army after 1945. It was therefore agreed that from 1 March onwards, 81,000 tonnes (80,000 long tons) of fuel held in British storage would be transferred to the Americans so that both armies could have thirty days' reserves. Mallinson, Allan. [60], The engineer units in the XII Corps assault area were under 11th Army Group, Royal Engineers (AGRE), commanded by Colonel R. B. Three trains a day were run over this route under an arrangement with SHAEF and the American Military Railway Service. Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. [68] By the time the amphibious phase of Operation Plunder commenced at 09:00 on 23 March,[69] 61,000 tonnes (60,000 long tons) of ammunition, 18,000 tonnes (18,000 long tons) of POL, 5,100 tonnes (5,000 long tons) of supplies, 30,000 tonnes (30,000 long tons) of engineer stores and 5,500 tonnes (5,400 long tons) of other stores had been dumped at No. Until the railway bridges could be brought into operation, maintenance depended entirely on road transport. Although the book is concerned primarily with the British armys experiences prosecuting counterinsurgency campaigns after 1945, it proves a helpful reference guide to the composition of the British army and its overseas deployments between 1945 and 1970. WO1 Served from 1971 - 1993 Served in British Army of the Rhine. [51] There was also demand for covered accommodation in the 3,300 bivouacs, and 21st Army Group headquarters released 343 huts and 1,600 100-pound (45kg) tents from its stocks, which were delivered to the railheads around Mill and 's-Hertogenbosch. Menu Search. [44], Thus far in the campaign in North West Europe, XXX Corps had only served as part of the British Second Army, and it found that maintenance procedures of the First Canadian Army differed from what it had been used to due to the fact that the First Canadian Army's operations had been conducted where there had been adequate communications. An allocation of 300 tonnes (300 long tons) per day was made, but owing to competing American demands, the use of aircraft to repatriate liberated American, British and Commonwealth ex-prisoners of war (PWX), and a somewhat cumbersome procedure for requesting air deliveries, the tonnage of air freight never reached this level, averaging just 145 tonnes (143 long tons) per day for the month of April. The two corps stocked their FMCs by road, but the completion of repairs to the 1,222-metre (4,008ft) bridge over the Maas at Gennep by the 7th Army Troops Engineers on 20 March relieved the pressure on the one at Grave, and it became possible to move the railhead to within the No. The British Army, Manpower, and Society into the Twenty-First Century. 14 Army Roadhead in the Sulingen area from No. Both formations had areas of responsibility located around the German section of the River Rhine . The Regiments Depart: A History of the British Army, 19451970. [1] It was established following the Second World War, the largest parts of it becoming known as the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and RAF Germany (RAFG). 166 Field Maintenance Centre (FMC) at Veghel and the two Canadian FMCs at Wijchen and Oss. Margaret Brown. In the forward area, land mines and the few tracks through the Reichswald Forest kept transport on the roads, and the traffic combined with thaws and heavy rains contributed to the rapid deterioration of the roads. It was originally composed of five corps, composed of two divisions each, plus a cavalry division:[1], IV Corps: Commanded by Sir Alexander Godley, VI Corps: Commanded by Sir Aylmer Haldane, IX Corps: Commanded by Sir Walter Braithwaite and later by Ivor Maxse, Cavalry Division (formed from 1st Cavalry Division). The West German town of Bruggen, 55 miles (88 km) south of Dusseldorf, celebrated its 700th anniversary on Saturday (2 June) by granting the freedom of the city to a British Army unit which has been stationed in the town for 21 years. The 17th and 19th Line of Communications Sub Area assumed responsibility for the region around Lille, allowing the 15th Line of Communications Sub Area to move to the area between the Maas and the Rhine. Moody 2020 provides the first comprehensive study of how the army intellectualized the arrival of nuclear weapons and how they might be employed in a future war. British army inner german border.jpg 1,941 1,368 . [102] The 21st Army Group's logistical system proved capable of keeping the fighting men fed and supplied, whether in the awful weather conditions of Operation Veritable, or the fast-moving advance of the final drive beyond the Rhine.[104]. It closed in 1991 when the refurbished BMH Iserlohn re-opened. I Canadian Corps advanced on Utrecht, supported by No. Preparations were made to move it to a new site, but this was not required. Over 2.5 million rounds of 25-pounder ammunition were made available. 168 FMC area at Goch. Supplies and POL were stocked at Eindhoven; POL at Schijndel; ammunition at Veghel, Uden, Oss and Wijchen; road material at Mill; coal at Best; and bridging at 's-Hertogenbosch. An Inter-Allied force of British, French and . This saved 150 vehicles, from which a seventh company was formed. By mid-May the 21st Army Group's reserves had been reduced by a quarter. German railway personnel were used to man two trains a day from Celle to Bienenbuttel. [65], The buildup of stocks for Operation Plunder commenced on 8 March. Between 6 and 8 April, the 21st Army Group released another 4,630 tonnes (4,560 long tons) of road transport, along with two DUKW companies that were converted to using 3-ton trucks. By mid-March POL was arriving at a rate of 15,000 tonnes (15,000 long tons) per day, of which 3,000 tonnes (3,000 long tons) was coming over the Dumbo pipeline. Happily, we were posted to the British Army of the Rhine, in my case, to 282 (Welsh) Field Company, RE, in the 63rd (Welsh) Division. The possibility that the Germans might flood the forward area was not overlooked, and a company of DUKW amphibious trucks and a platoon of Terrapin amphibious vehicles was on 48-hours notice to assist. Chandler, David, and Ian Beckett, eds. LT COL Served from 1974 - 2011 Served in British Army of the Rhine. [73] XII and XXX Corps each formed a bank control group along the lines of the beach groups that had supported the Normandy landings in 1944, but with the logistical elements restricted to the medical, provost and REME components. RAF Germany was disbanded as a separate command in 1993 as part of the reduction of British Armed Forces presence in Europe at the cessation of the Cold War. [24], The Combined Chiefs further decided to reinforce Eisenhower's armies in North West Europe at the expense of those in the Mediterranean. [5], As the potential threat of Soviet invasion across the North German Plain into West Germany increased, BAOR became more responsible for the defence of West Germany than its occupation. It was estimated that each could carry 7,000 vehicles per day under frozen conditions and 4,000 per day during a thaw. [60] In the three days preceding the assault, the three hundred and thirty six 25-pounders assigned to the XII Corps fired 225,061 rounds, the sixteen 4.5-inch guns fired 7,002 rounds, the one hundred and sixty 5.5-inch guns fired 69,607 rounds, the fifty two 155 mm howitzers fired 4,335 rounds, the sixteen 7.2-inch howitzer fired 3,964 rounds, and the two 8-inch howitzers 176 rounds. [87] The 21st Army Group allocated an additional 2,190 tonnes (2,160 long tons) of road transport capacity to the Second Army between 27 March and 3 April. London: Bantam, 2009. [51] Extremely cold conditions persisted into February, and the divisions were issued with Arctic clothing and equipment that had been stockpiled for operations in Norway. In the post World War Two years Argonne Barracks became . [87], Stocking of No. Both formations had areas of responsibility located around the German section of the River Rhine. [3], The 21st Army Group's campaign in North West Europe had commenced with Operation Overlord, the Allied landings in Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944. The 3rd Canadian Division made use of Buffalo tracked amphibious vehicles. REME Technical Services BAOR (British Army of the Rhine) 5 Infantry Workshop, Nijmegan Marchers 5 Infantry Workshop, Nijmegan Marchers The British Army of 19441945 was highly mechanised, which conferred great tactical and strategic manoeuvrability. Corps Water Polo Championships, BAOR (British Army of the Rhine)Team Winners, Aldershot. [91], On 3 May an VIII Corps FMC at Lneburg was taken over by the Second Army and used as an advance roadhead in conjunction with No. [55][56][57], With Antwerp in operation, some supplies were now coming directly from the United States. Army of Occupation commanders.jpg 800 595; 155 KB. In view of pressure from the Canadian government to have its forces reunited, the Combined Chiefs decided to send the two divisions of the I Canadian Corps to rejoin the First Canadian Army, followed by up to three British divisions. [66] The British rail line of communications now ran from Antwerp to Nijmegen via Roosendaal and Tilburg,[67] where the railway bridge that had opened on 22 December was duplicated by 3 January 1945. Army Bases There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). [60] Every available amphibious craft was collected. On 4 May Montgomery took the surrender of the German forces in front of the 21st Army Group. [11] The first phase of this was the transfer of remaining stores to the advanced base. The United States and the Middle East, 1945-2001, World War II in the Mediterranean and Middle East. [63] The final troop movements for Operation Plunder involved 662 tanks, over 4,000 tank transporters and 32,000 other vehicles. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Daily expenditure of ammunition soon exceeded a trainload, so the non-arrival of even one train meant that ammunition had to be drawn from the Second Army roadhead at Bourg Leopold. This saved on road transport, but at the cost of some degree of flexibility. It was the largest concentration of British armed forces permanently stationed outside the United Kingdom. Only the class 70 bridges would take a loaded tank transporter. Sirs, Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to the website dedicated to the British Army of the Rhine, its locations, and those areas whilst not strictly within BAOR, that were vital to the operation of the theatre The Site is now approaching three years of age and much has happened in that time. CENTAG consisted, from north to south, of III GE Corps, V US Corps, VII US Corps, and II (GE) Corps in the extreme . To improve its combat effectiveness BAOR was equipped since the early 1960s with tactical nuclear weapons, and in so doing, became the first formation of the British army trained to fight and prevail on a nuclear battlefield. By January 1945, some 90,000 civilians were employed by the 21st Army Group, of whom half were employed in workshops in the advanced base, and 14,000 at the port of Antwerp. [91] At Artlenburg, 7th Army Troops engineers constructing a 282-metre (925ft) class 40 Bailey pontoon bridge also came under air attack, and two of its mobile cranes were damaged by artillery fire, but the bridge was opened on schedule at 12:00 on 30 April. With the activation of a NATO unified command structure in 1951, BAOR became an integral part, along with Belgian, Canadian, and Dutch army units, of the Northern Army Group (NORTHAG). [78] These bridges carried maintenance traffic by day and operational traffic by night. Initially, bulk POL was brought across the Rhine in tanker trucks at the rate of 1,000 tonnes (1,000 long tons) per day. [7] Following a further spending review, one brigade was withdrawn and Osnabrck Garrison closed in 2009. British Forces Germany (BFG) was the generic name for the three services of the British Armed Forces, made up of service personnel, UK Civil Servants, and dependents (family members), based in Germany. BAOR is defined as British Army Of the Rhine frequently. During the month, 432 trains delivered 230,000 tonnes (230,000 long tons) to 37 railheads in the British Second Army area. Sirs, Ladies and Gentlemen,Welcome to the website dedicated to the British Army of the Rhine, its locations, and those areas whilst not strictly within BAOR, thatwere vital to the operation of the theatre. Covered accommodation was eventually provided for between 300,000 and 400,000 troops. [99], On 4 May 1945, Montgomery accepted the German surrender at Lneburg Heath, which covered German forces in the Netherlands, Dunkirk, North West Germany and Denmark.