Initially, bulk POL was brought across the Rhine in tanker trucks at the rate of 1,000 tonnes (1,000 long tons) per day. The British Army of 19441945 was highly mechanised, which conferred great tactical and strategic manoeuvrability. 12 and 14 Army Roadheads were being run down. 10 Army Roadhead, while the attached II Canadian Corps continued to draw its from the First Canadian Army's No. USA & International; 100 The link was not copied. A new type was flown out direct from the UK factory by priority air freight and fitted to the tanks. Garrisons which closed at this time included Soest (home of the 6th Armoured Brigade),[8] Soltau (home of the 7th Armoured Brigade)[9] and Minden (home of the 11th Armoured Brigade).[10]. [12] Petrol was brought in tankers and over the Operation Pluto pipeline. Includes a chapter on the creation of the postmodern regimental system between 1945 and 1970 against the backdrop of postwar austerity and the consequent reorganization and amalgamation of many regiments. 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. These two photos were taken in late 1956 by Lab Tech Cpl Peter Elgar: The best introduction to the regimental system of the British army. There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). When the First World War ended British troops crossed the Rhine into Germany and entered a cou It was arranged that 40 tanks, 650 wheeled vehicles, 50 Bren gun carriers, and 3,700 personnel would disembark each day in Marseilles, where accommodation was provided for 10,000 troops in tents and 200 vehicles. To provide them, beech trees were felled in the Fort de Soignes near Brussels. To maximise their turnaround time, they were only used to cover the flooded stretch, with loads transferred to them and unloaded from them into other vehicles at each end. XXX Corps reverted to the control of the British Second Army on 8 March, and by 10 March the last German units had retreated across the Rhine. [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. It closed in March 1994. 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. We are pleased to announce that Eureka Miniatures UK will once again be attending the hugely popular SALUTE at ExCeL, London on Saturday 22nd April 2023. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. A German V-2 rocket scored a direct hit on the British POL installation at Antwerp on 19 January. After the assumption of government by civilians, it became the command formation for the troops in Germany only . [5], First established following the Second World War, the forces grew during the Cold War, and consisted, by the early 1980s, of I (BR) Corps made up of four divisions; 1st Armoured Division, 2nd Armoured Division, 3rd Armoured Division and the 4th Armoured Division. On 16 April XXX Corps sent its road transport back to the Rhine roadhead to collect the ammunition it needed to capture Bremen. [6] What followed was a far more rapid advance than anticipated. At the beginning of March 1945, the 21st Army Group had bulk petrol transport capacity of about 2,700 tonnes (2,700 long tons) per day, assuming 80 per cent of the vehicles were running. Army Group Royal Artillery . A large force of engineer units was assembled for the operation: 37,000 British and Canadian engineers and pioneers, and 22,000 American engineers. Each man crossing the Rhine was issued with a 24-hour ration, an emergency ration, a tin of preserved meat, a tin of self-heating soup or cocoa, a packet of biscuits and a tommy cooker with six hexamine tablets. [78] The 21st Army Group headquarters also allocated three additional general transport companies to the British Second Army. If you can't find it - tell us, if you know something - tell us. In 1961, he received a commission into the Royal Corps of Signals, and served in the British Army of the Rhine . The 21st Army Group allocated additional road transport capacity to the armies by shifting vehicles from the rear areas and immobilising units that were not immediately needed. IF YOU WOULD PREFER TO STAY ANONYMOUS OR KEEP ALL CONTENTS PRIVATE PLEASE STATE THIS CLEARLY ON SUBMISSION: All rights reserved. They were augmented by 1,891 and 1,446 anti-aircraft guns and anti-tank guns. [37] Operation Veritable was scheduled to commence on 8 February, but the date for Operation Grenade could not be set, as it depended on the capture of dams on the Roer further south by the US First Army. Select from premium British Army Of The Rhine of the highest quality. 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. Positioned on the North German Plain, it is the command element of NATO's Northern Army Group (NORTHAG). Includes a chapter on the creation of the postmodern regimental system between 1945 and 1970 against the backdrop of postwar austerity and the consequent reorganization and amalgamation of many regiments. The longer shipping time meant that a working margin of 30 days' supplies was desirable instead of the one of 14 days for shipments from the United Kingdom. A broad look at the cultural attitudes of the British army and its relationship with wider society. List of battleships of the United States Navy, Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps, http://www.orbat.info/history/volume5/518/Original%20BAOR.pdf, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article187497575, http://baor-locations.org/historybaor.aspx.html, http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1963/jan/30/baor-tactical-nuclear-weapons, http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1967/mar/06/defence-army-estimates-1967-68-vote-a#S5CV0742P0_19670306_HOC_566, http://baor-locations.org/salamancabks.aspx.html, http://baor-locations.org/bournmouthbks.aspx.html, http://baor-locations.org/kingslybks.aspx.html, "British Army of the Rhine Order of Battle July 1989", https://www.orbat85.nl/documents/BAOR-July-1989.pdf, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Military units and formations established in 1945, Military units and formations disestablished in 1994, Field armies of the United Kingdom in World War I, Field armies of the United Kingdom in World War II, Military units and formations of the British Empire in World War II. Railway units were moved forward, and only one railway group headquarters and two railway operating companies were left in France, Belgium and the Netherlands south of the Waal. I Canadian Corps advanced on Utrecht, supported by No. Additional supplies of fuel were loaded on DUKWs, which ferried fuel across the river until bridges were opened. [11] The first phase of this was the transfer of remaining stores to the advanced base. British Army Royal Engineers enaged in the building of The Freeman Bridge, The River Rhine, Dusseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Margaret Brown. Your current browser may not support copying via this button. It was also anticipated that as the Allied advance proceeded into Germany, there would be increased demand to feed and accommodate prisoners of war, liberated Allied prisoners and displaced persons. The British 6th Airborne Division was withdrawn to the UK and re-equipped there, but its seaborne tail had to be re-equipped by the 21st Army Group. This reduced the pressure on the road network, and also permitted stone for road works to be supplied by rail. British Army Germany was formed in 2020 to administer the remaining service personnel, UK Civil Servants, and dependents (family members), based in Germany. [92] There was an additional allocation of 5,100 tonnes (5,000 long tons) of road transport for the drive to the Baltic Sea on 26 April, and another 2,700 tonnes (2,700 long tons) was received by the end of the month. En 1961, il est affect au Royal Corps of Signals, et fair partie de la British Army of the Rhine. 13 Army Roadhead. This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 08:31. [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. The affectionate story of British servicemen and their families who had to make Germany a home from home in the decades after the Second World War. History of the british army of the rhine 06 09 14. [2] Although it contained personnel nations, the logistical support was British. In turn this demanded a high degree of organisation and professionalism required to utilise the available machines and firepower to best effect. [103] In this campaign the British Army demonstrated its proficiency in logistics. [26], The headquarters of the 9th Line of Communications Area was transferred to Paris to assist the American Communications Zone with the move. The Mediterranean theatre was only able to provide two field bakeries. [6] In 1967, the force was reduced in strength to 53,000 soldiers. The Operation Pluto Dumbo pipeline was now in operation. Oxford Bibliographies Online is available by subscription and perpetual access to institutions. 13 Army Roadhead at Nijmegen. This was after British forces personnel were scaled down over several years, with 19,100 in April 2010, and 2,850 in April 2019. Troops met thin resistance as the operation wasn't intended as a surprise . The British Liberation Army (BLA) was the official name given to the British Army forces which fought on the Western Front of World War II between the Invasion of Normandy and the end of the war. The 18th Line of Communications Sub Area was formed on 25 April and assigned to the First Canadian Army; the 19th joined the 15th; and the 20th relieved the 4th around Brussels, allowing it to take over the region to the north east of Nijmegen. Includes a chapter on the activation of BAOR and its composition throughout the Cold War against the background of government defense reviews. [4] Its original function was to control the corps districts which were running the military government of the British zone of occupied Germany. Ron. 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. Disbandment of the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG) in 1994, following the end of the Cold War and the Options for Change defence review in the early 1990s, reduced the strength of the British Armed Forces in Germany by almost 30,000 with just one division (1st Armoured) remaining by the late 1990s, [7] The BAOR Locationsteam-5 October 2009. CONTENTS OF EMAILS MAY BE DISPLAYED ON THIS SITE (BUT IN AN ENCRYPTED FORMAT TO DETER SPAMMERS) TO BENEFIT HISTORY. It closed in 1991 when the refurbished BMH Iserlohn re-opened. British army inner german border.jpg 1,941 1,368 . 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. Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War. The next major operation was Operation Plunderthe assault crossing of the Rhine. By 9 February sections of the Nijmegen-Kranenburg road were under 46 centimetres (18in) of water. [30], A rail halt was established at Gevrey-Chambertin and bivouac areas at Montbard and Chalon-sur-Sane. [63][72] The seaborne tail of the 6th Airborne Division established a DUKW replenishment area west of the Rhine from whence supplies were moved until it could cross the river. british army of the rhine bases . It drew fuel from Dungeness on the coast of Kent and transported it across the Strait of Dover to a terminal near Boulogne. The armoured divisions also carried a day's worth of AFV ration packs. This gave them sufficient petrol to advance for 200 and 180 miles (320 and 290km) respectively, although no such rapid advance was contemplated, the supplies being to sustain the divisions in operations when the road network became congested with operational traffic. Use the search function to locate the Order of battle by title or file name. Originally scheduled to start at the beginning of January 1945, when the ground would have been frozen, Operation Veritable, the 21st Army Group's advance to the Rhine, was delayed for five weeks by the German Ardennes Offensive. With some assistance from pioneers or civilians, each section could operate a petrol station issuing up to 45,000 litres (10,000impgal) per day. Stocking of No. Mar 1. List of units and formations of the British Army, "Neuer britischer Kommandeur in Paderborn", "Adventurous Training Foundation Delivery (AFTD)", Overseas military bases of the United Kingdom, British Forces British Indian Ocean Territories, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_Army_Germany&oldid=1141875126, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Military command, support, and administration, Land Training Fleet (Sennelager) which provides and maintains a pool of. In addition to the road transport, the 21st Army Group also had barges capable of carrying 10,000 tonnes (10,000 long tons) of bulk POL. There were doubts as to whether this need could be met, but the situation was eased by the fortuitous arrival of 4,700 tonnes (4,600 long tons) of ammunition that had been pre-loaded on some of the transport that had been allocated by the 21st Army Group. [47], The opening of a railway bridge over the Maas at Ravenstein on 4 February enabled the FMCs to be served by rail. [70] Of the 610 tonnes (600 long tons) of supplies and equipment dropped, 80 per cent was recovered. [28], The 25th Garrison assumed control of the RMA on 2 April, allowing the 5th Line of Communications Sub Area to take over the western part of North Brabant, and the 101st Beach Sub Area, which became the 21st Line of Communications Sub Area, took over the territory west of the Maas. Meanwhile, the class 40 Bailey pontoon bridge at Xanten was erected by the 7th Army Troops Engineers in 31 hours, and opened to traffic at 16:30 on 25 March. Chieftain: The British Army of the Rhine, provides a complete array of British equipment and maneuver units, from Chieftain and Challenger tanks through MCV-80 and Saxon APCs. The following day a German swimmer was seen affixing a suspicious cylindrical object to the bridge. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}520734N 84059E / 52.12611N 8.68306E / 52.12611; 8.68306. [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. 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. [89][90], Despite this, stocks at the Nos. [75][66] The road network was also developed, and by 23 March eleven routes were open across the Maas, of which six were in the First Canadian Army area, including the sole class 70 route (ie one capable of carrying loads of up to 70 tonnes (69 long tons)) and five in the British Second Army area. The army roadheads were mainly supplied by rail. Since the First Canadian Army did not hold large stocks at No. REME Technical Services BAOR (British Army of the Rhine) 5 Infantry Workshop, Nijmegan Marchers 5 Infantry Workshop, Nijmegan Marchers [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. This saved 150 vehicles, from which a seventh company was formed. By this time the system consisted of 1,811 kilometres (1,125mi) of pipelines and storage tanks with a capacity of 104,770 tonnes (103,120 long tons). The Making of the British Army: From the English Civil War to the War on Terror. They only operated until newly constructed bridges were able to take traffic, which occurred about 72 hours into the operation. New search features Acronym Blog Free tools . The XXX Corps Troops Engineers commenced work on the "Lambeth" class 15 Bailey pontoon bridge at 15:00 on 24 March, but work was frequently interrupted by German fire, and the bridge was not opened until 08:30 on 26 March. [85], During the first three weeks of April 1945, the Second Army advanced about 320 kilometres (200mi) across northern Germany to reach the Elbe on 19 April. As the Soviet threat increased, so BAOR became less of an occupational army and assumed the role of defender of Western Europe, and as a major contributor to NATO after . The great majority of Canadian requirements, including ordnance stores, ammunition, petroleum products, most engineer, medical and dental stores, rations, office machinery and other supplies, were provided through British channels. [79] Seven American combat engineer battalions assisted with road and bridge maintenance in the British Second Army area. Four days later orders came that disarmed troops would no longer have prisoner of war status, but would be classified as Surrendered Enemy Personnel, and that their own officers would be responsible for their administration. 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. 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). General histories of the postwar British army have tended to overlook the services preparations to fight a tactical nuclear war against the Soviet Union in Europe, despite this being its primary mission throughout the Cold War. This included 15,000,000 rations, which were gradually eaten by the troops in the RMA. To secure the required transportation resources, eleven general transport companies, seven artillery transport platoons, a tank transporter company, a bulk petrol transport company, a petrol depot, a bridge company and an ambulance car company were transferred from Italy. [28][29] Many of the tanks needed overhaul or modification and this task was beyond the resources of the 21st Army Group's REME units, so excess tanks were shipped to the UK. [73] In XXX Corps, all DUKWs were retained under corps control. Both formations had areas of responsibility located around the German section of the River Rhine. 167 FMC, established by the XXX Corps which held only petrol, compo ration packs and ammunition. 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. 206 FMC. During the first three weeks of April 1945, the 21st Army Group advanced about 320 kilometres (200mi) across northern Germany to reach the Elbe on 19 April and then the Baltic Sea. Fifteen minutes after the glider landings, there was a resupply mission flown by 240 Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers from the US Eighth Air Force. The position gained along the Roer was then taken over by the US Ninth Army. 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). [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. [28][29], At the start of January 1945, British bulk storage facilities were more than sufficient to hold the thirty days' reserve of petrol, oil and lubricants (POL) that Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) stipulated should be held, but the American position was not so good. Some 10,000 tonnes (10,000 long tons) of wooden piles, baulks and chesses was assembled for the project. 616 Squadron RAF began operating Gloster Meteor jet fighters from Brussels, and they required kerosene. Corps Water Polo Championships, BAOR (British Army of the Rhine)Team Winners, Aldershot. SGT Served from 1967 - 1985 Served in British Army of the Rhine. [38] Operation Blackcock, a preliminary operation to clear German forces from the Roer Triangle, was carried out by the XII Corps in January 1945.