7th Panzer Division (Bundeswehr)

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7th Panzer Division
- 7th PzDiv -
XX

Coat of arms of the 7th PzDiv


Association badge
active August 1, 1958 to June 30, 2006
Country GermanyGermany Germany
Armed forces armed forces
Armed forces Logo of the army (the Bundeswehr) with inscription. army
last seat of the staff Dusseldorf
Nickname Westphalian Panzer Division
commander
last commander Major General Wolf-Joachim Clauss

The 7th Panzer Division (also: Westfälische Panzerdivision ) was a large unit of the Army of the Bundeswehr with long-term headquarters in Lippstadt and Unna , most recently in Düsseldorf . Until its dissolution in 2006, it was regarded as the “backbone of the German Army ” or “spearhead of the German Army”. Most of the weapon systems were introduced here. Many army inspectors were former divisional commanders of the 7th Panzer Division. The last commanding officer was Wolf-Joachim Clauss .

history

Established in 1958

The division was established on August 1, 1958 ( Army Structure I ) with the formation order No. 126 (Army) of the Federal Minister of Defense Franz Josef Strauss from July 1, 1959 in the Lipperbruch camp near Lippstadt by personnel levies of III. Corps and under the leadership of the Chief of Staff Lieutenant Colonel Hans-Joachim von Hopffgarten as the last of the large field divisions of the Army from several tank combat groups. It was initially in the consolidation phase of the III. Corps and, in the event of a defense, subordinated to the I. Corps and never took the planned Army Structure 1 operational, as it was reclassified into Army Structure 2 at the end of 1958. Deputy division commander was Colonel Baron von Canstein; the post of division commander was vacant until February 1959.

At the beginning, the division had the C III tank troops in Unna , which had been detached from the 3rd Panzer Division , and some troop units in Augustdorf as the foundation stone for the 21st Panzer Brigade . The Panzerartilleriebataillon 215, which was reorganized Infantry Battalion 212 and from this emerged by division Tank Battalion 214. In Hemer emerged carved out from other divisions of the location for the tank battalion 204 and Infantry Battalion 203, and a future Armored Brigade 20 . The establishment of a 19 Panzer Grenadier Brigade in Handorf near Münster and Ahlen was delayed and only a few companies were available because the barracks had to be completed first. On April 1, 1959, the brigade was set up in Ahlen.

Army Structure II "Massive Retaliation" 1958 to 1967

Since the formation of Panzer Brigade 20 was also delayed, it was renamed the 7th Division on October 1, 1958 and the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division with effect from March 16, 1959 . At the same time, the location of the division's staff moved from Lippstadt to Unna in the Hellweg barracks. On December 1, 1958 there was a change of position to III. Corps. At this time, in addition to the division troops, the large unit was subordinate to Panzerbrigade 19 and Panzerbrigade 21 (formerly Panzer Group C III Unna under the command of the 3rd Panzer Division).

Overview of the units set up from 1959 and subordinate to the 7th Panzer Division:

  • 1st February 1959 formation of medical battalion 7 in Unna and in June 1960 relocation to Hamm.
  • April 1, 1959 The 19 Panzer Grenadier Brigade was set up in Ahlen.
  • January 15, 1960 Air defense battalion 7 is set up in Unna, then relocation to the Lützow barracks in Münster - Handorf . In April 1961 the anti-aircraft battery 190 and in September 1962 the anti-aircraft battery 210 were incorporated.
  • On January 15, 1960, the tank reconnaissance training battalion in Augustdorf was renamed to 7th tank reconnaissance battalion.
  • July 2, 1960 The 7th Artillery Regiment is set up in the Westfalen barracks in Ahlen, and from 1966 in Dülmen .
  • November 17, 1960 Setup of Army Aviation Squadron 7 in Rheine -Bentlage, flight operations commence in June 1961.
  • 17th November 1960 formation of the 7th Engineer Battalion in Höxter.
  • January 1, 1961 subordinate the Army Music Corps 12 to the division, previously formed in December 1955 as the first music corps of the Bundeswehr in Andernach . On April 1, 1964, the name was changed to Army Music Corps 7.
  • April 1, 1961 Establishment of NBC Defense Company 7 in Höxter.

On November 10, 1962, the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division was assigned to NATO together with the 10th and 11th Panzer Grenadier Divisions . This is also where the connections to the 1st British Armored Division and the 10th Polish Armored Cavalry Brigade are based since the 1990s. Meanwhile, on April 1, 1964, the 20th Panzer Grenadier Brigade , and later the 20th Panzer Brigade, was reorganized in Hemer and came under the command of the division as the third brigade . The formation of the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division in Army Structure 2 was thus completed and formed organizationally small, flexible units that were composed of various branches of arms and were able to conduct combat independently for several days.

Army Structure III "Flexible Response" 1967 to 1980

In 1967 the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division took part in the combat exercises Panthersprung of the II Corps in Hesse and Hermelin II of the I Corps in Lower Saxony.

In the course of a structural test in 1970, Panzer Brigade 20 was reclassified to Panzer Regiment 100, which was directly subordinate to the I. Corps ( Münster ), but received its original structure back in 1975 and reintegrated into the division.

The 196 Supply Battalion, which was set up in Ahlen in March 1959, was renamed Supply Battalion 7 in the new Army Structure 3 on April 1, 1973 and placed directly under the division; in addition, the Corps Repair Battalion in Unna-Königsborn was added as Repair Battalion 7 on January 1, 1974 to the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division.

In 1972 the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division from III. Corps in Koblenz now subordinated to the command of the I. Corps in Münster.

In 1973 the division took part in the NATO military maneuvers WINTEX 73 and the British exercise Sankt Martin .

In the summer of 1976, 1,700 soldiers with 757 transport vehicles provided assistance to repair drought damage in the Siegerland and Sauerland .

In September 1976, a solemn pledge was made in the Nordkirchen Castle Park with a performance of a great tattoo and the handover of the flags of the former VII Army Corps to the units of the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division.

Army Structure IV "Flexible Response" 1980 to 1990

In Army Structure 4, the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division was renamed the 7th Panzer Division on October 1, 1980 and in 1983 comprised around 18,000 soldiers and 550 civilian employees. It grew up to its greatest number of staff and was one of the most important pillars of the NATO Army Group North ( Northern Army Group, NORTHAG ) in Central Europe. Especially during the time of the flexible response strategy , the 7th Panzer Division was the main guarantor of the security of the strategically important North Rhine-Westphalia and the holding of the Warsaw Pact forces in front of the Rhine line. This was generally seen as the main task of the Bundeswehr, to give the allied armed forces (especially the British, French and Americans) the time to form along the Rhine.

Several battalions of the division also participated in exercises at Shilo , Canada and Castlemartin, Great Britain.

In 1980 the 7th Panzer Division was under:

  • the headquarters company in Unna
  • the 19 Panzer Grenadier Brigade in Ahlen and Münster-Handorf
    • the Panzergrenadierbataillon 191 (gem.)
    • the Panzer Grenadier Battalion 192 in Ahlen
    • the 193 Panzer Grenadier Battalion in Münster-Handorf
    • the 194 tank battalion in Münster-Handorf
    • the tank artillery battalion 195 Münster-Handorf
    • the tank pioneer company 190 in Ahlen
    • the Panzerjägerkompanie 190 in Münster-Handorf
    • the supply company 190 in Ahlen
    • the repair company 190 in Münster-Handorf
  • the 20 Panzer Brigade in Hemer
    • the armored battalion 201 (mixed) in Hemer
    • the Panzer Grenadier Battalion 202
    • the tank battalion 203 in Hemer
    • the tank battalion 204 in Ahlen
    • the armored artillery battalion 205 in Dülmen
    • the Panzerjägerkompanie 200 in Wuppertal (later Hemer)
    • the Panzer Pioneer Company 200 in Hemer
    • the supply company 200 in Unna
    • the repair company 200
  • the 21st Panzer Brigade in Augustdorf
    • the tank battalion 211 (mixed) in Augustdorf
    • the Panzer Grenadier Battalion 212 in Augustdorf
    • the tank battalion 213 in Augustdorf
    • the tank battalion 214 in Augustdorf
    • the armored artillery battalion 215 in Augustdorf
    • the Panzerjägerkompanie 210 in Augustdorf
    • the Panzer Pioneer Company 210
    • the supply company 210
    • the repair company 210 in Augustdorf
  • the 7th Artillery Regiment in Dülmen
    • the field artillery battalion 71 in Dülmen
    • the 72 missile artillery battalion in Dülmen, since 1981 in Wuppertal, backup battery (4th / 72) in Dülmen
    • the observation battalion 73 in Dülmen
  • Division troops:
    • the 7th anti-aircraft regiment in Borken near Gemen
    • the 7th Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion in Augustdorf
    • the telecommunications battalion 7 in Lippstadt
    • the 7th engineer battalion in Höxter
    • the medical battalion 7 in Hamm
    • the 7th supply battalion in Unna-Königsborn
      • a replenishment training company in Ahlen
      • three units in Münster-Handorf (4th, 6th and 7th company)
    • the repair battalion 7 in Unna-Königsborn
    • Heeresfliegerstaffel 7 in Rheine-Bentlage and
    • the Army Music Corps 7 in Düsseldorf
    • the NBC defense company 7 in Höxter from 1977 in Emden

After the end of the Cold War 1990–2002

As a result of the downsizing of the armed forces after the end of the Cold War , the large formation lost around a third of its soldiers and Panzerbrigade 20 was dissolved in 1993. After the merger of the 7th Panzer Division with Wehrbereichskommando III to form Wehrbereichskommando III / 7th Panzer Division within the framework of Army Structure 5, the division's staff moved to the Reitzenstein barracks in Düsseldorf in 1994 . In the course of the restructuring, the Panzergrenadierbrigade 19 also became part of the WBK III / 7 in 1994. Panzerdivision detached and subordinated to the 1st Panzer Division , but was reassigned to the 7th Panzer Division in 1996. From 1994 to 1996 the Panzerlehrbrigade 9 , based in Munster, came under the command of the large association. In 2001 the tank brigade 14 "Hessischer Löwe" was subordinated to the division. 2001 saw the separation of the Military District Command III from the 7th Panzer Division on July 1st. The division was placed under the command of the Army Command. For a short time the Pioneer Brigade 30 “Rhein-Weser” was also under the division (until 2002). Most recently, the division was subordinate to the 14th Panzer Brigade , the 21st Panzer Brigade , the 820 telecommunications battalion, the 5th armored reconnaissance battalion, a staff company and the 7th Army Music Corps. The 19th Panzer Grenadier Brigade was disbanded in 2002. As a crisis reaction division of the Army, the 7th Panzer Division was assigned to the multinational NATO Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC - Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps ) in the event of a NATO mission . The division itself was then subordinate to the 10th Polish Armored Cavalry Brigade from Świętoszów .

Demobilization 2006

On June 13, 2006, the division was retired in a major tattoo and decommissioned on June 30, 2006. Subsequent commands ended their service in the facilities in Düsseldorf on September 30, 2006. The units subordinate to them were either disbanded, restructured into equipment units or transferred to the Air Mobile Operations Division (DLO) (e.g. the 14th Panzer Brigade ) and the Reaction Division / 1. Armored Division (e.g. the Armored Brigade 21).

The troop strength of the division was around 27,000 soldiers in the 1980s and around 10,000 after the end of the East-West conflict . The 7th Panzer Division secured around 750 jobs in Düsseldorf , 150 of which were on the division staff. In the foreseeable future, the properties are to be converted into civil use - primarily residential construction and local recreation.

A traditional room to commemorate the 7th Panzer Division was set up at the location of Panzer Brigade 21, which switched to the 1st Panzer Division, in the military history collection "Lippische Rose" in the Generalfeldmarschall-Rommel barracks in Augustdorf .

Calls

About 70 soldiers from 29 units of the division were involved in the Bundeswehr's first foreign mission UNOSOM II . In 1996 around 2000 soldiers under the command of Gert Gudera transferred to the Balkans as part of IFOR . The continuation of this mission under the SFOR mandate took place in 1996 and 1997 with the participation of the 7th Panzer Division. In June 1999, the 33 and 214 tank battalions entered Kosovo . In 2000/2001, the 7th Panzer Division was the lead division of the KFOR mission. From May 2003, the division again provided contingents for KFOR and SFOR, but also for ISAF in Afghanistan . In addition, the division took part in an observer mission in Sudan . In 2005 the division was for the last time the lead division of a multinational operation. The division was involved in the EUFOR , KFOR and ISAF operations from September 2005 . After returning in March 2006, the division was disbanded after the follow-up operations.

Commanders

No. Surname Beginning of the appointment End of appointment
18th Major General Wolf-Joachim Clauss October 1, 2003 September 30, 2006
17th Major General Jürgen Ruwe July 1, 2000 September 30, 2003
16 Major General Gert Gudera October 1, 1996 June 30, 2000
15th Major General Götz Gliemeroth April 1, 1993 September 30, 1996
14th Major General Helmut Willmann October 1, 1990 March 31, 1993
13 Major General Bernd Klug April 1, 1986 September 30, 1990
12 Major General Jörn Söder April 1, 1984 March 31, 1986
11 Major General Karl Erich Diedrichs October 1, 1981 March 31, 1984
10 Major General Horst Frickinger April 1, 1980 September 30, 1981
9 Major General Gottfried Greiner April 1, 1978 March 31, 1980
8th Major General Ferdinand von Senger and Etterlin July 1, 1974 March 31, 1978
7th Major General Eberhard Wagemann 3rd June 1971 June 30, 1974
6th Major General Hermann Büschleb April 8, 1971 2nd June 1971
5 Major General Eike Middeldorf 1st October 1969 April 7th 1971
4th Major General Karl-Theodor Molinari October 1, 1966 September 30, 1969
3 Major General Herbert Reidel October 1, 1964 September 30, 1966
2 Major General Jürgen Bennecke April 1, 1963 September 30, 1964
1 Major General Willi Mantey June 1, 1959 March 31, 1963

In a 16-page paper, the captains von Unna criticized the conditions in the Bundeswehr. There were 30 captains and company commanders from the area of ​​the 7th Panzer Grenadier Division who had criticized the Inner Command in 1971.

Association badge

The division carried a Gothic shield as a coat of arms. It shows a soaring silver steed ( Westphalia horse ) on a red background. The horse and the shield color stand for the Westphalia region , in which the 7th  Westphalian Panzer Division was stationed en masse. Panzerbrigade 21 continues this motif. The silver / black braided border indicates the division status.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bundesarchiv  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.bundesarchiv.de  
  2. ↑ Site closure list . (No longer available online.) In: www.wdr.de. Westdeutscher Rundfunk Cologne, October 25, 2004, archived from the original on September 29, 2007 ; Retrieved July 5, 2013 .

Coordinates: 51 ° 14 ′ 50 ″  N , 6 ° 49 ′ 8 ″  E