Field Army Corps 4th
The field Army Corps 4 (FAK 4) of the Swiss Army had an army unit of a plurality of divisions , brigades and directly subordinate corps forces , that of a corps commander (before Army 61 Colonel corps commander has been performed). The Eastern Swiss 4th Army Corps (since 1961 Field Army Corps 4 ) existed from 1891 to 2003, with an interruption from 1911 to 1940.
prehistory
Almost all of Europe's major armies followed the example of Napoleon I and in the 19th century divided their forces into army corps. Since the complete revision of the Federal Constitution in 1874, the Federal Council has been empowered to make military-political decisions over and above the sovereignty of the cantons. In 1891 he divided the Swiss army into four army corps for the first time.
In 1902 the 4th Army Corps consisted of the 4th and 8th Divisions. With the order of forces of 1911, the number of army corps was reduced from four to three and the number of divisions from eight to six.
First World War
In the Ordre de bataille of 1917, the army was divided into 6 divisions:
| division | Brigades | Regiments | Battalions of infantry |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GE VD | 1, 2, 3 | 1 + 2, 3 + 4, 5 + 6 | 1 2 3, S1 S2 S7, 4 5 6, 10 13, 8 9, 11 12 88 |
| 2 FRI NE JU SUN | 4, 5, 6 | 7 + 8, 9 + 10, 11 + 12 | 14 15 16, 18 19 20, 21 22 24, 17 23 90, 49 50 51, S3 S4 S5 |
| 3 BE VS | 7, 8, 9 | 13 + 14, 15 + 16, 17 + 18 | 25 26 27, 28 29 30, 31 32 33, 37 38 39, 34 35 36, 40 89 |
| 4 BS BL AG LU | 10, 11, 12 | 19 + 20, 21 + 22, 23 + 24 | 41 42 43, 44 45 48, 46 52 53, 54 97 99, 55 56 57, 58 59 60 |
| 5 ZH SH NW TI | 13, 14, 15 | 25 + 26, 27 + 28, 29 + 30 | 61 62 98 S6 , 63 64 65, 67 68 69, 66 70 71, 47 72 86, 94 95 96 |
| 6 SG TG AR GR GL | 16, 17, 18 | 31 + 32, 33 + 34, 35 + 36 | 73 74 75, 79 80 85 , 78 81 82, 83 84 S7, 76 77 S8, 91 92 93 |
Observation tower on the border, Neuweiler / Allschwil
Transporting the wounded, Zuzwil
Division 6 officers
Observation post with field telephone, blue ones
Second World War
After the mobilization in the Second World War from 1/2. In September 1939 the army moved into a stand-by position in the Central Plateau, with which the front could have been made in the event of an attack in all directions. Due to the operational order No. 2 of October 4, 1939, the Swiss Army occupied the Limmat position in order to be able to stop an attack from the north and a bypassing of the French Maginot Line through Switzerland. The 4th Army Corps, with Division 7 , Mountain Brigade 12 and Light Brigade 1, had to hold the section to the right of the army position (Limmat position) from Sargans to Bendlikon / Kilchberg and to cover the army's wing in Graubünden. After fortresses had been built in the Reduit and provisions for the troops and the local population had been laid out for six months, the remaining divisions 2 , 4 , 5 , which had previously been deployed in the advanced position , were with the operational order No. 13 of May 24, 1941 , Relocated to the central room.
With the troop order of 1938 (TO 38), the border troops were reorganized, 11 border brigades (Gz Br) were newly created and soldiers who lived in the operational area were assigned. During the whole of the Second World War, the border brigades remained in their home region, and the area of operations and subordination were often adjusted. The Border Brigades 6 , 7 and 8 were subordinate to the 4th Army Corps .
Etzel South
Artillery Plant Spitz
Artillery plant Mühlefluh / Vitznau
Orders and operational rooms of the 4th Army Corps in the Reduit (Op Bef No. 13)
With the operational order No. 13 of May 24, 1941, the 4th Army Corps under Jakob Labhardt received the order to defend the Reduit with the northern front in the Bürgenstock area as far as the Linth plain and to block access to the Gotthard from the north. The 5th Division was temporarily subordinate to the 4th Army Corps. The staff of the 4th Army Corps built the underground, protected command post Selgis A 7444 at the entrance of the Muotathal in 1941/1942 .
| unit | commander | Troop strength (TO38) | assignment | Operational area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5th division | Eugen Bircher / Rudolf von Erlach | 22,000 | Bürgenstock to Rigi | |
| 6th division | Herbert Constam / Corbat | 26,000 | Blocks access to the Schwyz basin | Rigi - Zugerberg - Etzel |
| 7th division | Hermann Flückiger / Hans Frick | 22,000 | Closes access to Wägital, Sihlsee area, stops Oberegg, Etzel , delayed advance into the Lin plain | Etzel - Stöcklichrüz - Linth plain |
| 3rd Light Brigade | Wirth | 10,000 | Deceleration force in the midland | Northeast Switzerland |
| Sargans fortress area | Fritz Gubler | Sargans |
Tschingel artillery plant
Furggels artillery factory: tank turret
Command post Vild
Artillery works of Kastels: tower cannon
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Corps section border Lake Lucerne
The line-up of the Swiss Army was continually and temporarily adapted to the course of the war with corresponding operational (Op Bf) and supplementary orders. The orders to the army corps, defense front, section boundaries and troop positions were changed. The key position of the reduced entrance to Lake Lucerne was affected several times:
| Unit / Op Bf no. | 11 July 12, 1940 | 12 July 17th 1940 | 13 May 15, 1941 | Div 19th March 1943 | 13 December 27, 1943 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Army Corps (North) | 2 | 4th | 4th | 4th | 4th |
| Division (North) | 7th | 6th | 6th | 6th | 5 |
| Corps border | Middle of the lake | Middle of the lake | Rigi | Middle of the lake | |
| Army Corps (South) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Division (South) | 8th | 8th | 5 | 5 | 4th |
Cold War and Army 61
According to the Hague Agreement, the Swiss Army has an obligation to defend its territory from national borders in accordance with the principle of armed neutrality . Therefore the army corps could be allocated fixed corps rooms for defense.
The corps area of FAK 4 comprised the area east of the Walensee-Linth-Limmat line in the area of the cantons of Zurich, Schaffhausen, Thurgau and St. Gallen or parts thereof. It reached from Schaffhauser Zipfel to the Rhine Valley and from Boden to Lake Zurich. The area near the border has river and lake obstacles for defense, while the area behind is open and maneuverable. Strategically, the high population density and the significant industrial potential must be taken into account in this part of the country. In order to make a possible opposing push through the Central Plateau less tempting, rapid mobilization and very rapid preparation of combat readiness was important for FAK 4.
The boundary Brigade 6 (Kaiser chair AG to Eschenz TG, including Schaffhauser Zipfel: Fort Ebersberg and 71 locks) Thurgau boundary Brigade 7 (Fänenbach / Mammern to Steinach mouth / Lake Constance: fortifications Kreuzlingen and 22 locks) and the St. Galler / Appenzeller boundary Brigade 8 (Steinach to Buchs in the Rhine Valley and in the upper Toggenburg to Starkenbach: Artillery Works Heldsberg and 32 barriers) were responsible for the border area from Kaiserstuhl to Sargans from 1945 to 1994 (as since 1938).
The operational area of field division 6 had an extension of 40 (east-west) to 48 km (south-north) and included the narrowing of Kemptthal, Kloten airport and the Furt and Glatt valley. The restricted areas of the Zurich , Bilten, Brüggen-Rorholz, Grynau , Grindbühl, Lidwil-Luegeten, Kaltbrunn, Mösli-Benken, Reichenburg, Schänis and Schmerikon city command were in their area of operation .
The blocking points of Schönholzerswilen and Sittertobel were in the operational area of Field Division 7 .
The Mechanized Division 11 was the moving element of Army Corps 4. In its operational area there were the locking points Bichelsee, Guntershausen, Mülibach, Sennhof, Winterthur.
Ebersberg Fortress, Border Brigade 6
Bunker Bottighofen, Border Brigade 7
Bunker Heldsberg, Border Brigade 8
Lock point Grynau, field division 6
In 1961 the following changes were made due to Troop Order 61 : The 11th Division was converted into Mechanized Division 11, the 6th Division into Field Division 6, and the 7th Division into Field Division 7.
Based on the basic Zeus disposition from 1992, the FAK 4 comprised the field divisions 6, 7 and the mechanized division 11, the border brigades 6, 7 and 8.
The Reform Army 95 led to the dissolution of Border Brigades 6, 7, 8 and Mechanized Division 11.
With the Army Reform XXI , all army corps and divisions were dissolved at the end of 2003.
literature
- Arthur Liener: Ostschweizer Korpsgeist, events and experiences in Field Army Corps 4, 1891-2003 . Thomas Sprecher and René Zeller (eds.). Verlag NZZ, Zurich 2003, ISBN 978-3-03823-049-6 .
- Louis Geiger, Franz Felix Betschon : Memories of the Army 61 . Huber, Frauenfeld 2009, ISBN 3-7193-1513-4 .
Web links
- ASMZ from 10/1979: The troop exercise "Knacknuss" of the field army corps 4
- NZZ of November 3, 2003: Farewell to Field Army Corps 4
- ASMZ 1/1983: Conversation with the new commander of Field Army Corps 4, Corps Commander J. Feldmann
- Toggenburger Tagblatt from October 16, 2010: From the cooperage to the top of the army
- ASMZ 10/2000: Interview with the commander of Field Army Corps 4 Ulrico Hess on Army XXI
Individual evidence
- ↑ Structure of the 6 divisions of the Swiss Army, “Ordre de Bataille” from 1917
- ↑ DDPS: Geneva Rifle Battalion 14 ( Memento of the original from January 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Old Basel: Basler Fusilier Battalion 97 and 99
- ↑ DDPS: Zürcher Geb S Bat 6 - first and oldest rifle battalion in Switzerland ( memento of the original from January 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Zurich Infantry Battalion 70 (Inf Bat 70)
- ↑ Switzerland 1940: Operation Order No. 4 (Aufmarsch Nord) ( Memento of the original of November 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Ordre de Bataille for Operation Order No 4 ( Memento of the original of September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Edgar Bonjour : History of Swiss neutrality. Four centuries of federal foreign policy. Volume 9: Documents. 1939-1946. Helbing and Lichtenhahn, Basel et al. 1976, ISBN 3-7190-0677-8 .
- ↑ due to Troop Order 38, TO 38
- ↑ Hansjakob Burkhardt: Fortification "Seesperre Nas" and Swiss Navy on Lake Lucerne . Nidwalden Museum, Stans 2005
- ↑ Agreement on the Rights and Duties of Neutral Powers and Persons in the Event of Land War, concluded in The Hague on October 18, 1907.
