Homeland Security Brigade 51
Homeland Security Brigade 51 |
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Association badge |
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active | April 1, 1981 to September 30, 1993 |
Country | Germany |
Armed forces | armed forces |
Armed forces | army |
Type | Homeland Security Brigade |
Insinuation | 6th Panzer Grenadier Division |
Staff seat | Rettberg barracks , Eutin |
commander | |
Last commander | Colonel Peter-Christian Graf von Bothmer |
The Homeland Security Brigade 51 was a partially active Homeland Security Brigade of the Army of the German Armed Forces, mainly deployed in Ostholstein, with headquarters in the Rettberg barracks in Eutin . The brigade was disbanded in 1981, disbanded in 1993 and was most recently part of the 6th Panzer Grenadier Division .
structure
The brigade is divided as follows around 1989:
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Headquarters / Headquarters Company Homeland Security Brigade 51 (partially active), Eutin
- Pioneer Company 510, Plön
- NBC Defense Company 510 (GerEinh), Eutin
- Supply company 510 (partially active), Schleswig
- Repair company 510 (partially active), Schleswig
- Medical company 510 (GerEinh), Idstedt
- Jägerbataillon 511 , Flensburg-Weiche
- Jägerbataillon 512, Putlos ( Oldenburg in Holstein ) (with MTW 113 )
- Panzerbataillon 513, Flensburg-Weiche ( Leopard 1 )
- Panzerbataillon 514 (GerEinh), Putlos (Leopard 1; 2./PzBtl 514 active and subordinated to PzBtl 513)
- Field Artillery Battalion 515, Kellinghusen
- Field Replacement Battalion 517 (GerEinh), Süderbrarup
history
In the territorial army
The brigade was set up on April 1, 1981 to take Army Structure IV in Defense Area I or as a partially active unit of the Schleswig-Holstein Territorial Command . Parts of Homeland Security Command 13, which was disbanded at the same time, were used for the installation . At the same time, the inactive "sister brigade" Homeland Security Brigade 61 with headquarters in Schleswig was planned.
As its name suggests, the partially active Homeland Security Brigade 51 was one of the twelve Homeland Security Brigades of the Territorial Army . The brigade comprised around 2,500 active soldiers . In the event of a defense , the brigade was able to grow to its full target strength of around 4,500 soldiers through reservists . Some of the subordinate battalions and companies were planned to be inactive equipment units , whose defense material was stored in depots in peacetime and would only have been mobilized in the event of a defense .
The task of the homeland security brigade as part of the territorial army was, among other things, the defense of the rear army area , in particular the safeguarding of important infrastructure such as marching routes, ports, traffic junctions and telecommunications facilities. Airborne troops , sea-landed, leaked or breached enemy had to be expected in the rear area .
In the field army
Soon after taking the new army structure was clear that the northern and southern flanks of the NATO - defense were particularly threatened in West Germany. Associations originally assigned to the territorial army were intended to permanently strengthen the divisions of the field army on these two flanks . In the north, the Homeland Security Brigade 51 moved to the field army; in the south, Homeland Security Brigade 56 was selected for this task.
The Homeland Security Brigade 51 should in particular strengthen the field army in the strategically important defense area of LANDJUT . The Jutland peninsula was difficult to defend due to its small east-west extension. Warsaw Pact troops could have surprisingly achieved numerical superiority in key positions through large-scale sea landing operations on the Baltic coast (possibly supported by large-scale air landing operations ). Incidentally, troops advancing from Mecklenburg to Schleswig-Holstein did not have to overcome any serious terrain obstacles that would have delayed the advance, with the exception of the Elbe-Lübeck Canal between the Elbe and the Kiel Canal . The defense of the Cimbrian Peninsula was strategically important for NATO. If Jutland had been occupied, the Kiel Canal would have fallen into the hands of the Warsaw Pact. From Jutland it would also have been possible to capture the Baltic Sea exits and Hamburg with its port . NATO also wanted to prevent their Scandinavian associations of AFNORTH by the main armed force in Central Europe were separated. The Homeland Security Brigade 51 was consequently assigned to NATO in 1982 and thus part of the field army. The Homeland Security Brigade 51 was incorporated into the 6th Panzer Grenadier Division in 1985 , making it one of the largest divisions in the Bundeswehr. In the territorial army, with the planning of the available troop command 41, preparations were also made at the same time to do justice to the special situation on the Cimbrian peninsula.
The structure of Homeland Security Brigade 51 was comparable to almost all other partially active Homeland Security Brigades (only Homeland Security Brigade 56 was planned to be much more robust): the core consisted of two hunter battalions , two tank battalions and one field artillery battalion . These partially active homeland security brigades corresponded approximately to a reinforced Jägerbrigade or a "light" Panzergrenadierbrigade . The Homeland Security Brigade 51 was relatively well equipped with defense material compared to many other Homeland Security Brigades (the exception is again the better equipped Homeland Security Brigade 56). She already had Leopard 1 in the tank battalions and heavy companies of the infantry battalions. One of the two fighter battalions was made mobile with MTW M113 . Some other homeland security brigades were still equipped with outdated M 48s during the same period and did not have any protected personnel carriers . As with most homeland security brigades, the field artillery was equipped with towed field howitzers FH 105mm (L) .
In 1983 Danish officers from the Royal Danish Defense College paid a briefing. This showed the connection to the northern neighboring country, which was significantly involved in LANDJUT through its Jutland division .
Exercises
In 1985 , the Homeland Security Brigade 51 received the command for the training exercise "The Jäger Battalion in Defense " as part of exercise Trutzige Sachsen . The association, which was assigned its own combat section, took part in the Bold Guard corps combat exercises in 1982 and 1986 . In 1987 Homeland Security Brigade 51 participated in the Brisk Fray division exercise .
Soldiers of Jäger Battalion 511 successfully participated in the NATO infantry competition NECIC several times .
resolution
After reunification and the end of the Cold War , Homeland Security Brigade 51 was disbanded on September 30, 1993 as the army was downsized .
Association badge
The brigade carried a union badge with the following blazon :
- “Green bordered , divided into blue, silver, red, the silver Holstein nettle leaf ; on this a golden shield; in it two blue, inward-facing, red armored, striding lions . "
The association badge established the connection to the stationing room. The association badge was similar to the coat of arms of Schleswig-Holstein . The Schleswig lions symbolized the Schleswig region . The nettle leaf was a symbol for the Holstein region . The shield division corresponded to the flag of Schleswig-Holstein . The green board was typical of all homeland security brigades in Army Structure IV. Green was the weapon color of the hunter troop , because most homeland security brigades resembled reinforced hunter brigades.
The association badge was taken over by the "predecessor association" Heimatschutzkommando 13 . The badge of the 6th Panzer Grenadier Division was very similar to the badge of Homeland Security Brigade 51.
Commanders
The brigade was commanded by the following staff officers :
- Colonel Martin Czerwensky (1981-1983)
- Brigadier General Klaus-Peter Schötensack (1983–1988)
- Colonel Winfried Hofer (1988–1990)
- Colonel Peter-Christian Graf von Bothmer (1991–1992)
Web links
- Homeland Security Commandos / Homeland Security Brigades. German Digital Library, accessed on July 2, 2018 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h O.W. Dragoons: The Bundeswehr 1989 . Army Office. I. Corps. II Corps. III. Corps. 4th edition. 2.1 - Army, February 2012 ( religte.com [PDF; accessed July 3, 2018]).
- ^ Briefing visit from officers of the Royal Danish Defense College. Federal Archives, 1983, accessed on July 4, 2018 .
Coordinates: 54 ° 8 ' N , 10 ° 38' E