Military in Ulm

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Federal fortress - Wilhelmsburg

The city of Ulm on the Danube was often contested due to its strategically important location in history. Ulm has suffered from wars and military occupation over the centuries , has been a garrison town since 1666 and has remained so to this day. Ulm has been the seat of the highest military staff in the Bundeswehr since the 1950s . During the German Confederation in the 19th century, Ulm was home to Landau , Luxemburg , Mainz and Rastatt , one of five federal fortresses . The Ulm fortress was built between 1842 and 1859. Their extensive facilities formed the framework for the stationing of a garrison of several thousand men in Ulm.

Early time

War memorial on Michelsberg

Swabian Federation

On February 14, 1488, the Swabian Federation (also Bund in the state of Swabia) at the instigation of Emperor Friedrich III was established at the Reichstag in Esslingen . founded as a union of the Swabian imperial estates . In addition to the Duke of Tyrol , the Count of Württemberg and a large number of small territorial lords such as Werdenberg , Fürstenberg , Waldburg , Zollern etc., as well as Imperial Knights , this also included the 20 Swabian imperial cities and the prelates of the imperial abbeys . The capital, or main base of the armed forces, was Ulm.

Battle of Ulm

At the beginning of the third coalition war between Napoleon Bonaparte France and the coalition of Great Britain, Russia and Austria on the other side, the Austrian field marshal Karl Mack von Leiberich tried to stop the French troops in Upper Swabia with his 80,000-strong army. On October 14, 1805, Napoleons defeated the Austrian army in the battle of Elchingen . Leiberich loses the battle and retreats with the remaining army to Ulm. Ulm is besieged and capitulated from October 16-19, 1805. With the battle of Ulm won , the way to Vienna was open to Napoleon. After further minor battles along the Danube, his troops captured Vienna on November 13th without a fight .

The decision of the Congress of Vienna (November 1814) to found a federation whose main task was to defend the German states resulted, among other things, in the construction of the federal fortress in Ulm (from 1842 to 1859). Builder: Major Moritz von Prittwitz , whose basic concept was based on the ideas of the new German fortification. The traditional bastionary system was abandoned, instead of the multiple angled ramparts of the past, which had to be carefully secured, the new fortress should have long, straight sections. These sections were put together at an obtuse angle so that the entire system was given the shape of a large polygon. Prittwitz planned a wide polygonal fortress ring (the city wall) around the city center of Ulm, which reached as far as the Michelsberg and the other side of the Danube (today's city of Neu-Ulm ). He also planned to build independent forts at important points around the city. With a few cuts for financial reasons, this plan was then implemented, on the Ulm side under Prittwitz direction, on the Bavarian side under Major von Hildebrandt. Therefore the execution is a little different here and there. On the left bank of the Danube, mainly white limestone from the Blautal was built, while on the right, mostly red brick.

Wiblingen Monastery

Wiblingen Monastery becomes a castle around 1808. Duke Heinrich moves into the monastery with the military . King Friedrich I made the monastery the residence of his brother Duke Heinrich, who moved into the monastery with 120 Prussian cavalry men . Duke Heinrich von Württemberg was the youngest brother of King Friedrich I (who, incidentally, first became king through Napoleon). After moving to Ulm in 1822, Duke Heinrich acquired the reputation of a “true citizen friend” there. In 1864 two squadrons of the " King Karl Uhlan Regiment " were stationed in Wiblingen. During the Second World War, the monastery also housed a hospital .

20th century

War memorial on Michelsberg

Ulm already had 60,000 inhabitants in 1913, of which just under 10,000 were soldiers from the large Ulm garrison. From the 16 barracks of the garrison, three remain today.

In the past, the accommodations were named after the names of the fields or the type of weapon used by the soldiers stationed within their walls. The names like "Kuhbergkaserne", "Gaisenbergkaserne", "Pionierkaserne", "Ulanenkaserne" and others come from this time. After 1871 slaughterhouses were added. " Sedan " and " Flanders " gave two barracks in Ulm their names. Barracks were later named after important soldiers, in Ulm after Hindenburg, Bleidorn and Boelcke. The Rommel barracks, newly built in 1959 on the Lerchenfeld near Dornstadt, was named after Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.

The former garrison detention center on Frauenstrasse, built in the 19th century, was the seat of the site commander from 1958 and - until its dissolution - of the district defense command . The building is now used by many different civil organizations.

Wilhelmsburg

The Wilhelmsburg (named after King Wilhelm I of Württemberg) was built between 1842 and 1848 as "Plant XII" of the federal fortress. The Wilhelmsburg barracks, which was expanded and modernized as early as 1959, into which the “Flanders barracks” complex was incorporated, is now the seat of one of the highest staffs in the Bundeswehr. First, in 1997, the II. Corps (Bundeswehr) (from the Kienlesberg barracks) moved to the Wilhelmsburg. The II. Corps was then dissolved on October 7, 2005 and replaced by the " Command Operative Leadership Intervention Forces ", which is now based in Wilhelmsburg.

The former "Kienlesbergkaserne" (today an exclusive residential park) was built on the Kienlesberg between 1865 and 1868 as a field hospital. From 1956 to 1997 it was the seat of the Staff II Corps and the heart of today's garrison.

The Fort Unterer Kuhberg was created as part of the fortress expansion in the years 1846-1858 as Vorwerk XXIX and XXX. As part of Fort Unterer Kuhberg , the Untere Kuhbergkaserne was built for the artillery , renamed Bleidorn-Kaserne in 1934 (after the first artillery commander V and inspector of the artillery in the Reichswehr, the Baden general of artillery Rudolf Bleidorn ). Today it houses the Ulm District Armed Forces Replacement Office and the Ulm Bundeswehr Service Center .

One of the former officers 'homes , the one at Karlstrasse 72, was the on-site officers' home until October 2016. From 1960 to 1997, the official seat of the Troop Service Court South was at Zinglerstrasse 70.

In 2015 the hospital regiment 41 was stationed in the Hindenburg barracks on the Untere Eselsberg. In 2014, the Ministry of Defense announced that most of this regiment would move to the Rommelkaserne in the 2nd quarter of 2015 and become part of the 3rd Medical Regiment. After the Bundeswehr left, the city of Ulm acquired the site and developed a new residential area there.

During the Second World War there was also the Ulm-Dornstadt air base in the neighboring municipality of Dornstadt .

Today the Ulm garrison still has two barracks: the Wilhelmsburg and the lead-thorn barracks.

Spotlight on Neu-Ulm

Neu-Ulm, formerly an integral part of the Ulm garrison and fortress, separated from Ulm by Napoleon in 1810, has not been a garrison since 1991. Of the four former barracks in Neu-Ulm, the oldest (1863) was completely destroyed in an air raid in World War II. However, it is still remembered by the population under the names "Friedenskaserne", "Maximilianskaserne" and "Zwölferkaserne" (built by the Bavarian Army ). The Chevauxlegerskaserne (1866) on the railway bridge was also largely destroyed in the Second World War, the remains then demolished in 1975. The barracks built between 1936 and 1938 as part of the armament of the Wehrmacht at the instigation of the then Mayor of Neu-Ulm and named after General Ludendorff or General Reinhardt (military area commander V Stuttgart) were occupied by the US Army after 1945 . The previous "Ludendorff barracks" was named after US Captain Robert C. Wiley, who had distinguished himself in World War II. The "Wiley Barracks" were one of the four locations of the controversial " Pershing II " medium-range missiles in the 1980s . The former "Reinhardt Barracks", which was occupied by the US Air Force , owes its post-war name to US Sergeant William L. Nelson, who was awarded the "Medal of Honor" for his military service in North Africa . Both barracks were cleared by the US armed forces on September 30, 1991 at the end of the Cold War and handed over to German authorities. Today they house the new building of the Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences , the Dietrich Theater (cinema center), the Wiley Club (catering business), the Evangelical Baptist Church in Ulm / Neu-Ulm, a dialysis center, various companies, student dormitories, the volunteer fire brigade Neu- Ulm, the TÜV Bavaria and the Neu-Ulm tax office as well as the Neu-Ulm police authorities. The Wiley site was also a focus of the State Garden Show in 2008. The "Officers' Restaurant" opened on the Danube in 1899 as the "Danube Casino Club" offered officers of the US garrison Neu-Ulm the opportunity to socialize. Today a popular gastronomic establishment has established itself.

Eberhard Finckh was - as far as the military was concerned - the only executed resister who was in close contact with the Ulm garrison. Otherwise, as far as is known, after July 20, 1944, the garrison was “loyal to its Führer”. A street in Ulm was named after Eberhard Finckh.

Bundeswehr (after 1955)

Since the beginning of the Bundeswehr , Ulm was the location of a corps , the highest military command level of the army below the Ministry of Defense . The 2nd Corps of the Bundeswehr , one of three corps, set up in Ulm in 1956 and always based there, was decommissioned on October 7, 2005, at the same time the operational command of the intervention forces was put into service instead . This measure was necessary because the Defense Policy Guidelines were rebalanced. The soldiers were integrated into other organizational units. In addition to international missions, the soldiers stationed in Ulm and the II Corps also made an important contribution to their home base: Since 1993, there has been an exchange with the headquarters of the US armed forces in Heidelberg, which has expanded cooperation with the American armed forces and could be deepened.

After the new organizational structures, the Ulm Bundeswehr Hospital has also gained in importance.

This is what the II Corps looked like

  • Army Structure 1 (1955–1958)
II Corps (Ulm)
4th Grenadier Division (Regensburg)
1st Mountain Division (Mittenwald)
1st Airborne Division (Esslingen)
  • Army Structure 2 (1959–1970)
II Corps (Ulm)
4th Panzer Grenadier Division (Regensburg)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 10 (Weiden id OPf.)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 11 (bow)
Panzerbrigade 12 (Amberg)
1st Mountain Division (Garmisch-Partenkirchen)
Gebirgsjägerbrigade 22 (Mittenwald)
Gebirgsjägerbrigade 23 (Bad Reichenhall)
Panzerbrigade 24 (Mittenwald)
1st Airborne Division (Esslingen)
Paratrooper Brigade 25 (Sigmaringen)
Paratrooper Brigade 26 (Esslingen)
10th Panzer Division (Sigmaringen)
Panzerbrigade 30 (Ellwangen (Jagst))
  • Army Structure 3 (1970–1979)
II Corps (Ulm)
4th Jägerdivision (Regensburg)
Jägerbrigade 10 (Weiden id OPf.)
Jägerbrigade 11 (bow)
Panzerbrigade 12 (Amberg)
1st Mountain Division (Garmisch-Partenkirchen)
Gebirgsjägerbrigade 22 (Mittenwald)
Gebirgsjägerbrigade 23 (Bad Reichenhall)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 24 (Landshut)
1st Airborne Division (Esslingen)
Paratrooper Brigade 25 (Calw)
Paratrooper Brigade 26 (Zweibrücken)
Paratrooper Brigade 27 (Lippstadt)
10th Panzer Division (Sigmaringen)
Panzerbrigade 28 (Donauwörth)
Panzer Brigade 29 (Sigmaringen)
Panzerbrigade 30 (Ellwangen)
  • Army Structure 4 (1980–1992)
II Corps (Ulm)
4th Panzer Grenadier Division (Regensburg)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 10 (Weiden id OPf.)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 11 (bow)
Panzerbrigade 12 (Amberg)
1st Mountain Division (8th Division) (Garmisch-Partenkirchen)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 22 (Murnau a. Staffelsee)
Gebirgsjägerbrigade 23 (Bad Reichenhall)
Panzer Brigade 24 (Landshut)
1st Airborne Division (9th Division) (Bruchsal)
Paratrooper Brigade 25 (Calw)
Paratrooper Brigade 26 (Saarlouis)
Paratrooper Brigade 27 (Lippstadt)
10th Panzer Division (Sigmaringen)
Panzerbrigade 28 (Dornstadt)
Panzer Brigade 29 (Sigmaringen)
Panzerbrigade 30 (Ellwangen (Jagst))
  • Army Structure 5 (1992 -)

The field army and the territorial army were merged into (corps / territorial commands planned, but not carried out) military area / division commands

II. (GE / US) Corps (Ulm)
4th Panzer Grenadier Division (Regensburg)
1st April 1994 renamed Command Air Mobile Forces / 4. Division and the Army Forces Command assumed
Defense area IV / 5th Panzer Division (Mainz) from April 1, 1994
(only subordinated to troops in peace,
for use (defense) by the V. (US / GE) Corps, Frankfurt,
subordinated to 3rd US Inf. Div to II. (GE / US) Corps)
Panzergrenadierbrigade 5 (Homberg)
Panzerbrigade 14 (Neustadt)
Panzerbrigade 34 (Koblenz)
Defense District Command 42 (Trier)
Defense District Command 43 (Darmstadt)
Defense District Command 44 (Kassel)
Defense District Command 45 (Neustadt)
Defense District Command 46 (Saarbrücken)
Defense District Command 47 (Giessen)
Defense area V / 10th Panzer Division (Sigmaringen) from April 1, 1994
Panzerbrigade 12 (Amberg)
Panzerbrigade 30 (Ellwangen (Jagst))
Franco-German Brigade (Muellheim), German part
Defense District Command 51 (Ludwigsburg)
Defense District Command 52 (Karlsruhe)
Defense District Command 53 (Freiburg)
Defense District Command 54 (Tübingen)
Defense area VI / 1st Mountain Division (Munich) from April 1, 1994
Gebirgsjaegerbrigade 23 (Bad Reichenhall)
Panzerbrigade 36 (Bad Mergentheim)
Defense District Command 61 (Augsburg)
Defense District Command 62 (Regensburg)
Defense District Command 63 (Ansbach)
Defense District Command 65 (Munich)
Defense District Command 66 (Landshut)
Defense District Command 67 (Bayreuth)

The successor to the II. Corps: The Command Operational Leadership Intervention Forces

In Command Operations Command soldiers were represented all branches of the armed forces, ie Army, Air Force and Navy. The command belonged to the military organization area Armed Forces Base . It was the only one in the Bundeswehr that had been available for EU missions since 2005 - with an Operation Headquarters (OHQ) at the military strategic level or at the operational level with a Force Headquarters . This could be relocated to a country of assignment within a few days. Soldiers from seven countries belonged to the German military service in Ulm. The Austrian Armed Forces provided not only the highest foreign representative with one brigadier, but also the largest multinational contingent with five officers.

As part of the realignment of the Bundeswehr announced by Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière in 2011, the Ulm Command was reclassified on July 1, 2013 to the Multinational Command Operational Management / Multinational Joint Headquarters Ulm . Members of the armed forces of almost 20 European countries are stationed in the Wilhelmsburg barracks. Under the leadership of a German three-star general, crisis management operations can then be carried out on behalf of the United Nations, NATO or the European Union.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ June 2012: Announcement of the planned closure dates of Bundeswehr properties. City of Ulm, September 10, 2014, accessed October 1, 2016 .
  2. ↑ It's only possible multinational and together. Website of the Command Operative Command for Response Forces, accessed on April 2, 2014 .
  3. ^ Federal Minister of Defense visits Ulm / Dornstadt. Website of the Command Operative Command for Response Forces, accessed on April 2, 2013 .

Web links

Commons : Wilhelmsburg Ulm  - Collection of images