1st Panzer Division (Bundeswehr)
Coordinates: 52°22′11.31″N 9°46′11.77″E / 52.3698083°N 9.7699361°E
| 1. Panzerdivision | |
|---|---|
| 1. PzDiv | |
 1st Armoured Division insignia | |
| Active | 1956–present |
| Country |  Germany |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Panzer |
| Role | Armoured warfare Close-quarters combat Cold-weather warfare Combined arms Desert warfare Forward observer Maneuver warfare Peacekeeping Raiding Reconnaissance Urban warfare |
| Size | 18,000 soldiers (+3,000 dutch soldiers from 2019) |
| Part of | German Army |
| Garrison/HQ | Oldenburg (Oldenburg) |
| Nickname(s) | The first one Die Erste |
| Motto(s) | Roughly: Go! Let's tackle it! Man drup - man to! (Low German) |
| Anniversaries | July 1st 1956 |
| Engagements | Kosovo War War in Afghanistan |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Generalmajor |
| Notable commanders | General Henning von Ondarza, COMAFCENT 1991–1994 General Helge Hansen, COMAFCENT 1994–1996 General Wolf-Dieter Langheld, COMJFC-B 2010–2012 |
The 1st Panzer Division (German: "1. Panzerdivision", short: "1. PzDiv") is an armoured division of the German Army. Its headquarter is based in Oldenburg. In the course of the last reorganisation of the Bundeswehr it became the backbone of Germany's newly formed intervention forces with a manpower of 35,000 soldiers. The division is equipped and trained for high intensity combat operations against militarily organized enemies as well as peacekeeping missions. The majority of all German troops assigned to EU-Battlegroups and Nato Response Forces will come from this division. It also represents Germany's permanent contribution to the binational I. German/Dutch Corps.
The 43rd Mechanized Brigade of the Royal Netherlands Army is integrated into the 1st Panzer Division since 2019.
History[]
This division was formed on July 1, 1956, the day of the official inauguration of the Bundeswehr. It was the first fully operational unit of the new German Army. At first referred to as 1st Grenadier Division, it was reorganized in the 1980s and made fully armoured in 1981. During this period it was part of of the Bundeswehr Heer, in turn part of NATO's Northern Army Group, Allied Forces Central Europe.
1st Panzer Division has deployed to the Balkans, Afghanistan and to several peacekeeping operations. Troops of this division were also deployed to the support of civilian agencies during large natural disasters such as the Hamburg Floods of 1962, disastrous wild fires in Northern Germany in the 1970s and the 2002 Floods in Eastern Germany.
The division cultivates a partnership with the United States Army 28th Infantry Division.
In April 2019 the division headquarters took the role of exercise High Command (HICON) for Exercise "Allied Spirit X" at Hohenfels Training Area in Bavaria.[1] The exercise lead is routinely rotated among coalition/NATO partners. The exercise primarily involved the 21st Panzer Brigade, the Lithuanian Iron Wolf Brigade, and their subordinate units; 5,630 participants from 15 nations took part. The division already had Dutch, British and Polish officers within its ranks. The US Army's 2nd Battalion, 34th Armored Regiment, took part in the exercise.[2][3] Six engineering advisor teams from 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade provided hands-on experience and testing of secure communications between NATO allies and partners.[4][5][6]
Structure May 2020[]
1st Panzer Division (1. Panzerdivision), in Oldenburg
Staff and Signal Company 1st Panzer Division, in Oldenburg
9th Panzerlehr Brigade (Panzerlehrbrigade 9), in Munster
21st Panzer Brigade (Panzerbrigade 21), in Augustdorf
41st Panzergrenadier Brigade (Panzergrenadierbrigade 41), in Neubrandenburg
43rd Mechanized Brigade (43 Gemechaniseerde Brigade), in Havelte
325th Artillery Demonstration Battalion (Artillerielehrbataillon 325), in Munster
1st Operations Support Battalion (Unterstützungsbataillon Einsatz 1), in Oldenburg (Reserve unit)
901st Heavy Engineer Battalion (Schweres Pionierbataillon 901), in Havelberg (Reserve unit)
Geographic Distribution[]
212 PzGren.
Units:
Panzer, 
Panzergrenadier, 
Jäger (Rifles), 
Reconnaissance, 
Artillery, 
Engineer, 
Supply*92 Panzergrenadier, 93 Panzer, 325 Artillery
References[]
- ^ Sgt. Christopher Stewart (April 8, 2019) Germany's 1st Armored Division Spearheads Allied Spirit X
- ^ Spc. Yon Henderson (April 17, 2019) Exercise brings American firepower to European partners
- ^ Sgt. Thomas Mort (April 23, 2019); 2-34 Intel team proves invaluable during Allied Spirit X
- ^ Capt. Jay Beeman, 5th Battalion, 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade (April 30, 2019) Combat advisor teams sharpen skills in multinational exercise
- ^ [A RIC-U might be used by a coalition partner to encrypt their individual networks, when interoperating with a US Army voice network.]
- ^ Sgt. Sean Harding (25 February 2020) 3rd SFAB and Kurdish Peshmerga work side by side to defeat threats; Peshmerga refers to the Iraqi Kurkish Army.
External links[]
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- Military units and formations established in 1956
- Armoured divisions of the Bundeswehr
- 1956 establishments in Germany