The 12th Panzer Division (German:'' 12. Panzerdivision'') was a

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

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. It was part of the

III Corps III or iii may refer to: Companies * Information International, Inc., a computer technology company * Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company * 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company Other uses * I ...

of the

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, which also incorporated in 1985 the 5th Panzer Division and 2nd Panzergrenadier Division.Isby and Kamps, Armies of NATO's Central Front, Jane's Publishing Company, 1985, p.196 III Corps was part of NATO's Central Army Group (CENTAG), along with the Bundeswehr's II Corps and the American V and VII Corps. In the wake of military restructuring brought about by the end of the

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, the 12th Panzer Division was disbanded in 1994. The division was constituted as the 12th Panzergrenadier Division in

Tauberbischofsheim Tauberbischofsheim () is a German town in the north-east of Baden-Württemberg on the river Tauber with a population of about 13,200. It is the capital of the Main-Tauber (district), Main-Tauber district. It is a popular tourist destination due t ...

on January 1, 1961, as part of the II Corps of the Bundeswehr. At that time, it commanded the 35th Panzergrenadier Brigade, and in 1963 the 36th Panzer Brigade was also subordinated to the division. Subsequently, the 12th was re-designated a panzer (armoured) division. In 1970, the division was relieved from assignment to the II Corps and assigned to the III Corps. A third active brigade was not authorized for the division until 1975 during the "Heeresstruktur III" reforms. By 1977, the division's main components were the 14th Panzer, the 35th Panzergrenadier, and the 36th Panzer Brigades. In 1981, the 14th Panzer Brigade became the 34th Panzer Brigade. Following the end of the Cold War, the 12th Panzer Division was disbanded in 1994.

Commanders

References

{{Coord, 49.825719, N, 9.901128, E, dim:500_region:DE-BW_type:landmark_source:dewiki, display=title Military units and formations established in 1961 Military units and formations disestablished in 1994 Armoured divisions of the Bundeswehr