British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) was the name given to

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

occupation forces in the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

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

, after the

First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

s, and during the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

, becoming part of NATO's

Northern Army Group The Northern Army Group (NORTHAG) was a NATO military formation comprising four Western European Army Corps, during the Cold War as part of NATO's forward defence in western Germany. The Army Group headquarters was established on 1 November 1952 ...

(NORTHAG) tasked with defending the

North German Plain The North German Plain or Northern Lowland () is one of the major geographical regions of Germany. It is the German part of the North European Plain. The region is bounded by the coasts of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea to the north, Germany's ...

from the armies of the

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP), formally the Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance (TFCMA), was a Collective security#Collective defense, collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Polish People's Republic, Poland, between the Sovi ...

. The BAOR constituted the bulk of British forces in West Germany, and was a part of

British Forces Germany British Forces Germany (''BFG'') was the generic name for the three services of the British Armed Forces, made up of service personnel, UK Civil Servants, and dependents (family members), based in Germany. It was established following the Second ...

(BFG). British Forces Germany consisted of elements of the three service branches of the

British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces are the unified military, military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests ...

based in West Germany; BAOR controlled Army units stationed there.

History

1919–1929

The first British Army of the Rhine was created in March 1919 to implement the

occupation of the Rhineland The Occupation of the Rhineland placed the region of Germany west of the Rhine river and four bridgeheads to its east under the control of the victorious Allies of World War I from 1December 1918 until 30June 1930. The occupation was imposed a ...

. It was originally composed of five corps, composed of two divisions each, plus a cavalry division: II Corps: commanded by

Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part ...

Claud Jacob Field Marshal Sir Claud William Jacob, (21 November 1863 – 2 June 1948) was a British Indian Army officer. He served in the First World War as commander of the Dehra Dun Brigade, as General Officer Commanding 21st Division and as General Offi ...

:*Light Division (formed from 2nd Division): commanded by Major-General George Jeffreys :*Southern Division (formed from 29th Division): commanded by Major-General William Heneker

IV Corps 4 Corps, 4th Corps, Fourth Corps, or IV Corps may refer to: France * 4th Army Corps (France) * IV Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * IV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperi ...

: commanded by Sir

Alexander Godley General (United Kingdom), General Sir Alexander John Godley, (4 February 1867 – 6 March 1957) was a senior British Army officer. He is best known for his role as commander of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force and II Anzac Corps during the ...

:*Lowland Division (formed from

9th (Scottish) Division The 9th (Scottish) Division, was an infantry division of the British Army during the First World War, one of the Kitchener's Army divisions raised from volunteers by Lord Kitchener to serve on the Western Front during the First World War. A ...

) :*Highland Division (formed from

62nd (2nd West Riding) Division The 62nd (2nd West Riding) Division was an infantry division of the British Army that saw active service on the Western Front during the First World War. History During the First World War the division fought on the Western Front at Bulle ...

)

VI Corps 6 Corps, 6th Corps, Sixth Corps, or VI Corps may refer to: France * VI Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry formation of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VI Corps (Grande Armée), a formation of the Imperial French army dur ...

: commanded by Sir

Aylmer Haldane General Sir James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane, (17 November 1862 – 19 April 1950) was a Scottish soldier who rose to high rank in the British Army. Early life Born to physician Daniel Rutherford Haldane and his wife Charlotte Elizabeth née ...

:*Northern Division (formed from 3rd Division) :*London Division (formed from 41st Division)

IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to: France * 9th Army Corps (France) * IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German ...

: commanded by Sir Walter Braithwaite and later by

Ivor Maxse General (United Kingdom), General Sir Frederick Ivor Maxse, (22 December 1862 – 28 January 1958) was a senior British Army Officer (armed forces), officer who fought during the World War I, First World War, best known for his innovative and ef ...

:*Western Division (formed from 1st Division) :*Midland Division (formed from 6th Division)

X Corps 10th Corps, Tenth Corps, or X Corps may refer to: France * 10th Army Corps (France) * X Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * X Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...

: commanded by Sir

Thomas Morland General Sir Thomas Lethbridge Napier Morland, (9 August 1865 – 21 May 1925) was a senior British Army officer during the First World War. Early life Born in Montreal, Canada East, Morland was the son of Thomas Morland and Helen Servante. Edu ...

:*Lancashire Division (formed from 32nd Division) :*Eastern Division (formed from 34th Division) Cavalry Division (formed from 1st Cavalry Division) Most of these units were progressively dissolved, so that by February 1920, there were only regular battalions: :*1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment :*4th Battalion

Worcestershire Regiment The Worcestershire Regiment was a line infantry regiment in the British Army, formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot and the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot. The regiment ...

:*2nd Battalion Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) :*1st Battalion

Middlesex Regiment The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1966. The regiment was formed, as the Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), in 1881 as part of the Childers Re ...

:*3rd Battalion Middlesex Regiment :*1st Battalion

Durham Light Infantry The Durham Light Infantry (DLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1968. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) and ...

In August 1920,

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

, as Secretary of State for War, told

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

that the BAOR was made up of approximately 13,360 troops, consisting of staff, cavalry,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

, infantry,

machine gun corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a Regiment, corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in the World War I, First World War. Th ...

, tanks, and the usual ancillary services. The troops were located principally in the vicinity of

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

at an approximate cost per month of £300,000. '' The Cologne Post'' was a newspaper published for members of the BAOR during this period. From 1922 the BAOR was organised into two brigades: 1st Rhine Brigade :*1st Battalion

Northumberland Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution and ...

1922 to 1926 :*1st Battalion

West Yorkshire Regiment The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army. In 1958 it amalgamated with the East Yorkshire Regiment (15th Foot) to form the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire which was ...

1922 to 1926 :*2nd Battalion

Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (the Duke of Albany's) to form ...

1922 to 1926 :* 1st Battalion

York and Lancaster Regiment The York and Lancaster Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was created in the Childers Reforms of 1881 by the amalgamation of the 65th (2nd Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of ...

1922 to 1924 :*2nd Battalion

Royal Berkshire Regiment The Royal Berkshire Regiment (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was created in 1881, as the Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment), by ...

1926 to 1928 :*2nd Battalion

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

Nov 1926 to Oct 1929 :*2nd Battalion

1926 to 1928 2nd Rhine Brigade :*2nd Battalion

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a Light infantry, light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd ( ...

1922 to 1924 :*1st Battalion

King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry The King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI) was a Light infantry, light infantry regiment of the British Army. It officially existed from 1881 to 1968, but its predecessors go back to 1755. In 1968, the regiment was amalgamated with the Somers ...

1922 to 1924 :*2nd Battalion

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United Sta ...

1922 to 1925 :*1st Battalion

Royal Ulster Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an light infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal ...

1922 to 1926 :*1st Battalion

Manchester Regiment The Manchester Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1958. The regiment was created during the 1881 Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot and the 96th R ...

1923 to 1924 :*2nd Battalion

King's Shropshire Light Infantry The King's Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in the Childers Reforms of 1881, but with antecedents dating back to 1755. It served in the Second Boer War, World War I, World War II and Korea ...

1924 to 1927 :*1st Battalion Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry 1925 to 1927 :*2nd Battalion

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many war ...

1926 to 1929 :*2nd Battalion

Leicestershire Regiment The Leicestershire Regiment (Royal Leicestershire Regiment after 1946) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. The regiment saw service for three centuries, in numerous wars and conflicts such as both ...

1927 to 1929 :*2nd Battalion Dorsetshire Regiment 1928 to 1929

Commanders-in-chief

The commanders were: *

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

Lord Plumer Field Marshal Herbert Charles Onslow Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer (13 March 1857 – 16 July 1932) was a senior British Army officer who fought in the First World War, being perhaps most notable for commanding the Second Army of the British Exp ...

1918 to 1919 *General Sir William Robertson 1919 to 1920 *General Sir

1920 to 1922 *General Sir

1922 to 1924 *General Sir

John Du Cane General Sir John Philip Du Cane, (5 May 1865 – 5 April 1947) was a British Army officer. He held high rank during the First World War, most notably as Major General Royal Artillery at General Headquarters in 1915 when the British Expeditionar ...

1924 to 1927 *General Sir

William Thwaites General Sir William Thwaites, (9 June 1868 – 22 June 1947) was a British Army officer who served as commander of the British Army of the Rhine. Early life and education Thwaites was born in Kensington, the son of William Thwaites of Durham V ...

1927 to 1929

Cold War (1945–1991)

Field Marshal the Viscount Montgomery of Alamein Kg Gcb Dso 1887-1976 BU10221

The Warrior of British Forces in Germany

The second British Army of the Rhine was formed on 25 August 1945 from the British Liberation Army. Its original function was to control the corps districts which were running the military government of the British zone of

Allied-occupied Germany The entirety of Germany was occupied and administered by the Allies of World War II, from the Berlin Declaration on 5 June 1945 to the establishment of West Germany on 23 May 1949. Unlike occupied Japan, Nazi Germany was stripped of its sov ...

. After the assumption of government by civilians, it became the command formation for the troops in

only, rather than being responsible for administration as well. As the potential threat of

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

invasion across the

into

increased, BAOR became more responsible for the defence of West Germany than its occupation. It became the primary formation controlling the British contribution to

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

, after the formation of the alliance in 1949. Its primary combat formation was British I Corps. From 1952, the commander-in-chief of the BAOR was also the commander of NATO's

(NORTHAG) in the event of a general war with the Soviet Union and its

allies. The BAOR's 50 Missile Regiment Royal Artillery was formerly armed with

tactical nuclear weapon A tactical nuclear weapon (TNW) or non-strategic nuclear weapon (NSNW) is a nuclear weapon that is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations, mostly with friendly forces in proximity and perhaps even on contested friendly territ ...

s, including the

MGM-52 Lance The MGM-52 Lance was a mobile field artillery tactical surface-to-surface missile (tactical ballistic missile) system used to provide both W70, nuclear and conventional fire support to the United States Army. The missile's warhead was developed ...

surface-to-surface tactical nuclear missile. In 1967, the force was reduced in strength to 53,000 soldiers, compared with 80,000, ten years earlier.

Post 1994

With the end of the

, the 1993

Options for Change Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War. Until this point, UK military strategy had been almost entirely focused on defending Western Europe against the Soviet Armed Forces ...

defence cuts resulted in BAOR being reduced in size, and in 1994 it became

(BFG). This force, roughly 25,000 strong, was divided between

Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps The Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) is a rapid reaction force maintained by NATO. It is capable of deploying a High Readiness Force (Land) Headquarters at short notice for operations and crisis response. History The ARRC was created on 1 ...

, 1st Armoured Division, other combat support and combat service support forces, and administrative elements headed by

United Kingdom Support Command (Germany) United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

. Garrisons which closed at this time included Soest (home of the 6th Armoured Brigade),

Soltau Soltau () is a mid-sized town in the Lüneburg Heath in the district of Heidekreis, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It has around 22,000 inhabitants. The city is centrally located in the Lüneburg Heath and is known nationwide especially for its touri ...

(home of the

7th Armoured Brigade Seventh is the ordinal number (linguistics), ordinal form of the number 7, seven. Seventh may refer to: * Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution * A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts Film and television *"T ...

), and

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

(home of the 11th Armoured Brigade). Following the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review, the permanent deployment of British Army units in Germany was reduced. The last military base was handed to the German

Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...

in February 2020.

Commanders-in-chief

The commanders were: *Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery 1945 to 1946 *Lieutenant General Sir

Richard McCreery General Sir Richard Loudon McCreery, (1 February 1898 – 18 October 1967) was a career soldier of the British Army, who was decorated for leading one of the last cavalry actions in the First World War. During the Second World War, he was chief ...

1946 to 1948 *Lieutenant General Sir

Brian Horrocks Lieutenant-General Sir Brian Gwynne Horrocks, (7 September 1895 – 4 January 1985) was a British Army officer, chiefly remembered as the commander of XXX Corps in Operation Market Garden and other operations during the Second World ...

1948 *Lieutenant General Sir

Charles Keightley General Sir Charles Frederic Keightley, (24 June 1901 – 17 June 1974) was a senior British Army officer who served during and following the Second World War. After serving with distinction during the Second World War – becoming, in 1944, th ...

1948 to 1951 *General Sir John Harding 1951 to 1952 *General Sir Richard Gale 1952 to 1957 *General Sir Dudley Ward 1957 to 1960 *General Sir James Cassels 1960 to 1963 *General Sir William Stirling 1963 to 1966 *General Sir John Hackett 1966 to 1968 *General Sir

Desmond Fitzpatrick General Sir Geoffrey Richard Desmond Fitzpatrick, (14 December 1912 – 12 October 2002) was a senior British Army officer who served as commander of the British Army of the Rhine and Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe. After his retireme ...

1968 to 1970 *General Sir Peter Hunt 1970 to 1973 *General Sir Harry Tuzo 1973 to 1976 *General Sir Frank King 1976 to 1978 *General Sir

William Scotter General (United Kingdom), General Sir William Norman Roy Scotter, (9 February 1922 – 5 February 1981) was a senior British Army officer who served as commander-in-chief, British Army of the Rhine from September 1978 until October 1980. Early l ...

1978 to 1980 *General Sir Michael Gow 1980 to 1983 *General Sir

Nigel Bagnall Field Marshal Sir Nigel Thomas Bagnall, (10 February 1927 – 8 April 2002) was a career British Army officer who served as Commander-in-Chief of the British Army of the Rhine, from 1983 to 1985, and then as Chief of the General Staff (CGS), th ...

1983 to 1985 *General Sir

Martin Farndale General Sir Martin Baker Farndale, (6 January 1929 – 10 May 2000) was a British Army officer who reached high office in the 1980s. Military career Educated at Yorebridge Grammar School, Askrigg, and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Farn ...

1985 to 1987 *General Sir Brian Kenny 1987 to 1989 *General Sir

Peter Inge Peter Inge (born 13 December 1977) is a lacrosse player who was the first Australian to play in Major League Lacrosse, being drafted to the Boston Cannons in 2003. Originally from the Woodville Lacrosse Club in South Australia, Inge first r ...

1989 to 1992 *General Sir Charles Guthrie 1992 to May 1994 (command disbanded)

Garrisons

Bergen-Hohne Garrison Bergen-Hohne Garrison was a major British garrison in the post-Cold War period, with facilities located close to Bergen at ''Lager Hohne'', at ''Lager Oerbke'' near Fallingbostel and at Celle in Lower Saxony, Germany. It was home to 7th Armoured ...

Osnabrück Garrison Osnabrück Garrison was a major British garrison with facilities located at Osnabrück in Lower Saxony and Münster in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was home to 4th Armoured Brigade and most of its subordinate units. It formed a major part ...

Westfalen Garrison Westfalen Garrison is a major British garrison with facilities located in Paderborn, Sennelager and Gütersloh in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany which now forms the major part of British Forces Germany. It was the home of 20th Armoured Brigade ...

Notes

References

* * * * * *

External links

*
Royal Engineers Museum
Royal Engineers and the British Army of the Rhine

British Army of the Rhine locations
British Army Locations from 1945
British Army locations from 1945 {{Authority control British forces in Germany A British Army deployments Allied occupation of Germany Military units and formations established in 1945 Military units and formations disestablished in 1994

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

1945 establishments in Germany 1994 disestablishments in Germany Military units and formations of the British Empire in World War II

History

1919–1929

Commanders-in-chief

Cold War (1945–1991)

Post 1994

Commanders-in-chief

Garrisons

See also

Notes

References

External links