Wildflecken Major Training Area
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Wildflecken is a
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
in the
Bad Kissingen Bad Kissingen () is a German spa town in the Bavarian region of Lower Franconia and County town, seat of the Bad Kissingen (district), district Bad Kissingen. Situated to the south of the Rhön Mountains on the Franconian Saale, Franconia ...
district, at the border of northwestern
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
and southern
Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...
. In 2022, its population was 2,935; the postal code is 97772 (US Forces used APO NY 09026 until July 15, 1991, when APO/FPO/DPO addresses got their own "state" codes, when "NY" became "AE"). Wildflecken is in the picturesque
Rhön Mountains The Rhön Mountains () are a group of low mountains (or ''Mittelgebirge'') in central Germany, located around the border area where the states of Hesse, Bavaria and Thuringia come together. These mountains, which are at the extreme southeast end o ...
.


Army base

In 1937, the
German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
established a large training area northeast of the village, large enough to house some 9,000 troops and 1,500 mounts. The camp (Camp Wildflecken) provings were primarily used by the land forces of the
Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...
and the
Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...
. During the war, several Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions each were activated and trained for combat in Wildflecken. Also located in the area were an ammunition factory and two camps holding Russian, Belgian and French
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
. In April 1945, elements of the
U.S. 14th Armored Division The 14th Armored Division was an armored division of the United States Army assigned to the Seventh Army of the Sixth Army Group during World War II. It remains on the permanent roll of the Regular Army as an inactive division, and is eligible ...
took control of the camp and the training area. From April 1945 to 1951, the base was a
displaced persons camp A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displace ...
housing approximately 20,000 displaced persons (DPs) primarily of Polish origin, operated first by
UNRRA United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA, pronounced ) was an international relief agency founded in November 1943 on the joint initiative of the United States, United Kingdom, USSR, and the Republic of China. Its purpose ...
, then by IRO. A Polish cemetery holds the camp's residents who died during those five years. After 1951, its range served as a
US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...
training base operated by the 7th Army Training Command in
Grafenwöhr Grafenwöhr (, Northern Bavarian: ''Groafawehr'') is a town in the district of Neustadt an der Waldnaab, in the region of the Upper Palatinate () in eastern Bavaria, Germany. It is widely known for the United States Army military installation an ...
, and it was home station for several Army units including armored,
mechanized infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with Armoured personnel carrier, armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps). As defined by the United States Army, me ...
,
military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
and
logistics Logistics is the part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the Consumption (economics), point of consumption according to the ...
units (most notably the 373d Armored Infantry
Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...
of the 19th (later 4th) Armored Group). It also served as a base for
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 ...
Bundesgrenzschutz Bundesgrenzschutz (; abbreviation: BGS; ) is the former name of the German ''Bundespolizei'' (Federal Police). Established on 16 March 1951 as a subordinate agency of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the BGS originally was primarily focu ...
(border police) units and later for the new
German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
. Dubbed "The Top of the Rock" by American troops, the small post was among the most feared and disliked of all training areas due to high altitude and
extreme weather Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...
conditions. It featured ranges for tanks, artillery and basic training facilities. Additionally, it was one of only a few training sites allowed by the German government to utilize
CS gas The compound 2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile (also called ''o''-chlorobenzylidene malononitrile; chemical formula: C10H5ClN2), a cyanocarbon, is the defining component of the lachrymatory agent commonly referred to as CS gas, a tear gas which ...
in training. American units stationed at Wildflecken include: * 2/15th Infantry
Battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...
* 1/68th Armor Battalion * HHB 1/1 Air Defence Artillery (
MIM-23 Hawk The Raytheon MIM-23 HAWK ("Homing All the Way Killer") is an American medium-range surface-to-air missile. It was designed to be a much more mobile counterpart to the MIM-14 Nike Hercules, trading off range and altitude capability for a much sm ...
) from
Butzbach Butzbach () is a town in the Wetteraukreis district in Hessen, Germany. It is located approximately 16 km south of Gießen and 35 km north of Frankfurt am Main. In 2007, the town hosted the 47th Hessentag state festival from 1 to 10 Jun ...
to Wildflecken in May 1976. The Fire Distribution Section moved from Fulda at the same time. Established primitive Tac Site on hill top outside training center. * 3/52 Air Defense Artillery Battalion. Only Headquarters & Headquarters Battery (HHB), Service Battery and B Battery were stationed at Wildflecken. A Battery was located in Bad Kissingen, C Battery in Fulda, and D Battery in Schweinfurt. The unit's mission was to provide air defense against a potential East Block attack of Germany during the Cold War using Improved-Hawk missiles. * 108th Military Intelligence Battalion * 48 Maintenance
Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...
* 536th Military Police Company * 54th Combat Engineer Battalion * 144th Ordnance Company * 23rd Medical Detachment – outpatient care, first aid; dispensary of the 33rd Field Hospital, US Army Hospital Würzburg, Wuerzburg MEDDAC/DENTAC, Würzburg American Hospital; headquarters for the Wuerzburg Medical Service Area * 2/
11th Armored Cavalry Regiment The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment ("Blackhorse Regiment") is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. The regiment has served in the Philippine–American War, the Pancho Villa Expedi ...
. In early 1992, the squadron moved from Daley Barracks in
Bad Kissingen Bad Kissingen () is a German spa town in the Bavarian region of Lower Franconia and County town, seat of the Bad Kissingen (district), district Bad Kissingen. Situated to the south of the Rhön Mountains on the Franconian Saale, Franconia ...
to Wildflecken, where it remained until stood down in 1994.History of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
/ref> The Wildflecken Kaserne was decommissioned by the US Army and transferred to Germany in 1994 after a drawdown that began in 1991. Currently, it is home of the German Army Combat Simulation Center. The training area is primarily used by the German Infantry School.


References


External links


The History of Camp Wildflecken



Wildflecken Veterans Association website

54th Engineer Battalion
{{Authority control Bad Kissingen (district) Populated places established in 1524