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20-814: British Army Germany is the superior institution under which the remaining installations of the British Forces Germany are organised after the completion of the withdrawal of the British Forces from Germany in February 2020. Apart from the Alpine Training Centre Bavaria in Oberstdorf , which is in Bavaria , British Army Germany is entirely based in North Rhine-Westphalia . British Army Germany

40-471: A further spending review, one brigade was withdrawn and Osnabrück Garrison closed in 2009. Administrative support for British service personnel in Germany and across continental Europe was delegated to United Kingdom Support Command (Germany), (UKSC(G)). The four Army garrisons in Germany were under the direct administrative control of UKSC(G). The General Officer Commanding UKSC(G) also functioned as head of

60-411: A petrol station (normally BP), a travel agent (Milatravel), two German banks (Commerzbank and Sparkasse), two post offices, dress shop (a Malcolm Club shop), YWCA Bookshop, libraries and cafes. There were separate full British Army ( RAMC ) and RAF Medical & Dental Centres, five British primary schools (St Georges, St Andrews, St Patricks, St Davids & St Christophers) and a Belgian school. There

80-1016: A single 'super garrison' called Westfalen Garrison in April 2014. With the departure of Major General John Henderson in March 2015, the Commanding Officer of British Forces Germany became a brigadier's post, with Brigadier Ian Bell assuming command. In autumn 2019, British Forces Germany effectively closed, with the last military base handed back to the German Bundeswehr in February 2020. However, some training will still be undertaken in Germany with regard to NATO capability. The British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) services were widely available on FM across north-western Germany. The British Army Germany rugby union team regularly played games against emerging rugby nations like Belgium , Denmark , Netherlands , Germany and Luxembourg . During

100-637: Is known as British Army Germany . First established following the Second World War, the forces grew during the Cold War, and consisted, by the early 1980s, of I (BR) Corps made up of four divisions; 1st Armoured Division , 2nd Armoured Division , 3rd Armoured Division and the 4th Armoured Division . Disbandment of the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG) in 1994, following

120-686: The Options for Change defence review in the early 1990s, BFG as a whole was considerably reduced, with the British presence centred on the 1st Armoured Division , and supporting elements. Following the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review , the permanent deployment in Germany ended in 2020. This was after British forces personnel were scaled down over several years, with 19,100 in April 2010, and 2,850 in April 2019. However, around 185 British Army personnel and 60 Ministry of Defence civilians will stay in Germany beyond 2020. The remaining presence in Germany

140-580: The Army element and an RAF HQ ( RAF Rheindahlen ) on Queens Avenue to administer the RAF element. HQ British Forces Germany moved to Bielefeld in July 2013. The Rheindahlen military complex was handed back to German federal authorities on 13 December 2013. In July 2015 some Arab investors submitted proposals to convert the site to a leisure park. In September 2015 the main gas, electricity and water services were reconnected from

160-538: The British Forces Liaison Organisation (Germany), which was responsible for liaising and maintaining relations with German civil authorities. Under the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review , it was decided that British military units would cease to be permanently deployed in Germany by the end of 2019. This led to a scaling down of the British military presence, and a restructuring of command and support structures. HQ British Forces Germany

180-705: The British Forces Maintenance Area West of the Rhine. Part of the project included the construction of a joint British Army and Royal Air Force headquarters for the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) in Rheindahlen. Colonel Henry Grattan was Chief Engineer of the construction project. HQ BAOR moved from Bad Oeynhausen to Rheindahlen in October 1954, centralising headquarters functions previously located across several towns in Northern Germany. It

200-406: The bomb exploded. No one was injured, but a couple of cars were damaged. A Dutch man and a woman from Belfast were arrested but their leader, reported to be James McCann , escaped. Thirty-one people were injured on 23 March 1987 after a 300 lb (140 kg) car bomb exploded near the visitors officers' mess at the top of Queens Avenue. The Provisional IRA later stated it had carried out

220-782: The bombing. During the 1990s and 2000s, JHQ housed the Headquarters United Kingdom Support Command (Germany), later Headquarters British Forces Germany, which was the administrative HQ of the British Army in Europe. It was also home to the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC), which relocated to Imjin Barracks in Gloucestershire in 2010. There was an Army Garrison HQ on Collingwood Road to administer

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240-572: The end of the Cold War and the Options for Change defence review in the early 1990s, reduced the strength of the British Armed Forces in Germany by almost 30,000 with just one division (1st Armoured) remaining by the late 1990s, concentrated in North Rhine-Westphalia . The British presence was estimated to have been contributing 1.5 billion euros annually to the German economy in 2004. Following

260-793: The height of " the Troubles " in Northern Ireland , the IRA targeted personnel in Germany between 1988 and 1990. The attacks resulted in the deaths of nine people, including three civilians, and many wounded. As a result, vehicles owned by personnel ceased to have distinct registration plates , which had made them easily identifiable. Commanders have included: General Officer Commanding United Kingdom Support Command (Germany) General Officer Commanding British Forces Germany Commander British Forces Germany Commander British Army Germany JHQ Rheindahlen JHQ (Joint Headquarters) Rheindahlen

280-525: The main Hardt-Rheindahlen road along Queens Avenue to the West boiler house to facilitate temporary use of the site as a refugee reception centre. In November 2015 the site was still a ghost town with civilian security guards and in April 2016 it was revealed that the refugees would be accommodated in the billets area around the parade ground off Beresford Road. A number of separate HQs and units were based at

300-631: Was a military base in Mönchengladbach , North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany active from 1954 to 2013. It functioned as the main headquarters for British forces in Germany and for the NATO Northern Army Group . Latterly it was also known as the Rheindahlen Military Complex, part of Rheindahlen Garrison . It was named after the local village of Rheindahlen , part of the city borough of Mönchengladbach. In 1952, work began on

320-527: Was established following the Second World War , the largest parts of it becoming known as the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and RAF Germany (RAFG). Both components had the mission of defending West Germany and remained there for the rest of the Cold War . It was the largest concentration of British armed forces permanently stationed outside the United Kingdom. With the end of the Cold War, and

340-542: Was formed in 2020 to administer the remaining service personnel, UK civil servants, and dependents (family members) based in Germany. The installations consist of: Oberstdorf 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

360-735: Was formed in January 2012, replacing the UKSC(G) and the Germany Support Group (GSG). Rhine Garrison, which principally comprised HQ British Forces Germany in the Rheindahlen Military Complex and Elmpt Station (formerly RAF Bruggen ), also reduced in size; the HQ moved to Bielefeld in July 2013 and other units returned to the UK. The two central garrisons - Gütersloh and Paderborn - combined to form

380-504: Was one secondary school (initially Queens upper & lower until the senior school moved to Hostert Waldniel , later returning to JHQ and recombining as Windsor School . JHQ was first bombed by the Provisional IRA in 1973. The car bomb was planted in the Globe cinema car park and timed to go off as the film ended. In the event the film ended early and the car park was largely empty when

400-461: Was originally the HQ of the Northern Army Group (NORTHAG), Second Allied Tactical Air Force (2ATAF), British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG). Some 12,000 military personnel moved to the "town within a town" in a few weeks. By the early 1970s the facilities in the complex included a NAAFI superstore and a smaller NAAFI store (Buschof NAAFI), German shops,

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