III Corps (Bundeswehr)
III Corps was a corps of the German Army (Bundeswehr Heer) active from 1957 to 1994.
| III Corps | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 6 April 1957 - 31 March 1994 |
| Country | Germany |
| Branch | German Army |
| Part of | Central Army Group |
| Headquarters | Koblenz |
| Commanders | |
| Last commander | GenLt Klaus Reinhardt |
| Last chief of staff | BrigGen Klaus Frühhaber |
The preparation of the staff of the corps took place from 16 March 1957 at Gneisenau-Kaserne, Koblenz; the corps was officially formed on 6 April 1957. Initially, the 2nd Panzergrenadier Division and 5th Panzer Division moved in 1957 from the II Corps to III Corps. The corps was integrated into defence planning from mid-1957, as part of NATO's Central Army Group, commanded by the commander of the U.S. Seventh Army. The area of operations was the FRG-DDR and German-Czechoslovak border in Hesse and Franconia. On 1 December 1958 the 7th Panzer Division was transferred from the III Corps to the I Corps. Among the first corps troops were Ordnance regiment 504 (formed May 16, 1957 in Diez, transferred January 1958 in Koblenz), and Corps Artillery Command 403 (based until 1 July 1957 at Munsterlager, from August 1957 in Koblenz). Under corps command were a rocket artillery battalion, a supply battalion, and a geophysical measurement train.
Smilo Freiherr von Lüttwitz was the first commander of the corps, as a Lieutenant General.
In 1994 the corps headquarters was disbanded and re-designated the headquarters of the German Army Forces Command.
Initially from 1959 the corps' troops under Heeresstruktur II consisted of :
- 2nd Panzergrenadier Division (Marburg)
- 5th Panzer Division (Koblenz)
- Panzergrenadierbrigade 13 (Wetzlar)
- Panzerbrigade 14 (Koblenz)
- Panzerbrigade 15 (Koblenz)
- 7th Panzergrenadier (later Panzer) Division (Unna)
- Panzergrenadierbrigade 19 (Ahlen)
- Panzerbrigade 21 (Augustdorf)
- Corps Troops
At the end of the Cold War in 1989, the corps commanded the 2nd Panzergrenadier, 5th Panzer, and 12th Panzer Divisions.[1]
Commanding Generals
| Nr. | Name | Start of command | End of command |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Generalleutnant Klaus Reinhardt | 1 July 1993 | 31 March 1994 |
| 12 | Generalleutnant Peter Heinrich Carstens | 1 October 1991 | 30 June 1993 |
| 11 | Generalmajor Anton Steer | 1 October 1990 | 30 September 1991 |
| 10 | Generalleutnant Helge Hansen | 1 October 1987 | 30 September 1990 |
| 9 | Generalleutnant Karl Erich Diedrichs | 1 April 1984 | 30 September 1987 |
| 8 | Generalleutnant Hans-Joachim Mack | 1 April 1983 | 31 March 1984 |
| 7 | Generalleutnant Wolfgang Altenburg | 1 October 1980 | 31 March 1983 |
| 6 | Generalleutnant Paul-Georg Kleffel | 1 April 1978 | 30 September 1980 |
| 5 | Generalleutnant Franz Pöschl | 1 October 1972 | 31 March 1978 |
| 4 | Generalleutnant Gerd Niepold | 1 October 1968 | 30 September 1972 |
| 3 | Generalleutnant Albert Schnez | 1 April 1965 | 30 September 1968 |
| 2 | Generalleutnant Heinrich Gaedcke | 1 January 1961 | 31 March 1965 |
| 1 | Generalleutnant Smilo Freiherr von Lüttwitz | 1 June 1957 | 31 December 1960 |
Further reading
- Soldat im III. Korps. Bilddokumente eines Großverbandes des Heeres. Herausgeber III. Korps, Redaktion Peter Bolte. - Koblenz: Rhenania Fachverlag 1982.
- 175 Jahre Korpskommando Koblenz. Herausgegeben vom Korpskommando III. Korps, verantwortlich: Oberstleutnant Armin Meyer-Detring. - Koblenz [1990].
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