Böhm, Walter "Frankendivision"

The extraordinary history, organisation and equipment of the 12th Panzer Division of the German Army 1961-94

The 12th (GE) Panzer Division Frankendivision with its headquarters in Tauberbischofsheim was the last of a total of twelve German combat divisions and was established in 1961. In order to meet the challenges of the nuclear battlefield, Army Structure 2 had been introduced shortly before, and the new large unit was already organized according to this structure in its brigade organization. Unusually, the 12th (GE) Panzer Division was also placed under the command of the 3rd Brigade of the 1st (US) Infantry Division (Forward). The Twelfth, in turn, was placed under the VII (US) Corps in accordance with the General Defense Plan. This was unique at the time, because the 12th would have been the only division of the German Army to be led and deployed by a US corps in the event of a defense against an attack by Warsaw Pact troops, and it would have led a US brigade. This publication traces the extraordinary history of the Frankendivision from 1961 to 1994 in selected maneuver photos of the vehicles, most of which were taken by the participating soldiers themselves.