Wildflecken is a
municipalityMunicipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With over than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
in the
Bad KissingenBad Kissingen is a spa town in the Bavarian region of Lower Franconia and is the capital of the district Bad Kissingen. Situated to the south of the Rhön Mountains on the Franconian Saale river, it is a world-famous health resort.- Town structure :...
district, at the border of northeastern
BavariaBavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest state of Germany by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and southern
HesseHesse is a state of Germany with an area of and just over six million inhabitants. The state capital is Wiesbaden. Hesse's largest city is nearby Frankfurt am Main.Hesse contributes the largest share to the Rhine Main Area....
. In 2005, its population was 3,285; the postal code is 97772. Wildflecken is in the picturesque Rhön hills and nature-park.
In 1937 the German Army established a large training area in the Rhoen area.
Wildflecken is a
municipalityMunicipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With over than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
in the
Bad KissingenBad Kissingen is a spa town in the Bavarian region of Lower Franconia and is the capital of the district Bad Kissingen. Situated to the south of the Rhön Mountains on the Franconian Saale river, it is a world-famous health resort.- Town structure :...
district, at the border of northeastern
BavariaBavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest state of Germany by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and southern
HesseHesse is a state of Germany with an area of and just over six million inhabitants. The state capital is Wiesbaden. Hesse's largest city is nearby Frankfurt am Main.Hesse contributes the largest share to the Rhine Main Area....
. In 2005, its population was 3,285; the postal code is 97772. Wildflecken is in the picturesque Rhön hills and nature-park.
In 1937 the German Army established a large training area in the Rhoen area. Northeast of the village a camp, large enough to house about 9,000 soldiers and 1,500 horses was built. The camp (Camp Wildflecken) and training-area was primarily used by the German Army (Wehrmacht) as well as by the Waffen-SS. During the war several Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions were activated and trained for combat in Wildflecken. Also located in Wildflecken was an ammunition factory and two POW camps, one for Russian POWs and one for POWs of Belgian and French origin.
In 1945 elements of the
U.S. 14th Armored DivisionThe 14th Armored Division was an armored division of the United States Army in World War II. It remains on the permanent rolls of the Regular Army as an inactive division, and is eligible for reactivation should the need ever arise...
took control of the camp and the training area in April 1945.
From April 1945 to 1951, the base was a
displaced persons campA Displaced Persons camp is in principle any temporary facility for Displaced Persons. In recent times Displaced Persons Camps have existed in many parts of the world for many kinds of people, including for people in the Darfur region of the Sudan, for Palestinians in Lebanon and Jordan, and for...
housing approximately 20,000 displaced persons (DPs), primarily Poles, operated first by UNRRA, 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 training base operated by the 7th Army Training Command in
GrafenwöhrGrafenwöhr is a town in the district Neustadt , in the region of the Upper Palatinate in eastern Bavaria, Germany. It is widely known for the United States Army military installation and training area, called Grafenwoehr, located directly south and west of the town.- Early History :The town was...
,and it was home station for several U.S.Army units to include Armored, Infantry (Mech), Military Intelligence and logistical units. In the early times it also served as a base for Bundesgrenschutz (border police) units and later for the new German Army (Bundeswehr). The Wildflecken Kaserne was decommissioned by the U.S.Army and transferred to the Bundeswehr in 1994.
Currently, it is home of the German Army "Warfighters Simulation Center", the training area is primarily used by the German Infantry School.
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