First Division 7 December

Embleem Eerste Divisie "7 December"

The Eerste Divisie "7 December" or "First Division 7 December" was a division of the Royal Netherlands Army, active from at least 1946 to 2004. It was sent to the Dutch East Indies to restore "peace, order and security" in 1946. The Netherlands planned to gradually give the East Indies greater autonomy, but the proclamation of the independent Republic of Indonesia two days after Japan's capitulation accelerated these events.

The division was named after the speech of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands in London on December 7, 1942: "I imagine, without prejudice to the government conference's advice, that they will focus on a National Association, which the Netherlands, Indonesia, Suriname and Curaçao will have participated together, while each in itself, its own autonomy in internal affairs and drawing on their own, but together with the will to assist, will represent. It will be difference of treatment based on race or national character have no place, but will only have the personal ability of citizens and the needs of different populations for the decisive policy of the Government."

The division was withdrawn from the East Indies in 1949–1950 and spent the remainder of the Cold War as part of NATO Northern Army Group's I (Netherlands) Corps deterring a Soviet attack on West Germany. In 1985 it had its headquarters at Schaarsbergen, and divisional troops included the 102 Reconnaissance Battalion (maintained through the Dutch mobilisation system RIM) at Hoogland.[1] 11th Mechanised Brigade included the 12 and 48 Mechanised Battalions, the 101 Tank Battalion, and the 11 Field Artillery Battalion. 12th Mechanised Brigade was headquartered at Nunspeet and 13th Armoured Brigade at Oirschot.

After the end of the Cold War it became part of the I. German/Dutch Corps for a period. The division was disbanded on 1 January 2004 and the '7 December' title was transferred to the 11 Luchtmobiele Brigade (11th Airmobile Brigade).[2]

Divisional Organization 1989

Notes

  1. ↑ David Isby and Charles Kamps, Armies of NATO's Central Front, Jane's Publishing Company, 1985, p.331
  2. ↑ http://www.7decemberdivisie.nl/pages/organisatie.html

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