The Ministry of Defence recently provided updated figures on the number of personnel based in Germany as part of an ongoing reduction in the British military presence there.
Following a 2010 announcement under the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), the previous government committed to withdrawing the majority of its forces from Germany by 2020. This decision marked the first time in decades that the British Army would be almost entirely UK-based.
The government’s rationale for the withdrawal focused on the absence of a current operational need for a substantial British military presence in Germany.
The arrangement, they argued, imposed financial and logistical burdens, including costs associated with maintaining forces abroad and disruptions to service personnel and their families. Under the NATO Status of Forces Supplementary Agreement, the UK is also required to pay reinstatement costs to Germany, though the exact figures have not been fully determined.
Historically, British forces have been stationed in Germany since the end of the Second World War. At the time of the SDSR announcement, around 20,000 British service personnel were based in Germany. This number has been gradually reduced, with the vast majority of forces returning to the UK by 2016.
Below is a detailed breakdown of the UK Ministry of Defence personnel stationed in Germany from 2007 to 2024:
| Date | MOD Personnel |
|---|---|
| 01 April 2007 | 30,380 |
| 01 April 2008 | 29,490 |
| 01 April 2009 | 26,550 |
| 01 April 2010 | 26,130 |
| 01 April 2011 | 24,710 |
| 01 April 2012 | 22,790 |
| 01 April 2013 | 20,140 |
| 01 April 2014 | 17,200 |
| 01 April 2015 | 12,870 |
| 01 April 2016 | 7,240 |
| 01 April 2017 | 5,580 |
| 01 April 2018 | 5,240 |
| 01 April 2019 | 4,410 |
| 01 April 2020 | 1,250 |
| 01 April 2021 | 1,130 |
| 01 April 2022 | 1,150 |
| 01 April 2023 | 1,180 |
| 01 April 2024 | 1,200 |
As of 1 July 2024, the remaining 1,230 personnel are distributed across several regions in Germany, as shown below:
| Region | MOD Personnel |
|---|---|
| North Rhine-Westphalia | 410 |
| Bavaria | 70 |
| Elsewhere/Unspecified | 750 |
The “Elsewhere/Unspecified” category includes regions where fewer personnel are stationed, thereby preventing inadvertent disclosures. This category also encompasses Locally Engaged Civilians (LECs) whose exact stationing within Germany is not specified.
The most recent data reflects a continued presence of British forces in Germany, though at a greatly reduced scale compared to previous decades.
Ah! B.A.O.R wherefore art thou?
Argh those days!,👌
I believe there is still a sizable war stock in Germany and the retention of some facilities.
Take a look at Wikipedia under ‘British Army Germany’.
With our limited resources my own view is that we don’t need any forces in Germany – we’re never going to have enough to influence the infantry war there. So why don’t we simply limit our European ground forces to Northern Europe? Scandinavia and the Baltic? There, we can make a difference and lessen the risk of being over extended. The date chosen for these figures to be released every year seems unfortunate.
Absolutely right…. on both counts. 🙂
I don’t believe it’s in our interests to concentrate all land elements away from Germany, and I doubt if they want that either. At the end of the day, we must be focused on Middle European theatres. Okay, the UK would need to execute a rapid build-up, but that has already been proven to work in recent exercises.
The reason for pre-positioning in Germany, is because it’s a really central location. It’s why America retains bases there, for a strategic reserve it’s a great location. And as the Germans and Danes are now building a HSR tunnel, if you have a Division, or Brigade prepositioned in Germany, you can load that formation onto a train at it’s camp in Germany (both Sennelager and Bergan have rail heads), and then that train can go straight to Northern Sweden. Meanwhile doing the same from the UK is a long road move to a port, followed by reloading onto a boat… Read more »
We declare an armoured division to NATO and a fair bit more besides including 16 AA Bde. Although much kit is old, our troops are well trained and have much fighting spirit.
This contribution would be most welcome in the central front. Many other ENATO nations offer a similar or lesser level of armoured capability.
Honestly this is a bit baffling. Look, the UK can, if it calls up it’s reserves put two divisions in the field. That’s not a small amount of forces in today’s balance of forces. This aversion to fighting in Europe is illogical, it seems we are desperate to fight anywhere except on the main front.
Completely agree, the current thinking in some quarters is illogical however, they forget the sheer slog of penetrating German defences and the huge loss of life in doing so. Regardless of modern tactics and analysis, Britain must never have to fight for every inch of mainland Europe again.
30,000? It was double that during the Cold War.
When the withdrawal happened everyone I spoke to said it was a mistake and that we’d be back on the continent within a few years. But the conservatives wanted to lower the financial burden of the armed forces.
Test
Test?
Hi Dern, sorry, all my posts are being moderated for some reason, just testing…
If this appears in a week or two ( posted 1 pm Sun 27th) , I still am!
It’s happening to everyone. I George says they’re having a technical issue.
Correct I remember the number been much higher than this. I to have spoke to many who agreed it was a mistake to leave the continent has we’d have to returned, I myself was some what bewildered has many of us could see how Russia where becoming more Aggressive and not just through the media.
So, are you expecting ruZZia to sweep across Poland?
Who knows what Putin plans to do in the future, although an ‘adventure’ in the Baltic states might be a bit more likely..We surely have to be prepared for anything. Many doubted he would invade Ukraine.
Spot on mate
Because an Armoured Division or Brigade can advance from it’s garrisons, Russia doesn’t have to sweep across Poland.
I suppose he may just wave 👋us
I don’t doubt 30,380 in Germany in 2007, which was 16 years after the Cold War ended. We were then down to one warfighting div in BFG, plus HQ ARRC plus a National Support Element and some random elements.
Of course for much of the Cold War (ended in 1991) we had 55,000 troops in West Germany plus at least 3,000 in Berlin plus RAF(G).
Yes mate up to 1991 we still had a sizeable Armed forces and a reserve 🇬🇧 😟
So we are back to having no British Army deployed in Europe outside the UK again, well that has never not ended badly
What about Estonia?
Should all forces stationed so close with no room to manouver? Isn’t the Sulwaki gap the real choke point?
What?
…and Cyprus, albeit they are light forces there.
But busy though, with the Houthis and such.
Well I don’t think the German’s will be invading anytime soon.
The idea of British Troops in Germany being there to prevent German aggression ended in 1950 when I (Br) Corps was re-established. For almost it’s entire history the BAOR, BFG and BAG where there for NATO collective defence purposes.
I think there needs to be a complete divorce from our forces in Europe. We are NOT in the EU, as it has it’s own armed forces.
The war in Ukraine is a European war. NOT a NATO one.
It’s time we to stop behaving like we have the forces from WW1 and 2.
🙄 Nonsense, you speak! We have troops in Estonia, which is a NATO member, as well as EU member.
The EU is a totally different entity and subject.
NATO exists to ensure the security of the Euro-Atlantic region – and that is the responsibility of all members including the UK.
Ukraine isn’t in the EU either Comrade, it’s as much a NATO issue as a EU one.
I see most of your posts on here are advocating scrapping the Royal Navy Submarine Service, or cutting it down to SSK’s.
How is Moscow this time of year?
Good. Germany’s a big boy now and ought to look after itself a bit more.
No-one in NATO just defends its own turf. NATO as whole exists to ensure the security of the Euro-Atlantic region. All members contribute, including the UK.
How many bases in Germany do other big NATO counties such as Italy, France and Spain have?
How much of the Italian, French, or Spanish armies have to cross a body of water to deploy east?
None. But I don’t see your point. The British Army presence in Germany is relatively small. We choose to have this for several reasons including logistic. As an island nation it is harder to get a lot of armoured vehicles to Europe for exercises and operations, so having some there already makes sense.
This is a legacy from 1 BR Corps, known as BAOR.
In the Cold War Spain was barely involved, Italy defended its own southern area, and France had gone it’s own way but it’s army would have reinforced NORTHAG or CENTAG if GSFG had invaded.
Interestingly, Spain had theoretically commited their Armoured Division to CENTAG and two divisions (they never specified which two but most likely their mechanised divisions) to LANDSOUTH.
However the commitment was never exercised, so a rather open question as too how quickly Spain could have brought those divisions up, or how well they’d have operated alongside the Italians, Germans and Americans.
Thanks mate. Had no idea on the proposed Spanish contribution.
Naturally my link isn’t working but since everything has to go into moderation anyway, apologies to George and Crew I’ll give them another link to approve.
https://i.imgur.com/2DVCbTo.jpeg
(Also pedantry: 1 BR Corps is not the same thing as the BAOR, it’s just a component part of it. There was a shedload of CS and CSS units that where not part of 1 BR Corps but where assigned to the BAOR (even a brigades worth of infantry) and the Berlin Brigade was it’s own Command under the BAOR, but seperate from 1 BR Corps.)
Fair one.
Yes, 24 Bde in the UK wasn’t it?
No 24X was part of 1 BR corps subordinated to 2XX (which was entirely uk based).
BAOR had something like 8 TA and Regular light infantry battalions whose job it was to secure motorways, fuel depots and the like in Belgium and Holland. They weren’t subordinates to a Brigade and instead reported directly to HQ BAOR.
Hi Daniele, To add to Dern’s comments: 1 (BR) Corps was of course the operationally deployable formation within BAOR. HQ BAOR at Rheindahlen administered the entire army organisation in Germany. From memory some of the stuff they did including: running the Theatre level budget, liaising with Federal and Laender authorities in which British Garrisons were based on infrastructure maintenance and payment of rent etc, administering at top level the various depots and also service hospitals (there were at least 3 BMHs in Germany), cinemas, forces TV and radio, service childrens schools (BFES, then SCS(G)), NAAFIs, static REME workshops, training areas… Read more »
Also mate, you do Railways, so have you looked into Rail Baltica?
Really great way to integrate the Baltics into the EU, enable investments, and increase connectivity….
But also a standard gauge railway with lots of freight terminals running from Germany to Estonia if you catch my drift.
I had not heard of it, no, but I’m just reading up on it now. Seems a no brainer. I’d like the British Army to re establish a meaningful rail capability beyond an STRE.
We’re far to rail skeptic in the UK (hello HS2? thanks Sunak I’m sure your auto buddies gave you a good kickback for that).
It’s really telling that until now it’s been easier to take a train from any of the Baltic Capitals to Moscow, than to travel between them by public transport (I say public transport because there is no train that goes between Talinn, Riga and Vilnius)
Pre-positioning troops in Germany isn’t about defending Germany, it’s about having forces in a good strategic position to react to threats to NATO.
I still think this decision was a BIG mistake…🙄
Why base the troops so far away, from a new potential frontline?
There are the NATO eFP troops in Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia. They really are on the front line. UK leads the Estonia group and also has a presence in the Poland group. Many of these NATO Battlegroups are upsizing to Brigades. We (UK) have some depots (ammunition and vehicle), barracks and training areas in Germany. Luke Pollard listed the following sites owned by the MOD in Germany: 1.Ayrshire Barracks, Mönchengladbach 2.Athlone Barracks, Paderborn 3. Barracks in Sennelager, which includes: -Antwerp Barracks -Talbot Barracks -Cavalry Barracks -Polish Barracks -Depot 90 -Sennelager NAAFI 4.The British Alpine Centre in… Read more »
No-one thought that in summer 1990 when Options for Change was written.
Can we put them back now please. 😂
Well we could if we had them….
Well a lot of the old Barracks where flogged and torn down. Most of the rest are in use by the German army…
So probably no.
Lots of NATO jobs still there.
There is a big contingent in Rammstein as part of the NATO air HQ.
A fair few of also live in Germany and travel across the border to Brunssum NATO JFC daily.