Western Military District (Sweden) Explained
Unit Name: | Western Military District |
Native Name: | Västra militärområdet |
Dates: | 1942–1993 |
Country: | Sweden |
Allegiance: | Swedish Armed Forces |
Branch: | Multi (Sea, Air and Land) |
Type: | Military district |
Role: | Operational, territorial and tactical operations |
Garrison: | Skövde |
Colours Label: | --> |
Identification Symbol Label: | Command flag |
Western Military District (Swedish: Västra militärområdet, Milo V), originally III Military District (Swedish: III. militärområdet) was a Swedish military district, a command of the Swedish Armed Forces that had operational control over Western Sweden, for most time of its existence corresponding to the area covered by the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus, Älvsborg, Skaraborg (all three now joined as Västra Götaland County) and Halland. The headquarters of Milo V were located in Skövde.
History
Milo V was created in 1966 along with five other military districts as part of a reorganisation of the administrative divisions of the Swedish Armed Forces. It can be seen as the successor of III Military District (III. militärområdet) created in 1942, but that did not have the same tasks as Milo V. The military district consisted of the land covered by the above-mentioned counties. In 1993, the number of military districts of Sweden was decreased to three, and as a consequence of that, Milo V was merged into the Southern Military District (Milo S).
Units 1989
In peacetime the Western Military District consisted of the following units, which were training recruits for wartime units:
- Western Military District (Milo V), in Skövde
- Army units:
- Air Force units:
- E 1 - Attack Command, in Gothenburg, also controls F 15 - Hälsinge Wing of Milo NN
- F 14 - Halmstad Air Force Schools, in Halmstad
- Air Force Officer College
- Air Force Command and Control School
- Air Force Technical School
- Air Force Ground Signal Engineering School
- Air Force Liaison and Staff Service School
- Navy units:
In wartime the Western Military District would have activated the following major land units, as well as a host of smaller units:
- 3rd Division, in Skövde
- PB 9 - Skaraborg Brigade, in Skövde, a Type 63M armoured brigade based on the P 4 - Skaraborg Regiment
- IB 15 - Västgöta Brigade, in Borås, a Type 66M infantry brigade based on the I 15 - Älvsborg Regiment
- IB 17 - Bohus Brigade, in Uddevalla, a Type 66M infantry brigade based on the I 17 - Bohuslän Regiment
- IB 45 - Älvsborg Brigade, in Borås, a Type 77 infantry brigade based on the I 15 - Älvsborg Regiment
- IB 46 - Halland Brigade, in Halmstad, a Type 77 infantry brigade based on the I 16 - Halland Regiment
- IB 47 - Gothenburg Brigade, in Uddevalla, a Type 77 infantry brigade based on the I 17 - Bohuslän Regiment
Heraldry and traditions
Coat of arms
The coat of arms of the Western Military District Staff 1983–1993. Blazon: "Azur, an erect sword with the area letter (V - West) surrounded by an open chaplet of oak leaves, all or."
Commanding officers
Military commanders
Deputy military commanders
- 1942–1946: Helmer Bratt
- 1946–1950: Carl Årmann (acting)
- 1951–1955: Gustaf Källner
- 1955–1959: Carl Fredrik Lemmel
- 1959–1966: Carol Bennedich
Chiefs of Staff
Names, designations and locations
Name | Translation | From | | To |
---|
III. militärområdet | III Military District | 1942-10-01 | – | 1966-09-30 |
Västra militärområdet | Western Military District | 1966-10-01 | – | 1993-06-30 |
Designation | | From | | To |
---|
III. Milo | | 1942-10-01 | – | 1966-09-30 |
Milo V | | 1966-10-01 | – | 1993-06-30 |
Location | | From | | To |
---|
Skövde Garrison | | 1942-10-01 | – | 1993-06-30 | |
See also
References
Print
- Book: Sveriges statskalender 1993 . Almqvist . Gerd . 1993 . Fritzes offentliga publikationer . Stockholm . 9138128098 . . sv.
- Book: Braunstein, Christian . Heraldiska vapen inom det svenska försvaret . Heraldry of the Swedish Armed Forces . Skrift / Statens försvarshistoriska museer, 1101-7023 ; 9 . 2006 . Statens försvarshistoriska museer . Stockholm . sv . 91-971584-9-6 . .
- Book: Holmberg, Björn . Arméns regementen, skolor och staber: [en uppslagsbok] : en sammanställning . 1993 . Svenskt militärhistoriskt bibliotek (SMB) . Arvidsjaur . sv . 91-972209-0-6 . .
Web
- Web site: Försvarets utveckling från Gustav Wasa till vår tid . 2007-01-12 . Kjelldorff . Lennart . Försvarets Historiska Telesamlingar . 2001 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110722104405/http://www.fht.nu/docs/forsvaretsutveckling.pdf . 2011-07-22 . sv.
Further reading
- Book: Österdahl . Bertel . Västra militärområdet: en regions historia ur försvarsperspektiv . 1993 . MB Väst . Skövde . sv . .