3 Base Ammunition Depot RAOC
and
Marlborough Barracks
HQ 3 Base Ammunition Depot (3 BAD) was established at Liebenau in 1946 at Pinewood Camp with Ammunition Sub-Depots at:
454 FAD Liebenau (capacity of 68,000 tons) later became one of the Forward Storage Sites for 1 (BR) Corps
154 ASD Wullfen (capacity of 12,000 tons) later became 154 Forward Ammunition Depot in 1951
254 ASD Bracht (capacity of 11,000 tons) later became the HQ & Main Depot of 3 BAD in 1953
654 ASD Walsrode (capacity of 11,000 tons) later became one of the Forward Storage Sites for 1 (BR) Corps
854 ASD Boostedt (capacity of 6,000 tons) closed in 1949
All ammunition held was classed as ‘Left over from battle’ and required a lot of inspection and re-working including disposal, add to this the problem of abandoned enemy ammunition to be dealt with (but not by 3BAD!)
Bracht lay in the area between the towns of Bracht and Brüggen on the Dutch Border and was a Field Storage Site with 21 Piece IG Shelters and dirt roads unlike other captured German Forces Factories/Depots, but was to become the British Army’s Major Ammunition Depot in BAOR for over 50 years.
New accomodation was built at Bracht and by 1953 HQ 3 BAD had moved from Liebenau to Bracht and the depot continued to grow into the main receipt and issue depot for BAOR
Renamed to 3 Base Ammunition & Petroleum Depot (3 BAPD) in 1965 when the RAOC took over responsability for POL [Petroleum, Oils & Lubricants] from the RASC when 4 Petroleum Depot at Nienburg, and 6 Petroleum Depot at Arsbeck, along with Dilborn and Ratingen Packed POL sub-depots came under its command.
Up until the late 1960s 3BAPD’s Ammunition Storage remained WWII vintage IG Shelters which with the advent of Palletisation and MHE [Materials Handling Equipment] was becoming more difficult. So plans were made in 1968/9 to construct 40 Metal Clad Explosive Storehouses (MESH) which were completed by 1971 along with 8 miles of tarmacked roads and 2 tarmacked hardstanding and rail marshaling areas. Improvements continued into the 1970s with more permanent roads and construction of (Concrete) Explosive Store Houses (ESH)
The name reverted back to 3 BAD in April 1979 on the opening of the new build 4 Petroleum Depot at Warendorf Bulk Petroleum Depot and the NATO Central Petroleum Pipeline System (CEPS) at which time all Pet Ops moved to Portsmouth Barracks and established control of the new Depot.
3 BAD was the largest Ammunition Depot in Western Europe covering around 1200 hectares until the 1st April 1997 when after it was closed and cleared of hazards it was handed back to the German authorities who reportedly spent 3.2 Million DM turning it into a Nature Park called “Brachter-Wald”
Aerial Photograph of the area in 2005 showing the noticeable remains of the depot
The barracks were known as Marlborough Barracks and housed 3 Companies of RAOC who mainly worked in the depots, which is still extant and used as a Caravan Park and Hostel at the main entrance to the nature park which is closed to vehicles.
The only image available of Marlborough Barracks with ‘Outback Club’ to left and cookhouse to right as viewed from the blocks.
Look here to see ‘Heide Camp’ as it is known today
Other Units based at Bracht:
Regimental Training Wing RAOC
RAOC Rhine Army Ammunition Inspectorate Detachment (Unit Inspections and BAOR EOD)
614 Signal Troop (Park) 1962-1965
BAOR Map Depot, Royal Engineers
79 Railway Squadron Detachment, Royal Corps of Transport (Depot had loading sidings but was internally road serviced)
Mobile Civilian Work Group (MCTG) Royal Corps of Transport. (Depot Transport)
Mobile Civilian Labour Group (MCLG) Royal Pioneer Corps. (Depot Civilian Labour Force)
Mixed Service Organisation (MSO) Guard Service & Dog Troop (Depot Security)
RAF Ammunition Sub-Depot (Bomb Dump) for RAF Brüggen
Source – History of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps 1945-1982 by Maj Gen LTH Phelps
Mike Comerford, March 2010