HQ ARRC celebrates 25/200

INNSWORTH, United Kingdom – Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (HQ ARRC) held a celebration here 11 May marking the 25th anniversary of its inauguration as well as marking more than 200 years since the formation of the 1st British Corps whom the ARRC traces its lineage through, hence the ‘25/200’ moniker.

The celebration itself featured a coming together of current and former multinational ARRC personnel at the Imjin Barracks Officers’ Mess who partook in a formal dinner while entertainment was provided by The Rifles regimental band.

Activated in 1992 in Germany at the end of the Cold War, the ARRC was formed from the remnants of the 1st British Corps when that formation stood down following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since then it has served in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan. Prior to giving way to the ARRC, the 1st British Corps served or fought in a number of significant chapters in history, most notably the Battle of Waterloo, both World Wars, the post-World War II occupation of Germany and the Cold War.

Central to both organisations, however, is something that Brigadier Paul Tennant, the ARRC’s Chief of Joint Fires and Influence, said is quite notable.

"As much as anything else, [this is] a really interesting celebration of what has always been, whether in the 1st British Corps or the ARRC, an amazingly rich and diverse multinational organisation,” said Tennant, who added that the multinational component was as much a part of the 1st British Corps at Waterloo as it is today in the ARRC.

Military members from twenty-one participating countries currently comprise the ARRC and, although with time to celebrate the ARRC’s birthday, its current members are as busy as ever as the ARRC will serve the remainder of the year as the Land Component Command of the NATO Response Force, a role it has held since January.

Story by Allied Rapid Reaction Corps Public Affairs Office