The I Netherlands Corps was an army corps of the Royal Netherlands Army. It formed after the Second World War and after the fall of the Iron Curtain was disestablished.

The I Army Corps (Dutch: I. Legerkorps) was a prior, separate formation of the Royal Netherlands Army mobilized in April 1940 and served as one of the four principal corps of the Field Army (Veldleger) during the Battle of the Netherlands.

The Corps was tasked with the central defence of the Fortress Holland (Vesting Holland). It was commanded by Lieutenant General Baron D. H. van Doorninck.^[1]

The structure of the I Army Corps on the eve of the German invasion was as follows:^[2]

• Corps Headquarters (Staf I. Legerkorps)
• Subordinate Divisions (Two infantry divisions):
  • 1st Division (1e Divisie)
  • 3rd Division (3e Divisie)
• Corps Troops (Artillery, Engineers, and Support):
  • 1st Motorised Artillery Regiment (1e Regiment Motor-Artillerie)
  • 2nd Heavy Artillery Battalion (2e Bataljon Zware Artillerie)
  • 1st Anti-Tank Company (1e Compagnie Pantserafweergeschut)
  • 1st Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun Company (1e Compagnie Luchtdoel Mitrailleurs)
  • 1st Signals Battalion (1e Bataljon Verbindingstroepen)
  • 1st Engineer Battalion (1e Bataljon Pontonniers)
  • 1st Railway Engineer Company (1e Spoorweg Genisten Compagnie)
• Detached Units:
  • III Battalion, 4th Regiment Grenadiers (III-4 Regiment Grenadiers) detached to Group Merwede

The Corps was disbanded following the surrender of the Dutch forces in May 1940 and was later reactivated for its Cold War role.

In January 1949, the government agreed to the establishment of an army corps. In the same year, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was established. In 1955, after joining West Germany to NATO, the 1st Army Corps was made responsible for the defense of a part of the North German Plain. The army corps was part of the Northern Army Group of NATO. From 1963 onwards, part of the army corps was actually stationed in Germany, namely in Seedorf.

The corps's war assignment, as formulated by Commander, Northern Army Group (COMNORTHAG), would be to:^[3]

• Assume responsibility for its corps sector and relieve 1st German Corps forces as soon as possible.
• Fight the covering force battle in accordance with COMNORTHAG's concept of operations.
• In the main defensive battle: (1) hold and destroy the forces of the enemy's leading armies conventionally as far east as possible, maintaining cohesion with 1 (GE) Corps; (2) in the event of a major penetration affecting 1 (NL) Corps sector, be prepared to hold the area between the roads A7 and B3 and to conduct a counterattack according to COMNORTHAG's concept of operations.
• Maintain cohesion with LANDJUT and secure NORTHAG's left flank in the Forward Combat Zone.

I NL Corps

4 Divisie

41 Pantser

42 Pantserinf.

43 Pantserinf.

3 Panzer

7 PzGren.

8 Panzer

9 Panzer

3 Art.

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I NL Corps and its assigned German units and Dutch units based or earmarked for rapid deployment to Germany in 1989

After the Second World War until July 18, 1995^[4] the Royal Netherlands Army had one army corps (1st Army Corps) of three divisions (1st Division "7 December", 4th, and 5th) and army corps troops.

First Division "7 December" 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 as a deterrent against a Soviet attack on West Germany. In 1985, it had its headquarters at Schaarsbergen, and divisional troops included the 102nd Reconnaissance Battalion (maintained through the Dutch mobilisation system RIM) at Hoogland.^[5]

• NORTHAG wartime structure in 1989
• Belgian Forces in Germany

• Webpage on 1st Korps, 1985
• Inventaris van het archief van de stafonderdelen van het 1e legerkorps en de daaronder ressorterende divisies, (1945-1947) 1949-1994 (gahetna.nl)
• Alter, Fritz. "Gliederung und Stationierung der niederländischen Streitkräfte in Deutschland im Jahre 1989" (PDF). Relikte.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 March 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.