The 9th Mechanized Brigade " Mărășești" (''Brigada 9 Mecanizată "Mărășești"'') is a mechanized infantry brigade of the Romanian Land Forces.

History

The unit was initially formed in 1879, after the Romanian War of Independence, as ''Divizia Activă de

Dobrogea Dobruja or Dobrudja (; bg, Добруджа, Dobrudzha or ''Dobrudža''; ro, Dobrogea, or ; tr, Dobruca) is a historical region in the Balkans that has been divided since the 19th century between the territories of Bulgaria and Romania. I ...

'' (Dobruja Active Division). In 1903 it was renamed to ''9th Infantry Division'', designation under which it participated in both world wars. In World War I it fought during the Battle of Mărășești where it defended the most difficult sector, being under constant attacks for two weeks. For its heroic actions in this battle, the 9th Infantry Division received the honorific name "Mărășești". In World War II, the division fought on both the Eastern Front, where it took part in the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...

, and on the Western Front, participating in the liberation of Hungary and Czechoslovakia. After World War II, the division went through some changes becoming the IXth Army Corps and eventually the 9th Mechanized Division before being deactivated. Vasile Milea commanded the division in 1957-58. In 2004 the 34th Mechanized "Vasile Lupu" brigade was dissolved, with the remaining units passing to the

Light Infantry Brigade The Light Infantry Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular English light infantry regiments. After the Second World War the British Army had fourteen infantry depots, eac ...

(''Brigada de Infanterie Ușoară'') headquartered at

Clinceni Clinceni is a commune in the southwestern part of Ilfov County, Muntenia, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Clinceni, Olteni and Ordoreanu. The location hosts a small airport. Currently, the village of Clinceni has the Guinness World Re ...

. The land formerly occupied by the headquarters of the 34th Mechanized was given to the United States Army for a new base near the Mihail Kogălniceanu airport. In accordance with the transformation strategy of the Romanian Army, the 34th was reactivated on 1 October 2009 as ''9th Mechanized Brigade "Mărășești"'', taking over control of all units in Dobruja from the former 34th Mechanized Brigade; two new subunits were also created at this time: the 911 Infantry and 912 Tank Battalion, the latter equipped with T-55 tanks and

Flakpanzer Gepard The ''Flugabwehrkanonenpanzer Gepard'' ("anti-aircraft-gun tank 'Cheetah, better known as the Flakpanzer Gepard) is an all-weather-capable German self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG). It was developed in the 1960s, fielded in the 1970s, an ...

Organization 2020

* 9th Mechanized Brigade " Mărășești", in

Constanța Constanța (, ; ; rup, Custantsa; bg, Кюстенджа, Kyustendzha, or bg, Констанца, Konstantsa, label=none; el, Κωνστάντζα, Kōnstántza, or el, Κωνστάντια, Kōnstántia, label=none; tr, Köstence), histo ...

** 912th Tank Battalion " Scythia Minor", in Murfatlar ** 341st Mechanized Infantry Battalion "Constanța" , in Topraisar ** 911th Mechanized Infantry Battalion "

Capidava Capidava (''Kapidaua'', ''Cappidava'', ''Capidapa'', ''Calidava'', ''Calidaua'') was an important Geto-Dacian center on the right bank of the Danube. After the Roman conquest, it became a civil and military center, as part of the province of ...

", in Medgidia ** 345th Artillery Battalion " Tomis", in Medgidia ** 348th Anti-aircraft Defense Battalion "

", in Murfatlar ** 168th Logistic Support Battalion " Pontus Euxinus", in Constanța

341st Infantry Battalion

The 341st Infantry Battalion, nicknamed "White Sharks", is the most experienced unit of the new brigade, with numerous international deployments, including Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq. After the 34th Mechanized Brigade "Vasile Lupu" was reorganized in 2004 as the Light Infantry Brigade, the White Sharks were the component battalion that maintained the highest readiness, and the only large military unit based in Dobruja.

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Brigades of Romania