Grafenwöhr (, Northern Bavarian: Groafawehr) is a town in the district of Neustadt an der Waldnaab, in the region of the Upper Palatinate () in eastern Bavaria, Germany. It is widely known for the United States Army military installation and training area, called Grafenwoehr Training Area (Tower Barracks), located directly south and west of the town. History Early history The town of Grafenwöhr (Island of the Count), was founded in the 9th century on an island (wöhr), located between the river Creussen and the Thum stream. In its early history, the inhabitants and the town of Grafenwöhr proper belonged to nobles from Schweinfurt, Bamberg, and Leuchtenberg. 20th century In 1907, Prince Luitpold, regent of the Kingdom of Bavaria, selected the area near the town of Grafenwöhr as the place best suited for training of the Bavarian Army (1806–1919). Construction began in 1908, and, by 1915, the training reservation was in area. The first artillery round was fired in the training area at 08:00 on 30 June 1910. Throughout World War I (1914–1918) the Grafenwöhr training area was used for equipping and training army units for combat. After the War, the High Command, Berlin, used Grafenwöhr to train the 100,000–man German army, allowed by the Treaty of Versailles (1919). In 1936, the Nazi Government expanded the training area to the present size of . On 5 and 8 April 1945, the training camp and the town of Grafenwöhr proper were bombed during Allied air raids. The last German Army Commander of the Grafenwöhr training area surrendered to the U.S. Army on 20 April 1945. Afterwards, during the Cold War (1945–1991), the Grafenwöhr training area was an important, combined arms training site for the U.S. Army and allied forces. Post Cold War The military installation is also home to one of the largest Army construction projects in Europe, called Efficient Basing-Grafenwöhr. The Grafenwöhr Training Area (Tower Barracks) houses the 7th Army Joint Multinational Training Command (JMTC). The 7th Army JMTC owns almost all of the U.S. Army training facilities and assets in Europe. The Grafenwöhr Training Area is one of its largest training areas and includes ranges that can accommodate nearly every weapons system currently used. Though operated by the U.S. Army, the area is the largest multinational training area in Europe. Grafenwöhr Training Area is (Tower Barracks), also known as the East Camp, is the main post and is located on