9th Armored Division (United States)

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Shoulder sleeve patch of the United States Army 9th Armored Division.

The 9th Armored Division (nicknamed "Phantom Division") was an armored division of the United States Army in World War II.

[edit] History

The division was activated on 15 July 1942. It reached the United Kingdom in September 1944.

The 9th Division was one of several real US Army divisions that participated in Operation Fortitude, the deception operation mounted by the US-British to deceive the Germans about the real landing site for Operation Neptune, the amphibious invasion of Northern France. The 9th was assigned to a camp on the British coastline opposite of the German defenses in Pas-de-Calais, ostensibly as part of the "First US Army Group" (FUSAG) under General Patton. While its members undertook training for the real invasion of the Normandy coast, the divisional headquarters was used to convey phony radio messages with the fake FUSAG HQ to make the Germans believe that an invasion of Pas-de-Calais by a massive army was the real intent of the Allies. The ruse was so successful that the German high command was completely fooled, and concentrated their reserves away from the Normandy Coast. In honor of their participation in this deception, the 9th was officially nicknamed the "Phantom Division."

The 9th Armored Division landed in Normandy late in September 1944, and first went into line, 23 October, on patrol duty in a quiet sector along the Luxembourg-German frontier. When the Germans launched their winter offensive, the 9th, with no real combat experience, suddenly found itself engaged in heavy fighting. The Division saw its severest action at St. Vith, Echternach, and Bastogne, its units fighting in widely separated areas. Its stand at Bastogne held off the Germans long enough to enable the 101st Airborne to dig in for a defense of the city. After a rest period in January 1945, the Division made preparations for a drive across the Rur river. The offensive was launched, 28 February, and the 9th smashed across the Rur to Rheinbach, sending patrols into Remagen. The Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen was found intact, and was seized by elements of the 9th Armored minutes before demolition charges were set to explode on 7 March 1945. The Division exploited the bridgehead, moving south and east across the river Lahn toward Limburg an der Lahn, where thousands of Allied prisoners were liberated. The Division drove on to Frankfurt and then turned to assist in the closing of the Ruhr Pocket. In April it continued east, encircled Leipzig and secured a line along the Mulde river. The Division was shifting south to Czechoslovakia when the war in Europe ended.

It was inactivated on 13 October 1945.

Units of the 9th Armored Division included:

2nd Tank Battalion
14th Tank Battalion
19th Tank Battalion
27th Armored Infantry Battalion
52nd Armored Infantry Battalion
60th Armored Infantry Battalion
HHB, Division Artillery
3rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion
16th Armored Field Artillery Battalion
73rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion
89th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, Mechanized
509th Counter Intelligence Corps Detachment
Headquarters Company, 9th Armored Division
HHC, Combat Command A
HHC, Combat Command B
Headquarters, Reserve Command
HHC, Division Trains
2nd Medical Battalion
131st ARmored Ordnance Maintenance Battalion
Military Police Platoon
9th Armored Engineer Battalion
149th Armored Signal Company
656th Tank Destroyer Battalion (attached 22 Feb 45 past 9 May 45)
811th Tank Destroyer Battalion (attached 14 Nov 44 to 8 Jan 45)
482nd AAA Automatic Weapons Battalion (attached 22 Nov 45 to 9 Jan 45; 22 Feb 45 to 9 May 45)