1st Infantry Division (United States)
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1st Infantry Division | |
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1st Infantry Division shoulder sleeve inisignia |
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Active | May 24, 1917- |
Branch | Regular Army |
Type | Division |
Role | Heavy Mechanized |
Part of | Forces Command |
Garrison/HQ | Fort Riley, Kansas |
Nickname | “The Big Red One” and “The Fighting First” |
Motto | “No Mission Too Difficult, No Sacrifice Too Great—Duty First” |
Colors | Red and Blue |
March | The Big Red One Song |
Mascot | Rags (WW I) |
Engagements | World War I World War II *Operation Torch *Operation Husky *D-Day *Battle of Hurtgen Forest Vietnam War Operation Desert Storm Operation Iraqi Freedom |
Commanders | |
Current commander |
Major General Robert E. Durbin |
Notable commanders |
Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen, Sr. Theodore Roosevelt Jr Clarence R. Huebner |
U.S. Infantry Divisions | |
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Previous | Next |
2nd Infantry Division |
The 1st Infantry Division of the United States Army —nicknamed “The Big Red One” after its shoulder patch; and also nicknamed "The Fighting First"—is the oldest division in the United States Army, and has seen continuous service since its organization in 1917.
Contents |
[edit] Units
From the Division's organization web page, the units of the 1st Infantry Division are:
- 1st Brigade Combat Team-- "Devil Brigade"
- 2nd Brigade Combat Team-- "Dagger Brigade"
- 3rd Brigade Combat Team -- "Duke Brigade"
- 4th Brigade Combat Team -- "Dragon Brigade"
- Combat Aviation Brigade -- "Demon Brigade"
- 1st Sustainment Brigade (attached)
- 75th Fires Brigade (attached)
- Separate Units
- HHC, 1ID -- Headquarters and Headquarters Company
- 1ID BAND -- 1st Infantry Division Band
[edit] History
[edit] World War I
[edit] Commanders:
- Maj. Gen. William L. Sibert (18 June 1917),
- Maj. Gen. Robert Lee Bullard (14 December 1917),
- Brig. Gen. Beaumond B. Buck (5 April 1918),
- Maj. Gen. R. L. Bullard (13 April 1918),
- Maj. Gen. Charles Pelot Summerall, II (15 July 1918),
- Brig. Gen. F. E. Bamford (12 October 1918),
- Brig. Gen. Frank Parker (18 October 1918),
- Maj. Gen. E. F. McGlachlin, Jr. (21 November 1918)
[edit] Narrative
The First Expeditionary Division, later designated the 1st Infantry Division, was constituted on May 24, 1917 in the Regular Army, and was organized on June 8, 1917 at Fort Jay, on Governors Island in New York harbor under the command of Brigadier General William L. Sibert, from Army units then in service on the U.S.-Mexico border and at various Army posts throughout the United States. The original Table of Organization and Equipment included two organic infantry brigades of two infantry regiments each, one engineer battalion; one signal battalion; one trench mortar battery; one field artillery brigade of three field artillery regiments; one aero squadron; and a full division train. The total authorized strength of this TO&E was 18,919 officers and enlisted men. George S. Patton, who served as the first Headquarters Commandant for the American Expeditionary Force oversaw much of the arrangements for the movement of the 1st Division to France, and their organization in-country.
The first units sailed from New York and Hoboken, New Jersey, June 14, 1917. Throughout the remainder of the year, the rest of the division followed, landing at St. Nazaire, France, and Liverpool, England. After a brief stay in rest camps, the troops in England proceeded to France, landing at Le Havre. The last unit arrived in St. Nazaire December 22. Upon arrival in France, the division, less its artillery, was assembled in the First (Gondrecourt) training area, and the artillery was at Le Valdahon.
On the 4th of July, the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry (2-16), paraded through the streets of Paris to bolster the sagging French spirits. At Lafayette's tomb, one of General John J. Pershing's staff uttered the famous words, "Lafayette, we are here!" Two days later, July 6, Headquarters, First Expeditionary Division was redesignated as Headquarters, First Division.
On August 8, 1917, the 1st Division adopted the Square Table of organization and Equipment, which included two organic infantry brigades of two infantry regiments each; one engineer regiment; one signal battalion; one machine gun battalion; one field artillery brigade of three field artillery regiments, and a complete division train. The total authorized strength of this new TO&E was 27,120 officers and enlisted men.
On the morning of October 23, the first American shell of the war was sent screaming toward German lines by a First Division artillery unit. Two days later, the 2-16th Infantry suffered the first American casualties of the war.
By April 1918, the Germans had pushed to within 40 miles (64 km) of Paris. In reaction to this thrust, the Big Red One moved into the Picardy Sector to bolster the exhausted French First Army. To the division's front lay the small village of Cantigny, situated on the high ground overlooking a forested countryside. The 28th Infantry Regiment[1] attacked the town, and within 45 minutes captured it along with 250 German soldiers. It was the first American victory of the war. The 28th was thereafter named the "Black Lions of Cantigny".
Soissons was taken by the First Division in July 1918. The Soissons victory was costly—700 men were killed or wounded. (One of them, Private Francis Lupo of Cincinnati, was missing in action for 85 years, until his remains were discovered on the former battlefield in 2003). The First Infantry helped to clear the St. Mihiel salient by fighting continuously from September 11–13, 1918. The last major World War I battle was fought in the Meuse-Argonne Forest. The division advanced seven kilometers and defeated, in whole or part, eight German divisions. The war was over when the Armistice was signed. The division was at Sedan, the farthest American penetration of the war. The division was the first to cross the Rhine into occupied Germany.
By the end of the war, the division had suffered 22,668 casualties and boasted five Medal of Honor recipients.
The division's famous dog-mascot was a cairn terrier known as Rags. Rags was adopted by the division in 1917 and remained its mascot until his death in 1931. Rags achieved great notoriety and achieved celebrity war dog fame, after saving many lives in the crucial Argonne Campaign by delivering a vital message despite being bombed and gassed.
- Casualties
- 4,411 Killed in Action
- 17,201 Wounded in Action
- 1,056 Missing or Died of Wounds
[edit] Interwar period
The 1st Division returned to the Continental U.S. in September 1919, demobilized its war-time TO&E at Camp Zachary Taylor at Louisville, Kentucky, and then returned to New York, with its headquarters located at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn.
On October 7, 1920, the 1st Division organized under the peacetime TO&E, which included two organic infantry brigades of two infantry regiments each, one engineer regiment; one observation squadron; one field artillery brigade of two Field Artillery Regiments; one Medical Regiment; one Division Quartermaster Train; and a Special Troops Command replacing the remainder of the division Train. The total authorized strength of this TO&E was 19,385. 1st Division was one of three Infantry Divisions and one Cavalry Division that was authorized to remain at full peacetime strength, and it was the only Regular Army division assigned to the II Corps Area, which also included the 27th Infantry Division of the New York Army National Guard; the 44th infantry Division of the New Jersey, New York, and Delaware Army National Guards; the 21st Cavalry Division of the New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and New jersey Army national Guards; and the 77th, 78th, and 98th Infantry Divisions and the 61st Cavalry Division of the Organized Reserves. This was the organization that existed in the II Corps area for the duration of the peace period.
1st Division adopted a new peacetime TO&E in preparation for war on January 8, 1940, which included three Infantry Regiments, one MP Company, one Engineer Battalion, one Signal Company, one Light Field Artillery Regiment of three Field Artillery Battalions and one Medium Field Artillery Regiment of two Field Artillery Battalions, one Medical Battalion, and one Quartermaster Battalion. The authorized strength of this TO&E was 9,057 officers and enlisted men. 1st Infantry Division reorganized again on November 1, 1940 to a new TO&E, which added a Reconnaissance Troop, and organized the two Field Artillery Regiments into a Division Artillery Command, and beefed up the strength to a total Authorized Strength of 15,245 officers and enlisted men.
[edit] World War II Prep
[edit] Commanders
- Maj. Gen. Donald Cubbison (February 1941),
- Maj. Gen. Terry de la Mesa Allen, Sr. (2 August 1942),
- Maj. Gen. Clarence R. Huebner (July 1943),
- Maj. Gen. Clift Andrus (December 1944),
- Maj. Gen. Frank Milburn (August 1946).
[edit] Narrative
1st Division started preparing for World War II by moving to Fort Benning on November 19, 1939, and ran its personnel through the Infantry School. It then moved to the Sabine Parish, Louisiana area on May 11, 1940 to participate in the Louisiana Maneuvers. They then returned to Fort Hamilton on June 5, 1940. The headquarters was then transferred to Fort Devens at Ayer, Massachusetts February 4, 1941, and then participated in the October and November maneuvers in the Carolinas, with a garrison at Samarcand, North Carolina on October 16, 1941.
1st Division then returned to Fort Devens on December 6, 1941, which is where they were when Pearl Harbor was attacked. 1st Division then deployed to Camp Blanding at Starke, Florida on February 21, 1942, which is where they were when 1st Division was officially re-designated at Headquarters, 1st Infantry Division on August 1, 1942. At this time, 1st ID reorganized under the new Wartime TO&E, which increased the Authorized Strength to 15,514 Officers and Enlisted men. This TO&E resulted in the following Order of Battle:
- Headquarters, 1st Infantry Division
- Headquarters & Military Police Company
- 1st Cavalry Reconnaissance Company
- 1st Signal Company
- 16th Infantry Regiment
- 18th Infantry Regiment
- 26th Infantry Regiment
- HHB, 1st Division Artillery
- 5th Field Artillery Battalion
- 7th Field Artillery Battalion
- 32nd Field Artillery Battalion
- 33rd Field Artillery Battalion
- 1st Infantry Division Artillery Band
- 1st Engineer Battalion
- 1st Medical Battalion
- 1st Quartermaster Battalion
[edit] Deployment to War
In World War II, the division landed in Oran, Algeria on 8 November 1942, as part of Operation Torch. Elements then took part in combat at Maktar, Medjez el Bab, Kasserine Pass, Gafsa, El Guettar, Béja, and Mateur, from 21 January 1943 – 9 May 1943, helping secure Tunisia.
In July, 1943, it took part in Operation Husky in Sicily under the command of Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen. It was assigned to U.S. II Corps. On 7 August 1943, command was assumed by Major General Clarence R. Huebner.
When that campaign was over, the division returned to England to prepare for the Normandy invasion. It was the division that stormed Omaha Beach on D-Day, some units suffering 30 percent casualties in the first hour, and secured Formigny and Caumont in the beachhead. The division followed up the St. Lo break-through with an attack on Marigny, 27 July 1944, and then drove across France in a continuous offensive, reaching the German border at Aachen in September. The division laid siege to Aachen, taking the city after a direct assault, 21 October 1944. The First then attacked east of Aachen through Hurtgen Forest, driving to the Roer, and moved to a rest area 7 December 1944 for its first real rest in 6 months' combat, when the Wacht Am Rhein offensive (commonly called the Battle of the Bulge) suddenly broke loose, 16 December 1944. The division raced to the Ardennes, and fighting continuously from 17 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, helped blunt and turn back the German offensive. Thereupon, the division attacked and again breached the Siegfried Line, fought across the Roer, 23 February 1945, and drove on to the Rhine, crossing at the Remagen bridgehead, March 15–16. The division broke out of the bridgehead, took part in the encirclement of the Ruhr Pocket, captured Paderborn, pushed through the Harz Mountains, and was in Czechoslovakia, at Kinsperk, Sangerberg, and Mnichov, when the war in Europe ended. Sixteen members of the division were awarded the Medal of Honor.
- Casualties
- 3,616 Killed in Action
- 15,208 Wounded in Action
- 664 Died of Wounds
[edit] Assignments in the European Theater of Operations
- 1 November 1943: First Army.
- 6 November 1943: VII Corps.
- 2 February 1944: V Corps.
- 14 July 1944: First Army.
- 15 July 1944: VII Corps.
- 1 August 1944: VII Corps, First Army, 12th Army Group.
- 16 December 1944: V Corps.
- 20 December 1944: Attached, with the entire First Army, to the British 21st Army Group.
- 26 January 1945: XVIII (Abn) Corps, First Army, 12th Army Group.
- 12 February 1945: III Corps.
- 8 March 1945: VII Corps.
- 27 April 1945: VIII Corps.
- 30 April 1945: V Corps.
- 6 May 1945: Third Army, 12th Army Group.
- In these tabulations, the army and higher headquarters to which the division is assigned or attached is not repeated when the division is assigned or attached to a different corps in the same army.
- On 6 November 1943, for example, the 1st Infantry Division was assigned to the VII Corps which was itself assigned to First Army; on 1 August 1944, the 12th Army Group became operational; and on 6 May 1945, the 1st Infantry Division left First Army for the first time during the operations on the Continent for reassignment to the Third Army.
[edit] Korean War
During the Korean War, the Big Red One was assigned to occupation duty in Germany, while acting as a strategic deterrent against Soviet designs on Europe. 1st Infantry Division troops secured the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials and later transported seven convicted Nazi war criminals to Spandau Prison in Berlin.
In 1955 the division colors left Germany and were relocated to Fort Riley, Kansas.
[edit] Cold War
Following its return from Germany, 1st Infantry Division established headquarters at Ft. Riley, Kansas. Its troops reorganized and trained for war at Ft. Riley and at other posts such as Ft. Irwin, California, Little Creek, Virginia, and Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri. In 1962 and 1963, four 1st Infantry Division Pentomic Battle Groups (2nd Battle Group, 12th Infantry; 1st Battle Group, 13th Infantry; 1st Battle Group, 28th Infantry; & 2nd Battle Group, 26th Infantry) rotated, in turn, to West Berlin, Germany to augment U.S. Berlin Brigade during an International Crisis initiated by construction of the Berlin Wall. These "Long Thrust Operations" were the most significant deployments conducted by 1st Infantry Division troops during the Cold War; placing Big Red One troops in confrontation with hostile communist forces.
[edit] Vietnam
The division fought in the Vietnam War from 1965 to 1970.
Arriving in July of 1965, the division began combat operations within two weeks. By the end of 1965 the division had participated in three major operations: Hump, Bushmaster I and Bushmaster II, under the command of MG Jonathan O. Seaman.
In 1966 the division took part in Operations Marauder, Crimp II, and Rolling Stone in the early part of the year. In March, MG William E. DePuy took command. In June and July the division took part in the battles of Ap Tau O, Srok Dong and Minh Thanh Road. In November they participated in Operation Attleboro.
1967 saw the 1st I.D. in Operations Cedar Falls, Junction City, Manhattan, and Shenandoah II. MG John H. Hay assumed command in February. On October 17, 1967, the 1st I.D suffered heavy casualties at the Battle of Ong Thanh with 58 KIA.
1968 would see the division involved in the Tet Offensive, securing the massive Tan Son Nhut Air Base. In March, MG Keith L. Ware took command. That same month the division took part in Operation Quyet Thang (Resolve to Win), April would see the division participate in the largest operation in the Vietnam conflict, Operation Toan Thang (Certain Victory). On 13 September, the division Commander, MG Ware, was killed in action when his command helicopter was shot down by hostile fire. MG Orwin C. Talbott moved up from his position of Assistant Division Commander to assume command of the division.
In the first half of 1969, The Big Red One conducted reconnaissance-in-force and ambush operations, including a multi-divisional operation, Atlas Wedge, and participated in the Battles of An Loc. The last part of the year saw the division take part in "Dong Tien" (Progress Together) operations. These operations were intended to assist South Vietnamese forces to take a more active role in combat. In August MG A. E Milloy took command of the 1st I.D. while the division took part in battles along National Highway 13, known as "Thunder Road" to the end of the year.
In January 1970 it was announced that the division would return to Fort Riley. 11 members of the division were awarded the Medal of Honor.
- Casualties
- 6,146 Killed in Action
- 16,019 Wounded in Action
- 20 Prisoner of War
[edit] Modern Era
[edit] First Gulf War
The division, commanded by Major General Thomas G. Rhame, also participated in Operation Desert Storm. The division's two maneuver brigades from Ft. Riley were rounded out by the addition of two tank battalions (2-66 and 3-66 AR), an infantry battalion (1-41 IN), and a field artillery battalion (4-3 FA) from 2nd Armored Division (Forward) in Germany. It was responsible for the initial breach of the Iraqi defenses, consequently rolling over the Iraqi 26th Infantry Division and taking 2,600 prisoners of war. The Big Red One continued with the subsequent 260 kilometer assault on enemy-held territory over 100 hours, engaging eleven Iraqi divisions, destroying 550 enemy tanks, 480 armored personnel carriers and taking 11,400 prisoners. By the early morning of February 28, 1991, the division had taken position along the Highway of Death, preventing any Iraqi retreat. The division's 2nd Dagger Brigade, led by Colonel Anthony Moreno, was then tasked with securing town of Safwan, Iraq, which was to be the site for the permanent cease-fire negotioations.
There was also the “bulldozer assault”, wherein two brigades from the 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) used anti-mine plows mounted on tanks and combat earthmovers to bury Iraqi soldiers defending the fortified "Saddam Line." While approximately 2,000 of the troops surrendered, escaping burial, one newspaper story reported that the U.S. commanders estimated thousands of Iraqi soldiers had been buried alive during the two-day assault February 24-25, 1991.[citation needed]
In 1996 the division colors were relocated to the German city of Würzburg.
[edit] Bosnia/Kosovo
2nd (Dagger)Brigade Combat Team deployed to Bosnia as part of IFOR2 / SFOR1 from October 1996 to April 1997. 2nd Brigade was replaced by element from 3rd Brigade and 4th Brigade(AVN).
Elements of the division, to include personnel and units from the 2nd, 3rd and 4th (Aviation) Brigades, served in Kosovo. During the Kosovo War 3 Soldiers were captured by Serbian forces but were later released after peace talks.
Units of the 1st Infantry Division served in Kosovo for KFOR 1A and KFOR 1B from June 1999 to June 2000, then again for KFOR 4A and 4B from May 2002 to July 2003.
[edit] 2003 Invasion of Iraq
The 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division deployed from Fort Riley, Kansas in September 2003 to provide support to the 82nd Airborne Division in the city of Ramadi, Iraq. In February 2004, the Division deployed to Iraq, where it conducted a relief in place of the 4th Infantry Division, primarily in Salah ad-Din and Diyala provinces, with the Division headquarters being located on Forward Operating Base Danger, near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. Task Force Danger, as the Division was called during OIF2, also had a light infantry brigade from the 25th Infantry Division and the 30th Enhanced Separate Brigade, "Old Hickory," of the North Carolina National Guard. In September 2004, the 1st Brigade was replaced by elements from the 2nd Infantry Division in Ramadi and redeployed to Ft. Riley. In February 2005, the division was replaced by the 42d Infantry Division, New York National Guard, and elements of the 3rd Infantry Division and returned to its home in Germany.
[edit] 1st Infantry Division Rebasing to CONUS
In July, 2006 the division was withdrawn from Germany back to Fort Riley in CONUS, leaving only 2nd (Dagger) Brigade in Schweinfurt, Germany until 28th March 2008 when the 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division reflagged as the 2nd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division. So now all units are based at Fort Riley, Kan.
[edit] 2006 Deployment to Iraq
The 2nd (Dagger) Brigade is deployed in the current conflict in Iraq. One of the brigade's battalions, 1st Battalion, 77th Armor, is deployed to Ramadi, while the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry is in central Baghdad and the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry is in the Adhamiya neighborhood. While the 101st MI Battalion serves from Camp Liberty in the heart of Baghdad.
Elements from Fort Riley's 1st (Devil) Brigade deployed in the fall of 2006 to other area of operations in Iraq. Units include companies from the 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry; 1st Battalion, 34th Armor; 1st Battalion, 5th Field Artillery; 1st Engineer Battalion; and D Troop, 4th Cavalry.
[edit] Transition Team training mission
State-side training for the Military Transition Teams (MiTTs) is located at Fort Riley, Kansas. Training began June 1, 2006.
[edit] 2007 Deployment to Iraq
In the Fall of 2007, the 1st Combat Aviation Brigade (Demon Brigade) deployed to Iraq and was placed under the command of Multinational Division - North located at COB Spiecher. The majority of the CAB is stationed at COB Spiecher, with 1-6 Cavalry and some supporting elements stationed at FOB Warrior.
[edit] Honors
[edit] Campaign Participation Credit
- World War I:
- Montdidier-Noyon
- Aisne-Marne
- St. Mihiel
- Meuse-Argonne
- Lorraine 1917
- Lorraine 1918
- Picardy 1918
- World War II:
- Algeria-French Morocco (with arrowhead)
- Tunisia
- Sicily (with arrowhead)
- Normandy (with arrowhead)
- Northern France
- Rhineland
- Ardennes-Alsace
- Central Europe
- Vietnam:
- Defense
- Counteroffensive
- Counteroffensive, Phase II
- Counteroffensive, Phase III
- Tet Counteroffensive
- Counteroffensive, Phase IV
- Counteroffensive, Phase V
- Counteroffensive, Phase VI
- Tet 69/Counteroffensive
- Summer-Fall 1969
- Winter-Spring 1970
- Southwest Asia:
- Defense of Saudi Arabia
- Liberation and Defense of Kuwait
- Cease-Fire
- Global War on Terrorism
[edit] Decorations
- Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army) for VIETNAM 1968
- Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army) for SOUTHWEST ASIA
- Army Superior Unit Award for 1997
- French Croix de Guerre with Palm, World War II for KASSERINE
- French Croix de Guerre with Palm, World War II for NORMANDY
- French Croix de Guerre, World War II, Fourragere
- Belgian Fourragere 1940
- Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at MONS
- Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at EUPEN-MALMEDY
- Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm for VIETNAM 1965-1968
- Republic of Vietnam Civil Action Honor Medal, First Class for VIETNAM 1965-1970
[edit] Commanding Generals
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[edit] See also
- The Big Red One (1980), a movie about the division's experiences in WWII written by Samuel Fuller who served in the division during WWII.
- Call of Duty: Finest Hour (2004), a video game that involves a squad of the 1st Infantry Division in several missions.
- Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (2005), a video game focusing on the division in WWII was released on November 1, 2005
- Cantigny, the former estate of Col. Robert R. McCormick, is where the 1st Infantry Division Museum is located. The museum showcases the history of the 1st Infantry Division, from their involvement in World War I to the present, along with several tanks situated outside the museum dating from World War I to the present.
- First Division Monument
[edit] References
- ^ 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment "Black Lions". GlobalSecurity.org (2006-07-17). Retrieved on 2007-02-09.
[edit] Books
- Rags, The Dog who went to war, Jack Rohan, Diggory Press, ISBN 978-1846853647
Bonded by Blood, Clayton Walk
[edit] External links
- Duty First: The 1st Infantry Division's award-winning quarterly magazine
- 1st Infantry Division website
- The Society of the First Infantry Division website
- 16th Infantry Regiment Association "Semper Paratus" Website
- Commanders of 1st Infantry Division
- GlobalSecurity.org page on 1ID
- The First! The Story of the 1st Infantry Division (WWII divisional history booklet, 1945)
- Institute of Heraldy
- Society of the First Infantry Division
- 26 photos of First Division Memorial at "Sites of Memory"
- Big Red One MVCG Belgium MONS (Belgian Big Red One re-enactment unit)
- 1st ID Operation Iraqi Freedom II Memorial Video
- [1]
- _Echoes of War: Stories from the Big Red One_ An interactive digital media experience broadcasted on PBS stations in September 2007. The two live television programs originated from the First Division Museum at Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois. They showcased interviews with BRO veterans of World War II as well as combat footage and museum exhibits.
- The Duty First, Belgian re-enactment group, Belgium/Houtain-le-Val