395th infantry regiment 99th infantry division

[6] On more than one occasion, BAR gunners would allow Germans to get within feet of their positions before opening fire, with the objective of increasing the odds of killing the attacking Germans. The silver and bronze star medal of Col. Alexander John Mackenzie, Regimental Commandor of the 395th Infantry Regiment. [1] The camp was newly built, and the barracks were covered in tar paper. The regiment assumed occupation duties in Hammelburg and Bad Brckenau until it was shipped home in the summer of 1945. Category: 395thIR On this page, we honor the memory of the men of the 99th Infantry Division and pay tribute to their extraordinary contributions to the war effort. On 3 November 1944, the 395th Regiment disembarked at Le Havre, France. The 3rd Battalion received a Presidential Unit Citation for its actions around Hfen from 16 to 19 December. No one had anticipated such a rapid Allied advance. The program never fulfilled its promise, and the large number of "ASTPers" were rapidly integrated into various divisions to make up for personnel shortages in front line units during 1944. The 395th Regiment's success earned it many difficult assignments. But the infantry often bore worse casualties than the tanks did and had to be replaced and reinforced more quickly. Mission of the 395th Infantry Regiment I. 395thIR - 99th Infantry Division The unit crossed the Altmuhl River on 25 April, the Danube River on 27 April, and the Isar River on 30 April. The unit's distinctive shoulder patch consisted of a five-sided shield of black on which is superimposed a horizontal band of white and blue squares. Dad proudly told that the 99th was the first complete unit cross the Remagen Bridge on March 9th or 10th. In early December, much of the Allied forces were established in a general defensive line from the North Sea to the Swiss border. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, MIGHTY NETWORKS, 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Artificial Intelligence just flew an F-16 Fighting Falcon for the US military, WWII vet finally receives Silver Star for heroism at Battle of the Bulge, This is the massive Nazi sneak attack at the Battle of the Bulge, Rarely seen footage from the Battle of the Bulge, The first tank to break into Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge was almost lost to history. The 99th was selected as one of these new regional support commands. After the Gulf War, the 99th ARCOM became the 99th Regional Support Command (RSC). The black represents the iron from the mills of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where many of the troops were from. 99th Infantry Division (United States) - Wikipedia Staff Sergeant, Service Company, 395th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry Division, ETO, participated in the Battle of the Bulge, the Ruhr Pocket, and the Occupation of Germany, recipient of the Bronze Star. Many historians have written about the famous Buffalo Soldiers of the all-Black 92nd Infantry Division, who fought with distinction during World War II. Two men who had been sent on foot to regimental headquarters to seek reinforcements were later captured. I never dreamed that we would have a defensive position of this size without any backup or help from our division or regiment. It was credited with destroying "seventy-five percent of three German infantry regiments." EN RU CN DE ES. The 12th SS pushed through the woods and probed the villages at around 1100 hours. 99th Infantry Division Historical Society The National WWII Museum Digital Collections. The buck's head was used to indicate the allocation of the organization to the mountainous section of Pennsylvania, where deer abound. Sgt Harold Rutz, 395th Infantry Regiment, M Company. It attacked toward the Monschau Forest, on 1 February, mopping up and patrolling until it was relieved for training and rehabilitation, on 13 February. The 3rd Battalion of the 395th Infantry Regiment (3/395), commanded by Lieutenant Colonel McClernand Butler, occupied the town of Hfen on the German border. The 99th Infantry's report stated that 1,500 Jews were "living under terrible conditions and approximately 600 required hospitalization due to starvation and disease.". Although 3/395 had only 600 men to defend a large area, they had been told that the German army, or Wehrmacht, was no longer capable of major offensive operations and that their winter in the Ardennes would be a quiet one. Shield The 395th Infantry, Organized Reserves, was organized in 1921. Cemeteries & Memorials; Burial Search; About Us; Education; Facebook; Twitter; YouTube; Instagram; ABMC Headquarters 2300 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 500 Arlington, VA 22201 Phone: 703-584-1501. The Battles for Elsenborn Ridge Part I - New Orleans This page was last edited on 11 March 2022, at 19:44. The 99th Infantry Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the US Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1992. Attached below the shield a silver scroll inscribed "VIGILANS ET CELER" in Black letters.[21]. The Intelligence and Reconnaissance Platoon, 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Division was the most decorated platoon for a single action of World War II. Put under the operational control of V Corps, First Army, it moved to Le Havre, France on 3 November and proceeded to Aubel, Belgium, to prepare to enter the front lines. Below are the top five veteran research questions, where to go for further resources, and how to begin your search. Still, some German assaults penetrated American lines near the town of Hofen where they were eventually captured after retreating into houses in the town. The program was called the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP), and it sought to give extra training and special skills to a select group of intelligent and able young men, most of whom were taken from America's colleges. Ordered into active military service: 15 November 1942 Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi. This article contains content in the public domain from U.S. military sources. The 99th Infantry Division received recruits from the ASTP program (Army Specialized Training Program, to make up for the personnel shortages in front line units during 1944. In the northern sector opposite the 99th, this included more than 4,000 deaths and the destruction of sixty tanks and big guns.[8]. The lines were then moved back to form defensive positions east of Elsenborn Ridge on the 19th. . [6][17]:vii. It had its headquarters at Franklin, Pennsylvania, and drew its personnel from Pennsylvania. Every member of the platoon was decorated, which included four Distinguished Service Crosses, five Silver Stars and ten Bronze Stars with "V" devices signifying awards for valor in combat.[10]. The 14th Armored Division and the Liberation of Stalag VIIA Hfen, along with the nearby town of Monschau, was strategically vital because it sat on elevated terrain overlooking an important road junction. [4] Lt. Col. Butler retired from the Army on 14 January 1946 and worked for the phone company for the rest of his career. Accurate estimates of German wounded were not possible, but about 20 percent of the 326th Volksgrenadier Division were lost. The 395th Infantry Regiment was disposed defensively from north to south with the 3rd Battalion in the Hfen area in Germany, the 2nd Battalion was in the center at Kalterherberg, and the 1st Battalion remained on the regiment's right, southeast of Kalterherberg. The enemy artillery was so intense that communications were generally out. Encountering paltry resistance at first, the Germans launched an attack on the towns and initially met with success, pushing into Rocherath with a clear path beyond. Due in part to the 99th Infantry Division, this ground mission has not been continuous, and he will not achieve his goal[15]. One Wehrmacht officer captured at Hfen asked his interrogators which unit had defended the town. To make circumstances worse, just beyond the bloodied-but-not-beaten Volksgrenadiers waited the tanks of the 6th Panzer Army. The 99th RSC's mission was to provide command and control and full-service support for assigned units and facility management. From Camp Van Dorn they were transferred to the more established Camp Maxey in Paris, Texas for additional training. 99th Infantry Division used the relatively quiet period to prepare an extensive defensive system, including redundant lines of communication, precise positioning of weapons to provide interlocking grazing fire, and aggressive patrols that kept the Germans off guard. The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 395th Regiment Infantry, Organized Reserves on 16 June 1931. The 3rd Battalion, 395th Regiment had acquitted itself with valor, having held its lines despite the harsh winter weather, the enemy's numerical superiority and greater numbers of armored units. The Germans, moving across illuminated open ground without cover, fell by the hundreds against the murderous American fire. [16], On 16 July 2003, the command was redesignated as the 99th Regional Readiness Command, placing additional emphasis on training, readiness, and mobilization. By 17 December, German military planners knew that their objectives along the Elsenborn Ridge would not be taken as soon as planned. Fort Benning | Maneuver Center of Excellence Libraries | MCoE HQ The division headquarters was organized in November 1921. "[13] The division continued to attack without opposition to the Inn River and Giesenhausen until VE-day. The 395th Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the United States Army, part of the 99th Infantry Division during World War II. Hfen, along with the nearby town of Monschau, was strategically vital because it sat on elevated terrain overlooking an important road junction. the horizontal band of white and blue squares was adopted from the coat of arms The Germans threw wave after wave of infantry, and a unit of panzers, at the town. The regiment arrived at Camp Van Dorn in early December. At the going down of the sun And in the morning We will remember them." 324th Engineer Combat Battalion Albertson Dale W Bass Robert D Brown Edwin C Busk The 99th held lines stretching from Monschau, Germany to Losheimergraben, Belgium, totaling 35 kilometres (22mi). Grouping from Col. Alexander John Mackenzie, Regimental Commandor of The men carried out missions without orders when their positions were penetrated or infiltrated. It was like a golf course, so I used the night for concealment."[6]. So I stayed in the village overnight. On May 34, 1945, as the 99th moved deeper into Bavaria, it liberated one of a number of Dachau subcamps near the town of Mhldorf. When the Ardennes Offensive ended, Gen. Lauer received verbal commendations from Field Marshal Sir Bernard L. Montgomery, 21st Army Group Commander, and Gen. Courtney Hodges, First Army Commander, on the vigorous and effective defense contributed by the 99th. The retreat turned into a route as the German tanks, two less due to a duel with two American Shermans, rolled unmolested down the street in the village. As the American defenders began to assess casualties and ammunition supplies, the 12th SS hit them again. As they did so, another German assault hit them, this time with support from 5 MKV Panther tanks. That was not the case for the Americans near Elsenborn. Allied forces were fighting their way across France, and fresh units were badly needed in autumn 1944 to continue to press the offensive. After the war, the Division founded its own Association and for many years the veterans and their families got united at the many conventions that were held. [8], That is three to four times wider than recommended by Army textbooks. And while the defense of the crossroads of hell was gallant to be sure, it was not the back breaker that most people assume it to have been. April 13th, 1945 - 99th Division, 395th Infantry Regiment, in the Ruhr [12] For their part, the German army was planning a seven-day campaign to seize Antwerp. [7]:3, Col. Butler went ahead to look over the area they were assigned to defend. The Battle of the Bulge was the largest battle ever fought by the United States Army. The sudden infusion of new men caused some friction with the old hands in the short term, but the long-term effects were generally positive. This was the most southern area of the Battle of the Bulge. This did not turn out to be true. The blue and white checkerboard in the division's insignia is taken from the coat of arms of William Pitt, for whom Pittsburgh is named. The real crusher to the German offensive plans in the Ardennes occurred 46 miles north east of Bastogne, in a small area consisting of a copse of small villages and a piece of high ground called Elsenborn Ridge. [2]:33 On at least six occasions they called in artillery strikes on or directly in front of their own positions. Led by 20-year-old Lieutenant Lyle Bouck Jr., they delayed the advance of the 1st SS Panzer Division, the spearhead of the entire German 6th Panzer Army, for nearly 20 hours. When I got to Hfen, I found the area too big to cover in one afternoon. The division was chiefly manned with graduates of the ROTC programs of the Carnegie Institute of Technology, Duquesne University. Subscribe to 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry Division Footer menu. On 25 October 1981, the entire platoon was recognized with a Presidential Unit Citation. The citation read: During the German offensive in the Ardennes, the Third Battalion in the 395th Infantry, was assigned the mission of holding the Monschau-Eupen-Liege Road. Troops Fight at Elsenburn Ridge", "Why the Bulge Didn't Break: Green Troops Grew Up Fast to Become Heroes of Hofen", "The Battle for Lanzerath HillThe True Story16December1944", "A hero remembers the Battle of the Bulge", "The Heroic Stand of an Intelligence Platoon", "General Orders No. Outnumbered five to one, they inflicted casualties in the ratio of 18 to one. Harold was . Medical Detachment, 395th Infantry A. P. O. For their actions the battalion was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation which read, in part: outnumbered 5 to 1, [3/395] inflicted casualties in the ratio of 18 to 1. Not only did your command assist in effectively frustrating that particular part of the plan, but it also inflicted such heavy losses on the enemy that he was unable to carry out other contemplated missions in other sectors of the Allied front. [16], The U.S. Army Center of Military History states that the 99th RSC does not perpetuate the lineage and honors of the 99th Infantry Division. The unit was inactivated after World War II, then became a reserve unit, and was redesignated as the 395th Regiment in 1999. Battle of the Bulge Butler was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 21 March 1944, and remained in command of the 395th until 30 April 1945, when he collapsed from exhaustion. The 99th battled on to the bridge at Remagen that was taken on March 7th. It was organized with the rest of the 99th on 16 November 1942 at Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi. [16], Following the 11 September 2001, terrorist attacks, the 99th mobilized large numbers of Army Reserve Soldiers. 395th Infantry Regiment (united States) - Encyclopedia Information The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) in the European Theater was one of Americas bloodiest campaigns. This assault, like the first, was ground to a halt due to heavy American small arms and artillery fire. Crest That for the regiments and separate battalions of the Army Reserve: From a wreath Argent and Azure, the Lexington Minute Man Proper. The platoon members were not recognized for their courageous deeds for thirty-seven years. The German spearhead in the north, led by the 1st SS Panzer Division and Jochen Peipers Kampfgruppe plowed through jammed roads to the south of Elsenborn and the twin villages of Krinkelt and Rocherath hell bent on their ultimate destination of the Meuse River. Organization and training began in October but were not complete by the time the war ended in November 1918, so the division was demobilized in early 1919. General Eisenhower and his staff chose the Ardennes region, held by the First Army, as an area that could be held by as few troops as possible. The Germans would never take Hfen, nor most of their other ambitious objectives in the Ardennes, due in large part to the soldiers of 3/395 and the 99th ID as a whole. Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at Elsenborn Crest. On 22 December 1967, the 99th Army Reserve Command (ARCOM) was activated. [2], Because of the success of the 395th and the 99th, the Americans maintained effective freedom to maneuver across the north flank of the German's line of advance and continually limited the success of the German offensive. The largest of the ghettos where Eastern European Jews were first confined and, later, deported to extermination camps by the Nazis was set up in Warsaw, Poland. Inactivated: 15 October 1945, Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 99th Infantry Division Artillery, 99th Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized), Headquarters, Special Troops, 99th Infantry Division, Headquarters Company, 99th Infantry Division, 99th Counterintelligence Corps Detachment, 20 December 1944: Attached, with the entire First Army, to the, 7 January 1945: Relieved from attachment to the 2nd Infantry Division and assigned to V Corps, First Army (attached to the British 21st Army Group), 12th Army Group, 18 January 1945: V Corps, First Army, 12th Army Group, This page was last edited on 2 January 2023, at 13:21. At the Arcadia Conference, held in Washington, DC, from December 24, 1941 to January 14, 1942, the Western Allies agreed to a Germany First policy to govern global strategy, but the question where to engage Germany, and when, remained unsettled. The 395th Infantry had mostly held their lines, and now with the battle hardened 2nd Infantry Division on the way to back them up, the lines of defense near Elsenborn appeared to be significantly harder to pierce. In March 1945, the 99th advanced into the Rhineland, crossing the Rhine River at Remagen on March 11. Against light resistance, it crossed the Dill River and pushed on to Krofdorf-Gleiberg, taking Giessen 29 March. Crossing on the 23d, it pushed east on the Koln-Frankfurt highway to Giessen. 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry Division | American Battle The 99th Infantry Division, comprising the 393rd, 394th, and the 395th Infantry Regiments, arrived in England on 10 October 1944. Allies and former enemy Germany mark 75th anniversary of Battle of Battle of the Bulge: WWII vets travel to Belgium for 75th anniversary. The 395th's casualties were extremely light: four dead, seven wounded, and four men missing. Peipers right flank had to be secured and the Americans in that region had to be destroyed. . The unit reported on May 4 that it had "liberated 3 labor camps and 1 concentration camp." [14], The 99th as a whole, outnumbered five to one, inflicted casualties in the ratio of eighteen to one. The infantry at Hfen lay in a foxhole line along a 910 metres (2,990ft) front on the eastern side of the village, backed up by dug-out support positions. "[9]:1738 On at least six occasions they called in artillery strikes on or directly in front of their own positions. 394th Infantry Regiment Medical Detachment (99th Infantry Division), History, January 1945. Score: 4.8/5 (10 votes) . A member of the 395th Infantry Regiment , the photographer captured an amazing scene through the lens of this camera in these images. No division commander was appointed during the organization's brief existence. The 394th Infantry Regiment was established on 23 July 1918 as the 394th Infantry and assigned to the 99th Division as a member of the National Army. The Germans planned to use massed infantry assaults to punch holes in the American lines, after which the feared German tanks, or panzers, would race through these gaps while the winter weather kept Allied planes grounded. The Army operated a program designed to capitalize on the large number of educated and intelligent recruits that were available. 395th Infantry Regiment (United States) | Detailed Pedia . [6], The regiment's (3rd Battalion) earned the sobriquet Butler's Battlin' Blue Bastards derived from the name of its single commander, its special fighting abilities, the battalion's color designation, and because the regiment was often lent out and belonged to no one. During the first day of the Battle of the Bulge, the 3rd Battalion took 19 prisoners and killed an estimated 200 Germans. Butler attended, but did not graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. At precisely 0530 hours, the forest erupted in an ear shattering German artillery barrage along a 100 mile front. Lineage and Honors Information as of 12 January 2018, CHARLES R. BOWERY, JR.Chief of Military History, Constituted 23 July 1918 in the National Army as the 395th Infantry and assigned to the 99th Division, Reconstituted 24 June 1921 in the Organized Reserves as the 395th Infantry and assigned to the 99th Division (later redesignated as the 99th Infantry Division), Organized in November 1921 with Headquarters at Franklin, Pennsylvania, Ordered into active military service 15 November 1942 and reorganized at Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi, Inactivated 29 September 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts, (Organized Reserves redesignated 25 March 1948 as the Organized Reserve Corps; redesignated 9 July 1952 as the Army Reserve), Relieved 29 October 1998 from assignment to the 99th Infantry Division, Redesignated 17 October 1999 as the 395th Regiment and reorganized to consist of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Battalions, elements of the 75th Division (Training Support); 1st, 2d, and 3d Battalions concurrently allotted to the Regular Army, Regiment reorganized 2 November 2008 as a parent regiment under the United States Army Regimental System; concurrently 1st, 2d, and 3d Battalions relieved from assignment to the 75th Division (Training Support), Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at the Siegfried Line, Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at Elsenborn Crest, Army Superior Unit Award, Streamer embroidered 2008-2011, Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action in the Ardennes, Presidential Unit Citation (Army), Streamer embroidered ARDENNES. "In two cases, the enemy fell in the BAR gunners' foxholes. 395th Infantry Regiment Medical Detachment (99th Infantry . The 395th Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the United States Army, part of the 99th Infantry Division during World War II. The three heavy German assaults had worn down the ammunition supply, particularly that of the machine gunners, and had left the defenders mostly helpless. This northern shoulder of the American line where the 99th ID was entrenched would be the hinge on which the German assault would pivot northwest toward Antwerp. Sgt. American troops from the 290th Regiment near Amonines, Belgium. 26 (Unit Commendations)", The 99th Infantry Division During World War II, "Battle Babies: The Story of the 99th Infantry Division", Office of the Chief of Military History Department of the Army, http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/cbtchron/cbtchron.html, Battle Babies: The Story of the 99th Infantry Division, Checkerboard, official publication of 99th Infantry Division Association, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=99th_Infantry_Division_(United_States)&oldid=1131083137, Infantry divisions of the United States Army, United States Army divisions during World War II, Military units and formations established in 1918, Infantry divisions of the United States Army in World War II, Military units and formations disestablished in 1945, United States Army divisions of World War I, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2015, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0.

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