75th Infantry Division (United States)

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75th Infantry Division

75e Division d'Infanterie (USA) .svg

Division badge
Lineup 1943
Country Flag of the United States.svg United States
Armed forces United States Armed Forces
Armed forces United States Army
Branch of service infantry
Type Infantry division
motto Make Ready
Butcher Second World War
Battle of the Bulge

The 75th Infantry Division ( German  75th US Infantry Division ) is a large unit of the US Army , which today exists as a reserve unit and bears the name 75th Division (Training Support) .

history

Second World War

Soldiers of the 75th Infantry Division in the snow. Recorded at Amonines, Érezée in January 1945.

The division was established on April 15, 1943 in Fort Leonard Wood , Missouri . After numerous maneuvers, she came to Great Britain in November 1944 and to France in December 1944 . The division was under Major General Prickett in Yvetot when the Battle of the Bulge broke out. On December 23, the association came to the front to fight on the Ourthe . The Americans had to fight against strong units of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS as well as the harsh winter. On January 5, 1945, battles followed for Grandménil in Manhay . Then the division was in action with the 82nd Airborne Division on the Salm , on January 17th, Vielsalm was conquered. With the 6th Army there were then further skirmishes in France, at the beginning of February Colmar was liberated.

The Rhine was reached on February 7th . After a brief recovery period for the division was in the Netherlands ordered to attend the Maas to the 6th Airborne Division of the British Army to push. From March 13 to 23, the 75th Infantry Division operated between Wesel and Homburg to fend off counterattacks by the Germans. On March 24th, the 79th Infantry Division and the 30th Infantry Division crossed the Rhine . Numerous forced laborers were freed during the fighting in West Germany. Then they advanced to Rhineland-Palatinate , where the Haardtwald was reached at the end of March and was cleared of enemy troops. The Dortmund-Ems Canal was crossed on April 1st , after which Dortmund was liberated together with the 95th Infantry Division . On April 13th, soldiers from the Herdecke division captured , after which they went to Brambauer to remain as a reserve unit. The division then took occupation and security units in Westphalia before the war ended on May 8th. The division was temporarily stationed in Werdohl before it was brought to the USA in November and deactivated there. During the war, 817 soldiers of the division died and 3314 were wounded.

post war period

Between 1952 and 1957 the division existed in Texas . Since 1993 the tradition of the division has been continued by the 75th Division (Training Support) . In the course of the transformation of the United States Army , it is now active as a training and supply unit.

organization

The division was set up as follows during World War II:

  • 289th Infantry Regiment
  • 290th Infantry Regiment
  • 291st Infantry Regiment
  • 75th Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop
  • Artillery Division
    • 730th Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
    • 897th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
    • 898th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
    • 899th Field Artillery Battalion (105mm)
  • Special troops
    • 275th Engineer Battalion
    • 375th Medical Battalion
    • 75th Quartermaster Company
    • 575th Signal Company
    • 775th Ordnance Company (Light Maintenance)
    • 75th CIC Detachment
    • 75th Military Police Platoon

Division commanders

  • Major General Willard S. Paul, April-August 1943
  • Maj. Gen. Fay B. Prickett, August 1943-January 1945
  • Maj. Gen. Ray E. Porter, January-June 1945
  • Maj. Gen. Arthur A. White, June - October 1945
  • Brigade General Charles R. Doran, October 1945 - November 1945

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ US Army Reserve website