Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr. was a senior United States Army officer who fought in both World War I and World War II. Allen was a decorated World War I veteran, where he commanded an infantry battalion at the relatively young age of 30 in 1918 and was wounded twice, and, after America's entry into World War II in late 1941, he commanded the 1st Infantry Division in North Africa and Sicily from May 1942 until August 1943. He was later selected to lead the 104th Infantry Division as divisional commander, a post he held until the war's end in 1945.

The 1st Infantry Division (1ID) is a combined arms division of the United States Army, and is the oldest continuously serving division in the Regular Army. It has seen continuous service since its organization in 1917 during World War I. It was officially nicknamed "The Big Red One" after its shoulder patch and is also nicknamed "The Fighting First." The division has also received troop monikers of "The Big Dead One" and "The Bloody First" as puns on the respective officially sanctioned nicknames. It is currently based at Fort Riley, Kansas.