1.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
2.
United States Army
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The United States Armed Forces are the federal armed forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, from the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the history of the United States. A sense of unity and identity was forged as a result of victory in the First Barbary War. Even so, the Founders were suspicious of a permanent military force and it played an important role in the American Civil War, where leading generals on both sides were picked from members of the United States military. Not until the outbreak of World War II did a standing army become officially established. The National Security Act of 1947, adopted following World War II and during the Cold Wars onset, the U. S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its personnel from a pool of paid volunteers. As of 2016, the United States spends about $580.3 billion annually to fund its military forces, put together, the United States constitutes roughly 40 percent of the worlds military expenditures. For the period 2010–14, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that the United States was the worlds largest exporter of major arms, the United States was also the worlds eighth largest importer of major weapons for the same period. The history of the U. S. military dates to 1775 and these forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the War for Independence. All three services trace their origins to the founding of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, the United States President is the U. S. militarys commander-in-chief. Rising tensions at various times with Britain and France and the ensuing Quasi-War and War of 1812 quickened the development of the U. S. Navy, the reserve branches formed a military strategic reserve during the Cold War, to be called into service in case of war. Time magazines Mark Thompson has suggested that with the War on Terror, Command over the armed forces is established in the United States Constitution. The sole power of command is vested in the President by Article II as Commander-in-Chief, the Constitution also allows for the creation of executive Departments headed principal officers whose opinion the President can require. This allowance in the Constitution formed the basis for creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 by the National Security Act, the Defense Department is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is a civilian and member of the Cabinet. The Defense Secretary is second in the chain of command, just below the President. Together, the President and the Secretary of Defense comprise the National Command Authority, to coordinate military strategy with political affairs, the President has a National Security Council headed by the National Security Advisor. The collective body has only power to the President
3.
Fort Hood
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Fort Hood is a U. S. military post located in Killeen, Texas. The post is named after Confederate General John Bell Hood and it is located halfway between Austin and Waco, about 60 miles from each, within the U. S. state of Texas. Fort Hood is an installation of the United States Army and is the largest military base in the world more than 215,000 acres. Its origin was the need for space to test and train with World War II tank destroyers. The War Department announced the location in January 1942, and the completion was set for that August. As originally constructed, Fort Hood had an area of 158,706 acres, the main cantonment of Fort Hood had a total population of 53,416 as of the 2010 U. S. Census. Fort Hood is the most populous U. S. military installation in the world, the main business area is in Bell County, with the training countryside area of the post in Coryell County. In April 2014, the Fort Hood website lists 45,414 assigned soldiers and 8,900 civilian employees with Fort Hood covering 214,000 acres, during World War II, tank destroyers were developed to counter German mobile armored units. These were mobile anti-tank guns on armored halftracks or specially developed tanks, wide-open space was needed for the tank destroyer testing and training, which Texas had in abundance. Andrew Davis Bruce was assigned to organize a new Tank Destroyer Tactical and Firing Center, the War Department announced the selection on 15 January 1942. An initial acquisition of 108,000 acres was made, and it was estimated that the camp would cost $22,800,000 for the land, facilities, the date of completion was set for 15 August 1942. About 300 families had to move from their homes to make room for the area and the communities of Clear Creek, Elijah. The old Sugar Loaf community, historically called the Cradle of Killeen, all that remains of the community is the mountain from which it took its name, located in the Fort Hood area. To lessen the burden of moving, the Army agreed to land to be used for grazing for a nominal grazing fee. This grazing arrangement still continues today, in mid-August the camp was occupied and the official opening took place on 18 September 1942. Camp Hood was named for the Confederate General John Bell Hood, the original facilities provided housing and training sites for nearly 38,000 troops. In January 1943, an additional 16,000 acres in Bell County and 34,943 acres in Coryell County near Gatesville, the site near Gatesville was known as the sub-camp and later as North Camp Hood. During the war years, North Camp Hood housed nearly 40,000 troops and 4,000 prisoners of war, and was the site for the southern branch of the United States Disciplinary Barracks
4.
Vietnam War
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It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. The war is considered a Cold War-era proxy war. As the war continued, the actions of the Viet Cong decreased as the role. U. S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations, involving ground forces, artillery, in the course of the war, the U. S. conducted a large-scale strategic bombing campaign against North Vietnam. The North Vietnamese government and the Viet Cong were fighting to reunify Vietnam and they viewed the conflict as a colonial war and a continuation of the First Indochina War against forces from France and later on the United States. The U. S. government viewed its involvement in the war as a way to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam and this was part the domino theory of a wider containment policy, with the stated aim of stopping the spread of communism. Beginning in 1950, American military advisors arrived in what was then French Indochina, U. S. involvement escalated in the early 1960s, with troop levels tripling in 1961 and again in 1962. Regular U. S. combat units were deployed beginning in 1965, despite the Paris Peace Accord, which was signed by all parties in January 1973, the fighting continued. In the U. S. and the Western world, a large anti-Vietnam War movement developed as part of a larger counterculture, the war changed the dynamics between the Eastern and Western Blocs, and altered North–South relations. Direct U. S. military involvement ended on 15 August 1973, the capture of Saigon by the North Vietnamese Army in April 1975 marked the end of the war, and North and South Vietnam were reunified the following year. The war exacted a huge human cost in terms of fatalities, estimates of the number of Vietnamese soldiers and civilians killed vary from 966,000 to 3.8 million. Some 240, 000–300,000 Cambodians,20, 000–62,000 Laotians, and 58,220 U. S. service members died in the conflict. Various names have applied to the conflict. Vietnam War is the most commonly used name in English and it has also been called the Second Indochina War and the Vietnam Conflict. As there have been several conflicts in Indochina, this conflict is known by the names of its primary protagonists to distinguish it from others. In Vietnamese, the war is known as Kháng chiến chống Mỹ. It is also called Chiến tranh Việt Nam, France began its conquest of Indochina in the late 1850s, and completed pacification by 1893. The 1884 Treaty of Huế formed the basis for French colonial rule in Vietnam for the seven decades
5.
Iraq War
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The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces. An estimated 151,000 to 600,000 or more Iraqis were killed in the first 3–4 years of conflict and it became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition, the insurgency and many dimensions of the civil armed conflict continue. The invasion began on 20 March 2003, with the U. S. joined by the United Kingdom and several allies, launching a shock. Iraqi forces were overwhelmed as U. S. forces swept through the country. The invasion led to the collapse of the Baathist government, President Hussein was captured during Operation Red Dawn in December of that same year, the United States responded with a troop surge in 2007. The winding down of U. S. involvement in Iraq accelerated under President Barack Obama, the U. S. formally withdrew all combat troops from Iraq by December 2011. Select U. S. officials accused Saddam of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, while others cited the desire to end a repressive dictatorship, after the invasion, no substantial evidence was found to verify the initial claims about WMDs. The rationale and misrepresentation of pre-war intelligence faced heavy criticism within the U. S. in the aftermath of the invasion, Iraq held multi-party elections in 2005. Nouri al-Maliki became Prime Minister in 2006 and remained in office until 2014, the al-Maliki government enacted policies that were widely seen as having the effect of alienating the countrys Sunni minority and worsening sectarian tensions. The Iraq War caused hundreds of thousands of civilian, and thousands of military casualties, the majority of casualties occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007. A1990 Frontline report on The arming of Iraq said, Officially, most Western nations participated in an arms embargo against Iraq during the 1980s. Western companies, primarily in Germany and Great Britain, but also in the United States, sold Iraq the key technology for its chemical, missile, any Western governments seemed remarkably indifferent, if not enthusiastic, about those deals. N Washington, the government consistently followed a policy which allowed and perhaps encouraged the growth of Saddam Husseins arsenal. The Western arming of Iraq took place in the context of the Iran-Iraq War, prior to September 2002, the CIA was the George W. Bush administrations main provider of intelligence on Iraq. The agency was out to disprove linkage between Iraq and terrorism the Pentagon adviser told me, the U. N. had prohibited Iraq from developing or possessing such weapons after the Gulf War and required Iraq to permit inspections confirming compliance. This was confirmed by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, during 2002, Bush repeatedly warned of military action against Iraq unless inspections were allowed to progress unfettered. In accordance with U. N. Security Council Resolution 1441, Iraq agreed to new inspections under United Nations Monitoring, as part of its weapons inspection obligations, Iraq was required to supply a full declaration of its current weapons capabilities and manufacturing
6.
Jesse McI. Carter
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Jesse McIlvane Carter was a United States Army Major General who served as Chief of the Militia Bureau. Jesse McI. Carter was born in Farmington, Missouri on April 12,1863 and he graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1886, the same year as fellow Missourian John J. Pershing. Carter was appointed a Second Lieutenant in the 3rd Cavalry, from 1890 to 1891 he was Commandant of Cadets and an instructor at Norwich University. From 1893 to 1894 he served as a officer in Indianapolis, Indiana and Louisville. In the years prior to the Spanish–American War, Carter commanded Troop C, 5th Cavalry at New Orleans, Tampa. In 1898 Carter was appointed mustering officer for Georgia and Tennessee, in 1900 he was appointed a Captain in the Porto Rico Regiment, a volunteer organization raised shortly after the end of the war. Carter was appointed a captain in the 14th Cavalry in 1901 and he served at Forts Leavenworth and Logan, in the Philippines, and at Walla Walla, Washington until 1909. In 1909 Carter began two years of service on the Army General Staff and he was promoted to major in 1911. From 1912 to 1914 Carter served as a member of the Cavalry Board, the charged with reviewing tactics, weapons and equipment. In 1914 Carter was again assigned to the 3rd Cavalry, serving on the Mexican Border in Texas during unrest caused by the Mexican Revolution, Carter served as a squadron commander with the 12th Cavalry in Panama in 1916. Later that year he was promoted to colonel and commanded the 12th Cavalry on the Texas–Mexico Border during the Pancho Villa Expedition, in 1916 Carter was appointed to head the Militia Bureau, the forerunner of the modern National Guard Bureau. He served until mid-1918, helping federalize and mobilize National Guard units for World War I and he was promoted to brigadier general in 1917 and temporary major general later that year. In August,1918 Carter was appointed commander of the 11th Infantry Division, at Fort Meade, Maryland, the Armistice took place before training was complete, and the division did not leave the United States. Carter reverted to his permanent rank of brigadier general after the war, until his retirement he advocated for reforms to the National Guard, including a plan to have state Adjutants General be appointed from among officers of the regular Army. He also planned for the National Guards post-war reorganization and reequipping, taking steps to standardize training, Carter retired in 1921, and resided in Wharton, Texas. Carter received the Distinguished Service Medal in recognition of his World War I service, after retiring from the Army, Carter was employed by St. Louiss Missouri-Lincoln Trust Company as manager of its Texas holdings. He later worked as a manager for the Wharton Development Company, Carter died in Houston, Texas on June 23,1930 as the result of complications after surgery for appendicitis. Congress subsequently passed an act making Carter a permanent Major General on the retired list
7.
Gordon Byrom Rogers
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Rogers was born in Manchester, Tennessee. He attended the University of Tennessee for a year, graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1924, after graduation Rogers was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Regiment. In 1929 he completed the Cavalry Officer Course and in 1930 he graduated from the Advanced Equitation Course, for several years Rogers played on the Army Polo Team. In 1930 he was a member of the U. S. Olympic Equestrian Team, during the 1930s Rogers served with the 10th and 2nd Cavalry Regiments. In 1939 he graduated from the Army Command and General Staff College and he was then assigned to the 6th Cavalry at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, where he commanded a cavalry troop and then a cavalry squadron. In February 1942 he joined the 3rd Cavalry Regiment at Ft. Benning, Georgia and he was the final commander of the regiment as a horse cavalry formation, and in the summer of 1942 it fielded tanks and was reorganized as the 3rd Armored Regiment. General Rogers was next assigned as G-2 for Army Ground Forces, after the war Rogers was assigned to the War Department General Staff as chief of the Training Branch in the Office of the Director of Intelligence. Beginning in September,1946 Rogers took part in the occupation of Japan as commander of the 12th Cavalry Regiment. In July,1949 Rogers was appointed director of intelligence for the Command, Rogers graduated from the Army War College in 1951, afterwards remaining at the college as a member of the faculty and acting deputy commandant. In June,1952 General Rogers went to Korea as assistant division commander of the 40th Infantry Division. After briefly serving as deputy commander, in May,1953 Rogers was named commander of the United States Military Advisory Group to the Republic of Korea, in this assignment Rogers was responsible for providing training and logistics support to the Republic of Korea Army. Following that assignment he was appointed commanding general of the 3rd Armored Division based at Fort Knox, during his command the division was reorganized from a training unit to a deployable one and plans were made to relocate it to West Germany. Following his division command Rogers served in Munich, West Germany as commander of the Southern Area Command, in 1958 he became commander of VII Corps. From 1959 until his 1961 retirement Rogers was deputy commander of the Continental Army Command at Fort Monroe, after his retirement from the Army General Rogers served as Director of the NATO Mutual Weapons Development Team. General Rogers awards included, the Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, Bronze Star Medal, in retirement Rogers resided in Severna Park, Maryland. Rogers died at Walter Reed Hospital on July 3,1967 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Section 1, in 1934 Rogers married Mary Louise Watson in Washington, DC. One of their children, Gordon Byrom Rogers, Jr. graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1957, the younger Rogers was a career Army officer who served in the Vietnam War and attained the rank of Brigadier General. In 1964, Rogers married Mildred Montague Kimball at her ranch in Sedalia, in his memoir David Hackworth cites Rogers as an example of Korean War senior officers who received undeserved awards for valor
8.
11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
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The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at Fort Irwin, California. Although termed an armored regiment, it is being re-organized as a multi-component heavy brigade combat team. The regiment has served in the Philippine–American War, World War II, the Vietnam War, Cold War, Operation Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The 11th ACR was serving as the Opposing Force for the Army and Marine task forces, from June to December 2003, members of the 11th ACR deployed to Afghanistan, where they helped to develop and train the armor and mechanized infantry battalions of the Afghan National Army. These specialized units would defend the Afghan capital during the constitutional convention. In January 2004, the 11th ACR deployed to Iraq, the 11th ACR was not reorganized under the U. S. Army Combat Arms Regimental System, but has been reorganized under the U. S. Army Regimental System. The regiment was constituted on 2 February 1901 in the Regular Army as the 11th Cavalry Regiment, for an operational history of the regiment, see the separate squadron histories below. At the start of World War II, the 11th Cavalry was stationed at the Presidio of Monterey in California and they moved to Fort Ord in stages from 16 to 27 January 1940 and again to Camp Clayton on 15 April to 15 May 1940 for temporary training. They were next assigned to the United States Army Armored Force on 12 June 1942, and relocated to Fort Benning in Georgia on 10 July 1942, the remainder of 11th Cavalry was disbanded on 26 October 1944. The motto on the insignia is Allons, which means Lets Go in French. The regiment moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee on 22 June 1943 and it was activated on 10 September 1948 at Fort Lewis, Washington. Reconnaissance Company was reorganized and redesignated as Troop E, 90th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, Maintenance and Service Companies were disbanded. As part of the 10th Armored Division, 11th Tank Battalion shipped out from the New York Port of Embarkation on 13 September 1944, and landed in France on 23 September 1944. The battalion participated in the Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe Campaigns, the battalion returned to the Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation on 13 October 1945, was inactivated at Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia on the same day, and was relieved from assignment to the 10th AD. HHT, 11th Cavalry Regiment was redesignated on 19 April 1943 as HHT, 11th Cavalry Group, at that time, the 36th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron and 44th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron were attached. The group was moved to Fort Bragg on 31 January 1944. The group then held a line along the Rhine River near Düsseldorf on 12 March 1945 under the U. S. In August 1945, 11th Cavalry Group headquarters was located at Gross Ilsede, HHT, 11th Cavalry Group was converted and reorganized as HHT, 11th Constabulary Regiment on 1 May 1946
9.
13th Cavalry Regiment
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The 13th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. The 1st and 2nd Squadrons are currently stationed at Fort Bliss, the regiment was constituted 2 February 1901 in the Regular Army as Troop K, 13th Cavalry. The regiment was organized on 26 July 1901 in Fort Meade, the first task of the regiment was in the Philippines from 1903 to 1905 and from 1909 to 1910 where they engaged rebels as part of the Philippine–American War. The 13th Cavalry was transferred to Fort Riley, Kansas, in 1911, on 30 August 1915 the 13th Cavalry was part of a posse that killed Pascual Orozco. On 9 March 1916, the 13th Cavalry was in Columbus, New Mexico, eight soldiers and ten civilians were killed. Under General John J. Pershing, the regiment fought in the Mexican Expedition from 1916 to 1917, on 12 April 1916, about 100 men of the 13th Cavalry engaged Mexican federal troops in the Battle of Parral. During the fighting, two Americans were killed and six others were wounded, however, they defeated the Mexicans, killing at least a dozen of them or possibly many more. The 13th Cavalry remained ready near the Mexican border until 1921, in 1936, the 13th Cavalry became a part of the 7th Cavalry Brigade, formed officially in 1940. The 13th Cavalry was re-formed 15 July 1940 as the 13th Armored Regiment under the 1st Armored Division, on 8 November 1942, the 13th Armored regiment, combined under Combat Command B, landed in Oran, Algeria to augment fighting in North Africa. From 1946 to September 1947, the 13th Armored regiment was a part of the US Constabulary in Germany and it became inactive in Coburg, West Germany, on 20 September 1947. In 1951 the 13th Tank Battalion was reactivated with the 1st Armored Division at Fort Hood and it remained with the division throughout the 50s and 60s until 1971, when it became part of the 1st Cavalry Division for 3 years. On 20 June 1974, 13th Tank rejoined the 1st Armored Division at Illesheim, Germany until 20 February 1987, 13th Tank remained here until 1988, when it was inactivated and re-designated to 2nd Battaion, 13th Armor at Fort Knox, Kentucky. From 1996–2008, the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Armored Division was stationed at Fort Riley, lieutenant Colonel Richard G. Jung Sr. commanded the Dakota battalion from 1996–98, honoring the regiments history with the battalion name and call sign. Called 13th Tank by those who served in the unit, 1-13 AR was one of two battalions in the Bulldog Brigade. The company operated near the Bosnian-Serbian towns of Sekovici, Bratunac, a/1-13 AR consisted of 2 M1A1 tank platoons and 1 M2A2 Bradley platoon. Ironhorse company returned to the 1st Battalion, 13th Armored Regiment in December,1997 upon redeployment to Fort Riley at the completion of their mission. In February 2003 the 3rd BCT began deploying units to Kuwait for the anticipated Invasion of Iraq. As the US led invasion began, the 2-70 Armor and 1-41 Infantry Battalions, as part of the 3rd BCT, the 1st Battalion, 13th Armor Regiment, began deployment to Iraq 1 April 2003 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom
10.
Cavalry
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Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the most mobile of the combat arms, an individual soldier in the cavalry is known by a number of designations such as cavalryman, horseman, dragoon or trooper. The designation of cavalry was not usually given to any military forces that used animals, such as camels. Cavalry had the advantage of improved mobility, and a man fighting from horseback also had the advantages of greater height, speed, another element of horse mounted warfare is the psychological impact a mounted soldier can inflict on an opponent. In Europe cavalry became increasingly armoured, and eventually became known for the mounted knights, in the period between the World Wars, many cavalry units were converted into motorized infantry and mechanized infantry units, or reformed as tank troops. Most cavalry units that are horse-mounted in modern armies serve in purely ceremonial roles, modern usage of the term generally refers to specialist units equipped with tanks or aircraft. The shock role, traditionally filled by heavy cavalry, is filled by units with the armored designation. Before the Iron Age, the role of cavalry on the battlefield was largely performed by light chariots, the chariot originated with the Sintashta-Petrovka culture in Central Asia and spread by nomadic or semi-nomadic Indo-Iranians. The power of mobility given by mounted units was recognized early on, Cavalry techniques were an innovation of equestrian nomads of the Central Asian and Iranian steppe and pastoralist tribes such as the Persian Parthians and Sarmatians. The photograph above left shows Assyrian cavalry from reliefs of 865–860 BC, at this time, the men had no spurs, saddles, saddle cloths, or stirrups. Fighting from the back of a horse was more difficult than mere riding. The cavalry acted in pairs, the reins of the archer were controlled by his neighbours hand. Even at this time, cavalry used swords, shields. The sculpture implies two types of cavalry, but this might be a simplification by the artist, Later images of Assyrian cavalry show saddle cloths as primitive saddles, allowing each archer to control his own horse. As early as 490 BC a breed of horses was bred in the Nisaean plain in Media to carry men with increasing amounts of armour. However, chariots remained in use for purposes such as carrying the victorious general in a Roman triumph. The southern Britons met Julius Caesar with chariots in 55 and 54 BC, the last mention of chariot use in battle was by the Caledonians at the Mons Graupius, in 84 AD. During the classical Greek period cavalry were usually limited to citizens who could afford expensive war-horses
11.
1st Cavalry Division (United States)
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The 1st Cavalry Division is a combined arms division and is one of the most decorated combat divisions of the United States Army, as well as the other four branches of the U. S. military. It is based at Fort Hood, Texas, as of 2013, the 1st Cavalry Division is subordinate to III Corps and is commanded by Major General John C. Thomson III. The history of the 1st Cavalry Division began in 1921 after the established a permanent cavalry division table of organization. Since 1st Cavalry Division was to assemble from existing units, it was able to go active in September 1921, even though the subordinate units did not arrive completely until as late as 1922. 1st Cavalry Division was assigned to the VIII Corps Area, with its headquarters and 2d Brigade located at Fort Bliss, Texas. The 1st Cavalry Division’s assembled at Douglas, Arizona, the 1st, 7th, and 8th Cavalry Regiments had previously been assigned to the wartime 15th Cavalry Division until they were returned to the VIII Corps Area troop list on 12 May 1918. 1st Cavalry Regiment remained assigned until it was transferred to 1st Cavalry Division on 20 August 1921 and this controversy continued until 18 December 1922, when the 5th Cavalry Regiment, then on the VIII Corps Area Troop List, swapped places with the 10th Cavalry Regiment. In 1923 the 1st Cavalry Division held division maneuvers for the first time, however, financial constraints made that impossible. Only in 1927, through the generosity of a few ranchers who provided land, was the division able to conduct such exercises again. In 1928 Major General Herbert B, crosby, Chief of Cavalry, faced with personnel cuts, reorganized the cavalry regiments, which in turn reduced the size of the 1st Cavalry Division. Crosbys goal was to decrease overhead while maintaining or increasing firepower in the regiment, the cavalry brigades machine gun squadrons were inactivated, while the responsibility for training and employing machine guns fell to the regimental commanders, as in the infantry. The new structure increased the size of the troop, expanded the medical unit to a squadron. A divisional aviation section, an armored car squadron, and tank company were added, the artillery battalion was expanded to a regiment. With the arrival of the 1930s, serious work started on the testing and refining of new equipment, to facilitate this, 1st Cavalry Division traded 1st Cavalry Regiment for 12th Cavalry Regiment on 3 January 1933. Like the 1937 infantry division test, the maneuvers concentrated on the cavalry regiments around which all other units were to be organized. The latter configuration allowed the division to deploy easily in two columns, which was accepted standard cavalry tactics, one headquarters would assume responsibility for the administration and disciplinary control for these forces. The special troops remained as structured in 1928, and no observation squadron or chemical detachment found a place in the division, with the paper changes in the cavalry divisions and other minor adjustments, the strength of a wartime divisional rose to 10,680. In order to prepare for war service, 1st Cavalry Division participated in the maneuvers, Toyahvale
12.
Korean War
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The Korean War began when North Korea invaded South Korea. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal force, China came to the aid of North Korea, and the Soviet Union gave some assistance. Korea was ruled by Japan from 1910 until the days of World War II. In August 1945, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, as a result of an agreement with the United States, U. S. forces subsequently moved into the south. By 1948, as a product of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, Korea was split into two regions, with separate governments, both governments claimed to be the legitimate government of all of Korea, and neither side accepted the border as permanent. The conflict escalated into open warfare when North Korean forces—supported by the Soviet Union, on that day, the United Nations Security Council recognized this North Korean act as invasion and called for an immediate ceasefire. On 27 June, the Security Council adopted S/RES/83, Complaint of aggression upon the Republic of Korea and decided the formation, twenty-one countries of the United Nations eventually contributed to the UN force, with the United States providing 88% of the UNs military personnel. After the first two months of war, South Korean forces were on the point of defeat, forced back to the Pusan Perimeter, in September 1950, an amphibious UN counter-offensive was launched at Inchon, and cut off many North Korean troops. Those who escaped envelopment and capture were rapidly forced back north all the way to the border with China at the Yalu River, at this point, in October 1950, Chinese forces crossed the Yalu and entered the war. Chinese intervention triggered a retreat of UN forces which continued until mid-1951, after these reversals of fortune, which saw Seoul change hands four times, the last two years of fighting became a war of attrition, with the front line close to the 38th parallel. The war in the air, however, was never a stalemate, North Korea was subject to a massive bombing campaign. Jet fighters confronted each other in combat for the first time in history. The fighting ended on 27 July 1953, when an armistice was signed, the agreement created the Korean Demilitarized Zone to separate North and South Korea, and allowed the return of prisoners. However, no treaty has been signed, and the two Koreas are technically still at war. Periodic clashes, many of which are deadly, continue to the present, in the U. S. the war was initially described by President Harry S. Truman as a police action as it was an undeclared military action, conducted under the auspices of the United Nations. In South Korea, the war is referred to as 625 or the 6–2–5 Upheaval. In North Korea, the war is referred to as the Fatherland Liberation War or alternatively the Chosǒn War. In China, the war is called the War to Resist U. S
13.
U.S. Army Combat Arms Regimental System
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The Combat Arms Regimental System, was the method of assigning unit designations to units of some of the combat arms branches of the United States Army from 1957 to 1981. CARS was superseded by the U. S. Army Regimental System in 1981, before the adoption of CARS, there was no satisfactory means of maintaining the active life of the combat arms organizations. Whenever the nation entered periods of military retrenchment, units were broken up, reorganized, consolidated. During periods of mobilization, large numbers of new units were created, changes in weapons and techniques of warfare produced new types of units to replace the old ones. As a result, soldiers served in organizations with little or no history. In the late 1950s requirements for maneuverable and flexible major tactical organizations demanded highly mobile divisions with greatly increased firepower, for this purpose the regiment was deemed too large and unwieldy and had to be broken up into smaller organizations. There were 61 Regular Army infantry regiments and 18 Army Reserve infantry regiments, plus the 1st Special Forces, there were 30 Regular Army armor/cavalry regiments in the Combat Arms Regimental System. The only Regular Army combat units not organized under CARS were the 2d, 3d, 6th, 11th, there were 82 Regular Army artillery regiments in the Combat Arms Regimental System –58 field artillery regiments and 24 air defense artillery regiments. Except for the 18 Army Reserve infantry regiments, those regiments organized under CARS had elements in both the Regular Army and the Army Reserve, in the Army National Guard, each state has its own regiments. The number of CARS regiments varied as troop allotments change, the 1st Special Forces has elements in all three components – Regular Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard. The criteria for the majority of the regiments selected were two factors, age and honors and those regiments with the most points were selected for inclusion in the system. The new battle group, battalion, or squadrons organic elements were constituted and activated as new units, each of the old companies, batteries, or troops of the former regiment also had the capability of becoming a separate company, battery, or troop in the new regiment. The regimental headquarters was transferred to Department of the Army control, the lowest numbered or lettered active element of the regiment normally has custody of the regimental properties. If, however, the lowest numbered or lettered active element is unable to care for the properties, if a numbered or lettered element of the regiment is activated lower than the one having custody of the regimental properties, the properties will not necessarily be transferred. In a regiment not organized under CARS, there is a number of organic elements organized into battalions or squadrons. For example, the regiment of World War II contained Companies A through M divided into three battalions, plus supporting elements such as the service company. A brigade, on the hand, is a flexible organization. The usual number of battalions was 3, however, this was a guideline not a rule
14.
Louisiana Maneuvers
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The Louisiana Maneuvers were a series of U. S. Army exercises held around Northern and Western-Central Louisiana, including Fort Polk, Camp Claiborne and Camp Livingston, in 1940 and 1941. The exercises, which involved some 400,000 troops, were designed to evaluate U. S. training, logistics, doctrine and it was far smaller than most European armies, and few units were motorized or mechanized. As war approached, there was a need to modernize the force and to conduct large-scale maneuvers to test all aspects of a fast-growing. General Leslie McNair and Colonel Mark Wayne Clark picked thousands of acres of unused land in Louisiana as a place for large-scale training. Around 400,000 troops were divided equal armies of two fictitious countries, Kotmk, also called the Red Army, and Almat, or the Blue Army. The troops were organized into a total of 19 divisions, from August to September 1941, the armies fought over 3,400 square miles of Louisiana. The area spanned from the Sabine River east to the Calcasieu River and they fought over navigation rights and strategic points along the Mississippi River. Omar Bradley, who participated in the exercises, later said that Louisianans welcomed the soldiers with open arms, some soldiers even slept in some of the residents houses. Bradley said it was so crowded in those houses sometimes when the soldiers were sleeping, Bradley also said a few of the troops were disrespectful towards the residents land and crops, and would tear down crops for extra food. However, for the most part, residents and soldiers established good relations, during the exercises,26 men died, most from drowning in the Sabine River or in vehicle accidents. One died when struck by lightning, and one had an attack at age 24. This exercise also led to the creation of Fort Polk, named for the Confederate General Leonidas Polk, the U. S. Army fighting doctrine was based around the ideas of mass and mobility. These two legacies shaped U. S. doctrine leading up to World War II, built around a nucleus from Chaffees 7th Mechanized Cavalry, the 1st U. S. The armored division concept was considered sound and led to the formation of 16 U. S. armored divisions during World War II. U. S. defensive doctrine was based on the perceived need to defeat German blitzkrieg tactics, the maneuvers tested the concept of the tank destroyer. This concept, originating with artillery officers, consisted of numbers of highly mobile guns to be held in reserve. Upon an enemy attack, the towed or self-propelled tank destroyers would be rapidly deployed to the flanks of the penetration with the intent of taking a heavy toll of attacking tanks. Tank destroyers were supposed to employ aggressive, high-speed hit-and-run tactics against tanks, the use of these guns was distinct from the forward placement of towed antitank guns assigned as a normal part of the Infantry Regiment
15.
Leyte
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Leyte /ˈleɪtɛ/ is an island in the Visayas group of the Philippines. Politically, the island is divided into two provinces, Leyte and Southern Leyte, territorially, Southern Leyte includes the island of Panaon to its south. To the north of Leyte is the province of Biliran. The major cities of Leyte are Tacloban, on the shore at the northwest corner of Leyte Gulf. The island was once the location of Mairete, a community which was ruled by Datu Ete. Before being colonized by Spain, the island was home to indigenous animist Warays to the east. Leyte today is notable for the electric power plants near Ormoc. However, Leyte is most famous for its role in the reconquest of the Philippines in World War II. On 20 October 1944, General Douglas MacArthur waded ashore on Leyte, saying, I have returned, the convergence of naval forces resulted in the four-day Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history. The island measures about 180 kilometres north-south and about 65 kilometres at its widest point, in the north it nearly joins the island of Samar, separated by the San Juanico Strait, which becomes as narrow as 2 kilometres in some places. The island province of Biliran is also to the north of Leyte and is joined to Leyte island by a bridge across the narrow Biliran Strait, to the south, Leyte is separated from Mindanao by the Surigao Strait. To the east, Leyte is somewhat set back from the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, Samar to the northeast, to the west is the Camotes Sea. Leyte is mostly forested and mountainous, but the Leyte Valley in the northeast has much agriculture. The Leyte Provincial capital is the seat of the government where there is a historic mural depicting the First Mass of Limasawa in the Orient. The MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park in Red Beach, Palo and it also has a lagoon where a life-size statue of Gen. MacArthur stands. MacArthurs true landing took place at Dulag, Leyte, lake Danao is a violin-shaped lake hemmed by cloud-capped mountain ranges. Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte is an island with pure white sand. The ecological atmosphere of the island had been preserved by the municipality, nino Shrine and Heritage Museum boasts the painting of the fourteen stations of the cross done by Filipino artists and a bas-relief of the legend of the first Filipino man and woman
16.
Vietnam
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Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With an estimated 92.7 million inhabitants as of 2016, it is the worlds 14th-most-populous country, and its capital city has been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South Vietnam in 1976, with Ho Chi Minh City as a historical city as well. The northern part of Vietnam was part of Imperial China for over a millennium, an independent Vietnamese state was formed in 939, following a Vietnamese victory in the Battle of Bạch Đằng River. Following a Japanese occupation in the 1940s, the Vietnamese fought French rule in the First Indochina War, thereafter, Vietnam was divided politically into two rival states, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam. Conflict between the two sides intensified in what is known as the Vietnam War, the war ended with a North Vietnamese victory in 1975. Vietnam was then unified under a communist government but remained impoverished, in 1986, the government initiated a series of economic and political reforms which began Vietnams path towards integration into the world economy. By 2000, it had established relations with all nations. Since 2000, Vietnams economic growth rate has been among the highest in the world and its successful economic reforms resulted in its joining the World Trade Organization in 2007. It is also a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, Vietnam remains one of the worlds four remaining one-party socialist states officially espousing communism. The name Việt Nam is a variation of Nam Việt, a name that can be traced back to the Triệu Dynasty of the 2nd century BC. The word Việt originated as a form of Bách Việt. The form Vietnam is first recorded in the 16th-century oracular poem Sấm Trạng Trình, the name has also been found on 12 steles carved in the 16th and 17th centuries, including one at Bao Lam Pagoda in Haiphong that dates to 1558. Then, as recorded, rewarded Yuenan/Vietnam as their nations name, to also show that they are below the region of Baiyue/Bach Viet. Between 1804 and 1813, the name was used officially by Emperor Gia Long and it was revived in the early 20th century by Phan Bội Châus History of the Loss of Vietnam, and later by the Vietnamese Nationalist Party. The country was usually called Annam until 1945, when both the government in Huế and the Viet Minh government in Hanoi adopted Việt Nam. Archaeological excavations have revealed the existence of humans in what is now Vietnam as early as the Paleolithic age, Homo erectus fossils dating to around 500,000 BC have been found in caves in Lạng Sơn and Nghệ An provinces in northern Vietnam. The oldest Homo sapiens fossils from mainland Southeast Asia are of Middle Pleistocene provenance, teeth attributed to Homo sapiens from the Late Pleistocene have also been found at Dong Can, and from the Early Holocene at Mai Da Dieu, Lang Gao and Lang Cuom. The Hồng Bàng dynasty of the Hùng kings is considered the first Vietnamese state, in 257 BC, the last Hùng king was defeated by Thục Phán, who consolidated the Lạc Việt and Âu Việt tribes to form the Âu Lạc, proclaiming himself An Dương Vương
17.
Cambodian Campaign
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The Cambodian Campaign was a series of military operations conducted in eastern Cambodia during 1970 by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. These invasions were a result of the policy of President Richard Nixon, a total of 13 major operations were conducted by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam between 29 April and 22 July and by US forces between 1 May and 30 June. Cambodias official neutrality and military weakness made its territory effectively a safe zone where Vietnamese communist forces could establish bases for operations over the border. With the US shifting toward a policy of Vietnamization and withdrawal, a change in the Cambodian government allowed a window of opportunity for the destruction of the base areas in 1970 when Prince Norodom Sihanouk was deposed and replaced by pro-US General Lon Nol. The operation was also in response to North Vietnamese offensive on March 29 against the Cambodian Army that captured large parts of eastern Cambodia. These base areas were utilized by the Vietnamese communists to store weapons. PAVN forces had begun moving through Cambodian territory as early as 1963, during 1968, Cambodias indigenous communist movement, labeled Khmer Rouge by Sihanouk, began an insurgency to overthrow the government. While they received very limited help from the North Vietnamese at the time. The US government was aware of these activities in Cambodia, and this intelligence data would then be presented to the prince in an effort to change his mind. The president initially refused, but the point came with the launching of PAVNs Mini-Tet Offensive of 1969 within South Vietnam. Nixon, angered at what he perceived as a violation of the agreement with Hanoi after the cessation of the bombing of North Vietnam, while Sihanouk was abroad in France for a rest cure in January 1970, government-sponsored anti-Vietnamese demonstrations were held throughout Cambodia. On 18 March, the Cambodian National Assembly deposed Sihanouk and named Lon Nol as provisional head of state and this led Sihanouk to immediately establish a government-in-exile in Beijing and to ally himself with North Vietnam, the Khmer Rouge, the NLF, and the Laotian Pathet Lao. In doing so, Sihanouk lent his name and popularity in the areas of Cambodia to a movement over which he had little control. The North Vietnamese response to the coup was swift, PAVN began directly supplying large amounts of weapons and advisors to the Khmer Rouge, and Cambodia plunged into civil war. Lon Nol saw Cambodias population of 400,000 ethnic Vietnamese as possible hostages to prevent PAVN attacks and ordered their roundup, Cambodian soldiers and civilians then unleashed a reign of terror, murdering thousands of Vietnamese civilians. On 15 April for example,800 Vietnamese men had been rounded up at the village of Churi Changwar, tied together, executed and they then floated downstream into South Vietnam. Cambodias actions were denounced by both the North and South Vietnamese governments, even before the supply conduit through Sihanoukville was shut down, PAVN had begun expanding its logistical system from southeastern Laos into northeastern Cambodia. Communist forces then approached within 20 miles of the capital, Phnom Penh, a force of North Vietnamese quickly overran large parts of eastern Cambodia reaching to within 15 miles of Phnom Penh
18.
Max Cleland
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Joseph Maxwell Max Cleland is an American politician from Georgia. Cleland, a Democrat, is a disabled US Army veteran of the Vietnam War, a recipient of the Silver Star and the Bronze Star for valorous actions in combat, and he was also Administrator of Veterans Affairs. From 2003 to 2007 he served on the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States and he has served as Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission since May 2009. Since he left office in 2003, no other Democrat from Georgia has served a term in the United States Senate. Cleland was born on August 24,1942 in Atlanta, the son of Juanita Wilda and he grew up in Lithonia, Georgia, and graduated from Stetson University in the class of 1964, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. Cleland was named outstanding senior in high school and he went on to receive a masters degree from Emory University. Cleland then served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War and he was awarded the Silver Star and the Bronze Star for valorous action in combat, including during the Battle of Khe Sanh on April 4,1968. On April 8,1968, Captain Cleland was the Battalion Signal Officer for the 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, on April 8, with a month left in his tour, Cleland was ordered to set up a radio relay station on a nearby hill. A helicopter flew him and two soldiers to the top of Hill 471, east of Khe Sanh. Cleland knew some of the soldiers camped there from Operation Pegasus and he told the pilot he was going to stay a while with friends. When the helicopter landed, Cleland jumped out, followed by the two soldiers and they ducked beneath the rotors and turned to watch the liftoff. Cleland reached down to pick up a grenade that he believed had popped off his flak jacket and it exploded and the blast slammed him backward, shredding both his legs and one arm. David Lloyd, a Marine in a nearby bunker, rushed to the scene, took off his web belt. When the medics arrived, Lloyd left to help another injured soldier, Lloyd says that the unnamed soldier was crying. It was mine, he said, it was my grenade and this soldier had a flak jacket full of grenades with treacherously straight pins, Lloyd says. He was a death trap. Due to the severity of his injuries, doctors amputated both of Clelands legs above the knee, and his right forearm, Cleland served from 1971 to 1975 in the Georgia Senate, and became an advocate for affairs relating to veterans. He was the administrator of the United States Veterans Administration under President Jimmy Carter and he then served 14 years as Secretary of State of Georgia from 1982 to 1996, working closely with his future Senate colleague, Zell Miller
19.
77th Armored Regiment
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The 77th Armor is an armored regiment of the United States Army. 1–77 AR is currently stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas as part of the 3rd Brigade Bulldogs, description, A silver color metal and enamel device 1 1⁄8 inches in height overall consisting of the shield and motto of the coat of arms. Symbolism, The carnivorous tiger is symbolic of the enemy devouring qualities of the organization, unlike the man-eating lion, which only attacks man in its dotage, the ferocious tiger attacks at all ages and at any time, the battle-axe symbolizes the offensive mission of a tank battalion. Blazon, Shield, azure, on a mount a tiger sejant argent, armed and langued gules, supporting a battle-axe in pale of the second, motto, INSISTE FIRMITER Symbolism, Shield, The carnivorous tiger is symbolic of the enemy devouring qualities of the organization. Unlike the man-eating lion, which only attacks man in its dotage, the tiger attacks at all ages and at any time. Crest, The volcano is an allusion to Mt. Etna, the most distinctive feature of the island of Sicily, the eruption of flames refers to the units subsequent participation in thirteen campaigns throughout Italy, France, Germany, and finally Korea. Crossed lances denote the courage and aggressive spirit displayed by the men of this regiment throughout its many campaigns. World War II United States Training Cycle June 1941 - April 1943 753rd Tank Battalion activated 1 June 1941 in Fort Benning, the unit transferred Camp Polk, Louisiana later that month. Battalion assigned General Headquarters US Army Reserve, equipment and vehicles used to fill out units varied allowing training to begin. Later in 1941 and early in 1942, Battalion received M3 medium tanks and other current vehicles, Unit posted Camp Hood, Texas April 1942 for eight months general training in tank only operations. The Battalion was posted to Camp Pickett during January 1943 attached 45th Infantry Division, Battalion received first M4A1 medium tanks. Two months training followed focusing on gunning and small unit operations, North Africa During April 1943, the 753rd was posted to Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia for their deployment with the 45th Infantry Division overseas. The unit made a long 33-day trip on five LSTs, on 26 May 1943, the 753rd landed at several locations east of Oran and consolidated near the port city of Arzew, Algeria. By May 1943 the fighting in North Africa was all but over, the 753rd saw no combat, and instead spent six weeks in maintenance and training. From 5 to 7 July, the 753rd loaded on LSTs, the battalion was to support landings by the 45th ID II US Corp 7th Army in Operation Husky for invasion of Sicily. Sicily - Operation Husky -10 May August 28,1943 During the 39-day campaign on Sicily, tanks were deployed as companies, platoons and sections in support of the 45th Infantry Divisions 157th, 179th and 180th infantry regiments. At times the battalion was under the control of II Corps. On 10 July 1943, Company C of the 753rd landed on Blue Beach near Santa Croce Camerina, Company C supported the 157th Infantry against Italian armor in heavy action seizing Comiso and the airport
20.
Brigade combat team
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The brigade combat team is the basic deployable unit of maneuver in the US Army. A brigade combat team consists of one combat arms branch maneuver brigade, the Brigade is normally commanded by a Colonel although in some cases a Brigadier General may assume command. A brigade combat team contains combat support and combat support units necessary to sustain its operations away from its parent division. BCTs contain organic artillery support, formerly received from the division artillery, currently, the U. S. Army is structured around the brigade combat team. In this program, divisions that previously had not deployed individual brigades due to lack of support have now been restructured. The 1st Armored Division, 25th Infantry Division, etc. now have the ability to deploy one or more BCTs anywhere in the world and these BCTs are intended to be able to stand on their own, like a division in miniature. The soldiers assigned to a BCT will stay at their assignment for three years, this is intended to bolster readiness and improve unit cohesion, the infantry brigade combat team, as of 2014, contains 4,413 soldiers and is organized around three battalions of infantry. Each type of brigade has the basic organization. Each infantry brigade is capable of air operations, whether or not it is officially designated as an air assault brigade. Also, most units typically maneuver in HMMWVs when deployed and operate as motorized infantry to facilitate speed of movement, the infantry brigade combat team consists of seven battalions, one cavalry, one brigade support, one engineer, three infantry and one field artillery. A full Stryker brigade was intended to be C-130 Hercules air transportable into theatre within 96 hours, the Stryker brigade is an organic combined arms unit of lightly-armored, medium-weight wheeled vehicles, and is organized differently from the infantry or armored brigade combat teams. The BCT Ground Combat Vehicle Program was the successor of the interim armored vehicle before being cancelled in 2014. The team also receives training in chemical, biological, radiological, a Stryker brigade is made up of more than 300 Stryker vehicles and 4,500 soldiers. M1135 Nuclear, Biological, Chemical, Reconnaissance Vehicle The armored brigade combat team is the primary armored force. It was designed around combined arms battalions that contain both M1 Abrams tanks and M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, other vehicles, such as HMMWVs and variants of the M113 armored personnel carrier, operate in a supporting role. In the future, it also contain vehicles from the Future Fighting Vehicle. An armored brigade combat team consists of seven battalions, three combined arms, one cavalry, one artillery, one engineer and one support battalion. As of 2014, the brigade combat team is the largest brigade combat team formation with 4,743 soldiers
21.
Texas
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Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Other major cities include Austin, the second most populous state capital in the U. S. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify its former status as an independent republic, and as a reminder of the states struggle for independence from Mexico. The Lone Star can be found on the Texan state flag, the origin of Texass name is from the word Tejas, which means friends in the Caddo language. Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, although Texas is popularly associated with the U. S. southwestern deserts, less than 10 percent of Texas land area is desert. Most of the centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, the term six flags over Texas refers to several nations that have ruled over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas, Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845, Texas joined the United States as the 28th state, the states annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. A slave state before the American Civil War, Texas declared its secession from the U. S. in early 1861, after the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. One Texan industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle, due to its long history as a center of the industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy. The states economic fortunes changed in the early 20th century, when oil discoveries initiated a boom in the state. With strong investments in universities, Texas developed a diversified economy, as of 2010 it shares the top of the list of the most Fortune 500 companies with California at 57. With a growing base of industry, the leads in many industries, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace. Texas has led the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product. The name Texas, based on the Caddo word tejas meaning friends or allies, was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves, during Spanish colonial rule, the area was officially known as the Nuevo Reino de Filipinas, La Provincia de Texas. Texas is the second largest U. S. state, behind Alaska, though 10 percent larger than France and almost twice as large as Germany or Japan, it ranks only 27th worldwide amongst country subdivisions by size. If it were an independent country, Texas would be the 40th largest behind Chile, Texas is in the south central part of the United States of America. Three of its borders are defined by rivers, the Rio Grande forms a natural border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south
22.
3rd Armored Division (United States)
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The 3rd Armored Division was an armored division of the United States Army. Unofficially nicknamed the Third Herd, the division was first activated in 1941, the division was stationed in West Germany for much of the Cold War, and participated in the Persian Gulf War. On 17 January 1992, in Germany, the division ceased operations, in October 1992, it was formally deactivated as part of a general drawing down of forces at the end of the Cold War. The 3rd Armored Division was organized as an armored division, as was its counterpart. Later, higher-numbered U. S. armored divisions of World War II were smaller, with a ratio of armored infantry to tanks. Each division type had a component of three mechanized infantry battalions. During World War II, these were organized operationally into task forces known as combat commands A, B and R, in addition to the core units, a number of other units of various kinds were attached to the division during various operations. In June 1941, it moved to Camp Polk Louisiana, on 9 March 1942, it came under Army Ground Forces and was assigned to the II Armored Corps. In July 1942, it was transferred to Camp Young, CA and from August to October 1942 and it left Camp Young in January 1943 and moved to the Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, Pennsylvania. The 3rd AD arrived in the European Theatre on 15 September 1943 and it remained in Somerset, England until 24 June 1944, when it departed to partake in the Normandy operations. The HQ was probably at Warminster with units in 5 Wiltshire villages and 3 villages in Somerset, There is a small memorial at Mere in Wiltshire. The first elements of the 3rd Armored in France saw combat on 29 June, with the division as a whole beginning combat operations on 9 July 1944. During this time, it was under the command of VII Corps and XVIII Airborne Corps for some time, and assigned to the First Army and the 12th Army Group for the duration of its career. The division spearheaded the US First Army through Normandy, taking part in a number of engagements, notably including the Battle of Saint Lô, where it suffered significant casualties. The engineers and maintenance crews took the large I-Beam Invasion barriers from the beaches at Normandy and they would then hit the hedgerows at high speed, bursting through them without exposing the vulnerable underbellies of the tanks. Until this happened, they could not get across the hedgerows, ordered to help close the Falaise Gap and Argentan pocket which contained the German Seventh Army, the division finished the job near Putanges by 18 August. Six days later the outfit had sped through Courville and Chartres and was located at the banks of the Seine River. On the night of 25 August 1944 the crossing of the Seine by the division started, once over, liberated in the path of the division were Meaux, Soissons, Laon, Marle, Mons, Charleroi, Namur and Liege
23.
5th Infantry Division (United States)
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It was disbanded and deactivated on 24 November 1992. The entire division had arrived in France by 1 May 1918, the 5th Division was the eighth of forty-two American divisions to arrive on the Western Front. The 5th Division trained with French Army units from 1 to 14 June 1918, the first soldiers of the unit to be killed in action died on 14 June of that year. Among the divisions first casualties was Captain Mark W. Clark, then commanding the 3rd Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment, on 12 September, the unit was part of a major attack that reduced the salient at St. Mihiel. The division later fought in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, the largest battle fought by the American Expeditionary Force in World War I, the war ended soon after, on November 11,1918. The division served in the Army of Occupation, being based in Belgium and Esch-sur-Alzette, the division returned to the United States through the New York Port of Embarkation at Hoboken, New Jersey on 21 July 1919 and was stationed at Camp Gordon, Georgia until October 1920. After that date, it was stationed at Camp Jackson, South Carolina, on 4 October 1921 the 5th Division was inactivated except for the 10th Infantry Brigade and its supporting elements. That December the division relocated to Fort Custer, Michigan, from where it participated in the Tennessee maneuvers. The division went next to Camp Joseph T. Robinson, Arkansas, as the winter passed the division was brought up to strength and fully equipped for forward deployment into a war zone. During April 1942, the 5th Division received its overseas orders, upon arrival in England the 5th Division was stationed at Tidworth Barracks, Wiltshire in South West England, before moving to Northern Ireland. The division then prepared for the assault on Metz,7 September, in mid-September a bridgehead was secured across the Moselle, south of Metz, at Dornot and Arnaville after two attempts. The first attempt at Dornot by the 11th Infantry Regiment failed, german-held Fort Driant played a role in repulsing this crossing. A second crossing by the 10th Infantry Regiment at Arnaville was successful, the division continued operations against Metz,16 September to 16 October 1944, withdrew, then returned to the assault on 9 November. The division crossed the German border,4 December, captured Lauterbach on the 5th, in February and March, the division drove across and northeast of the Sauer, where it smashed through the Siegfried Line and later took part in the Allied invasion of Germany. The 5th ID crossed the Rhine River on the night of 22 March 1945, after capturing some 19,000 German soldiers, the division continued to Frankfurt-am-Main, clearing and policing the town and its environs, 27–29 March. In April the 5th ID, now commanded by Major General Albert E. However, the 1950s saw the division in West Germany as part of the US contribution to NATO though the division later returned to the United States. In September 1965, the 2nd Brigade, 5th Infantry Division was moved, minus personnel, to Fort Carson, Colorado, the remaining personnel at Fort Devens formed the basis of the 196th Infantry Brigade. By 1968 the division was stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado, 1st Brigade, 5th Infantry Division was dispatched to Vietnam after the Tet Offensive to replace a U. S. Marine Corps unit
24.
Killeen, Texas
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Killeen is a city in Bell County, Texas, United States. According to the recent populations estimates, its population was 140,806 and it is the principal city of the Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood Metropolitan Statistical Area. Killeen is directly adjacent to the cantonment of Fort Hood, and as such its economy heavily depends on the post. The railroad platted a 70-block town on its land and named it after Frank P. Killeen, by the next year the town included a railroad depot, a saloon, several stores, and a school. Killeen expanded as it became an important shipping point for cotton, wool, about 780 people lived in Killeen by 1900. Around 1905, local politicians and businessmen convinced the Texas legislature to build bridges over Cowhouse Creek and other streams, a public water system began operation in 1914 and its population had increased to 1,300 residents. Laborers, construction workers, contractors, soldiers, and their families moved into the area by the thousands, the opening of Camp Hood also radically altered the nature of the local economy, since the sprawling new military post covered almost half of Killeens farming trade area. The loss of more than 300 farms and ranches led to the demise of Killeens cotton gins, New businesses were started to provide services for the military camp. Killeen suffered a recession when Camp Hood was all but abandoned after the end of the Second World War, but when Fort Hood was established as a permanent army post in 1950, the city boomed again. Its population increased from about 1,300 in 1949 to 7,045 in 1950, by 1955, Killeen had an estimated 21,076 residents and 224 businesses. Troop cutbacks and transfers in the led to another recession in Killeen which lasted until 1959. The town continued to grow through the 1960s, especially after the Vietnam War led to increased activity at Fort Hood, by 1970 Killeen had developed into a city of 35,507 inhabitants and had added a municipal airport, a new municipal library, and a junior college. By 1980, when the census counted 49,307 people in Killeen, by 1990 its population had increased to 63,535, and 265,301 people lived in the Killeen/Temple metropolitan area. In addition to shaping local economic development after 1950, the presence at Fort Hood also changed the citys racial, religious. The citys first resident Catholic priest was assigned to the St. Josephs parish in 1954, by the 1980s the city had a heterogeneous population including whites, blacks, Mexican Americans, Koreans, and a number of other foreign nationals. After the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in the summer of 1990, the city prepared for war, sending thousands of troops from the 2nd Armored Division. On October 16,1991, George Hennard murdered 23 people, in December 1991, one of Killeens high school football teams, the Killeen Kangaroos, won the 5-A Division I state football championship by defeating Sugar Land Dulles 14–10 in the Astrodome. By 2000, the census listed Killeens population as 86,911, a large number of military personnel from Killeen have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
25.
Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System
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The Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System is an American media and public relations operation run by Third Army/U. S. Army Central on behalf of the Department of the Army, DVIDS supports of all branches of the U. S. military and its coalition partners serving with U. S. Forces in the Central Command area of responsibility and throughout the world, DVIDS also maintains an archive for ongoing operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain. DVIDS provides to the media and the videos, photographs and print products, including publications, as well as interviews with service members, commanders. DVIDS currently uses Aspera software for its data and imagery transmission, the Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System operates DefenseTV, a military television-channel accessed through FireTV, Chromecast or Roku. The Director of DVIDS Operations is Logistics officer Major Scott M. Betts and he reports to the Defense Media Activity at Fort Meade, MD. The Third Army has awarded the contract for the provision of DVIDS services to Encompass Digital Media, Inc. a privately held, electronic media company based in Atlanta. Iraq War War in Afghanistan Psychological warfare Public relations Official website DVIDS, Public Affairs Officers qualification course, Defense Information School
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United States Army Central
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The United States Army Central is a military formation of the United States Army, which saw service in World War I and World War II, in the 1991 Gulf War, and in the coalition occupation of Iraq. It is best known for its campaigns in World War II under the command of General George S. Patton, Third Army is currently denoted USARCENT, headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina with a forward element at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. On the 15th, Major General Joseph T. Dickman assumed command, the third Army consisted of three corps and seven divisions. On 15 November 1918, Major General Dickman was given the mission to move quickly and he was to disarm and disband German forces as ordered by General John J. Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Forces. The march into Germany for occupation duty was begun on 17 November 1918, by 15 December the Third Army Headquarters at Mayen opened at Coblenz. Two days later, on 17 December 1918, the Coblenz bridgehead, consisting of a pontoon bridge, Third Army troops had encountered no hostile act of any sort. In the occupied area, both food and coal supplies were sufficient, the crossing of the Rhine by the front line divisions was effected in good time and without confusion. Troops, upon crossing the Rhine and reaching their assigned areas, were billeted preparatory to occupying selected positions for defense. The strength of the Third Army as of 19 December, the date the bridgehead occupation was completed, was 9,638 officers and 221,070 enlisted men, the southern boundary was as has been previously mentioned. Before the advance, the 1st Division passed to the command of the III Corps, the four bridges available for crossing the river within the Coblenz bridgehead were the pontoon bridge and railroad bridge at Coblenz, the railroad bridges at Engers and Remagen. On 13 December the advance began with the American khaki crossing the Rhine into advanced positions. On the same day the 42d Division passes to the command of the IV Corps, which, in support of the III Corps, continued its march to occupy the Kreise of Mayen, Ahrweiler, Adenau, and Cochem. The VII Corps occupied under the order that portion of the Regierungsbezirk of Trier within army limits. On 15 December, Third Army Headquarters at Mayen opened at Coblenz, III Corps Headquarters at Polch opened at Neuwied and IV Corps Headquarters remained at Cochem, with the VII Corps at Grevenmacher. In crossing the Rhine on the shortened front—from Rolandseck to Rhens on the west bank—the Third Army encountered no hostile act of any sort, in the occupied area both food and coal supplies were sufficient. By the night of 14 December, Third Army troops had occupied their positions on the perimeter of the Coblenz bridgehead, during January 1919, the Third Army was engaged in training and preparing the troops under its command for any contingency. A letter of instruction was circulated to lower commanders prescribing a plan of action in case hostilities were resumed, installations were set up throughout the Army area to facilitate command. On 4 February, the control of the Stadtkreis of Trier was transferred from GHQ to the Third Army
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Army News Service
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The Army News Service is a news publication of the United States Army designed as an objective digest of United States press association and newspaper reports. The material was in turn supplied to the American Forces Network for radio transmission, created in 1943, its target audience is the large number of people associated with the US Army, including soldiers, retired soldiers, and contractors. The Army News Service publications focus on covering Army wide strategic communications initiatives at Department of the Army headquarters, reporters cover topics such as, new Army policy, pay and benefits, new equipment and new programs emphasized by Army leadership. The service relies on submissions from members in the field for topics such as major military exercises and operations, pilot programs
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Association of the United States Army
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The Association of the United States Army is a private, non-profit organization that acts primarily as an advocacy group for the United States Army. Founded in 1950, it has 119 chapters worldwide, membership is open to everyone, not just Army personnel, nor is membership mandatory for soldiers. The organization publishes ARMY Magazine and the Green Book, and runs the Institute for Land Warfare, the current president is retired Army General Carter F. Ham. Other membership categories include corporate and sustaining, membership in AUSA includes a subscription to ARMY Magazine received monthly, including the Green Book, which is published in October of each year. The Green Book is an almanac of articles from Army leadership, members also receive AUSA News on a monthly basis, which features relevant news about Army topics and AUSA reports on the organizations support of the Army. AUSA has 119 chapters worldwide, which develop programs and activities that provide community support for the US Army through individual, chapters serve as the liaison between the Army and local civilian communities. They also help educate the public about the needs for a national defense. Chapters are involved in a variety of programs to support deployed and mobilized soldiers. Typical chapter activities include general membership meetings with high-profile guest speakers, community involvement events and special events honoring the Army, the Association of the United States Army presents a number of distinguished soldiers, civil servants, and volunteers with national awards at its Annual Meeting. In addition, local chapters also give a variety of awards to soldiers, Army civilians. Established in 1960, the George Catlett Marshall Medal is AUSAs highest honor, past recipients include Colin Powell, Madeleine Albright, Kenneth Fisher, and George H. W. Bush. Past recipients include Daniel Inouye, William E. DePuy, past recipients include Julius W. Becton Jr. Paik Sun-yup, and William G. Bainbridge. Past recipients include SGM David G. Martinez, CSM Andrew McFowler, the John W. Dixon Award, established in 1989, is presented annually for distinguished service in the industrial community resulting in outstanding contributions to national defense. Past recipients include Linda Hudson, Marillyn Hewson, and Norman R. Augustine Air Force Association Marine Corps Association United States Naval Institute Coast Guard Foundation Official site
United States
United States Army
