U.S. 29th Infantry Division
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29th Infantry Division Symbol |
The
U.S. 29th Infantry Division was a
United States infantry division that existed during
World War I and
World War II.
Nicknamed "Blue and Gray", the division's
motto is "29 Let's Go," taken from
General Eisenhower's inspiring speech to the troops preparing for the invasion of Normandy. The shoulder patch is a half-blue, half-gray
monad,
Korean symbol of eternal life; the symbol was approved 14 December 1917 and was designed by Maj. James Ulio. The uniting of the blue and grey symbolizes the fact that the division was composed of regiments from Virginia and Maryland that had fought on both sides of the
American Civil War. The 29th Infantry Division is currently part of the
U.S. Army National Guard.
The 29th Infantry Division was formed in 25 August
1917 as a
National Guard Division from
Virginia,
Maryland,
New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, and the
District of Columbia and was sent to
Europe in July
1918.The division saw action in the
Meuse-Argonne Offensive and sustained a total of 5,570 casualties of which 787 were killed and 4,783 were wounded. The division returned to the United States in May
1919 and was demobilized.
Commanders:*
Brigadier General Charles W. Barber (
July 28–
August 25,
1917)
*
Major General Charles G. Morton (
August 25–
September 24,
1917;
December 6–
December 1,
1917;
December 26,
1917–
March 23,
1918;
March 26,
1918 to demobilisation)
*Brigadier General William C. Rafferty (
September 24–
December 6,
1917;
December 11–
December 26,
1917;
March 23–
March 26,
1918)
The 29th Division was reactivated on
3 February,
1941 and departed for the
United Kingdom on
5 October,
1942 where it continued training in
Scotland and
England from October of 1942 up to June,
1944 in preparation for the invasion of France.
Teamed with the
U.S. 1st Infantry Division, the 116th Infantry Regiment of the 29th Division was in the first assault wave to hit the beaches at
Normandy on
D-Day,
6 June, 1944. The division itself landed on
Omaha Beach on the same day in the face of intense enemy fire but soon secured the bluff tops and went on to occupy
Isigny on
9 June. The division cut across the
Elle River and advanced slowly toward
St. Lo, fighting bitterly in the Normandy
bocage (hedge rows).
After taking St. Lo on
18 July, the division joined in the battle for
Vire, capturing that strongly held city on
7 August. Turning west, the 29th took part in the assault on
Brest from
25 August to
18 September.
After a short rest, the division moved to defensive positions along the Teveren-Geilenkirchen line in
Germany and maintained those positions through October. (In mid-October the 116th Infantry took part in the fighting at the
Aachen Gap.) On
16 November the Division began its drive to the
Rur, blasting its way through Siersdorf, Setterich, Duerboslar, and Bettendorf, and reaching the Rur by the end of the month.
On
8 December, heavy fighting reduced Julich Sportplatz and the Hasenfeld Gut. From 8 December, 1944 to
23 February,
1945, the division held defensive positions along the Rur and prepared for the offensive. The attack jumped off across the Rur on 23 February, and carried the division through Julich, Broich, Immerath, and Titz, to
Muenchen-Gladbach on
1 March. The division was out of combat in March but in early April the 116th Infantry helped mop up in the
Ruhr area and on
19 April the division pushed to the
Elbe and held defensive positions until
4 May. Meanwhile, the 175th Infantry Regiment cleared the Kloetze Forest. After
VE Day, the division was on military government duty in the
Bremen enclave.
The 29th Infantry Division had spent 242 days in combat during campaigns in Normandy, Northern
France, the
Rhineland and Central Europe, earning four Distinguished Unit Citations in the process. Two soldiers of the division were awarded the
Medal of Honor. Also awarded were 44
DSCs, one
DSM, 854
Silver Stars, 17
Legion of Merit, 24
Soldier's Medal and 6,308
Bronze Stars.
The 29th Division returned to the United States on
January 4,
1946 and was demobilized two weeks later.
Commanders:*
Major General Milton A. Reckord (1934-January 1942)
*Major General
Leonard T. Gerow (February 1942-July 1943)
*Major General
Charles H. Gerhardt (July 1943 to demobilization.)
Organization
* 115th, 116th and 175th Infantry Regiments
* 110th, 111th, 224th and 227th Field Artillery Battalions
* 121st Engineer Combat Battalion
*22 October 1943:
V Corps,
First Army*14 June 1944:
XIX Corps*1 August 1944: XIX Corps, First Army,
12th Army Group*12 August 1944: V Corps
*19 August 1944: First Army, 12th Army Group, but attached to the
VIII Corps,
Third Army, 12th Army Group
*5 September 1944: VIII Corps,
Ninth Army, 12th Army Group
*21 September 1944: XIX Corps, First Army, 12th Army Group
*22 October 1944: XIX Corps, Ninth Army, 12th Army Group
*20 December 1944: XIX Corps, Ninth Army (attached to
British 21st Army Group), 12th Army Group
*23 December 1944:
XIII Corps*4 February 1945 : XIX Corps
*29 March 1945:
XVI Corps*4 April 1945: XVI Corps, Ninth Army, 12th Army Group
*5 April 1945: Ninth Army, 12th Army Group
*12 April 1945: XVI Corps
*17 April 1945: XIII Corps
*4 May 1945: XVI Corps
In
1968 the Army retired the flag of the 29th Infantry Division due to re-organization of the National Guard divisions. For the next twenty years the various regiments of the division were organized either as separate infantry brigades or as parts of other division, most notably the
28th Infantry Division from the Pennsylvania National Guard.
On
6 June 1984, the 40th anniversary of the
D-Day Normandy landings, the 29th Division was re-activated as a National Guard light infantry division. At that time it was composed (primarily) of the
116th Infantry Regiment from Virginia, 111th
Field Artillery from Virginia, the
115th Infantry Regiment and
175th Infantry Regiment from Maryland, and the
110th Field Artillery from Maryland. In 1995 the
26th Infantry Division from New England was also incorporated into the 29th Division, becoming the 26th Brigade, headquartered in
Massachusetts.
The 29th was the second National Guard division to provide a division headquarters for the SFOR mission in
Bosnia. Following the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, many elements of the 29th participated in the
Global War on Terror, including
Operation Noble Eagle,
Operation Iraqi Freedom and
Operation Enduring Freedom.
Commanders:*Major General H. Steven Blum (August 1999-August 2002)
*Major General Daniel E. Long, Jr. (August 2002-November 2004)
*Major General Arthur H. Wyman (November 2004-Present)
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29th Infantry Division Crest |
*Shoulder Patch: the blue-and-grey
*Motto: "29, Let's Go!"
*Distinctive Unit Insignia: Fleur-De-Lis above by the division motto, commemorating the division's service in France during both world wars.
The Army Almanac: A Book of Facts Concerning the Army of the United States U.S. Government Printing Office,
1950 reproduced at
Combat Chronicle: 29th Infantry Division.
*
29th Division (UK) Re-enactment Group*
29 Let's Go! The Story of the 29th Infantry Division*
29th Infantry Division Official Homepage*
29th Infantry Division Association Homepage*
Global Security's page on the 29th ID
