| Troopers of the 82d Airborne, the All Americans, were awarded three Medals of Honor, 70 Distinguished Service Crosses, 894 Silver Star Medals, 2,478 Bronze Star Medals, and numerous foreign decorations. |
1/505 PIR Battalion History The 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment was constituted on 24 June 1942. After training in Georgia and Alabama, it was assigned to the 82d Airborne Division and arrived at Fort Bragg in February 1943. In April, the battalion moved to North Africa in preparation for the invasion of Sicily. At the completion of the invasion of Sicily, the unit was airlifted back to North Africa to await further orders.
The unit made its second combat jump at Salerno, Italy, in September after the Allied amphibious landings at Salerno bogged down. After assisting in the liberation of Naples, the unit was moved by ship to Ireland in November to train for the invasion of Europe. In February, the unit moved to England and stood ready for its third combat jump.
On 6 June 1944, the battalion jumped into the Normandy area of France in the vicinity of Ste. Mere-Eglise as part of the D-Day invasion, 'Operation Overlord.' Although the battalion was scattered on the jump, troopers assembled and accomplished all assigned tasks. After clearing German troops from the area, the battalion moved to England in July to await its next mission. The fourth combat jump came in September at Groesbeek, Holland, as part of 'Operation Market Garden' to capture bridges over the Maas River and the Waal Canal. After serving two months in the Dutch countryside, the unit was moved back to France in November. The rest was short-lived, because in December, the 82d was thrown into the Ardennes region of Belgium to help defeat the German counter-offensive of the now famous Battle of the Bulge. In February, the battalion returned to France, but in April was called back to action as the German war machine was close to complete collapse. V-E Day was 8 May 1945. In July, the 82d moved to Berlin for occupation duty, and in January 1946 returned home to a ticker tape parade in New York City. |
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Like many I too have lost a dear one in battle,
fighting for our freedom and liberty. This page is dedicated to my
Uncle Walter killed in one of the greatest battles in World War II.
This is not about him but a actual accounting of the famous battle
that my Uncle was involved in. I regret not being able to give you
the events that he himself was involved in, but this is not about
one man but of many struggling to turn the tide of the battle. On
December 16, 1944, the Germans launched a surprise offensive
through the Ardennes Forest which caught the Allies completely by
surprise. Two days later the 82nd joined the fighting and blunted
General Von Rusted's northern penetration in the American
lines.
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The Battle of the Bulge which lasted from December
16, 1944 to January 28, 1945 was the largest land battle of World
War II in which the United States participated. More than a million
men fought in this battle including some 600,000 Germans, 500,000
Americans, and 55,000 British. The German military force consisted
of two Armies with ten corps(equal to 29 divisions). While the
American military force consisted of a total of three armies with
six corps(equal to 31 divisions). At the conclusion of the battle
the casualties were as follows: 81,000 U.S. with 19,000 killed,
1400 British with 200 killed, and 100,000 Germans killed, wounded
or captured.
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At 5:30 A.M. on December 6, 1944 eight German
armored divisions and thirteen German infantry divisions launched
an all out attack on five divisions of the United States 1st Army.
At least 657, light, medium, and heavy guns and howitzers and 340
multiple-rocket launchers were fired on American positions. Between
the 5th and 6th Panzer armies which equaled eleven divisions they
broke into the Ardennes through the Loshein Gap against the
American divisions protecting the region. The 6th Panzer Army then
headed North while the Fifth Panzer Army went south. Sixth Panzer
army attacked the two southern divisions of U. S. V Corps at
Elsborn Ridge, but accomplished little. At the same time the 5th
Panzer Army was attacking the U. S. VIII Corps some 100 miles to
the south. This corps was one of the greenest in Europe at the time
and their lack of experience was exploited by the Germans. They
were quickly surrounded and there were mass surrenders.
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On December 17 American 7th Armored divisions
engaged Dietrich's Sixth Panzer Army at Saint Vith. Saint Vith was
a major road that led to the Meuse River and to Antwerp. The
American division was successful in halting the German advance and
this caused the Germans to take a path that was out of the way.
This slowed the Germans down and altered the timing of the German
attack plan. The same day some Americans were taken prisoner at
Baugnez and were shot by Colonel Peiper's unit while on a road
headed for Malmeddy. Of the 140 men taken prisoner 86 were shot and
43 managed to survive to tell the story of what had happened.
Rumors of this event spread quickly through the American divisions
causing the Americans to fight much harder and with more
resolve.
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| Bastogne was a strategic position which both the Germans and Americans wanted to occupy. This lead to a race between the American 101st Airborne divisions and the Germans. The Americans managed to post there first and occupy the city. The Germans were not far behind and quickly surrounded and laid siege to the city. This city was an important strategic location for the Allies because this city could be used as a base to launch a counteroffensive. On December 22 German officers under the flag of truce delivered a message from General der Panzertruppe von Luttwitz Commander of XLVII Panzerhops, demanding the surrender of Bastogne. After receiving the message Brigadier General Mcauliffe exclaimed 'Aw, nuts' which was his official reply to the request for surrender. This message was delivered by Joseph Harper to the Germans. He told the Germans it meant they could all go to Hell. With that they parted and the siege continued. Because the Americans were surrounded the only way they could post supplies was by air drops. However because it was the winter and the weather was bad for a long time planes could not fly. The Americans had to survive the best they could until the weather finally cleared up. The Americans at Bastogne were relieved when the VII Corps moved down and enlarged the U. S. line. This allowed Patton's Third Army to counterattack the Germans surrounding Bastogne. The Third Army was then able to push the Germans past the border of Bastogne. |
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Bastogne was not out of danger however, and on
December 29 troops from the 101st Airborne division left Bastogne
to fight the Germans. At this time the weather had cleared up which
allowed Allied air support for the first time. At the same time
General Hodges 2nd Armored divisions repelled the 2nd Panzer
division short of the Meuse River at Celles.
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The Allies launched a counteroffensive two days
before the New Year. This counteroffensive involved the U.S. Third
Army striking to the North while the U.S. First Army pushed to the
South. They were supposed to meet at the village of Houffalize to
trap all German force. The Germans did not go easily however and
the Americans had a rough time. Day after day, soldiers wallowed
through the snow. Newspapers were put under clothes as added
insulation.
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On January first, Hitler launched a plan he called
'The Great Blow.' The goal of this plan was to eliminate Allied air
power. At 8:00 A.M. German fighter airplanes swarmed over Belgium,
Holland, and northern France. For more than two hours Allied
airfields were bombarded. By 10:00 A.M. 206 aircraft and many bases
layed in ruin. Hitler's plan had a great deal of damage to Allied
aircraft. However, the price he paid for this was devastating. The
German Luftwaffe lost 300 planes and 253 trained pilots.
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On January 8, Hitler ordered his troops to withdraw
from the tip of the Bulge. This indicated that he had realized his
offensive had failed. By January 16, the Third and First Army had
joined at Houffalize. The Allies now controlled the original front.
On January 23, Saint Vith was retaken. Finally, on January 28 the
Battle of the Bulge was officially over.
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HISTORY OF THE 505TH PIR AND 3RD BRIGADE |
| On 6 July 1942, at Fort Benning, Georgia, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment was activated under the Airborne Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. On 4 February 1943, the Regiment was assigned to the 82d Airborne Division. The Regiment arrived at Fort Bragg, North Carolina on 12 February 1943. During World War II, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment participated in seven major campaigns and four regimental airborne assaults. On 28 April 1943, the 505th left the New York Port of Embarkation for Casablanca, North Africa where the regiment underwent six weeks of grueling training. The Regiment then flew to Kairouan, Tunisia where final preparations were conducted for the 505th's entry into battle. On 9 July 1943, just over a year after it's activation the 505th made the first regimental size combat parachute attack as it landed behind enemy lines at Gela, Sicily. In it's first trial-by-fire, the 505th, though outmanned and outgunned, used raw courage and fighting spirit to block the German Herman Goering Panzer Division and to save the beachhead and the Allied landings. With Sicily secure, the Allies continued attack on the Axis powers with landings on the Italian mainland. The 505th conducted it's second combat parachute attack on 14 September 1943, into Salerno, Italy becoming the first unit to enter Naples. During the early months of 1944, the Division was moved to England as the allies were preparing for the assault on Western Europe. The largest combined military operation in history, "D-Day", was to be spearheaded by the 82d and 101st Airborne Divisions. 6 June 1944, at 0300 hours, found the paratroopers of the 505th landing on the Normandy Peninsula. It was one of the first airborne units to hit the ground and liberated the first town in France, St. Mere-Eglise. The paratroopers jumped prior to the actual start of the invasion "H-Hour". Because of that tradition, of being the first into the fight, the 505th Regimental motto is "H-MINUS". For their performance in the invasions the 505th was awarded the Presidential unit citation, the unit equivalent of the Medal of Honor awarded to individual soldiers. In the words of author Clay Blair, the paratroopers emerged from Normandy with the reputation of being a pack of jackals; the toughest, most resourceful and bloodthirsty in Europe. On 17 September 1944, as part of "Operation Market Garden"., the 505th made its fourth jump at Groesbeck, Holland, the largest airborne assault in history. During that fierce combat, two lightly armed platoons, at most 80 men, were surrounded by an entire German Infantry Battalion supported by tanks. The paratroopers fought back three savage German assaults and held their ground until relieved. The 505th received a second Presidential unit citation. Later that winter the airborne troopers were thrown into the breach of the famous "Battle of the Bulge". Despite a lack of cold weather equipment once again airborne spirit, courage, and hard-nosed determination won the day as the 505th withstood the bleak winter and stopped the fanatic German attacks cold. For its valor in the seven major campaigns the 505th was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations and three Foreign decorations: the French Forragere, Netherlands Military Order of William, and Belgium Forragere. After World War II, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment returned to Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In June 1957, the regiment was reorganized and redesignated as the 505th Infantry and relieved from assignment to the 82d Airborne Division. On 25 May 1964, the 505th Infantry was reassigned and redesignated as the 3d Brigade, 82d Airborne Division. The Brigade was organized into three battalions, 1-505, 2-505, and 1-508. At 0200 hours, on 30 April 1965, the 3d Brigade was alerted for combat as part of "Operation Power Pack", the defense of the Dominican Republic against communist insurgents. Within 18 hours, the first C-130 landed at San Isidro Airfield, Dominican Republic. After two months of bitter fighting, the 3d Brigade returned to Fort Bragg, North Carolina. On 24 July 1967, the 3d Brigade deployed to Detroit, Michigan to assist local authorities in quelling a civil disturbance. Less than a year later, on 12 February 1968, the 3d Brigade was alerted for deployment to the Republic of Vietnam in response to the TET Offensive. After 22 months, the Brigade had helped secure the region south of the DMZ and redeployed to Fort Bragg, North Carolina in December 1969, the only Brigade of the 82d Airborne Division to participate in the Vietnam conflict. The 3d Brigade deployed to Washington, D.C. in May 1971 to help local and federal officials in their efforts to keep demonstrators from disrupting the daily operation of the Government. Nine years later in August 1980, the lst Battalion (Airborne), 505th Infantry was alerted and deployed to conduct civil disturbance duty at Fort Indian Gap, Pennsylvania during the Cuban refugee internment. The 3d Brigade deployed the lst Battalion (Airborne), 505th Infantry to the Middle East in March 1982 as the first United States member of the multi-National Forces and Observers (MFO) rotation in the Sinai. 1-505 returned home in August 1982 from the most important peacekeeping mission in history. In October 1983, the 3d Brigade deployed to the country of Grenada to evacuate US citizens and restore free government during operation URGENT FURY. The Brigade remained in Grenada for the duration of the campaign serving first in combat, then in peacekeeping operations until December 1983. On 3 October 1986, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) was reactivated under the auspices of the 3d Bde with the lst and 2nd Battalion 505th PIR and the lst Bn 508th PIR redesignated as the 3d Bn 505th PIR. In December 1989, Company A, 3d Battalion, 505th PIR participated in Operation "JUST CAUSE" and assisted in freeing the country of Panama from the dictator Manuel Noriega. Their efforts assisted the country of Panama to pursue its democratic destiny. In August 1990, the 505th was airlifted to Saudi Arabia as a part of Operation "DESERT SHIELD". The 82d Airborne Division spearheaded a coalition of multinational military forces aimed at deterring further IRAQI aggression and expansion into Saudi Arabia and the enforcement of sanctions against IRAQ. The ground phase of operation Desert Storm began 25 February 1991 and saw the Brigade move north to conduct combat operations through the Euphrates River Valley. After eight months, the Brigade had helped secure U.S. objectives and redeployed to Fort Bragg in April 1991. In March 1994 the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment was tasked to implement a new concept for the Army as part of the New World Order. The Regiment was tasked to Organize, train, certify, and deploy a task force made up of National Guard, Army Reserve and Active duty troops to serve as part of the Multi National Forces and observers in the Sinai Peninsula. TF 4-505th was activated on 4 November 1994 and was made up of 88% National Guard and Reservist from 32 different states, as well as 12% active duty soldiers. The 4-505th deployed to the Sinai from January 1995 through July 1995. On 15 July 1995 the Battalion was deactivated. In September 1994, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment along with the rest of the 82d Airborne Division was alerted as part of "Operation Restore Democracy". The 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment was scheduled to make combat parachute jumps in order to help oust the military-led dictatorship and restore the democratically elected president. The 82d's first wave was in the air, with the 505th loaded on aircrafts awaiting takeoff when the Haitian military dictators, upon learning the 82d was on the way, agreed to step down and averted the invasions In December 1994, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment participated in "Operation Restore Hope". The 2d Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment departed Fort Bragg for Panama in order to restore order against the upsurge of the Cuban refugees. The Battalion participated in the safegurading of the Cuban Refugees and the active patrolling in and around the refugee camps. From July 2002 to January 2003, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment deployed to Afghanistan for "Operation Enduring Freedom". As part of the multinational force, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment engaged in combat operations against Al Qaeda and Taliban forces, trained troops for a new Afghan National Army, and set the conditions for Democracy by bringing peace and stability to the people of Afghanistan. From August 2003 to April 2004, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment again deployed as part of "Operation Iraqi Freedom" to engage in combat operations against terrorists and forces loyal to the former Saddam Hussein Regime; train elements of the Iraqi Police, Facilities Protection Service, Iraqi Civil Defense Corps, and New Iraqi Army; and set the conditions for Democracy by bringing peace and stability to the people of Iraq. Acknowledged and respected, the paratroopers of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment stand ready, as always, to demonstrate they are the best fighting soldiers in the world. |
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