5th Infantry Division (United States)
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (July 2009) |
| 5th Infantry Division | |
|---|---|
 5th Infantry Division shoulder sleeve insignia | |
| Active | December 11, 1917 - unknown October 2, 1939 - September 20, 1946 July 15, 1947 - November 24, 1992 |
| Country | USA |
| Branch | Regular Army (inactive) |
| Type | Division |
| Role | Mechanized Infantry |
| Garrison/HQ | inactive |
| Nickname(s) | Red Diamond[1] "Red Devils" |
| Motto(s) | We Will |
| Engagements | WWI Alsace 1918, Lorraine 1918, Saint Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne World War II Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, Central Europe Vietnam War Vietnam Counteroffensive, Phase V, Vietnam Counteroffensive, Phase VI, Tet 69 Counteroffensive Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969, Vietnam Winter-Spring 1970, DA Sanctuary Counteroffensive, Vietnam Counteroffensive, Phase VII, Operation Just Cause Panama 1989-90 |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Bernard W. Rogers |
| Insignia | |
| Distinctive Unit Insignia | File:5th Infantry Division distinctive unit insignia.gif |
The 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized) —nicknamed the Red Diamond[1], the Red Devils, or die Roten Teufel— was an infantry division of the United States Army that served in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War, and with NATO and the U.S. Army III Corps. Its final inactivation occurred on 24 November 1992.[citation needed] Template:US Infantry
History
The 5th Division was activated on 11 December 1917 at Camp Logan, near Houston, Texas. The entire division had arrived in France by 1 May, 1918 and components of the units were deployed into the front line.[2]
Units associated with the division included:[3]
The first soldiers of the unit to be killed in action died on 14 June of that year.[4]
On 12 September, the unit was part of a major attack that reduced the salient at St. Mihiel. [5]
The division served in the Army of Occupation, being based in Belgium and Luxembourg until it was deactivated in Europe on 4 October 1921. [6]
The division (now the 5th Division (Regular)) was reactivated on 16 October 1939 at Fort McClellan, Alabama under the command of Brigadier General Campbell Hodges.
Under the new 'triangular' organization, units assigned included:[1]
It was sent to Iceland in 1942, under the command of Major General Cortlandt Parker to relieve British troops occupying this vital link on the Atlantic convoy routes.[citation needed]
Now commanded by Major General Stafford L. Irwin the 5th Infantry Division landed on Utah Beach, 9 July 1944 and 4 days later took up defensive positions in the vicinity of Caumont. Launching a successful attack at Vidouville 26 July, the division drove on southeast of Saint-Lô, attacked and captured Angers, 9–10 August, captured Chartres, (assisted by the 7th Armored Division), 18 August,[7] pushed to Fontainebleau, crossed the Seine at Montereau, 24 August, crossed the Marne and seized Reims, 30 August, and positions east of Verdun. The division then prepared for the assault on Metz, 7 September.[8] 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 Regiment failed. German-held Fort Driant played a role in repulsing this crossing. A second crossing by the 10th Regiment at Arnaville was successful.[9] The division continued operations against Metz, 16 September-16 October 1944, withdrew, then returned to the assault on 9 November. Metz finally fell 22 November. The division crossed the German border, 4 December, captured Lauterbach on the 5th, and elements reached the west bank of the Saar River, 6 December, before the division moved to assembly areas.
On the 16th of December the Germans launched their winter offensive, and on the 18th the 5th was thrown in against the southern flank of the Bulge, helping to reduce it by the end of January 1945. In February and March, the division drove across and northeast of the Sauer, cracked through the Siegfried Line, reached and crossed the Rhine, 22 March, and continued on to Frankfurt-am-Main, clearing and policing the town and its environs, 27–29 March.[citation needed] In April the division, under Major General Albert E. Brown took part in clearing the Ruhr Pocket and then drove across the Czechoslovak border, 1 May, reaching Volary and Vimperk as the war in Europe ended.[citation needed]
After the war, the division was inactivated on 20 September 1946. However, it was reactivated on 15 July 1947 under Brigadier General John C. Church.[citation needed] The 1950s saw the division in Germany as part of the US contribution to NATO. It sent one brigade to Vietnam, with the unit serving there from 1968 until 1971. Its final assignment was to III Corps (United States), with the mission of reinforcement of Europe if a general war was to break out there.[10]
In 1989, units of the Fifth Infantry Division (Mechanized), out of Fort Polk, Louisiana, deployed in support of Operation Nimrod Dancer to "protect American interests" in Panama. 1st Battalion, 61st Infantry (Mechanized), "Roadrunners" (1st Brigade, 5th ID) was one of the first reinforcing units and remained there until September when there was a hand over to 4th Battalion, Sixth Infantry(Mechanized), "Regulars" (2nd Brigade, 5th ID).[citation needed] 4-6 Infantry was in country and assisted during Operation Just Cause helping to overthrow Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, and also assisted in an emergency extraction of Delta Force operators engaged in Operation Acid Gambit when their helicopter went down.
The division was inactivated for the final time on 24 November 1992 as part of the post-Cold War rundown of US forces.[citation needed]
In popular culture
In the Axis and Allies Miniatures Roleplaying game, a US infantry unit was designated "Red Devil Captain".
Notes
- ^ a b "Special Unit Designations". United States Army Center of Military History. 21 April 2010. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
- ^ http://www.societyofthefifthdivision.com/WWI/WW-I.htm
- ^ http://www.societyofthefifthdivision.com/WWI/WW-I.htm
- ^ http://www.societyofthefifthdivision.com/WWI/WW-I.htm
- ^ http://www.societyofthefifthdivision.com/WWI/WW-I.htm
- ^ http://www.societyofthefifthdivision.com/WWI/WW-I.htm
- ^ Stanton, Shelby L. World Warr II Order of Battle, Gallahad Books, 1991, p. 84, ISBN 0-88365-775-9
- ^ Stanton, p. 84.
- ^ MacDonald, Charles B., Three Battles: Arnaville, Altuzzo, and Schmidt (United States Army Center of Military History: Washington, D.C.) 1993 reprint of 1952 edition, p. 35, 95.
- ^ David C. Isby & Charles Kamps Jr., Armies of NATO's Central Front, Jane's Publishing Company, 1985