On the cover

2

1st Infantry Division Commander:

MG Kenneth W. Hunzeker

1st Infantry Division CSM:

CSM John D. Fourhman

1st Infantry Division PAO:

MAJ William Coppernoll

1st Infantry Division Deputy PAO:

1LT Ryan Gray

1st Infantry Division Public Affairs staff

1st Infantry Division PAO NCOIC:

MSG Cameron Porter

Editor:

SPC Stephen Baack

Staff writer:

SPC Joe Alger

Broadcaster:

SGT Bryant Maude

Marking the end of an era for

the Big Red One in Europe

and the start of a new chapter in the Division’s history at

Fort Riley, Kansas, this special edition of Duty First takes

a look at the proud history of

the oldest continuously serving division in the United

States Army.
In this issue

 Duty First is an unofficial publication produced under the provisions of AR 360-1, published by Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division.

Editorial views and opinions expressed are not necessarily those of

the Department of Defense, the Army or the 1st Infantry Division. All

photos are Army photos unless otherwise noted. Circulation is 6,000

per issue, printed quarterly. Contributions are welcome and should

be sent to 1st Infantry Division, Public Affairs Office, ATTN: Editor, Unit

26222, APO, AE 09036. Telephone numbers are DSN 350-6408 or

350-6409, commercial 0931-889-6408 or 0931-889-6409, fax DSN

350-6591, commercial fax 0931-889-6591, or e-mail

firstid.pao@us.army.mil, or visit Duty First online at www.1id.army.mil.

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World War I..............4-6

Operation HUSKY...7-8

D-Day.....................9-11

Germany to Riley.......12

Tet Offensive..............13

Desert Storm.........14-15

Bosnia...................16-17

Task Force Falcon.....18

War on Terror.......20-23

Return to Riley.....24-26
 4

Trudging through the Verdun sector of France between the

Argonne Forest and the Meuse River, First Division Soldiers

understood what awaited them. Surrounding them were fresh traces

of the receding German front, pushed back by their soon-to-be

predecessors who were still in the fight. As they marched toward

their place on the front lines to relieve the 35th Division, their eyes

could not escape the extensive shell damage that spotted the

ground, the abandoned trenches accented with tangled wire, the

pulverized roads, or the giant craters where houses once stood.

And, as if to secure their grim resolve, newly erected, make-shift

grave markers from both sides of the war dotted the landscape.

These Soldiers understood that for many of them, it was a march

toward death.

Encouragingly, by that point the Division not only possessed

nearly a year of fighting experience in France, but a steadfast loyalty

to the virtues of duty and courage. Acquiring new skills and

confidence from having fought successfully in previous battles

throughout their year in France was only part of the larger picture.

Comprising the front line of the Division were the 16th, the 18th,

the 26th, and the 28th Infantry Regiments. Each having endured

extensive combat with Mexico, the regiments were considered to

be in top form and were selected to be a part of the “First

Expeditionary Division” because they stood as models of fighting

efficiency. A portion of each regiment was brought up to war strength

by an additional force of volunteer enlistees who joined after the

United States declared war April 6, 1917.

The morale was high. Making their way to Hoboken, N.J., to

depart for the war, onlookers cheered them on. A majority of the

Soldiers were eager and enthusiastic to embark on what lay ahead

– what many foresaw as an adventure.

After nearly four months of training following their arrival to

France in June, the men of the First Division welcomed the

opportunity to finally engage in combat with the Germans for the

first time while in the Sommerviller Sector on the Lorraine front.

Between the towns of Lunéville and Nancy, the Division’s 6th Field

Artillery Regiment unleashed the first American artillery shell. This

was also where the first American casualties were suffered and

where the first German prisoner of war was taken. This was, perhaps

most importantly, the battlefield on which First Division Soldiers

acquired a true sense of what lay ahead.

They endured the winter in the Ansauville Sector – the first of

the First Division’s citations for gallantry were born from this “quiet”

sector. It was here they learned how to conduct raids, as open

warfare was nearly impossible due to the strength of each side’s

Story by SPC Stephen Baack

Editor, 1st ID PAO

E Battery, 56th C.A.C., First Division provides artillery support at dawn in Boulney, France, Oct. 7, 1918.

Division Soldiers march through a town in France in 1918.

U.S. Army Photo

U.S. Army Photo
5

defenses. Quick, thoroughly

thought-out and well-practiced, the

raid was a strong attack against a

small part of the enemy’s defenses

– and by this time it was a common

tactic in this sector.

The Division found what many

consider to be its first real victory

in Cantigny, where 4,000 men of the

28th Inf. Regt. recaptured the heavily

fortified town from the Germans

within 45 minutes. The more costly

victory at Soissons followed. Their

role and subsequent victory in

clearing the St. Mihiel salient would

be the last fighting before the final

test.

The 1922 book History of the

First Division During the World

War: 1917-1918 states that without

waiting for the blow at St. Mihiel,

the Army Staff prepared plans for

this new offensive and scarcely had

the last shots been fired in the

reduction of the salient before batteries and troops began moving

to the new theater of operations.

The mission of the Allied Forces during the Meuse-Argonne

Offensive was two-fold. The main objective was to sever Germany’s

railway system that provided necessary supplies, ammunition and

troops. The double-track railway ran west from Metz through Sedan

and Mézièrez. Their auxiliary objective was to strike a final blow to

the enemy’s defenses to prevent the German front from stabilizing.

No one wanted another winter in the trenches.

On the morning of Sept. 26, the fighting began. The men of the

First Division, who had not yet entered the front lines and who

were preparing for an eastward assault in support of III Corps,

slowly realized plans would change. Throughout the first day they

heard reports from the front about the growing casualties and

desperate fighting. The front had stabilized. The Germans would

not give up the Meuse-Argonne region easily. Undisputedly, they

had held this sector since the bloody battle of Verdun in 1915.

Having received orders Sept. 27 to join the fight, the First Division

completed its relief of the 35th Division and elements of the 82nd

Division the morning of Oct. 1. As the columns approached the

front lines, each of the four regiments split into three groups to

assume their places in three ravines that ran parallel to the front line

in order to gain cover and concealment. The 1st Field Artillery

Brigade also set up their position.

Throughout the first three days, First Division Soldiers endured

constant shelling from German artillery. Both sides exchanged

relentless rifle and machine gun fire, making maneuvers next to

impossible. Casualties amounted to about 500 per day. American

batteries searched for enemy positions with their artillery fire.

Meanwhile, the Germans were already advancing their reserves,

signaling an advantage. The goal of the First Division now was to

drive a wedge onto the high ground of the Aire Valley with the

hopes of forcing the Germans to loosen their grip on the Argonne

Forest and ultimately be driven backward. The landscape, however,

provided excellent cover to German machine guns on the wooded

hilltops and poor cover to the advancing First Division troops on

the barren slopes. They would need reinforcements.

The additional troops included three tank companies, three

cavalry companies, a French regiment of field artillery and an aerial

observation squadron. Every move of the Division was preceded

by crucial barrages from 108 artillery guns. Thus began the second

phase of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.

The first day of the renewed attack saw every range of battle

from artillery to hand-to-hand fighting. Commencing the battle was

the Division’s artillery barrage, which was met by a fierce counterbarrage from the Germans – effectively placing a wall of exploding

shells directly in front of them. Augmented by the enemy’s rifle and

machine gun fire, the scene was later described as a “hell of death

and destruction.” It was through this onslaught the infantrymen of

Soldiers from the 18th Infantry Regiment set up a machine gun nest in “No

Man’s Land” during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France.

Division troops keep watch at a lookout post in front-line

trenches in the Ansauville Sector. Soldiers of the First

Division learned how to conduct raids, as open warfare

was nearly impossible due to the strength of each side’s

defenses.

U.S. Army Photo

U.S. Army Photo
 6

the First Division made their way. Close-quarters fighting followed

with the use of bayonets, rifles and grenades.

The use of machine guns and artillery support throughout First

Division’s involvement during the entire offensive was absolutely

necessary, as counter-attacks from the enemy were frequent, and

infantry cover was limited. In fact, artillery use averaged about

1,000 rounds per day, which made out to 7.5 tons of steel fired into

the enemy every day during that period of fighting.

After successfully driving their wedge and flanking the enemy,

the Division held its line under orders of I Corps, and the 82nd

Division entered the fight to assist the 16th Inf. Regt. in handling

oncoming flanking fire.

Now under the control of V Corps, the Division waited in

especially hostile territory from Oct. 6-8, awaiting orders from First

Army to renew the attack against the entire front. It was here

casualties mounted beyond the ability of stretcher bearers and

burial parties to perform their duties. For the first time in this phase

of the battle, 1st Battalion, 16th Inf. Regt. was put in the fray and did

not disappoint in achieving their objective: the precipitous Hill 272.

The aforementioned historical book states the assault must ever

stand as one of the most brilliant exploits of the Division, and it

opened the way for the success that crowned the remainder of the

operation.

Each regiment sustained some of the heaviest losses during this

period, but did not fall short of their objectives near Fléville. By

Oct. 12, the First Division was relieved by the 42nd Division. The

First Division had advanced seven kilometers while defeating

elements of eight German divisions. By Oct. 31, the Division was

back on the field and entered the fight the next day.

After an extensive barrage that included 608 artillery guns and

lasted two hours, separate walls of shells, shrapnel, machine gun

fire, howitzer bursts and more shells rained down across a distance

of 1,000 to 1,200 meters away. Three divisions of infantrymen – 2nd,

89th and the First – followed the barrages toward the next assault

and final objective: the heights of Barricourt.

After a day of fighting near the Stonne-Beaumont road, the

stage was set to head toward Sedan, the key objective of the

offensive. Five columns of the Division began a torturous march

down the valley of the Meuse to the southwest hills of Sedan

during the night. Upon nearing Sedan the morning of Nov. 7, First

Division regiments met elements of the 42nd Division and the 40th

French Division. During the two days prior, First Division Soldiers

had marched and fought without stopping to rest. The 16th, 18th and

28th Regiments had marched more than 50 kilometers. The 26th

Regiment had marched 71 kilometers.

The Division had been resting and being held in reserve awaiting

the next operation when, at 11 a.m., Nov. 11, the armistice and ceasefire were announced. At first the prevailing belief among American

troops was that the armistice was merely a delay before a final push

for Sedan. Slowly the realization took hold: the war was over.

Take one look at the 1st Infantry Division’s

shoulder patch and it’s not too hard to figure out how the Division got its “Big Red

One” nickname.

While that famous nickname is self-explanatory, the origin of the patch’s design

is still somewhat of a mystery.

Director Samuel Fuller’s 1980

Word War II epic The Big Red One

treats the audience with one version of the insignia’s origin.

The movie begins with actor

Lee Marvin, known only as “Sergeant” throughout the film, in

France as a doughboy at the end

of the World War I. He’s returning to a muddy trench after killing

a German Soldier in hand-to-hand combat on the battlefield above. Sergeant

joins his commander in a cluttered bunker,

and as they talk he pulls the German’s cap

out of his tunic, cuts off the red insignia and

places it on his sleeve.

“What do you think?” he asks the captain.

“What the hell is it?” replies the officer.

“It’s a one,” Sergeant says. “The First

Infantry Division – the Red One.”

While Hollywood paints a courageous

picture of the patch’s conception, the actual

origin is most likely less gallant.

One story tells of how the Division used

supply trucks manufactured in England during WWI. The drivers each painted a huge

“1” on their trucks to make them easily distinguishable from those of their Allies. It’s

rumored that the Division’s engineers carried the idea a little further by sewing a red

patch on their sleeves, which was later replaced by a red number “1”.

A more-often-quoted account of the patch

legacy involves a general’s challenge to a

lieutenant during the build-up and training

days of the Division in 1917. In this version,

a general officer decided that the Division

needed a suitable shoulder insignia, so he

sewed the number on the sleeve of his uniform.

Later on, a cocky young lieutenant saw

the red numeral and shouted, “The

general’s underwear is showing!”

The general shouted back, “All right

young man, if you’re so smart, you come

up with something better.”

The lieutenant produced a prototype of the modern day patch shortly

afterward. It’s said he used a piece of

cloth from a captured soldier’s uniform

as a background with a big, red “1”

sewed on the face.

Another rendition of the tale combines the stories of the supply trucks and

the general’s challenge naming LT Herbert

M. Stoops of C Battery, 6th Field Artillery

Regiment as the patch’s designer.

In October 1918 the patch was officially

approved for wear by members of the Division.

Regardless of which of these legendary

stories is closest to reality, the distinctive

Big Red One will always remain the pride of

all the members of the 1st Infantry Division.

Big Red One patch remains symbol of pride

Story by SGT John Queen

69th ADA Brigade PAO

Graphic by SGT John Queen
 7

If then- Army Chief of Staff GEN George C. Marshall had his way,

the invasion of Sicily would not have happened at all. It was his

argument that all men and material should be used in a cross-channel invasion of Northern France immediately and not waste time

with such a small target as the island of Sicily.

As it turned out, the invasion was a compromise crafted in favor

of the British, between American President Franklin D. Roosevelt

and British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill, just two months

after the American Army began ground operations against the European Axis Powers in Northern Africa Nov. 8, 1942.

As for the 1st Infantry Division, rumors among the troops at the

time had everyone believing they would be departing for America

soon. After all, they had just successfully invaded North Africa,

defeated the Nazis in a bloody battle for Tunisia, and a whole armada of fresh Soldiers, the 36th Infantry Division, had just arrived

ready for battle.

But LTG George Patton, the Seventh Army commander, refused

to go into Sicily with untested troops. He petitioned higher command to substitute the battle-tested 1st ID for the newly arrived 36th

ID.

“I will not go without the 1st Infantry Division,” Patton said.

GEN Dwight D. Eisenhower agreed, and the Fighting First would

take part in Operation HUSKY.

For weeks prior to the invasion, the weather could not have been

more ideal for a beach landing. The waters were calm, and the skies

were clear. On D-Day minus one, the waters of the Mediterranean

turned violent, with the winds clocked in at 40 miles per hour. The

plan was to land the 1st ID on six beaches near the town of Gela at

2:45 a.m. on the morning of July 10, 1943; proceed inland to Piano

Lupo, where paratroopers from the 505th Regimental Combat Team

were to land and secure key terrain in the hills above the city. It was

here that the 1st ID, with the help of Navy Artillery fire, would repel a

counter-attack led by the Hermann Goering Division.

Retired COL Bryce F. Denno, executive officer with the 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, described events during the early hours

of D-plus-one.

“Companies E, F and H attacked, encountered enemy tanks and

withdrew to a hill near Prilo Sotton where Company G was dug in

with recently arrived 37mm antitank guns,” said Denno. “Some men

Story by SGT Bryant Maude

Broadcast NCO, 1st ID PAO
 8

in the assault companies were crying with frustration because they

had nothing with which to fight tanks except bazookas. LTC Arthur

Graham, commander of the parachute battalion that had landed in

front of us, also had a handful of his paratroopers. Shortly after

noon, enemy tanks attached, and I hit the ground with Company G’s

executive officer alongside me. ‘Hell, let’s not wait for them to attack

us,’ he said. ‘Let’s attack them first.’ These brief words were his last.

Hit in the head by a bullet, he died instantly.”

By July 29, the 16th Infantry Regiment stopped their pursuit of the

15th Panzer Grenadier Division 11 miles short of Troina. Dug in along

three hills that commanded the highways three miles short of Cerami,

they would wait for further instructions. With the assistance of the

39th Infantry Regiment, multiple elements of the 1st ID would attempt

individually to penetrate the areas around Troina.

After three days of combat and little to show for their efforts, MG

Terry Allen, 1st ID commander, determined the only way to take Troina

was by a large-scale coordinated attack. He would attach a battalion of the 18th Infantry Regiment to the 16th Infantry and charge them

with the task of capturing Monte Bianco just south of Troina. With

the 39th Inf. Regt. in Monte San Silvesto and the 26th Infantry Regiment poised to move into Monte Basilio, the main attack would

commence at 3 a.m. on Aug 3.

By Aug. 5, the combat efficiency of the 15th Panzer Grenadier

Divisions was depleted to a point where a real danger of an Allied

breakthrough of their lines in Cesaro was a clear possibility. The

German commander, GEN Rodt, ordered a fighting withdrawal on

successive phase lines, located between the towns of Giarre in the

East to Randozza, Poggio del Moro, and on to the north coast at

Cape Orlando, dubbed the Tortorici line.

By dawn of Aug. 6, it became clear to Allen that the Germans were

gone. He ordered patrols from the 16th Inf. Regt. to clear the city.

They met very little resistance and mostly cheers and flag waving

by the hundreds of people who remained in the city. That afternoon

the 1st ID commander would relinquish his zone to GEN Eddy and

would also relinquish his command to MG Clarence R. Huebner.

Troina was the last major conflict in Sicily for the Fighting First. The

Germans would give up Sicily after the capture of Messina, Aug. 17,

1943.

In the book The Sicily Campaign: Recollections of an Infantry

Company Commander, by MG Albert H. Smith, Jr., the lessons

learned from the fighting in Sicily were discussed in detail. Smith

states the campaign in Sicily that led to the capitulation of Italy

proved several things. Like the invasion of North Africa, the Sicilian

landing showed that Axis-held Europe was vulnerable to amphibious attack.

It demonstrated the superiority of Allied weapons and equipment. It illustrated the resourcefulness and skill of the German foot

soldier, who, despite numerical and technological inferiority, demonstrated once again the fundamental importance of terrain and its

use in a struggle between ground forces. It gave the American field

commanders in Europe experience, and particularly with respect to

the British ally, a maturity not achieved before. Most of all, the

Sicilian Campaign, by making possible the Italian surrender, marked

a milestone on the Allied road to victory.

Soldiers of the Big Red One march through the town of Troina, Sicily, during Operation HUSKY in August 1943.
9
 10
 11
 12

This year, as part of Operation Gyroscope

II, Soldiers from several units in the 1st Infantry Division are preparing to move their base

of operations from Germany to the United

States at Fort Riley, Kansas. This isn’t the

first time in 1st ID history a move like this has

occurred as the Division was involved in a

similar operation in 1955 during Operation

Gyroscope I.

According to Andrew Woods, 1st ID historian, in 1919 the First Division was shipped

from Germany to New York, where they had

a victory parade on 5th Avenue with all their

equipment. The Division was stationed in

New York State between the wars.

In 1942 MG Terry Allen and the 1st Infantry Division left from New York to fight overseas in WWII.

After combating the Nazi Germans from

Africa to Czechoslovakia for three years, the

Division stayed in Europe as an occupation

force. With the formation of West Germany

and its elections in 1949, the 1st Infantry Division changed its role from occupation

forces to a defense force on the East German

border between the Soviet forces and the

Rhine River. After the Korean War ended,

tensions lessened with the Soviets. West

Germany rearmed and prepared to join the

NATO military alliance. With the easing of

tensions, the U.S. Army looked for ways to

rotate units so other divisions would take

turns guarding the German border.

At the time, Operation Gyroscope was the

first time the Army would interchange entire

divisions between overseas locations and

their permanent location in the United States.

The 1st ID and 10th ID, who had previously

been at Fort Riley, were one of the first units

to exchange duty assignments.

At the time of the operation, there were

several reasons for implementing such a drastic change in Army operations. The new

system was expected to raise the morale of

troops and their families, increase combat

effectiveness of the Army and lower the cost

of maintaining the military establishment.

According to GEN Matthew B. Ridgeway,

the most important consideration favoring

the new plan was the likelihood that troop

morale would be improved through greater

permanency of enlisted men’s assignments.

Under the Gyroscope plan, a career Soldier would know his next assignment for years

in advance and could plan accordingly. Soldiers would also be able to travel with their

families to overseas assignments as opposed

to previous years when they were forced to

be away from their families for long periods

of time. In addition, by improving morale,

the new system was expected to improve

retention and reenlistment rates.

While it was a peacetime operation, Gyroscope I was also intended to improve the

Army’s war fighting capabilities. The movement of equipment via rail and sea transportation was basically the same method of

transportation that would be used in wartime operations. Therefore, Soldiers who

participated in the operations gained valuable experience in moving large units overseas.

The Big Red One, which had been overseas in Germany for 13 years prior to the

move, was greeted by a large parade after

entering the New York harbor on July 23,

1955. It was estimated that the 1st Infantry

Division would return to the United States

with more than 16,000 enlisted personnel, approximately 825 officers, 5,500 dependents,

more than 1,000 private automobiles, and 33

family pets.

According to Woods, the welcoming

party in Brooklyn on the flag bedecked pier

included MG Terry Allen, who took the Division overseas on Aug. 7, 1942, to begin the

longest tour of duty ever served by an American division on the continent.

The Big Red One remained at Fort Riley

until 1996 when it moved its base of operations back to Germany.

Big Red One moves to Fort Riley during...

Story by SPC Joe Alger

Staff writer, 1st ID PAO
 13

Under the cover of darkness, 19 Vietcong

commandos arrived by taxi and quickly blew

their way through the wall of the U.S. embassy compound in Saigon Feb. 1, 1968.

Within a few short minutes, four U.S. Soldiers lay dead, and the commandos had control. This attack triggered the now infamous

Tet Offensive, which many people call the

turning point of the war in Vietnam.

By January of 1968, the 1st Infantry Division had been in Vietnam for more than 30

months and had already participated in 49

major combat operations. The Division received the news of the Vietcong guerrilla

fighters’ violation of the temporary truce that

same morning. The Vietcong had originally

pledged to cease combat operations around

the lunar New Year celebrations but instead

surged into more than 100 towns and cities,

including Saigon.

This attack shifted the war, for the first

time, from its rural base into the new arena of

South Vietnam’s supposedly impregnable urban areas. It was a campaign of “enormous

breadth, speed and scope.”

The Big Red One immediately shot into

action by assisting a Vietnam Army outpost

at Bear Cat, killing 48 enemy soldiers and

moving the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment and A Troop, 1st

Squadron, 4th U.S. Cavalry

Regiment into the Tan Son

Nhut Air Base in an effort

to keep the air base secure.

On Day Two, multiple

columns of Vietcong were

spotted near Phu Loi. The

Division Artillery Brigade

acted quickly by flooding

the area with illumination

shells allowing several

units the opportunity to

rain fire across the area,

disrupting the Vietcong’s

planned attack on Di An.

A senior-ranking Vietnamese officer, remembering the ferocity of this

battle, later handed the outgoing DIVARTY commander, COL Henry

Schroeder, a calendar sheet

at the brigade’s change of

command ceremony that

states, “To and frothy arrows passed, the crackling

thunder rolled, ‘till all the

world shone with thy lightning, and the troubled

earth shook.”

In early March, a new 1st

ID commander, MG Keith

Battle-hardened Division tested in troubled land

L. Ware, would lead the Big Red One into a

multi-division operation called Quyet Thang,

which translates to “Resolve to Win.”

On April 7, 1968, the Division embarked

on the largest operation of the Vietnam War

– Operation Toan Thang or “Certain Victory,” which involved every allied troop

throughout the III Corps tactical zone. One

of the primary missions of this two-part operation was to stop the infiltration of the

enemy into the Saigon area.

In 1968, nine major battles, including Xom

Bung, An My, Tan Hiep and Junction City,

would be fought by various elements of 1st

ID. The Big Red One would effect great pain

on the enemy and would also suffer a great

loss – on Sept. 13, 1968, the 1st ID’s commanding general was killed near the Cambodian border when his command helicopter

was hit by enemy gun fire and crashed. The

Division’s command sergeant major and six

other Soldiers were also lost.

Three and a half years had passed since

the Division’s advanced party landed at Qui

Nhon, Vietnam, and the first Big Red One

Soldier, PFC Gerald Werster of Headquarters

and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 7th

Field Artillery Regiment set foot on enemy

soil.

By April 1970, the Division conducted 23

more operations following the Tet Offensive

and returned to Fort Riley with three decorations, eleven campaign streamers and eleven

Medal of Honor recipients.

Story by SGT Bryant Maude

Broadcast NCO, 1st ID PAO

A 1st Infantry Division Soldier prepares for another

combat patrol during operations in Vietnam in 1968.

A CH-47 Chinook helicopter approaches a landing zone to pick up

Big Red One Soldiers serving in Vietnam.

U.S. Army photo

U.S. Army photo
 14

Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait on Aug. 2, 1990,

and this act immediately precipitated U.S. military involvement in the

Persian Gulf.

As the U.S. Army’s presence continued to build along the northern

border of Saudi Arabia, the 1st Infantry Division was put on alert for

deployment on Nov. 8, 1990.

Over the course of the next two months, the Division deployed

more than 12,000 Soldiers and 7,000 pieces of equipment to Saudi

Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield. On the morning of Feb.

24, 1991, under MG Thomas G. Rhame, the Big Red One spearheaded

the armored attack into Iraq, leading the way for VII Corps at the start

of Operation Desert Storm.

During the next 100 hours, the Big Red One smashed into the Iraqi

26th Infantry Division by breaking through enemy lines and taking

more than 2,500 prisoners. At 8 a.m., Feb. 28, 1991, the war was over,

and a cease-fire was called. The Big Red One had fought through

260 kilometers of enemy-held territory in southern Iraq and Kuwait, and destroyed 550 enemy tanks and 480 armored personnel

carriers. In addition, the Big Red One captured more than 11,400

prisoners – twice the amount of any other unit. Eighteen of the

Division’s Soldiers were killed in the war. 

The Big Red One’s 1st Brigade accounted for a majority of the

Division’s success, which included three major attacks within a

Story by MSG Cameron Porter

1st ID PAO NCOIC

“By the time we began combat operations, we

could alert and move the brigade in 10 minutes

notice. I don’t think anyone else in Operation

Desert Storm can claim that capability.”

- Retired MG Bert Maggart, 1st Brigade commander
 15

period of four days and four nights. And retired MG Bert Maggart, the Devil Brigade

commander, believes he knows why.

“The keys to our success included the

fact that all our senior leaders and many of

our junior leaders had at least one rotation

at a Combat Training Center, usually (the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif.)

under their belts,” Maggart said.

In addition, Maggart and his 1st Brigade

Soldiers conducted numerous tactical and

logistical rehearsals to help make actual combat operations simpler, even with the significant number of changes in

the operation’s base plan.

“We formed what we called the ‘whale’ which was a logistical formation that was organized such that each class of re-supply occupied

a specific location in the whale, which remained the same regardless

of location on the battlefield,” Maggart said. “When battalion resupply vehicles returned to the whale for supplies, they knew exactly

where to find what they were looking for in the formation.”

Maggart, who considers Operation Desert Storm the highlight of

his more than 30 years of service to the Army including his time in

Vietnam, said he is proud of the fact that “we got the job done in four

days.”

Maggart refers to Desert Storm as a “major land battle.” And one of

the Devil Brigade’s primary missions during this land war was to breach

the so called “Sadaam Line” at its most western point.

“We conducted the breach in 30 minutes and reduced the entire

enemy position by mid-day the following day,” said Maggart.

And when the Soldiers of the Devil Brigade were called upon to

conduct a night attack on Objective Norfolk, where they destroyed two brigades of the Iraqi Tawakalna Division

Republican Guard, they accomplished their mission

without flaw, he said. When they fought their final

battle against withdrawing elements of three Iraqi

mechanized and armored divisions, the 1st Brigade

Soldiers once again accomplished their mission without flaw.

“We did unbelievably difficult and complex tasks without error,

which is something to be forever proud of – given the environment,

conditions and time that we had to execute,” Maggart said. “By the

time we began combat operations, we could alert and move the brigade in 10 minutes notice. I don’t think anyone else in Operation

Desert Storm can claim that capability.”

Following the war, the 1st Infantry Division was welcomed home as

heroes, said LTC James Stockmoe, who served as the 1st Brigade’s

security and intelligence officer during Operation Desert Storm.

“We anticipated massive casualties up to the day of the attack. In

the end, we lost four Soldiers to mines and one to friendly fire,”

Stockmoe said. “The toughest audience I had to speak to when we

redeployed was my nephew’s first grade class ... kids ask hard, thought

provoking questions that are sometimes hard to answer.”

But Stockmoe said he could easily explain how he and the Soldiers

of 1st Brigade felt following the war.

“Extremely proud,” he said. “We went from one of the lowest combat readiness ratings to a major combat unit overnight, executing flawlessly.” 

Stockmoe believes that to this day, the Big Red One remains the

greatest division in the Army.

“The Soldiers live up to our great Division motto, ‘No mission too

difficult. No sacrifice too great. Duty first!’ Their feats speak for themselves,” he said.

The 1st Infantry Division destroyed 550 tanks and 480 armored personnel carriers in 100 hours

of fighting. Pictured here a demolished Iraqi tank lies dormant near a burning oil field.
The Soldiers walked slowly along both

sides of the muddy street, their weapons

ready. Around them were the all-too-familiar

ravages of war – crumbling vestiges of once

pretty Balkan homes, bent and bullet-ridden

street signs, garbage, bricks and rusty carcasses of automobiles pushed into piles

along the street. Men, women and children,

seemingly numb to the destruction that surrounded them, went about their daily routines of work and play – and rebuilding.

To these residents, the sites of war are

common, but for the Soldiers of 3rd platoon,

C Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry, Task

Force 1-77, it’s a whole new world.

“It’s two different worlds definitely,” said

PVT Theodore Cerwin, the patrol’s radio, telephone operator. “There’s a bunch of mud

here, really no paved roads. You can see all

the buildings have bullet holes and shrapnel from direct hits.”

Cerwin, fresh out of basic training, has

been in country only a few weeks, and is

currently stationed at Observation Post

(OP)-9, in the heart of the bombed out town

of Omerbegovaca.

Cerwin, however, said he wanted to see

this world, and is glad he is deployed to

Bosnia.

“I’m ready to do some good work,” he

said.

Work is what Cerwin, and his fellow Soldiers are doing at OP-9, and a lot of it. The

“Ramrods” are the new tenants at OP-9, replacing Task Force 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry

Regiment, which is rotating back to Germany.

In addition to performing checkpoint duty

at the OP, the Soldiers are required to go out

on at least two daily patrols and one night

patrol in Omerbegovaca and Dizdarusa.

Like Cerwin, many of the Soldiers at OP-9

are young and new to the Army. PVT Dario

Troiano entered the military six months ago.

Troiano said when he sees the families in

Omerbegovaca struggling to rebuild their

lives, it touches him personally. “Because I

know – I have my own family at home,” he

said. “I feel sorry for these people; it’s a real

eye opener. You hear about war in school,

but you don’t really feel it until you actually

see if first hand.”

Troiano said while his family back home

is concerned about him being in Bosnia, he

reassures them he is doing okay. A lot of

that reassurance, he said, comes from his

platoon members.

“They’re all really nice and they’ve taught

me a lot,” Troiano said. “My squad leader,

SGT Sullivan, has been extra super. He makes

sure we know what he knows, and that we’re

ready for anything.”

At 25, SGT Ryan Sullivan is one of the

oldest members of third platoon

Division Soldiers play key role in peacekeeping operations

Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division conduct a river crossing as part of Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia.U.S. Army photo

Story by SPC David Boe

Staff writer, 364th MPAD

 16
 17

PFC Patrick M. Kelley, a scout with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery,

4th Battalion, 3rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, keeps a close eye on his

section of the Eagle Base perimeter from Observation Post Quebec.

Photo by SPC Aaron Reed

The 1st Infantry Division’s role in Bosnia began when

the 1st Squadron, 4th U.S. Cavalry Regiment was attached

to 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division during Operation Joint

Endeavor from October 1995 to October 1996.

The 1st ID then assumed command from 1st AD in a

transfer of authority ceremony at Eagle Base, Nov. 10,

1996. Their mission was to provide a covering force for 1st

AD units returning to Germany, and following that, continue to support the Dayton Peace Accord through the

transition from Implementation Force (IFOR) to the Stabilization Force (SFOR).

During its time in Bosnia, the Big Red One worked in

coordination with National Guard and Reserve Soldiers,

members of the Navy, Air Force and Marines, and Soldiers from 12 nations in the area known as Multi-National

Division North (MNDN).

The Division continued with its mission until October

1997 when it was replaced by the 1st AD and returned to

its base of operations in Wurzburg, Germany.

and the only one on his second deployment

to Bosnia. This distinction, he said, has allowed him to provide his younger squad

members with valuable information on their

mission.

“I have little chats with them, tell them

things that I did before when I came down

here,” Sullivan said. “I want to bring them

up, kind of mold them to be good Soldiers,

the best they can be.”

Sullivan said the main mission of the Ramrods at OP-9 are the daily patrols through

Omerbegovaca It’s a show of force, he said,

to let the local civilians know the U.S. Soldiers are doing their job. No patrol is the

same, said Sullivan. One day might be a

south patrol looking for unexploded

ordnances, the next, a north patrol monitoring resettlement efforts.

“And, of course, we enforce the provisions of the General Framework Agreement

for Peace,” Sullivan said. “If we see any1st ID supports

Peace Accord

Then SGT Paul R. Smith, 9th Engineer Battalion, sets up

concertina wire in Bosnia while serving with the 1st Infantry Division. Smith was posthumously awarded the

Medal of Honor for his actions in Iraq during Operation

Iraqi Freedom.

U.S. Army photo

thing wrong we let it be known to higher headquarters.”

The Ramrods most recent patrol was the resettlement in

Omerbegovaca and Dizdarusa, checking to see if anyone had moved

in during the past couple of days and verifying if they had registered with SFOR and civil affairs. “We also check to see how they

are doing,” Sullivan said. “In other words, to see if they’re being

harassed.”
 18

With the end of the Cold War in the early

1990s and the fall of communism in Eastern

Europe, Yugoslavia, having historically been

a hotbed for turmoil in the region, once again

turned into a pressure cooker for political

tension.

During the course of the next 10 years a

series of violent conflicts broke out in several provinces of the former communist country over political, cultural and ethnic causes

resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands

of people.

Kosovo was thrust into one of these conflicts in 1994 when Albanian separatists began attacking Serbian civilians and security

forces. After five years of bloody fighting

and ethnic cleansing, NATO intervened by

forcefully restraining both sides with an aerial

bombing campaign that lasted more than two

months followed by a multinational peacekeeping force.

In the beginning months of 1999 the 1st

Infantry Division, headquartered in

Wurzburg, Germany, was put on alert

for a possible deployment to Kosovo to support and conduct peacekeeping operations

in the war-torn province.

After several months of training, the first

elements of 1st ID joined the NATO force

and entered Kosovo as part of Operation

Joint Guardian. Known as Task Force Falcon, the Division and its attachments of airmen and Marines set up and began operations in June in what became Camp

Bondsteel. The Big Red One’s initial entry

force consisted of elements of 2nd Brigade

Combat Team.

Shortly after the task force established

itself in the area, the Yugoslavia Army and

Special Police forces began redeploying from

Kosovo in accordance with the Military

Training Agreement. Task Force Falcon

monitored this withdrawal and ensured it was

in compliance with the agreement. Once the

withdrawal was complete, the task force

shifted its focus to the enforcement of the

transformation and demilitariStory by SGT John Queen

69th ADA Brigade PAO

zation of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

By the end of 1999, elements of the Big

Red One’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team replaced their 2nd BCT counterparts.

In June of 2000, with their mission complete, the Division was replaced by the

1st Armored Division and returned to Germany.

Task Force Falcon continues to conduct

peacekeeping operations in Kosovo in support of United Nations Security Council

Resolution 1244 under the Operational Control of the NATO led Kosovo Force (KFOR),

to ensure a safe and secure environment is

maintained to enable the establishment of a

stable society.

The Division was called again to serve in

Kosovo from May to November 2002 with

2nd Brigade Combat Team’s KFOR 4A rotation. This was followed by 3rd Brigade Combat Team’s extended KFOR 4B rotation from

November 2002 to March 2003, while major

combat action for Operation Iraqi Freedom

began in the Middle East.

Tankers from 1st Battalion, 63rd Armor Regiment prepare to qualify with their M1 Abrams tanks at the newly built

Ramjane Range near Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo.
 19

Too many Big Red One Soldiers, while recalling the details of the Battle

of Kasserine Pass, Tunisia, would require a quick update by means of a

history book or Internet search. While the vivid memories of the battle

have faded with time – 1st Infantry Division Soldiers honor the values and

gallantry of the Big Red One’s historical success on a daily basis with

song.

 COL David T. Kellett was a Soldier with the Big Red One, then a captain, during the early days of World War II and was awarded the Silver Star

for his gallant actions during the Battle of Kasserine Pass in February 1943.

The following month, while in a Constantine, Algerian, hospital recuperating from a wound received during an attack on Hill 609 at El Guettar,

Kellett wrote the Big Red One song. He dedicated the song to MG Terry

Allen, the Division commander in North Africa and Sicily from 1942 to 1943.

Kellet led a successful career in the Army and retired as a colonel. He

was known for more than his gallant actions at the Battle of Kasserine

Pass. By the end of his 30-year career, he was well known around the

military services for his marches.

Kellett may also be credited with writing the Spader Parrader – the

march of the 1st Infantry Division’s Blue Spaders.

‘Toast of the Army, favorite son ...’

Story by 1LT Ryan Gray

1st ID Deputy PAO

‘No Mission too Difficult, No Sacrifice too

Great, Duty First!’ was written by COL Aristides

Moreno and GEN Harold B. Fiske in 1917.

Moreno was a captain and the adjutant of the 28th Infantry during training in the summer of that year,

and Fiske was the 2nd Brigade adjutant, who was later promoted to brigadier general and in charge of

training American Expeditionary Forces for combat in France.

The First Division arrived in France in June of 1917, and was manning trenches on the front lines by

October. LTC Lucius R. Holbrook, who was commander of the 7th Field Artillery, heard the motto that

Moreno and Fiske had written and thought it to be very appropriate.

Later in his career Holbrook served as the 1st ID commanding general in 1935 and remembered the slogan of old ‘No Mission

too Difficult, No Sacrifice too Great, Duty First!’ He adopted these prolific words and used them to welcome new Soldiers as they

joined his Division.

 His Soldiers thought highly of Holbrook’s motto, and to this day people around the world still recognize the slogan ‘No

Mission too Difficult, No Sacrifice too Great, Duty First!’ as one of the 1st ID’s most widely recognized greetings and salutations.

(Information provided by Research Historian Andrew Woods, COL Robert R. McCormick Research Center, Cantigny First Division Foundation)
 20

Soldiers and police with Iraqi Security

Forces and the 1st Infantry Division continue

to search for insurgents two days after a

major offensive wrested control on this city

from anti-Iraq forces.

The 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment;

the 1st Squadron, 4th U.S. Cavalry Regiment;

the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment; and

the 1st Battalion, 77th Armor Regiment

launched a major offensive, “Operation Baton Rouge,” early Oct.1, 2004.

Just after midnight, the Coalition forces

began pounding insurgent strongholds, and

the firefight continued much of the night.

The attack led to heavy losses for anti-Iraq

forces, with at least 125 insurgents killed and

dozens more detained.

By daylight, Coalition and Iraqi Security

Forces had gained control over most of the

city. There were continued sporadic small

arms conflicts with pockets of resistance

throughout the city during the morning.

Around noon, Iraqi Security Forces stormed

the city’s Golden Mosque, an enemy stronghold, and cleared the historic site of 25 armed

fighters.

Having Iraqi Security Forces enter the

mosque, as well as other sensitive sites like

the city hospital, were deliberate decisions,

according to MAJ Jeffrey Church, executive

officer of the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment.

“Coalition Forces breached the mosque

gate” Church said. “But Iraqi Security Forces

entered, cleared, and secured the mosque.

They entered, cleared and secured the Spiral Miranet and the complex around it. The

Iraqi Security Forces also entered, cleared

and secured the Samarra hospital.”

There were about 2,000 Iraqi Security

Force personnel in the operation, and their

performance contrasted starkly with what

happened in April.

Photo by SFC Johancharles V

Story by SGT W. Wayne Marlow

Staff writer, 1st ID PAO

- O P E R AT I O N B AT O N 
 21

Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division

conduct house-to-house searches in

Samarra, Iraq, Oct. 1, 2004.

Van Boers

A 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division Soldier pulls security outside of the Golden Mosque in Samarra, Iraq, Oct. 1, 2004. During this major

offensive, Iraqi Security Forces stormed the city’s Golden Mosque, an insurgent stronghold, and cleared the historic site of 25 armed fighters.

Photo by SSG Klaus Baesu

“The Iraqi Security Forces that were in

Samarra in April ... were not well trained and

were poorly led,” Church said. “Because of

perceived prior successes they were operating in a semi-autonomous role. When the

anti-Iraq forces rose up in April, the poorlytrained, poorly-led Iraqi Security Forces

melted away.”

But this time, the Iraqi Security Forces

contributed heavily to the operation’s success.

“The difference between now and then is

the Iraqi Security Forces that participated in

Operation Baton Rouge were much better

trained and better equipped,” Church said.

“Their leaders had been better trained in military tactics, and their soldiers had all completed, at least, a basic training course.”

Church also credited teamwork with contributing to the success of the operation. “It

wasn’t just a U.S. operation. It wasn’t just a

Coalition operation. It wasn’t just an Iraq operation. All the forces worked together,”

Church said.

Church credited intelligence and shaping

operations with contributing to the quick victory. But also important, he said, was that

most Samarra residents were resentful of the

anti-Iraq forces and welcomed the Iraqi Security and Coalition Forces back into the

town.

“We did a lot around the outside of

Samarra that showed the residents that we

were serious about improving the quality of

life and that we could do the same for them,”

Church said. “We also started a radio station that gave the Coalition side of the story,

so that the residents could understand our

intent and actions. The vast majority of the

population wants security, peace and prosperity for their city, for their families and for

Iraq. The operation was successful because

the people did not support the goals or objectives of the anti-Iraq forces.”

Now that control has been seized from

the insurgents, the focus will soon turn to

rebuilding the beleaguered city. “There are

22 projects for Samarra that amount to about

$1.5 million,” Church said. “Those projects

have already been contracted to Iraqi contractors.”

These projects include trash and rubble

removal, building repair, road construction,

and bringing clean water and electricity to

the city.

ROUGE -
 22

Looking west down into Fallujah from its

eastern flank Nov. 8, 2004, U.S. troops

watched as bombs dropped and artillery

whistled by overhead, crashing down and

creating a haze of smoke blanketing the insurgent-controlled city.

Soon, their counterparts from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment would create a

breach through which all Army and Marine

elements would pour into the city to begin

an assault, purging the dug-in and determined insurgency and turning the city back

over to the people of Iraq.

The hastily assembled task force was

deployed to Fallujah at the request the 1st

Marine Expeditionary Force stationed at a

camp about 10 kilometers west of the city. It

was comprised primarily of about 650 Soldiers from 2-2 Infantry; 2nd Battalion, 63rd

Armor; 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery; 82nd

Engineer Battalion and the 3rd Brigade Reconnaissance Troop.

On the eve of battle, Task Force 2-2 commander, LTC Peter Newell, gathered the

troops around him.

“This is as pure a fight of good versus

evil as we will probably see in our lifetime,”

he said. “And there is nobody in the world

better at what’s going to happen than you.”

Because they knew the movement of such

a large force into Camp Fallujah would not

go undetected – the combat force alone consisted of about 100 vehicles – they assumed

the enemy was also preparing for the assault.

“Yeah, they know we’re coming,” said

1LT Karl E. Gregory, a platoon leader with

Alpha Company, 2-2. “But to tell you the

truth, I don’t think it matters whether they

know we’re coming or not. I don’t think

SGT Brian R. Peterson, a cavalry scout with the 3rd Brigade Reconnaissance Troop, takes cover in a house in

southern Fallujah after taking fire while clearing houses in the sector Nov. 15, 2004.

Cava

Story by SPC Kimberly Snow

Staff writer, 196th MPAD
23

there’s anything they can do to stop us.”

By the evening of Nov. 11, the northern

half of the city had been secured. A Marine

element took over so Task Force 2-2 could

move south.

Despite the use of extensive underground

tunnel and bunker systems and being unusually well equipped – enemy fighters were

reported to be wearing flak vests, helmets

and using sophisticated weapons systems

– U.S. forces and Iraqi Intervention Forces

defeated the insurgency in only two weeks.

In the end, Task Force 2-2 killed more than

300 enemy fighters and detained 45. They

destroyed five Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Devices and found around 40

weapon caches, two IED factories and a

VBIED factory.

Although Newell said he never doubted

the outcome, he didn’t expect the battle to

end so quickly. And he couldn’t be more

proud of their achievements.

“I saw some things that I don’t think anyone not there could ever really understand,”

“I saw some things that I

don’t think anyone not

there could ever really

understand”

- LTC Peter Newell, Task

Force 2-2 commander

said Newell. “I’m talking about the heroics

of individuals in the midst of chaos. I don’t

think that anyone who wasn’t there could

really capture that.”

Newell attributed the success of the operation in part to the support given to the

task force, particularly at Division level.

“This is probably the first time since the

Vietnam War that we were told to take the

gloves off and just go in and do what we

have to do to win,” said Newell. “Never once

did I have to say ‘I need or I want.’”

But success did not come without great

cost. Four Soldiers gave the ultimate sacrifice – Battalion CSM Steven Faulkenburg, A

Company Executive Officer 1LT Edward

Iwan, A Co. Commander CPT Sean Sims and

scout platoon team leader SGT James

Matteson.

“I pretend they’re just not here right now,

that they’re just someplace else,” said Alpha Company 1SG Peter Smith. “That’s how

I deal with it.”

alry scouts with the 3rd Brigade Reconnaissance Troop’s 2nd Platoon clear a house in Fallujah Nov. 19, 2004.

Photo by SGT Kimberly Snow
 24
If the saying ‘history repeats itself’ holds any weight,

the 1st Infantry Division is on track. As part of the first major

Army transformation in 60 years, the first and longest continuously serving division is doing its part to change the

Army landscape.

More than 50 years ago, the Division participated in the

Army’s first intercontinental, division-level exchange when

it moved from Germany to Fort Riley, Kan., and swapped

with the 10th Infantry Division. This was known as Operation Gyroscope.

In 1996, the Division headquarters and adjoining units

returned to Germany as part of the Army’s restructuring.

The Department of Defense once again sent the Division

‘packing’ when it announced the return of the Big Red One

to Fort Riley in July 2005.

Following that announcement, the 1st ID

put into action the plan to move its headquarters and a number of subordinate units back

to the continental United States. The operation was appropriately coined “Operation Gyroscope II.”

The Division began to draw down personnel, turn-in equipment and make drastic

changes across the formation in order to meet

the goals of the Army Campaign Plan and the

transformation initiatives of the U.S. Army in

Europe.

Story by SPC Stephen Baack

Editor, 1st ID PAO

 25

See Gyro, page 26
 26

As modern battlefield tactics have evolved, generations of 1st

Infantry Division Soldiers have adapted to and defeated an everchanging enemy. While uniforms, weapons and food have

changed, one thing remaining consistent is the Soldier’s story,

which only another Soldier is likely to understand.

The Society of the First Infantry Division and the Cantigny

First Division Foundation, two organizations of veterans representing the Big Red One, exist to foster this bond between veterans and the Soldiers who still serve today.

Representing more than one million veterans, the Society of

the First Infantry Division, located in Blue Bell, Pa., works to

maintain the memory of the Division, and most importantly honor

the service and sacrifice of its Soldiers and units.

Recently, the foundation collaborated with the National Park

Service to rectify the deteriorating First Division Monument in

Washington, D.C. They also provided floral arrangements at the

monument and other war memorials during ceremonies honoring

past and present BRO Soldiers.

Staying true to this mission, the Society has also provided

grants to family members of recuperating Soldiers – enabling

mothers, fathers and spouses to stay by their wounded lovedone’s bed-side through the demanding recovery process.

Since the Vietnam War era the Society of the First Infantry

Division has maintained an educational foundation providing

assistance to families of fallen BRO Soldiers. Today they provide scholarships to family members of 1st Infantry Division Soldiers, past and present.

Another foundation with very close ties to the Society of the

First Infantry Division is The Cantigny First Division Foundation.

Located in Wheaton, Ill., the foundation operates the First

Division Museum there. Spanning 38,000 square feet, the museum is dedicated to promoting the history of the Big Red One.

Upon completion of a multi-million dollar renovation in 1992, the

museum now boasts 10,000 square feet of state-of-the-art interactive and experiential exhibits.

The members of the Society of the First Infantry Division

have maintained a long and philanthropic history, and the society is in a great position to maintain a charitable future as these

old Soldiers put “Duty First” in order to take care of Soldiers.

More information is available at www.bigredone.com for The

Society of the First Infantry Division, and at www.rrmtf.org/

firstdivision/ for The Cantigny First Division Foundation.

BRO veterans groups support 1ID

Story by 1LT Ryan Gray

1st ID Deputy PAO

Subordinate units inactivated, converted

to become part of the 173rd Airborne Brigade,

or prepared to return to Fort Riley with the

1st ID headquarters.

Operation Gyroscope II

activities became quite visible during April and May

2006 as returning units took

on the brunt of the work required to move the personnel, equipment and vehicles back home.

It was during Intermediate Staging Area operations when many of the

Soldiers realized the significance of what was finally

happening.

“Reality really set in,”

said 1SG Donald Jamison,

first sergeant for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Division Support Command. “We’re definitely moving back to

CONUS, back to the states – Fort Riley, Kansas. It’s really exciting. The Soldiers are

really motivated. We’ve put a lot of preparation into this.”

“A lot of preparation went into this as far

as getting the vehicles clean, proper PMCS

(Preventive Maintenance Checks and Services) of the vehicles – a lot of preparation

was put into this,” said Jamison.

Division Soldiers worked for weeks to

ensure their vehicles were as flawlessly clean

as they could make them. Vehicles were inspected, cleaned, re-inspected and cleaned

again until they passed all tests.

Next, more than five football fields of 1st

ID equipment were loaded on to the USNS

Mendonca and SS Westward Venture, two

nearly 1,000-foot long cargo ships employed

by the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command

in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Nearly 300,000 square feet of cargo belonging to the Division left the port in late

May enroute to its final destination.

This movement of Big Red One equipment and personnel to Fort Riley, Kan., marks

the end of yet another era of the 1st Infantry

Division in Europe.

Gyro, from page 25

SGT David Pierce, an intelligence analyst with HHC,

1st ID, spray washes a vehicle and trailer.

A crane lowers a piece of equipment

onto a railcar at the Harvey Barracks

railhead in Kitzingen.
 27

Less than a year after World War I,

the Society of the First Division

proposed the construction of a

Division monument in the nation’s capital to

commemorate the Soldiers who died in the

war, and afterward veterans of later wars. As

a key driving force behind the monument,

MG Charles P. Summerall proposed a mythological statue akin to the Battle Monument

at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point,

N.Y. The Battle Monument’s winged female

figure, based on Roman and Greek mythology, stands atop a monolithic shaft in West

Point and grasps a trumpet and wreath,

which both represent victory.

The First Division Monument was

sculpted by Daniel C. French, who was famous for such works as the sitting statue of

Abraham Lincoln inside the Lincoln Memorial. The memorial architect, Cass Gilbert,

was best known at the time for designing

the tallest building in the world, the

Woolworth Building in New York.

Once completed, French’s design called

for a 15-foot statue depicting the bronze allegorical figure holding a flag in one hand,

while the other was to be extended in a gesture of benediction. Gilbert’s memorial base

design would require construction of a granite column standing more

than 50 feet high. The design was a departure from traditional depictions of war heroes or other individuals. The

Victory statue was meant to

honor the effort of American

Soldiers, and symbolized the

“spirit of triumphant sacrifice

and service.”

The First Division Monument was dedicated Oct. 4,

1924. Since that time, the 1st

Infantry Division has

adopted the design as the

distinctive unit insignia and

Story by SPC Stephen Baack

Editor, 1st ID PAO

A child looks up at a variation of the

Lady Victory statue at Victory Park in

Wurzburg, Germany.

Following World War I, an illustration entitled “Insignia of the Allies” by SGT Glidden was made as a tribute to the men of the First

Division who fought as comrades-in-arms during the war. The

illustration is one of the first depictions of

“Lady Victory” as its centerpiece. Lady Victory stands prominently in front of a golden

ring adorned by the flags of each Allied nation that fought alongside the United States.

Draped across her shoulders is a mantle

with the patches of every U.S. Army unit

whose actions during WW I directly contributed to the triumph of civilization. On

her head, a 1st Infantry Division unit patch,

surrounded by a wreath, is mounted and

centered on her crown.

the memorial’s “Lady Victory” sculpture has

come to represent the high standards traditionally upheld by the Soldiers of the Big

Red One.

The First Division Monument, dubbed “Lady Victory,” stands atop a 50-foot column at President’s

Park in Washington, D.C.

Insignia of the Allies