256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team ( United States ) The 256th Infantry Brigade Combat Team ( " Louisiana Brigade " ) is a modular Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Louisiana Army National Guard . It is headquartered in Lafayette , Louisiana . Currently the brigade is part of the 36th Infantry Division ( United States ) of the Texas Army National Guard . History . Three elements of the 256th Infantry Brigade : the 156th Infantry Regiment ; the 108th Cavalry Regiment ; and the 1st Battalion , 141st Field Artillery Regiment , the " Washington Artillery " of New Orleans , trace their history back to the American Civil War where they fought mainly in the eastern theater under Robert E . Lee ' s Army of Northern Virginia . In September 1838 , the Washington Artillery of New Orleans was founded . Its emblem was an irate tiger over crossed cannons , with the motto " Try Us " created by James B . Walton in 1846 . During the Civil War , most units were referred to as " Lee ' s Tigers " or Louisiana Tigers and became the mascot for the Louisiana State University , also known as the " Old War Skule " . Operation Iraqi Freedom III , 2004 – 2005 . During train up for operations in the spring , summer and fall of 2004 , the 256th Infantry Brigade was stationed at Fort Hood , Texas . The Brigade then completed a NTC rotation at Fort Irwin , California . The brigade spent another month training in the desert of Camp Buehring , Kuwait prior to moving into Iraq . In 2004 – 2005 the 256th Brigade was sent to Iraq as part of OIF III ( Operation Iraqi Freedom III , the third U . S . military rotation of forces into the area of operations ) . It served under the 1st Cavalry Division for its first five months and its last several months under the 3rd Infantry Division . During the first half of its combat tour in Iraq some of the brigade ' s subordinate units also served under the 10th Mountain Division . The brigade served in and around Baghdad , Iraq in a FOB known originally as FOB Victory until 15 June 2004 . At this date FOB Victory ' s name was changed to FOB Liberty because on this date the Iraqi government officially " stood up " . Upon the 256th ' s arrival at North Liberty it became Camp Tigerland . During operations in theater the brigade operated under the configuration of one - third heavy and two - thirds light . Each battalion in the brigade had one company of heavy forces with M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks , M2A2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles , or a mixture of the two . The other two thirds operated primarily from HMMWV Gun Trucks that mounted either machine guns or automatic grenade launchers . The field artillery battalion was cannibalized to bring the infantry battalions up to full strength . The remainder of the Washington Artillery was attached to the 1st Cavalry Division base defense operations center ( BDOC ) under the command of the 103rd Field Artillery Brigade and the XVIII Airborne Corps . One howitzer platoon from the Washington Artillery was used to provide indirect fires in support of FOB Liberty . Additionally , Task Force Bengal was " stood up " as a liaison / training team to equip , train and assist the 40th Iraqi National Guard ( ING ) Brigade . TF Bengal consisted of soldiers and officers of the infantry , field artillery , and engineer units from the 256th Brigade as well as the 1st Battalion , 69th Infantry ( The Fighting 69th ) from New York City which had been attached for the deployment . Attached to the 69th Infantry was Delta 101 , a company of tankers and scouts turned infantrymen from New York ' s 101st Cavalry Regiment . During the American Civil War , the 69th engaged the ancestral units of the 256th many times , so their attachment to each other for OIF provided a symbolic reconciliation 140 years after they fought each other to the death repeatedly from 1861 to 1865 . On 21 February 2005 , the 40th ING Brigade assumed authority for approximately 16 square kilometers in and around Al Akadhimian and began patrolling with Approximately 2800 soldiers . The 256th lost 32 soldiers in Operation Iraqi Freedom . Hurricanes Katrina and Rita , 2005 . On August 29 , 2005 , Hurricane Katrina struck the gulf coast of Louisiana and Mississippi while most members of the 256th Infantry Brigade were still serving their final weeks of deployment in Iraq . Following the return of the Brigade to Louisiana , a detachment immediately mobilized to New Orleans to aid Law Enforcement with rescue efforts . With the help of the Louisiana State Police , those efforts transitioned into a support mission for the New Orleans Police Department . Joint Task Force Gator was created to help combat the rise of looting and other crimes resulting from the loss of law enforcement officers in the New Orleans area . After three - and - a - half years of assisting local police and patrolling the city , the Task Force was released from duty on February 28 , 2009 . Deployment to Iraq , 2010 . On Monday 19 May 2008 Louisiana ' s 256 BCT was alerted by the Defense Department that they will possibly begin a second tour in Iraq starting in Spring 2010 . Brigades from the Texas , Pennsylvania , and Tennessee National Guards were also notified in the same press release . The press release specifically stated tours of duty located in Iraq and Kuwait , and not Afghanistan . The notice of this deployment comes in under three years of the unit ' s return from their first tour of Iraq in 2004 – 2005 . If the unit deploys in Spring 2010 , as scheduled , it will have had slightly over four years since its last federal deployment . In February and March 2010 , the 256th prepared for deployment to Iraq . On 5 January 2010 , the 256th BCT left for mobilization at Camp Shelby , Mississippi where soldiers trained for a variety of missions , such as PSD , FOB security , gate guard , convoy security , and more . In early March , they flew out of Gulf Coast Airport in Mississippi . The brigade was divided into many different sections , being controlled by sustainment brigades and commands . The brigade commander , Col . Ball , did not command the entire brigade as subordinate units fell under other brigades . While select units returned home in August , the majority of brigade unit deployed back to home station in Louisiana in December 2010 . Insignia . The saltire , symbol used on military maps to represent a brigade , stands for the organization . In addition , the saltire , which appears on the coat of arms of Nova Scotia and on the Confederate flag , alludes to the Brigade ’ s home area whose early inhabitants were from Nova Scotia , and to the Confederacy of which Louisiana was a part . The fleur - de - lis , referring to the location of the brigade ’ s headquarters at Lafayette , stands for the French background and traditions of that part of the State . The center frond is red in reference to Lafayette ’ s original name , Vermilionville , and to nearby Bayou Vermilion . The combination of blue , for Infantry and gray , for the Confederacy , with red and gold also alludes to the branch colors for Artillery and various other components of the brigade . The rectangle shield shape is the traditional shape for shoulder sleeve insignia of brigades . Organization . Until 2006 , the 256th Brigade was a " heavy " brigade that consisted of 2 mechanized infantry battalions ( 2nd & 3rd Battalions , 156th Infantry Regiment ) each equipped with 44 Bradley Fighting Vehicles , 1 armor battalion ( 1st Battalion , 156th Armored Regiment ) equipped with 44 Abrams Main Battle Tank s , and a self - propelled artillery battalion ( 1st Battalion , 141st Artillery Regiment ) that was equipped with ( 18 ) 155 mm howitzers . This was known as an HBCT ( Heavy Brigade Combat Team ) . As of 1 September 2006 , the 256th Brigade has transitioned to a light configuration of two infantry battalions , a battalion of towed artillery , and one cavalry squadron for reconnaissance . This new organization is known as an IBCT ( Infantry Brigade Combat Team ) which will have a little over 3 and a half thousand soldiers when at full strength . The HBCT and IBCT along with the SBCT ( Stryker Brigade Combat Team ) are to be the three organizations that will make up the future army ' s ground force maneuver units that will project combat power on land . The new organization will be 6 light infantry companies , 2 anti - tank companies armed with TOW missiles , 2 mounted recon troops , 1 dismounted recon troop , and 2 batteries of towed artillery with 105mm cannons with 8 cannons each . The brigade will also have a support battalion and a special troops battalion for CS ( Combat Support ) . These 2 battalions will possess support units such as signal , intelligence , military police , combat engineers , transportation , quartermaster ( supply ) , maintenance , and medical . 2nd Squadron , 108th Cavalry The 1st Battalion , 156th Armor , headquarters Shreveport , Louisiana in Caddo Parish , has been decommissioned and replaced by the brigade ' s newest battalion , the 2nd Squadron , 108th Cavalry as of September , 2006 . The mission of the 2 – 108th CAV is to provide the 256th IBCT with reconnaissance and early warning during combat operations . The new organization of the 256th IBCT will be easier to transport via fixed and rotary winged aircraft as there is no piece of equipment that approaches the 68 - ton weight of an Abrams tank or the 26 . 5 - ton weight of a Bradley Fighting Vehicle . This will also make the unit cheaper to equip and maintain as the Abrams at $ 6 million a piece is one of the most expensive land vehicles in the US Army . Order of battle . 2nd Battalion , 156th Infantry . The 2nd Battalion , 156th Infantry is headquartered in Abbeville , Louisiana in Vermilion Parish . It consists of the following : 3rd Battalion , 156th Infantry . The 3rd Battalion , 156th Infantry is headquartered in Lake Charles , Louisiana . It consists of the following : 1st Battalion , 141st Field Artillery . The 1st Battalion , 141st Field Artillery " Washington Artillery " , provides fire support to the 256th IBCT and has its headquarters in New Orleans , Louisiana ( Orleans Parish ) . 2nd Squadron , 108th Cavalry . The 2nd Squadron , 108th Cavalry is headquartered in Shreveport , Louisiana . 2nd Squadron provides the 256th IBCT with both mounted and dismounted reconnaissance assets . It consists of the following : Special Troops Battalion . The headquarters of the Special Troops Battalion ( STB ) , reflagged and reorganized from the 1088th Engineer Battalion ( Combat ) , is located in Plaquemine , Louisiana in Iberville Parish . The STB provides the brigade with its combat engineer , military intelligence , signal support , and military police . The STB also provides command , control , and support to the Brigade Headquarters and Headquarters Company . 199th Brigade Support Battalion . The 199th Brigade Support Battalion ( BSB ) provides the 256th IBCT with most of its logistical , maintenance , and transport support , is headquartered at Alexandria , Louisiana in Rapides Parish .