The 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery is the only active duty element remaining of the

79th Field Artillery The 79th Field Artillery Regiment is a field artillery regiment of the United States Army. First constituted 1916 in the Regular Army. History Pershing 2nd Missile Battalion, 79th Artillery The 2nd Missile Battalion, 79th Artillery was or ...

. First constituted on 1 July 1916 in the Regular Army as Troops A (Alpha) and B (Bravo) in the 21st Cavalry, their mission has changed greatly from their Cavalry days. The 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery is part of the

434th Field Artillery Brigade The 434th Field Artillery Brigade is a training/ artillery unit under the United States Army Fires Center of Excellence, a formation under United States Army Training and Doctrine Command, TRADOC. The brigade conducts United States Army Basic Tr ...

charged with the TRADOC mission of Basic Combat Training or BCT of new soldiers to the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

.1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery
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History and lineage

Constituted 1 July 1916 in the Regular Army as Troops A and B, 21st Cavalry Organized 1 June 1917 at

Fort Riley Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Gear ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

Consolidated, converted, and redesignated 1 November 1917 as Battery A, 79th Field Artillery (79th Field Artillery assigned 6 December 1917 to the 7th Division) Inactivated 14 September 1921 at Camp George G. Meade,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, and relieved from assignment to the 7th Division (79th Field Artillery assigned 1 January 1930 to the 7th Division; relieved 16 October 1939 from assignment to the 7th Division) Activated 1 June 1940 at

Fort Bragg Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Reorganized and redesignated 23 February 1943 as Battery A, 697th Field Artillery Battalion Inactivated 12 February 1946 at

Camp Kilmer Located in Central New Jersey, Camp Kilmer is a former United States Army camp that was activated in June 1942 as a staging area and part of an installation of the New York Port of Embarkation. The camp was organized as part of the Army Service ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Redesignated 5 February 1947 as Battery A, 555th Field Artillery Battalion Activated 1 January 1949 in

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

(555th Field Artillery Battalion assigned 10 October 1954 to the 71st Infantry Division) Inactivated 15 September 1956 at Fort Lewis,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Relieved 16 January 1957 from assignment to the 71st Infantry Division; concurrently redesignated as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 79th Artillery Redesignated 1 June 1958 as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Missile Battalion, 79th Artillery (organic elements concurrently constituted) Battalion activated 24 June 1958 in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Inactivated 25 June 1959 in Italy Redesignated 1 July 1960 as the 1st Howitzer Battalion, 79th Artillery, assigned to the 7th Infantry Division, and activated in Korea Redesignated 1 July 1963 as the 1st Battalion, 79th Artillery Inactivated 2 April 1971 at Fort Lewis, Washington Redesignated 1 September 1971 as the 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery Activated 21 October 1975 at

Fort Ord Fort Ord is a former United States Army post on Monterey Bay of the Pacific Ocean coast in California, which closed in 1994 due to Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) action. Most of the fort's land now makes up the Fort Ord National Monument, m ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Inactivated 1 October 1983 at Fort Ord, California, and relieved from assignment to the 7th Infantry Division Headquarters transferred 16 August 1995 to the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command and activated at

Fort Sill Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (136.8 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost . The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery has five active batteries (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, and Echo) and they are all charged with the BCT mission. Up until January 2011 Echo and Delta Batteries were conducting Warrior Transition Courses (or WTC), where prior service members of other branches, such as the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

, receive training to prepare them for service in the United States Army. Golf Battery, 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery have reflagged into 1st Battalion, 31st Field Artillery on 10 February 2011 and Fox Trot Battery 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery also reflagged into 1st Battalion, 31st Field Artillery in December 2010. In March 2011 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery will stand up a new Fox Battery to once again have six batteries conducting a BCT mission.

Distinctive unit insignia

''Description'' A gold color metal and enamel device 1 5/32 inches (2.94 cm) in height overall consisting of the shield and crest of the coat of arms. Symbolism. The 21st Cavalry was organized in June 1917 from the 13th Cavalry, and converted into Field Artillery as the 79th, in November of the same year. Its original Cavalry character is shown by the color of the field, its Field Artillery service by the red bend. The canton shows a device from the badge of the 13th Cavalry, the parent organization. The regiment insignia in base is the shoulder sleeve insignia of the 7th Division with colors reversed, surrounded by a green band. Background. The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 79th Field Artillery Regiment on 22 December 1928. It was redesignated for the 79th Artillery Regiment on 14 April 1958. The insignia was redesignated effective 1 September 1971, for the 79th Field Artillery Regiment.

Coat of arms

Blazon ''Shield'' Or, a bend Gules, on a sinister canton of the like a sun in splendor of the field charged with the numeral "13" Sable (for the 13th Cavalry), in base the insignia of the regiment Proper (a Red hour-glass on a Black circle surrounded by a Green band). ''Crest'' On a wreath of the colors Or and Gules, a horse's head armored Proper. ''Motto'' OUR COUNTRY – OUR REGIMENT. 1st Battalion, uses the Motto: PEACE THROUGH VICTORY, which they gained when they were organized as the 697th Field Artillery Battalion Symbolism ''Shield'' The 21st Cavalry was organized in June 1917 from the 13th Cavalry, and converted into Field Artillery as the 79th, in November of the same year. Its original Cavalry character is shown by the color of the field, its Field Artillery service by the red bend. The canton shows a device from the badge of the 13th Cavalry, the parent organization. The regiment insignia in base is the shoulder sleeve insignia of the 7th Division with colors reversed, surrounded by a green band. ''Crest'' The armored horse's head represents Cavalry and Armor, respectively. Background The coat of arms was originally approved for the 79th Field Artillery Regiment on 1 September 1920. It was redesignated for the 79th Artillery Regiment on 14 April 1958. The insignia was redesignated effective 1 September 1971, for the 79th Field Artillery Regiment.

Campaign participation credit

World War I: Streamer without inscription World War II: Naples-Foggia; Rome-Arno; North Apennines; Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland; Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe Korean War: UN Defensive; UN Offensive; CCF Intervention; First UN Counteroffensive; CCF Spring Offensive; Un Summer-Fall Offensive; Second Korean Winter; Korea, Summer –Fall 1952; Third Korean Winter; Korea, Summer 1953

Unit citations or decorations

Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for Korea 1950-1953 Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for Korea 1953-1954 Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation for Korea 1960-1971

Current organization

Alpha Battery Bravo Battery Charlie Battery Delta Battery Echo Battery

References

External links

The Center for Military History
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970607003407/http://www.history.army.mil/ , date=1997-06-07
The Heraldry Institute
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