HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 20th Armored Division was an
armored Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
division of 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, ...
that fought in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. It was activated on 15 March 1943 at
Camp Campbell Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astride the Kentucky–Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky and Clarksville, Tennessee (post address is located in Kentucky). Fort Campbell is home to the 101st Airborne Divi ...
in
Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
. The division had no official name although it did associate itself with the nickname "Armoraiders" while in training at Camp Campbell. After certification as a liberating division by the US Army Center of Military History on 28 October 1988, and the awarding of a Liberation Certificate by the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, veterans of the division adopted the name ''Liberators."


Composition

The division comprised the following units: * Headquarters Company * Combat Command A * Combat Command B * Reserve Command * 9th Tank Battalion * 20th Tank Battalion * 27th Tank Battalion * 8th Armored Infantry Battalion * 65th Armored Infantry Battalion * 70th Armored Infantry Battalion * 33rd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (Mechanized) * 220th Armored Engineer Battalion * 160th Armored Signal Company * 20th Armored Division Artillery ** 412th Armored Field Artillery Battalion ** 413th Armored Field Artillery Battalion ** 414th Armored Field Artillery Battalion * 20th Armored Division Trains ** 138th Armored Ordnance Maintenance Battalion ** 220th Armored Medical Battalion ** Military Police Platoon ** Band


History

The 20th Armored Division departed
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
on 6 February and arrived at
Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
, France, 19 February 1945. On arrival it was sent to Buchy for a month's assembly, preparation, and additional training. It then moved through Belgium to
Langendernbach Langendernbach is a village in the municipality Dornburg, Limburg-Weilburg Limburg-Weilburg is a Kreis (district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Lahn-Dill, Hochtaunuskreis, Rheingau-Taunus, Rhein-Lahn, Westerwaldkre ...
, Germany, 10 April. After considering breaking up the new division to provide replacements for the veteran armored divisions under his 12th U.S. Army Group, General
Omar N. Bradley Omar Nelson Bradley (February 12, 1893April 8, 1981) was a senior officer of the United States Army during and after World War II, rising to the rank of General of the Army. Bradley was the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and ove ...
, sent the unit to
Marktbreit Marktbreit am Main () is a town in the district of Kitzingen in the Regierungsbezirk Unterfranken in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated at the most southern point of the Main river. Marktbreit is the birthplace of Alois Alzheimer who first identi ...
, where the Division was attached to the
III Corps 3rd Corps, Third Corps, III Corps, or 3rd Army Corps may refer to: France * 3rd Army Corps (France) * III Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * III Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of t ...
; 20 April. Three days later, it was detached and reassigned to the
XV Corps 15th Corps, Fifteenth Corps, or XV Corps may refer to: * XV Corps (British India) *XV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I *15th Army Corps (Russian Empire), a unit in World War I * XV Royal Bav ...
, Seventh Army, at
Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...
, Germany. The condition of the Division when it arrived overseas was affected by a recent change in its primary mission. Until October 1944, the 20th Armored Division's mission was to train soldiers and qualify them for overseas shipment as combat replacements for armored units. To perform this mission, the Division included in its strength an unusually large number of intelligent and highly trained men, including students from several of the Army's advanced college training programs.


Combat chronicle

The actual arrival of the 20th Armored Division into combat occurred 4–9 April 1945. The division's armored field artillery battalions (the 412th, 413th, and 414th), with elements of the 33rd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, moved up to the west bank of the Rhine River to support the 101st Airborne Division near Delhoven, Germany, and the 82nd Airborne Division across the river from Hitdorf, Germany. It was the 412th that supported the 82nd in their attack on Hitdorf that resulted in the awarding of a Distinguished Unit Citation. Overlooking the above, incomplete official records minimize the Division's perceived combat activity, i.e., citing: Elements of the division first saw action as
Task Force Campbell Task may refer to: * Task (computing), in computing, a program execution context * Task (language instruction) refers to a certain type of activity used in language instruction * Task (project management), an activity that needs to be accomplished ...
when a false surrender by the enemy resulted in fighting in the town of Dorf, 25 April. At that time, the Division assembled near Deiningen and reconnoitered for routes to the
Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
River. The 20th Armored Division's 27th Tank Battalion (a component of Combat Command R) was attached to the veteran 42nd Infantry Division on 23 April 1945 and led the attack to capture the town of Donauwörth on the 25th to secure the crossing of the Danube. The river was crossed on 28 April, the 20th meeting sporadic resistance. The success of the operation prompted Lt. Col. Donald E. Downard, commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion, 222nd Infantry (42nd Infantry Division) who had witnessed more than 25 months of combat, to state: "I have never seen a more aggressive armored unit." Subsequently, elements of the 20th seized the bridge over the Paar River at
Schrobenhausen Schrobenhausen (; Central Bavarian: ''Schrobenhausn'') is a town in the district of Neuburg-Schrobenhausen in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the River Paar approx. south-west of Ingolstadt and north-east of Augsburg. The town hosts notabl ...
, and secured crossings over the
Ilm Ilm or ILM may refer to: Acronyms * Identity Lifecycle Manager, a Microsoft Server Product * '' I Love Money,'' a TV show on VH1 * Independent Loading Mechanism, a mounting system for CPU sockets * Industrial Light & Magic, an American motion ...
River. Elements of the 20th Armored Division, along with those of the U.S. Seventh Army's 45th (Thunderbird) and 42nd (Rainbow) Infantry Divisions, participated in the liberation of
Dachau concentration camp , , commandant = List of commandants , known for = , location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany , built by = Germany , operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) , original use = Political prison , construction ...
on 29 April 1945. While anecdotal reports indicate varied 20th AD troops took part in the unfolding process of discovery and liberation of the camp, ultimately it was the above attachment of elements of the 27th Tank Battalion to those of the 42nd Infantry Division on which the 20th Armored would be jointly recognized by the US Army Center for Military History (CMH) and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) as an official Liberating unit. The Division and its flag were subsequently added to USHMM displays and were cited online there and elsewhere. Meanwhile, in support of units of the 45th Infantry Division (primarily belonging to the 180th and 157th Infantry Regiments), elements of the 20th Armored Division's Combat Command B (including certain forces of the 20th Tank Battalion, 65th Armored Infantry Battalion, and 413th Armored Field Artillery Battalion), operating together as Task Force 20, were awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for their collective action in the Central European (Southern Germany) Campaign. The Recommendation for Unit Citation, dated 3 October 1945, states: ''These units, which constituted Task Force 20, are cited for outstanding performance of duty in action during the period 28–30 April 1945, in the vicinity of Neuherberg, Germany. With soldierly courage and irrepressible determination members of Task Force 20 pushed an armored spearhead 45 miles beyond the Danube River to the outskirts of Munich, destroying a supply train, capturing almost 800 prisoners, and securing four bridges over the Amper River intact. Continuing the attack on 29–30 April against an enemy entrenched in elaborately prepared dugouts and behind the thick walls of the SS Training Center and an Anti-tank School which were defended by small arms, machine guns, hundreds of panzerfausts and twelve 88 mm guns, our troops killed 700 SS Troops, who fought stubbornly and fanatically. This victory destroyed the defenses of Munich, Germany, removing resistance to the entry of troops into the City.'' The 27th Tank Battalion remained attached to the 42nd Infantry Division during its attack on
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
, 29–30 April. Despite its recent efficacy in the combat zone, the rest of the 20th was ordered off the roads leading into Munich on 28 April, allowing the veteran 42nd (Rainbow) and 45th (Thunderbird) Infantry Divisions to capture Munich proper. In pursuit of retreating German troops and prevention of a feared German National Redoubt in the Austrian Alps, elements of the 20th Armored (primarily of Combat Command A) crossed the Inn River at Wasserburg on 3 May, entered
Traunstein Traunstein ( Central Bavarian: ''Traunstoa'') is a town in the south-eastern part of Bavaria, Germany, and is the administrative center of a much larger district of the same name. The town serves as a local government, retail, health services ...
on 4 May, and had entered
Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
when it received word that hostilities would cease in Europe. Following V-E Day, the Division performed Occupation duties, returning to the U.S. in August 1945, slated for participation in the then-planned invasion of Japan. The Division reported to Camp Cooke, CA, for amphibious assault training, but after the atomic bombs were dropped and Japan surrendered, the unit was inactivated on 2 April 1946 at Camp Hood in Texas. Officially, the Division is erroneously credited with only eight days in combat (overlooking the previously described Rhine action) ''
Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ''Peanuts'' is among the most popular and inf ...
'' creator,
Charles Schulz Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz (; November 26, 1922 – February 12, 2000) was an American cartoonist and the creator of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', featuring what are probably his two best-known characters, Charlie Brown and Snoopy. He is wi ...
, rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant (and Light Machine Gun Squad Leader) while a member of the Division's 8th Armored Infantry Battalion. While Schulz's unit was nearby, it did not actually enter Dachau.
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
's future Vice President,
Spiro Agnew Spiro Theodore Agnew (November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996) was the 39th vice president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1973. He is the second vice president to resign the position, the other being John ...
, attained the rank of 1st Lieutenant while with the 20th Armored Division's 480th Armored Infantry Regiment (prior to reorganization to light armored division TO&E).


Casualties

*Total battle casualties: 186 *Killed in action: 46 *Wounded in action: 134 *Missing in action: 1 *Prisoners of war: 5Army Battle Casualties and Nonbattle Deaths (Statistical and Accounting Branch, Office of the Adjutant General, 1 June 1953


Notes


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:020 20th Armored Division, U.S. Armored Division, U.S. 20th Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations disestablished in 1946