The 42nd Field Artillery Regiment is a field artillery

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, first Constituted 5 July 1918 in the

National Army (USA) The history of the United States Army began in 1775. From its formation, the United States Army has been the primary land based part of the United States Armed Forces. The Army's main responsibility has been in fighting land battles and military ...

Lineage

Constituted 29 June 1918 in the Regular Army as the 1st Battalion, 42d Artillery (

Coast Artillery Corps The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was an administrative corps responsible for coastal, harbor, and anti-aircraft defense of the United States and its possessions between 1901 and 1950. The CAC also operated heavy and railway artillery ...

) Organized 7 August 1918 in France Inactivated 17 August 1921 at Camp Eustis, Virginia Redesignated 1 July 1924 as the 1st Battalion, 42d Coast Artillery Disbanded 14 June 1944 Reconstituted 28 June 1950 in the Regular Army; concurrently consolidated with the 42d Field Artillery Battalion (active) (see ANNEX) and consolidated unit designated as the 42d Field Artillery Battalion, an element of the 4th Infantry Division Relieved 1 April 1957 from assignment to the 4th Infantry Division; concurrently reorganized and redesignated as the 42d Artillery, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System Redesignated 1 September 1971 as the 42d Field Artillery Withdrawn 15 January 1996 from the Combat Arms Regimental System and reorganized under the United States Army Regimental System ANNEX Constituted 5 July 1918 in the National Army as the 42d Field Artillery and assigned to the 14th Division Organized 10 August 1918 at

Camp Custer Fort Custer Training Center, often known simply as Fort Custer, is a federally owned and state-operated Michigan Army National Guard training facility, but is also used by other branches of the armed forces and armed forces from Illinois, Indiana ...

, Michigan Demobilized 7 February 1919 at Camp Custer, Michigan Reconstituted 1 October 1933 in the Regular Army as the 42d Field Artillery Redesignated 1 October 1940 as the 42d Field Artillery Battalion, assigned to the 4th Division (later redesignated as the 4th Infantry Division), and activated at Fort Benning, Georgia Inactivated 16 February 1946 at

Camp Butner Camp Butner was a United States Army installation in Butner, North Carolina during World War II. It was named after Army general and North Carolina native Henry W. Butner. Part of it was used as a POW camp for German prisoners of war in the Unite ...

, North Carolina Activated 15 July 1947 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, ...

, California

Distinctive unit insignia

*Description A Gold color metal and enamel device 1 1/16 inches (2.70 cm) in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned: Gules, two bendlets between four shells, two in chief and two in base, all Or. Attached below the shield a Gold scroll inscribed “FESTINA LENTE” in Black letters. *Symbolism Scarlet is the color used for Artillery. The shells indicate the nature of the organization and with the bendlets produce the numerical designation of the organization. *Background The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 42d Field Artillery Battalion on 7 May 1942. It was redesignated for the 42d Artillery Regiment on 26 November 1958. The insignia was redesignated for the 42d Field Artillery Regiment effective 1 September 1971.

Coat of arms

*Blazon **Shield: Gules, two bendlets between four shells, two in chief and two in base, all Or. **Crest: On a wreath of the colors Or and Gules a dexter hand grasping four spears pointing in four directions of the compass Or. **Motto: FESTINA LENTE (Make Haste Slowly). *Symbolism **Shield:,Scarlet is the color used for Artillery. The shells indicate the nature of the organization and with the bendlets produce the numerical designation of the organization. **Crest:,The hand grasping the spears indicates firepower in any direction. *Background:,The coat of arms was originally approved for the 42d Field Artillery Battalion on 7 May 1942. It was redesignated for the 42d Artillery Regiment on 26 November 1958. The insignia was redesignated for the 42d Field Artillery Regiment effective 1 September 1971.

Current configuration

* 1st Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States) * 2nd Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States) * 3rd Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States) * 4th Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States)br>
*

5th Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States) Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash that ...

* 6th Battalion 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (United States)

Campaign participation credit

*World War I: Alsace 1918 *World War II: Normandy (with arrowhead); Northern France; Rhineland; Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe *Vietnam: Counteroffensive, Phase II; Counteroffensive, Phase III; Tet Counteroffensive; Counteroffensive, Phase IV; Counteroffensive, Phase V; Counteroffensive, Phase VI; Tet 69/Counteroffensive; Summer-Fall 1969; Winter-Spring 1970; Sanctuary Counteroffensive; Counteroffensive, Phase VII; Consolidation I; Consolidation II; Cease-Fire * Operation Iraqi Freedom: Liberation of Iraq, 2003; Transition of Iraq, 2003-2004; Iraqi Governance, 2004-2005; National Resolution, 2005-2006; Iraqi Surge, 2007-2008; Iraqi Sovereignty, 2009-2010 * Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan): Consolidation III, 2010-2011; Transition I, 2011-2011

Decorations

Image:Fourragère LH.png * Presidential Unit Citation (Army), Streamer embroidered LUXEMBOURG (42nd Field Artillery Battalion cited; WD GO 30, 1946) *

Valorous Unit Award The Valorous Unit Award (VUA) is the second highest United States Army unit decoration which may be bestowed upon an Army unit after the Presidential Unit Citation (PUC). The VUA is awarded by the United States Army to units of the United State ...

for service in Iraq during

Operation Red Dawn Saddam Hussein, the deposed president of Iraq, was captured by the United States military forces in the town of Ad-Dawr, Iraq on 13 December 2003. Codenamed Operation Red Dawn, this military operation was named after the 1984 American film ''Red ...

(Capture of Saddam Hussein) (DA GO 2009–11 16 December 2009) *

for service in Iraq (OIF 07-09) (DA GO 2010–16–3 September 2010) * Meritorious Unit Commendation for service in Iraq (PO 208-26, 27 July 2009) * Meritorious Unit Commendation for service in Afghanistan (OEF 10-11) (PO 202-15, 21 July 2011) * Army

Superior Unit Award The Superior Unit Award is a decoration of the United States Army which is awarded in peacetime to any unit of the Army which displays outstanding meritorious performance of a difficult and challenging mission carried out under extraordinary circum ...

for successful participation in the Army's Advanced Warfighting Experiment; March 1997 (DA GO 0125 June 2001) * Belgian

Fourragère The ''fourragère'' () is a military award, distinguishing military units as a whole, in the form of a braided cord. The award was first adopted by France, followed by other nations such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, and Luxembourg. Fou ...

1940 (42nd Field Artillery Battalion cited; DA GO 43, 1950) * Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action in BELGIUM (42nd Field Artillery Battalion cited; DA GO 43, 1950)

References

* https://web.archive.org/web/20110722214111/http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Heraldry/ArmyDUISSICOA/ArmyHeraldryUnit.aspx?u=3446

External links

* http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lineages/branches/fa/default.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:042 042 Field artillery Military units and formations established in 1918 1918 establishments in Michigan