The 48th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in 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 formed in 1917.

History

The 1st and 2nd Battalions, 48th Infantry, were mechanized infantry units assigned to the 3rd Armored Division (United States) (3AD) in West Germany during the Cold War. The battalions had overlapping assignments in the 3AD within the time frame 1957 to 1983 (joining the 2d of the 48th, the 1st of the 48th relocated to the 3AD at Gelnhausen in 1963 as part of the ROAD reorganization, from a prior assignment to 7th Army at Worms, Germany. In the 1963 ROAD reorganization 3d Armored Division Combat Command B at Gelnhausen was redesignated as the Second Brigade). 2lt Colin Powell served in 2nd Bn 48th at Gelnhausen c. 1959. James S. Voss served as a platoon leader, intelligence officer, and C company commander from 1975 to 1978. Following the 1963 ROAD reorganization, and along with the 1st Battalion,

33rd Armor Regiment (United States) The 33rd Armor Regiment was an armored regiment in the United States Army first formed in 1941. In 2005, the 33rd Armor was redesignated 33rd Cavalry Regiment. The 1st Squadron, 33rd Cavalry Regiment, a part of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st ...

which had been at Gelnhausen since the Spring of 1956, they comprised (1963 to 1983) the maneuver elements of the Division's 2d Brigade, stationed at Coleman Kaserne, in the city of

Gelnhausen Gelnhausen () is a town, and the capital of the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located approximately 40 kilometers east of Frankfurt am Main, between the Vogelsberg mountains and the Spessart range at the river Kinzig. It is one o ...

, Federal Republic of Germany. The Battalions served as part of NATO forces guarding the Inner-German Border against the Warsaw Pact. The unit crest of the 48th Infantry designated the unit as Dragoons. They are descended from National Guard units which trained for the First World War, and armored infantry battalions which served with the U.S. 7th Armored Division during

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The 48th Armored Infantry Battalion, along with 1st Battalion, 40th Armor, in particular, fought a tough battle in

Vielsalm Vielsalm (; wa, Li Viye Såm) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. The town is part of the Arrondissement of Bastogne. It is the place of origin of the House of Salm. On 1 January 2018 the municipality ha ...

, Belgium, holding off the German V Panzer Corps for three days at the crossing of the Salm River, during the German Ardennes Offensive (also known as

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

). The 2d Battalion, 48th Infantry was inactivated at Gelnhausen on 15 October 1991 (and approximately two years later the 3d Bn, 33d Armor from 3d Armored Division's 1st Brigade at Kirch Goens was transferred to Gelnhausen and took up some of the vacated space). On 16 June 1989 the 1st Battalion, 48th Infantry was inactivated at Gelnhausen and its personnel were re-designated and continued there as 4th Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment. On June 16, 2017, the 48th Infantry's 2nd Battalion was reactivated in a ceremony at

Fort Leonard Wood Fort Leonard Wood is a U.S. Army training installation located in the Missouri Ozarks. The main gate is located on the southern boundary of The City of St. Robert. The post was created in December 1940 and named in honor of General Leonard W ...

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

, joining the 15 April 2017 reactivated 48th Infantry's 1st Battalion, to train Basic Combat Training. The reactivated 48th Infantry's 2nd Battalion initially consisted solely of United States Army Reserves Drill Sergeants.

Lineage

Constituted 15 May 1917 in the Regular Army as the 48th Infantry Organized 1 June 1917 at Syracuse, New York Assigned 31 July 1918 to the

20th Infantry Division (United States) There have been two 20th Divisions in the history of the United States Army. In early 1917, the 20th Division was established as a National Guard formation consisting of units of the Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming Army National ...

Relieved 28 February 1919 from assignment to the 20th Division Inactivated 14 October 1921 at

Camp Travis Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

, Texas Demobilized 31 July 1922 Reconstituted 27 February 1942 in the Regular Army as the 48th Armored Infantry and assigned to the

7th Armored Division (United States) The 7th Armored Division ("Lucky Seventh") was an armored division of the United States Army that saw distinguished service on the Western Front, from August 1944 until May 1945, during World War II. History The division was activated on 1 Mar ...

Activated 2 March 1942 at Camp Polk, Louisiana Regiment broken up 20 September 1943 and its elements reorganized and redesignated as elements of the 7th Armored Division as follows: *48th Armored Infantry (less 1st and 2d Battalions) as the 48th Armored Infantry Battalion **1st Battalion as the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion **2d Battalion as the 23d Armored Infantry Battalion After 20 September 1943 the above units underwent changes as follows: *48th Armored Infantry Battalion inactivated 8 October 1945 at

Camp Myles Standish Camp Myles Standish was a U.S. Army camp located in Taunton, Massachusetts during World War II. It was the main staging area for the Boston Port of Embarkation, with about a million U.S. and Allied soldiers passing through the camp on their wa ...

, Massachusetts **Activated 24 November 1950 at

Camp Roberts, California Camp Roberts is a California National Guard post in central California, located on both sides of the Salinas River in Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties, now run by the California Army National Guard. It was opened in 1941 and is named af ...

**Inactivated 15 November 1953 at Camp Roberts, California *38th Armored Infantry Battalion inactivated 11 October 1945 at

Camp Shanks Camp Shanks was a United States Army installation in the Orangetown, New York area. Named after Major General David C. Shanks, it was situated near the juncture of the Erie Railroad and the Hudson River. The camp was the largest U.S. Army embarka ...

, New York **Activated 24 November 1950 at Camp Roberts, California **Inactivated 15 November 1953 at Camp Roberts, California *23d Armored Infantry Battalion inactivated 11 October 1945 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 **Activated 24 November 1950 at Camp Roberts, California **Inactivated 15 November 1953 at Camp Roberts, California 48th, 38th, and 23d Armored Infantry Battalions relieved 15 February 1957 from assignment to the 7th Armored Division and consolidated to form the 48th Infantry, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System Withdrawn 16 June 1989 from the

Combat Arms Regimental System The Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS), was the method of assigning unit designations to units of some of the combat arms branches of the United States Army, including Infantry, Special Forces, Field Artillery, and Armor, from 1957 to 1981. ...

, reorganized under the

United States Army Regimental System The United States Army Regimental System (USARS) is an organizational and classification system used by the United States Army. It was established in 1981 to replace the Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS) to provide each soldier with continu ...

, and transferred to the United States Army

Training and Doctrine Command The United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) is a major command of the United States Army headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia. It is charged with overseeing training of Army forces and the development of operational doctrine. ...

Distinctive unit insignia

* Description A Gold color metal and enamel device in height consisting of a shield blazoned: Per pale Azure and Sable a lion rampant Or, on a canton Argent a chevron wavy of the first. Attached below the shield a Gold scroll inscribed "DRAGOONS" in Black letters. * Symbolism The colors blue and white are used for Infantry. Black and gold are the colors of the Belgian coat of arms from which the Belgian lion is adapted. The wavy chevron on the canton is for descent from the 9th Infantry. The Belgian lion represents the organization’s action at Ardennes and St. Vith, for which it was awarded two unit decorations by the Belgian government. * Background The distinctive unit insignia was approved on 14 October 1958.

Coat of arms

*Blazon **Shield- Per pale Azure and Sable a lion rampant Or, on a canton Argent a chevron wavy of the first. **Crest- On a wreath Or and Azure two hunting horns in saltire Or, inserts Argent, mouthpieces Gules and straps interlaced Sable buckled of the first. Motto: DRAGOONS. * Symbolism ** Shield- The colors blue and white are used for Infantry. Black and gold are the colors of the Belgian coat of arms from which the Belgian lion is adapted. The wavy chevron on the canton is for descent from the 9th Infantry. The Belgian lion represents the organization’s action at Ardennes and St. Vith, for which it was awarded two unit decorations by the Belgian government. **Crest- The crest, consisting of Teutonic hunting horns, alludes to the German battle honors of World War II. * Background- The coat of arms was originally approved for the 48th Infantry Regiment on 3 February 1921. It was redesignated for the 48th Armored Infantry Regiment on 19 May 1942. The insignia was redesignated for the 48th Armored Infantry Battalion on 30 November 1943. It was redesignated for the 48th Infantry Regiment and amended by the addition of a charge to and modification of the shield and a crest on 14 October 1958.

Campaign credit

;World War II *Northern France *Rhineland *Ardennes-Alsace *Central Europe

Decorations

* Presidential Unit Citation (Army) for ST. VITH *

Belgian Fourragere Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German * Ancient Belgian language, an extinct langua ...

1940 **Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action in the ARDENNES **Cited in the Order of the Day of the Belgian Army for action at ST. VITH

References

* {{ACMH, url = http://www.history.army.mil/html/forcestruc/lineages/branches/inf/0048in.htm, title = 48th Infantry Lineage and Honors * https://web.archive.org/web/20110724204917/http://www.3ad.org/48in/coat_of_arms.htm 048 Military units and formations established in 1917