The 623rd Field Artillery Regiment (Morgan's Men) is a single-battalion unit of the

Kentucky Army National Guard The Kentucky Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one t ...

. The unit draws its lineage from cavalry and infantry units of the Kentucky Militia formed in 1846 for service in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. Its antecedents include units that served on both sides of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

as well as those that fought for the United States in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

World War One World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War Two 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 unit was first designated as the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion in 1947, serving under that name in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. It was part of the 138th Artillery Regiment in the 1960s before becoming the 623rd Artillery Regiment in 1969 and the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment in 1972. The unit served in the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

as a self-propelled artillery unit; it is now equipped with the

M142 HIMARS The M142 HIMARS (M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) is a light multiple rocket launcher developed in the late 1990s for the United States Army and mounted on a standard United States Army Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) truc ...

system. The unit's

special designation A special designation in the United States Army is a "nickname granted to a military organization" which has been authorized by the Center of Military History and recognized through a certificate signed by the Chief of Military History. Once approve ...

"Morgan's Men" refers to Confederate general

John Hunt Morgan John Hunt Morgan (June 1, 1825 – September 4, 1864) was an American soldier who served as a Confederate general in the American Civil War of 1861–1865. In April 1862, Morgan raised the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment (CSA) and fought in t ...

. The 623rd is one of a small number of US military units whose special designations refer to their Confederate lineage. The Kentucky National Guard is in the process of reviewing the designation for the 623rd.

Lineage

The unit draws official lineage from the 1st Kentucky Cavalry and 2nd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, formed in the Kentucky Militia on 22 May 1846 during the

. The unit was mustered into Federal Service for a year before returning to the state as separate militia companies. The companies were reorganized on 15 June 1860 as the Lexington Battalion of the Kentucky State Guard, absorbing the Lexington Rifles, founded in 1857 by

. With the coming of the

in 1861 the unit broke up as men joined the Confederate or Union forces. The Lexington Rifles were reorganized as an independent cavalry company and amalgamated with two other companies in October 1861 to form Morgan's Squadron, Kentucky Cavalry. This unit expanded in June 1862 to form the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment (Morgan's Men). After the war the Kentucky State Guard was reorganized; on 18 May 1881 the Lexington Battalion became the 3rd Battalion and in 1882 the 2nd Regiment of Infantry. This unit was mustered into Federal Service as the 2nd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry during the

. It briefly became the 1st Regiment of Infantry in the Kentucky State Guard in 1899 before reverting to its previous designation of the 2nd. The State Guard became the

on 19 March 1912. The 2nd Regiment of Infantry was mustered into Federal Service during

and combined with the 3d Regiment of Infantry to become the 149th Infantry Regiment in the 38th Infantry Division. The unit was demobilized in January 1919 and reorganized in 1920-21 to form the 1st Infantry Regiment and the 53d and 54th Machine Gun Squadrons. The machine gun squadrons were consolidated and redesignated as the 123rd Cavalry Regiment on 1 April 1929. On 1 November 1940 the 123rd Cavalry Regiment was reorganized as the 103rd and 106th Separate Battalions of Coast Artillery. The 106th mustered into Federal Service in 1941 and was redesignated as the 106th Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion on 14 July 1944. It was inactivated on 3 December 1945.

History as 623rd

The 106th Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion became the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion on 29 January 1947. The unit entered Federal Service in 1951 during the

, becoming the 623rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion and then the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion. It returned to state service on 18 March 1955. The unit was reorganized as the 4th Howitzer Battalion of the 138th Artillery Regiment on 1 October 1959. It lost the howitzer designation on 1 February 1968 and on 1 May 1969 was reorganized as the 623rd Artillery Regiment, a single-battalion unit under the

U.S. Army 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. ...

. It became the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment on 1 March 1972. The unit was mustered into Federal Service on 9 December 1990, deploying to Saudi Arabia for the

. It was equipped with the M110A2 howitzer and, as part of the

XVIII Airborne Corps The XVIII Airborne Corps is a corps of the United States Army that has been in existence since 1942 and saw extensive service during World War II. The corps is designed for rapid deployment anywhere in the world and is referred to as "America ...

, advanced as far as

Basra Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is hand ...

before the war ended. The unit returned to state control on 21 May 1991. The unit was reorganized as 1st Battalion, 623rd Field Artillery (MLRS), on 15 December 1994, after receiving the

M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System The M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (M270 MLRS) is an American-developed armored, self-propelled, multiple rocket launcher. The U.S. Army variant of the MLRS vehicle is based on the chassis of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. The first M270s wer ...

The unit is currently part of the Kentucky Army National Guard's

138th Field Artillery Brigade The 138th Field Artillery Brigade is a field artillery brigade of the United States Army. It is a component of the Kentucky Army National Guard. It is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky. History The brigade was originally organized on 21 Jan ...

. In January 2012 it deployed to Jordan and Africa. The 623rd became the first Kentucky Army National Guard unit to deploy to Jordan. The 623rd took part in the June 2018

Operation Saber Strike Saber Strike is an annual international exercise held since 2010 by the United States Army Europe (USAREUR) focused on the Baltic States. The exercise spans multiple locations in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and involves approximately 2,000 tr ...

United States Army Europe and Africa United States Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) /Theater Army responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICO ...

training exercise in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

, supporting the regular 2nd Cavalry Regiment. By this point it was equipped with the

system.

Special designation

The

(official nickname) of the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment is "Morgan's Men", in reference to its Confederate lineage. The unit applied for and received the designation in 1969. The choice of the name appears to have been associated with the

Lost Cause The Lost Cause of the Confederacy (or simply Lost Cause) is an American pseudohistorical negationist mythology that claims the cause of the Confederate States during the American Civil War was just, heroic, and not centered on slavery. First ...

movement, of which Morgan is a hero. The 623rd is one of at least three American military units to retain special designations associated with a Confederate lineage, at least three others have names otherwise associated with the Confederacy. All of these units are within the state-controlled National Guard. In reference to the special designation the commander of the 623rd uses "Morgan 6" as his radio

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...

. Following the 2020

murder of George Floyd On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's n ...

some Army commands have phased out Confederate references; a December 2020 law mandated the removal of Confederate-related names from

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

property. Any change to unit special designations must be initiated by the unit itself. The Kentucky National Guard is reviewing its special designations, including that of the 623rd, and will determine if it should be changed.

Insignia and motto

The 623rd Field Artillery Regiment's

distinctive unit insignia A distinctive unit insignia (DUI) is a metallic Heraldry, heraldic badge or device worn by soldiers in the United States Army. The DUI design is derived from the coat of arms authorized for a unit. DUIs may also be called "distinctive insignia" (D ...

was approved on 1 May 1952 and references the combat record of units in its lineage. A cactus references the Mexican-American War and a

saltire A saltire, also called Saint Andrew's Cross or the crux decussata, is a heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross, like the shape of the letter X in Roman type. The word comes from the Middle French ''sautoir'', Medieval Latin ''saltator ...

references the American Civil War. The saltire is gray, indicating Confederate service and the field is yellow, indicating the cavalry role. Two blue

pallets A pallet (also called a skid) is a flat transport structure, which supports goods in a stable fashion while being lifted by a forklift, a pallet jack, a front loader, a jacking device, or an erect crane. A pallet is the structural foundat ...

(vertical stripes) represent the Spanish-American War and World War One and a

fleurs-de-lys The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

represents World War Two. The 623rd's

shoulder sleeve insignia A shoulder sleeve insignia (often abbreviated SSI) is an embroidered patch worn on some uniforms of the United States Army. It is used by major formations of the U.S. Army; each formation has a unique formation patch. The U.S. Army is unique amon ...

was approved on 26 June 1979. It is a shield split palewise (vertically) with a red left field and a yellow right field; the shield is defaced with a blue horse's head in profile and the whole set within a red border. The red and yellow are the traditional colors of the field artillery while the blue of the horse's head alludes to Kentucky being the Bluegrass State. The horse recognises the association of Lexington with horse racing and also, through allusion to the movement of the knight chess piece, the ability of the unit, as artillery, to strike behind enemy lines. The motto of the 623rd is "Seize The Opportunity". It comes from the 123rd Cavalry Regiment and represents the feats of

Morgan's raiders Morgan's Raid was a diversionary incursion by Confederate cavalry into the Union states of Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia during the American Civil War. The raid took place from June 11 to July 26, 1863, and is named for the commander ...

in the Civil War.

Campaign participation credits

The unit has been awarded campaign participation credits for the following actions: ;Mexican War *

Battle of Buena Vista The Battle of Buena Vista (February 22–23, 1847), known as the Battle of La Angostura in Mexico, and sometimes as Battle of Buena Vista/La Angostura, was a battle of the Mexican–American War. It was fought between the US invading forces, l ...

;Civil War (Union service) *

Battle of Shiloh The Battle of Shiloh (also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing) was fought on April 6–7, 1862, in the American Civil War. The fighting took place in southwestern Tennessee, which was part of the war's Western Theater. The battlefield i ...

Battle of Murfreesboro The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was a battle fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the Ame ...

Battle of Chickamauga The Battle of Chickamauga, fought on September 19–20, 1863, between United States, U.S. and Confederate States of America, Confederate forces in the American Civil War, marked the end of a Union Army, Union offensive, the Chickamauga Campaign ...

* Western Virginia campaign 1861 * Mississippi campaign 1862 *

Kentucky campaign The Confederate Heartland Offensive (August 14 – October 10, 1862), also known as the Kentucky Campaign, was an American Civil War campaign conducted by the Confederate States Army in Tennessee and Kentucky where Generals Braxton Bragg and ...

1862 *

1864 * Tennessee campaign 1863 ;Civil War (Confederate service) *Battles of Fort Henry and

Fort Donelson Fort Donelson was a fortress built early in 1862 by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River, which led to the heart of Tennessee, and thereby the Confederacy. The fort was named after Confederate general Da ...

Battle of Atlanta The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War on July 22, 1864, just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Continuing their summer campaign to seize the important rail and supply hub of Atlanta, Uni ...

1862 *

1864 *Louisiana 1862 * Mississippi campaign 1862 * Tennessee campaign 1862 * Tennessee campaign 1863 * Indiana campaign (Morgan's Raid)1863 *

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

1865 ;World War I *Awarded

campaign streamer Campaign streamers are decorations attached to military flags to recognize particular achievements or events of a military unit or service. Attached to the headpiece of the assigned flag, the streamer often is an inscribed ribbon with the n ...

with no inscription ;World War II * Algeria-French Morocco campaign (with arrowhead) *

Tunisia campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the World War II, Second World War, between Axis powers, Axis and Allies of World War II, Allied ...

Sicily campaign The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...

(with arrowhead) * Naples-Foggia campaign (with arrowhead) *

Battle of Anzio The Battle of Anzio was a battle of the Italian Campaign of World War II that took place from January 22, 1944 (beginning with the Allied amphibious landing known as Operation Shingle) to June 5, 1944 (ending with the capture of Rome). The op ...

(with arrowhead) * Rome-Arno *

Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French language, French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi ...

(with arrowhead) *

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

Ardennes-Alsace The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...

;Korean War *

Second Korean Winter The second (symbol: s) is the unit of Time in physics, time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally t ...

* Korea, Summer-Fall 1952 *

Third Korean Winter Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

* Korea, Summer 1953 ;Southwest Asia * Liberation and Defense of Kuwait *

Cease-Fire A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...

The unit's Battery B (Campbellsville) is additionally entitled to the credits: ;World War II *

New Guinea campaign The New Guinea campaign of the Pacific War lasted from January 1942 until the end of the war in August 1945. During the initial phase in early 1942, the Empire of Japan invaded the Australian-administered Mandated Territory of New Guinea (23 Jan ...

Battle of Leyte A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

Battle of Luzon The Battle of Luzon ( tl, Labanan sa Luzon; ja, ルソン島の戦い; es, Batalla de Luzón) was a land battle of the Pacific Theater of Operations of World War II by the Allied forces of the U.S., its colony the Philippines, and allies agai ...

Unit decorations

For service in the Korean War the unit was awarded a

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...

with a streamer embroidered "

Panmunjom Panmunjom, also known as Panmunjeom, now located in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea or Kaesong, North Hwanghae Province, North Korea, was a village just north of the ''de facto'' border between North and South Korea, where the 1953 Korean A ...

" and a

Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation The Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation () is a military unit award of the government of South Korea that may be presented to South Korean military units, and foreign military units for outstanding performance in defense of the Republic o ...

with streamer embroidered "Korea 1951–1952". Battery B (Campbellsville) was additionally awarded a

Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation The Philippine Presidential Unit citation BadgeThe AFP Adjutant General, ''Awards and Decorations Handbook'', 1997, OTAG, p. 65. is a unit decoration of the Republic of the Philippines. It has been awarded to certain units of the United States mil ...

with streamer embroidered "17 October 1944 to 4 July 1945" for service in the Pacific Theater of World War Two.

References

{{Artillery Regiments (United States) Military units and formations in Kentucky Field artillery regiments of the United States Army National Guard Military units and formations established in 1846