The 756th Tank Battalion was a tank battalion 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, cla ...

active during the

Second World War 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 opposin ...

and, as the 73rd Tank Battalion, during the early

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

. It was later redesignated as the

73rd Armor Regiment 73rd may refer to: *73rd (Perthshire) Regiment of Foot also known as MacLeod's Highlanders after its founder John Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod *73rd Academy Awards honored the best films of 2000 and was held on March 25, 2001 * 73rd Carnatic Infantry, a ...

, and is perpetuated today by the

73rd Cavalry Regiment The 73rd Cavalry Regiment is a Cavalry Regiment in the United States Army, first formed in 1941. The three Squadron (army), squadrons of the 73rd Cavalry Regiment ("Airborne Thunder") provide reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisitio ...

World War II

It was formed in 1941 as a light tank battalion, originally as the 76th Tank Battalion and renumbered in May. It first saw combat in 1943, when it deployed to North Africa on 24 January and then into Italy following the

Salerno landings Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, b ...

on 17 September. In 1944, two companies of the battalion were re-equipped with

DD tank DD or Duplex Drive tanks, nicknamed "Donald Duck tanks", were a type of amphibious swimming tank developed by the British during the Second World War. The phrase is mostly used for the Duplex Drive variant of the M4 Sherman medium tank, that w ...

s, specialised

M4 Sherman } The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the Military history of the United States during World War II, United States and Allies of World War II, Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman prove ...

s designed for amphibious landings. On 15 August, it landed near St. Tropez as part of

Operation Dragoon Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence (Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord, th ...

, attached to the 3rd Infantry Division, and pushed north through France along the Rhone Valley. The division went into defensive positions on the Rhine after reaching Strasbourg on 26 November, and saw heavy fighting early in 1945 during the clearing of the

Colmar Pocket The Colmar Pocket (french: Poche de Colmar; de , Brückenkopf Elsass) was the area held in central Alsace, France, by the German Nineteenth Army from November 1944 to February 1945, against the U.S. 6th Army Group (6th AG) during World War II. ...

. It crossed the Rhine on 26 March, where its DD tanks were used as part of an amphibious assault, and then pushed into southern Germany with the 3rd Infantry. The battalion ended the war near

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

, in Austria. Two officers of the battalion were awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

; Second Lieutenant

Raymond Zussman Raymond Zussman (July 23, 1917 – September 21, 1944) was a second lieutenant in the United States Army and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in France during World War II. Bio ...

and Second Lieutenant

James L. Harris James Lindell Harris (June 27, 1916 – October 7, 1944) was a United States Army officer and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II. Biography Harris was draft ...

, both posthumously.

Cold War

United States World War II Tank Battalion November 1944 Structure

The battalion was briefly inactivated following WWII in 1946 before being reformed as a heavy tank battalion, and in 1949 was renumbered the 73rd Heavy Tank Battalion, under which name it served 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 ...

, with M4 Sherman and M26 Pershing tanks. It would later be redesignated the

and was finally disbanded in 1996.3rd Battalion, 73rd Armor Regiment

References

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External links

Tank Battalion HistoriesThe 756th Tank Battalion
globalsecurity.org Military units and formations established in 1941 Tank battalions of the United States Army