The 163rd Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the

Montana National Guard The Montana National Guard consists of the Montana Army National Guard, and the Montana Air National Guard. Structure and mission When National Guard troops are called to federal service, the President serves as Commander-in-Chief. The federa ...

. It went overseas with the 41st Infantry Division in World War II.

History

In December 1942, General Douglas MacArthur decided to commit more American troops to the

Battle of Buna-Gona 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 for ...

. The 163rd

Regimental Combat Team A regimental combat team (RCT) is a provisional major infantry unit which has seen use by branches of the United States Armed Forces. It is formed by augmenting a regular infantry regiment with smaller combat, combat support and combat service ...

, under the command of Colonel Jens A. Doe, was alerted on 14 December 1942. It arrived at

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...

on 27 December. The first elements, which included the 1st Battalion and regimental headquarters, flew over the Owen Stanley Range to

Popondetta Popondetta (sometimes spelled Popondota) is the capital of Oro (Northern) Province in Papua New Guinea. Popondetta is a city. In 1951 the city became the focus of relief efforts after nearby Mount Lamington erupted and killed 4,000 people. ...

and

Dobodura ''Dobodura'' is a genus of beetles in the family Carabidae Ground beetles are a large, cosmopolitan family of beetles, the Carabidae, with more than 40,000 species worldwide, around 2,000 of which are found in North America and 2,700 in Europe. ...

on 30 December, where they came under the command of

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Edmund Herring Lieutenant general (Australia), Lieutenant General Sir Edmund Francis Herring, (2 September 1892 – 5 January 1982) was a senior Australian Army officer during the Second World War, Lieutenant Governor of Victoria (Australi ...

's Advanced New Guinea Force. AWM 030258-17

The 163rd Regimental Combat Team was attached to

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

George Alan Vasey Major General George Alan Vasey, (29 March 1895 – 5 March 1945) was an Australian Army officer. He rose to the rank of major general during the Second World War, before being killed in a plane crash near Cairns in 1945. A professional soldie ...

's 7th Division and Doe assumed command of the Sanananda Front from Brigadier

Ivan Dougherty Major General Sir Ivan Noel Dougherty, (6 April 1907 – 4 March 1998) was an Australian Army officer during the Second World War and early Cold War period. Education and early life Ivan Noel Dougherty was born on 6 April 1907 in Leadville, ...

on 3 January 1943. The front line consisted of a raised road with Japanese positions on relatively dry ground astride it, surrounded by jungle swamp. Roadblocks had been established behind the Japanese positions but they had not been budged; both sides resupplied their positions through the swamp. Vasey's plan was for the Americans to fix the Japanese in position while he attacked with

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

George Wootten Major General Sir George Frederick Wootten, (1 May 1893 – 31 March 1970) was a senior Australian Army officer, public servant, right wing political activist and solicitor. He rose to the rank of temporary major general during the Second Wor ...

's 18th Infantry Brigade, supported by

M3 Stuart The M3 Stuart/Light Tank M3, was an American light tank of World War II. An improved version of the tank entered service as the M5 in 1942 to be supplied to British and other Commonwealth forces under lend-lease prior to the entry of the U.S. in ...

light tanks of the 2/6th Armoured Regiment and

25 pounder The Ordnance QF 25-pounder, or more simply 25-pounder or 25-pdr, was the major British field gun and howitzer during the Second World War. Its calibre is 3.45-inch (87.6 mm). It was introduced into service just before the war started, comb ...

s of the 2/1st Field Regiment.

Lineage

Primary verification for this information was provided by "Additional copies of this publication may be requested by writing National Guard Bureau, ATTN: NGB-PAH, 2500 Army Pentagon, Washington DC 20310-2500." Constituted in the Montana National Guard as the 1st Regiment of Infantry and organized 1884- 1887 from existing companies. * Redesignated as the 1st Montana Volunteer Infantry and mustered into federal service 5–10 May 1898 at Helena; served in the Philippines and mustered out 17 October 1899 at San Francisco, Ca. * Reorganized 30 May 1901- 1 December 1903 as the 2nd infantry Montana National Guard. * Mustered into federal service at

Fort William Henry Harrison Fort William Henry Harrison is the Montana National Guard training facility. It is also home to the Fort Harrison VA Medical Center and Montana State Veterans Cemetery, located adjacent to the military installation. History Fort William Henr ...

27 June 1916 for Mexican border and stationed at Douglas Ar. ; mustered out 3 November 1916 at Fort William H. Harrison. * Mustered into federal service 7 April 1917 at Fort William H. Harrison. Consolidated with the 3rd Battalion 3rd Infantry District of Columbia National Guard, Reorganized and redesignated the 163rd Infantry Regiment and assigned to the

41st Infantry Division (United States) The 41st Infantry Division was an infantry division of the United States Army National Guard composed primarily of units from the Pacific Northwest. The division saw active service in World War I and World War II., receiving the nickname Jung ...

19 September 1917. * Demobilized 21 February 1919 at

Camp Dix Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...

, NJ. * Reconstituted as the 2nd Infantry Montana National Guard and reorganized during 1921–1922. * Redesignated as the 163rd Infantry Regiment and assigned to the 41st Infantry Division 1 May 1922. * Federally recognized 20 January 1924 with headquarters at Helena. * Headquarters relocated to Billings 29 December 1939 * Inducted into federal service 16 September 1940 at Billings * Inactivated 31 December 1945 in Japan. (p. 50) * Relieved from the 41st Infantry Division 17 June 1946. * Reorganized and federally recognized 21 April 1947 with headquarters at Bozeman. * Relieved from 163rd Regimental Combat Team and redesignated as the 163rd Armored Cavalry 1 March 1953 * Reorganized and redesignated 1 December 1988 as the 163d Cavalry, a parent regiment under the

U.S. 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 ...

, with headquarters at

Butte __NOTOC__ In geomorphology, a butte () is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from a French word me ...

, to consist of the 1st and 2nd Battalions and Troop E, elements of the 163d Armored Cavalry Regiment, and the 163rd Infantry (163rd Infantry - henceforth separate lineage). *Withdrawn 1 June 1989 from CARS and reorganized under the U.S. Army Regimental System with headquarters at Belgrade.

Distinctive unit insignia

* Description A Gold color metal and enamel device 1 1/8 inches (2.86 cm) in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned: Per fess Argent and Azure, in chief a palm tree on a mount Proper and in base a giant cactus and fleur-de-lis Or. Attached below the shield is a Blue scroll doubled and inscribed "MEN, DO YOUR DUTY" in Gold letters. * Symbolism The palm tree represents Philippine service, the giant cactus Mexican Border duty and the fleur-de-lis service in France during World War I. Blue and white are the colors associated with Infantry and refer to the organization's combat service as the 163d Infantry during World War II. * Background The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 163d Infantry Regiment, Montana National Guard on 8 December 1941. It was redesignated for the 163d Armored Cavalry Regiment, Montana National Guard on 17 September 1953. It was amended to change the symbolism on 21 January 1970. The insignia was updated to include both the Montana and Nevada Army National Guard on 20 January 1975. It was redesignated for the 163d Infantry Regiment, Montana Army National Guard on 1 February 1989.

Coat of arms

*Blazon *Shield Per fess Argent and Azure, in chief a palm tree on mount Proper and in base a giant cactus and a fleur-de-lis Or. * Crest That for the regiments and separate battalions of the Montana Army National Guard: On a wreath of the colors Argent and Azure a fleur-de-lis the middle leaf and tie Or, and outside leaves Argent. Motto: MEN, DO YOUR DUTY. * Symbolism * Shield The palm tree represents Philippine service, the giant cactus Mexican Border duty and the fleur-de-lis service in France during World War I. Blue and white are the colors associated with Infantry and refer to the organization's combat service as the 163d Infantry during World War II. * Crest The crest is that of the Montana Army National Guard. * Background The coat of arms was originally approved for the 163d Infantry Regiment, Montana National Guard on 15 December 1941. It was redesignated for the 163d Armored Cavalry Regiment, Montana National Guard on 17 September 1953. The insignia was amended to change the symbolism on 21 January 1970. It was amended to add the crest of the State of Oregon on 22 March 1971. It was amended to delete the crest of the State of Oregon and add the crest of the State of Nevada on 20 January 1975. The insignia was redesignated for the 163d Infantry Regiment and amended to delete the crest of the State of Nevada on 1 February 1989

Campaign streamers

Philippine Insurrection * Manila * Malolos World War I * Streamer without Inscription World War II * Papua * New Guinea (with arrowhead) * Luzon * Southern Philippines (with arrowhead)

Decorations

* Presidential Unit Citation, streamer embroidered PAPUA *

Philippine 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 mi ...

streamer embroidered 17 OCTOBER 1944 TO 4 JULY 1945 *

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 ...

15 FEBRUARY 2005 TO 01 NOVEMBER 2005 * Meritorious Unit Commendation 15 NOVEMBER 2010 TO 30 AUGUST 2011

References

* Infantry Regiments of the U.S. Army by Sawicki {{ISBN, 0-9602404-3-8

External links

* http://montanamilitarymuseum.org/ Military units and formations in Montana Infantry regiments of the United States Army National Guard Military units and formations established in 1884 163