The 223rd Infantry Regiment is a

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. The regiment was part of the

California Army National Guard The California Army National Guard (CA ARNG) is one of three components of the California National Guard, a reserve of the United States Army, and part of the United States National Guard, National Guard of the United States. The California Army ...

, and had Soldiers from the

Los Angeles metropolitan area Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the east, ...

. Three members of the 223rd Infantry Regiment were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions during the Korean War: David B. Bleak, Gilbert G. Collier and Clifton T. Speicher.

History

Lineage of the regiment can trace back to 1885, with the formation of the 7th Infantry Battalion of the California National Guard; this unit served briefly during the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

, and was later briefly activated to serve at the

Mexican Border Mexico shares international borders with three nations: *To the north the United States–Mexico border, which extends for a length of through the states of Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas. *To the sou ...

Nogales, Arizona Nogales (; English: or ) is a city in and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The population was 20,837 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and estimated 20,103 in 2019. Nogales forms part of the larger Tucson–Nogales L ...

in 1917. With the entry of the United States into

The Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and th ...

, 7th Infantry Battalion and elements of the 2nd Infantry Battalion of the California National Guard, were organized into the 160th Infantry Regiment, a part of the 40th Division. In 1929, 2nd Battalion, 160th Infantry Regiment, became part of the

185th Infantry Regiment 185th may refer to: *185th (2/1st West Riding) Brigade, formation of the Territorial Force of the British Army * 185th Air Refueling Squadron flies the KC-135 Stratotanker * 185th Air Refueling Wing (ARW), unit located at Sioux Gateway Airport, Iow ...

, keeping its battalion designation. The 185th Infantry Regiment would go on to serve with the 40th Infantry Division during World War II, completing the war in Korea as part of the American occupation force. In 1946, 2nd Battalion, 185th Infantry Regiment, became the 223rd Infantry Regiment.

References

{{reflist Military units and formations in California Infantry regiments of the United States Army 223rd Infantry Regiment