13th Armored Division (United States)

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13th Armored Division
13th US Armored Division SSI.svg
13th Armored Division shoulder sleeve insignia
Active15 October 1942 – 15 November 1945
1947–52
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States
BranchFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
Type Armor
Role Armored warfare
Size Division
Nickname"The Black Cats"
Engagements
Commanders
Notable
commanders		MG John B. Wogan (1942–45)
MG John Millikin (1945)

The 13th Armored Division was an armored division of the United States Army in World War II.

Contents

History and combat chronicle

The division was constituted in the Army of the United States on 9 June 1942 and activated on 15 October 1942 at Camp Beale, east of Marysville, California. Durng training, the division adopted the nickname "Black Cats." The division landed at Le Havre, France, 29 January 1945. After performing occupation duties, the division moved to Homberg near Kassel to prepare for combat under the Third Army, 5 April. At Altenkirchen, it was attached to the XVIII Airborne Corps and prepared for the Ruhr Pocket operation. The attack jumped off at Honnef, 10 April. After crossing the river Sieg at Siegburg, the 13th pushed north to Bergisch Gladbach, then toward Duisburg and Mettmann by 18 April.

Shifting south to Eschenau, the division prepared for Bavarian operations. Starting from Parsberg, 26 April, the 13th crossed the Regen river, then the Danube at Matting and secured the area near Dünzling. On the 28th, elements closed in at Plattling and crossed the Isar River. Moderate to heavy resistance was met during this drive through southern Germany. The division smashed into Braunau am Inn, Austria, 2 May, and the command post was set up in the house where Adolf Hitler was born. A bridgehead across the Inn was established at Marktl, but the river was not crossed as orders came to reassemble north of Inn River, 2 May.

13th Armored Division "Black Cat" Insignia 13th Armored Division Black Cat.png
13th Armored Division "Black Cat" Insignia

Preparations were made for further advances when the war in Europe ended. The 13th remained in Germany until 25 June and left Le Havre, France, for home, 14 July 1945.

The division moved to Camp Cooke, California, after returning to the United States. It commenced training in amphibious operations, and the men were aware that it was an open secret that they were likely to participate in the invasion of mainland Japan. After the Japanese surrender, it was inactivated on 15 November 1945.

On 20 August 1947, the 13th Armored Division was allotted to the Organized Reserve (redesignated 25 March 1948 as the Organized Reserve Corps, and redesignated 9 July 1952 as the Army Reserve) and activated by reflagging it from the 19th Armored Division, which had been allotted to the Sixth Army area of the Organized Reserve, specifically California, Oregon, and Arizona. The 13th Armored Division was inactivated on 1 March 1952, and withdrawn from the Army Reserve and allotted to the Regular Army on 25 February 1953. [1] In 1947, the 19th Armored Division was reflagged as the 13th Armored Division at California's request. [2] In 1952, the division was reflagged as the 63rd Infantry Division in Los Angeles, California, and thus the 13th Armored Division was finally inactivated.

Composition

The division was composed of the following units: [3]

Statistics

Casualties

Awards

[5]

Campaigns

Individual Awards

References

  1. ↑ Wilson, John B. (1997). Maneuver and Firepower: The Evolution of Divisions and Separate Brigades. Washington, DC: Center of Military History. Archived 1 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ↑ McKenny, Janice E. (1997). "Appendix A: Divisions Reflagged". Reflagging in the Army. United States Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2008.
  3. ↑ "Order of Battle of the US Army - WWII - ETO - 13th Armored Division". US Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 9 January 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Army Battle Casualties and Nonbattle Deaths, Final Report (Statistics and Accounting Branch, Office of the Adjutant General, 1 June 1953)
  5. ↑ Office of the Theater Historian (December 1945). Order of Battle of the United States Army – World War II European Theater of Operations. Part I – Order of Battle of Divisions. 13th Armored Division. Paris, France: U.S. Army Center of Military History. p. 532. Archived from the original on 13 May 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
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