321st Field Artillery Regiment (321st FAR) | |
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![]() Coat of arms | |
Active | 1917 |
Country | ![]() |
Branch | Army |
Type | Field artillery |
Motto(s) | "Noli Me Tangere" (Touch-Me-Not) |
Commanders | |
Honorary Colonel of the Regiment | COL(R) William Malouche |
Honorary Sergeant Major of the Regiment | CSM(R) Tony Guerrero |
Insignia | |
Distinctive unit insignia | ![]() |
The 321st Field Artillery Regiment (321st FAR) is a field artillery regiment of the United States Army. A parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System, the 321st FAR currently has one active battalion, the 3rd Battalion, 321st FAR, assigned to the 18th Field Artillery Brigade at Fort Liberty (previously Fort Bragg), NC. The battalion is equipped with M142 HIMARS.
The regiment served with the 82nd Division during World War I and with the 101st Airborne Division during World War II. Elements of the regiment have served with the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions in Vietnam, and with the 82nd Airborne Division and 18th Field Artillery Brigade during the Global War on Terrorism.
Initially formed at Camp Gordon, Georgia, the 321st was part of the 82nd Division's 157th Field Artillery Brigade. On 5 September 1917, a small cadre of Regular Army non-commissioned officers and privates joined officer cadres that had reported on 29 August 1917 after graduating from the three batteries of the 7th Provisional Training Regiment. Draftees from Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee arrived over the next few weeks, but many of these men were transferred in November and replaced by new draftees from Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa and Minnesota and all the states east of the Mississippi River.
Initially, the 321st's six firing batteries shared a single battery of 3-inch guns for training with the other 12 batteries in the brigade. In addition to approximately 10 hours use of the actual guns, the regiment's gun squads conducted training with replicas "crudely made structures fashioned from the trunks of small trees, tin cans, spools, gas pipes and any available material." A second battery of guns arrived in December, and from December 1917 through May 1918, the regiment conducted firing practice at Blackjack Mountain near Marietta, Georgia. During the training period, the 321st was designated as a motorized unit, causing a personnel shuffle and additional training in engine maintenance (mostly done without actual equipment!).
Beginning 8 May 1918, the regiment moved by train to Camp Mills, New York, and then shipped to Liverpool, England on the ship Cretic, arriving on 31 May 1918. After a brief stop, the regiment crossed the English Channel from Southampton to Le Havre, France and then moved by train to La Courtine. There, the 321st was fully equipped with 75mm guns and conducted two months of training, culminating in a brigade live fire.
From 5–10 August, the 321st moved into a reserve position behind Chateau Thierry, but was not employed and moved by train to Toul. The 321st detached its 1st Battalion to the 89th Division, while 2nd Battalion occupied defensive positions in the Marbache sector with the 157th/82nd. In preparation for the St. Mihiel Offensive, the 2nd Battalion rejoined the 321st, and the regiment moved into forward gun positions constructed with the assistance of the division's infantry. Beginning at 0100hrs on 12 September 1918, the 321st participated in a four-hour preparation, consisting of counter-battery fires on 16 German batteries and other positions. After the offensive started, the regiment also fired on "fugitive targets", and Battery C destroyed a German airplane that had made a forced landing. On 13 September, the 321st and its sister 320th Field Artillery fired 10000 rounds in support of a raid by the 327th Infantry in the Bois Frehaut. The result of the St. Mihiel operation was "the establishment of confidence, born of performance" throughout the 157th Brigade.
After relief on 20 September and assembling near Marbache, the 321st spent the nights of 22–25 September moving to Beauzee, arriving on the morning of 26 September. On 26 September, the regiment moved to bivouac's near Futeau in the Argonne Forest, remaining there until 5 October.
At 1300 hours on 5 October 1918, the 157th received orders for an attack at 0500 hours the next morning. Colonel Deems and four officers arrived at the brigade headquarters at 1630 hours, conducted a hurried reconnaissance of battalion areas near l'Esperance Farm and established a regimental command post at Chaudron Farm, with the 320th Field Artillery's command post. The regiment departed its bivouac at 1530 hours, but poor roads and miscommunications delayed its movements, and the first battery began firing at 0520 hours, while it was 0800 hours before the regiment's last battery arrived and emplaced.
After participating in a truncated preparation due to the late arrival, the regiment fired in support of the infantry throughout the day. At 1800 hours, the 321st, joined by the 2nd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery in repelling a German counterattack against the 164th Infantry Brigade. Defensive and harassing fire continued through the night of 6–7 October.
7 October was spent in establishing observation posts and telephone communications in the new positions. On 8, 9 and 10 October, the 321st fired rolling barrages to support attacks by the 164th Infantry Brigade's 327th and 328th Infantry Regiments. During the night of 10 October, the 321st moved to new positions southeast of Fleville, to support the 163rd Infantry Brigade. During this attack, from 10 to 22 October, a forward gun from Battery E, 321st, under 1st Lieutenant Prentiss Edwards, closely supported the 326th Infantry, destroying at least 8 machine gun positions and killing at least 20 Germans with 657 rounds. On 14–19 October, the 321st fired a rolling barrage in support of a First Army "general attack" toward the Kriemhilde Stellung positions. On the afternoon of 16 October, the 157th Brigade's machine guns shot down a German airplane, Battery C, 320th Field Artillery and all three batteries of 2nd Battalion, 321st claiming the kill.
On the night of 21–22 October, the 1st Battalion, 321st withdrew to new positions, and the regiment settled into a period of "stabilized warfare" until 1 November. During this period, the regiment fires light harassing schedules at night and continued close support missions to the infantry. Beginning 26 October, the battalion moved one gun per battery into forward positions and conducted adjustments in preparation for a new offensive, scheduled for 1 November. The rest of the batteries moved forward on the night of 30–31 October. During the attack, Batteries E and F of the 321st were assigned as "accompanying batteries" to the 160th Infantry Brigade's 319th and 320th Infantry regiments. The remainder of the 321st participated in a three-stage preparation from 0330 hours. During the night of 1–2 November, the 321st (and the other battalions of the 157th Brigade) moved forward into a between the 319th and 320th Infantries, and suffered heavy artillery and machine gun fire while covering the gap with their battery anti-aircraft machine guns. On the morning of 2 November, the attack resumed at 0800 hours, and the 321st moved forward and established a regimental command post in the town of Imecourt. Due to poor roads which limited the availability of ammunition resupply, the 321st, with 3/319th attached, was chosen to receive the division's ammunition resupply and continue forward in support of the 159th Infantry Brigade. The 2/321 assigned two accompanying guns to the brigade's two infantry regiments, but had difficulty acquiring targets due to the lack of German resistance. On 4 November, the 321st continued to follow the infantry forward, remaining about 2-3000 yards behind the front line. On the morning of 5 November, the 320th relieved the 321st, which did no further "considerable firing" before moving to Sivry-Imecourt-St. Juvin (8–9 November), Monblainvill-Apremont (10 November) and Les Islettes, where it received news of the armistice on 11 November. The entire 157th Brigade remained near Les Islettes until 18 November, and then moved to Ste. Menehould before regjoining the 82nd Division in the Tenth Training area. [8]
The 321st Field Artillery sailed back to the United States in the spring of 1919 and was demobilized at Camp Dix, New Jersey, on 26 May 1919. The War Department initially did not assign 155 mm howitzer regiments to infantry divisions in the reorganization of the early 1920s, and the 321st remained inactive. In 1929, the War Department made the decision to reassign 155 mm howitzers to infantry divisions.
The first iteration of the 452nd Field Artillery was constituted in the Organized Reserve in July 1923, allotted to the Fourth Corps Area, and organized in October 1923 with the regimental headquarters at Macon, Georgia, 1st Battalion at La Grange, Georgia, 2nd Battalion Dublin, Georgia, and 3rd Battalion at Athens, Georgia. It was redesignated the 321st Field Artillery Regiment on 5 October 1929 and consolidated with the World War I 321st Field Artillery, which had been reconstituted in the Organized Reserve on 5 June 1930 per the National Defense Act of 1920, with the consolidated unit designated the 321st Field Artillery and assigned to the 82nd Division. The regimental headquarters was relocated on 1 July 1936 to Gainesville, Florida. The regiment conducted summer training with the 5th Field Artillery Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and also conducted Citizens' Military Training Camps at Fort Bragg some years as an alternate form of training. The primary ROTC "feeder" school for new Reserve lieutenants for the regiment was the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia. [9]
(Additional campaigns to be determined)
A Gold color metal and enamel device 1+1⁄8 inches (2.9 cm) in height overall consisting of a shield blazoned: Gules, two lion's paws issuing out of the dexter and sinister base points chevron-ways Or. Attached below and to the sides of the shield a Gold scroll inscribed "NOLI ME TANGERE" in Red letters. [11]
The shield is scarlet for Artillery. The lion's paws are significant of Field Artillery, which may be likened to a mountain lion whose paw has great strength and power in felling and crushing a victim. [11]
The distinctive unit insignia was originally approved for the 452d Field Artillery Regiment on 1 February 1927. It was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Regiment on 21 November 1930. It was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Battalion on 15 April 1942. It was redesignated for the 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion on 14 October 1942. It was redesignated for the 518th Airborne Field Artillery Battalion on 26 September 1951. The insignia was redesignated for the 321st Airborne Field Artillery Battalion on 31 July 1956. On 25 February 1958, it was redesignated for the 321st Artillery Regiment. The insignia was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Regiment effective 1 September 1971. [11]
Gules, two lion's paws issuing out of the dexter an sinister base points chevron-ways Or. [11]
On a wreath Or and Gules, a cannon barrel palewise Sable winged Argent behind a lion sejant affronté with two heads addorsed of the first armed and langued Azure grasping in each forepaw a round of the third and surmounted by an escutcheon per pale Gules and of the fifth an annulet Argent, on a chief of the like three fleurs-de-lis Azure. [11] Motto NOLI ME TANGERE (TOUCH-ME-NOT).
The shield is scarlet for Artillery. The lion's paws are significant of Field Artillery, which may be likened to a mountain lion whose paw has great strength and power in felling and crushing a victim. [11]
The lion with one head facing forward and the other backward, brandishing a round in both directions, refers to the organization's claim to have been the unit of the 101st Airborne Division to fire the first and the last rounds on German soil. The winged cannon stands for the former designation of the organization as a Glider Field Artillery Battalion and its assignment during World War II to the 101st Airborne Division. The red and blue escutcheon is from the arms of Bastogne; the annulet represents the enemy encirclement of that objective and refers to the unit's distinguished action in its defense during World War II. The three fleurs-de-lis stand for the organization's first war service, i.e., participation in three campaigns in France during World War I. [11]
The coat of arms was originally approved for the 452d Field Artillery Regiment on 1 February 1927. It was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Regiment on 14 November 1930. It was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Battalion on 14 April 1942. It was redesignated for the 321st Glider Field Artillery Battalion on 14 October 1942. It was redesignated for the 518th Airborne Field Artillery Battalion and amended to delete the Organized Reserves crest on 26 September 1951. The insignia was redesignated for the 321st Airborne Field Artillery Battalion on 31 July 1956. On 25 February 1958, it was redesignated for the 321st Artillery Regiment. It was amended to add a crest on 22 April 1966. The insignia was redesignated for the 321st Field Artillery Regiment effective 1 September 1971. [11]
The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault operations. It can plan, coordinate, and execute battalion-sized air assault operations to seize terrain. These operations can be conducted by mobile teams covering large distances or areas, fighting behind enemy lines, and working in austere environments with limited or degraded infrastructure. For example, it was active in foreign internal defense and counterterrorism operations in Iraq, in Afghanistan in 2015–2016, and in Syria, as part of Operation Inherent Resolve in 2018–2021.
The 508th Infantry Regiment is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army, first formed in October 1942 during World War II. The 508th is a parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System, and two battalions from the regiment are currently active: the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment is assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, and the 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment is assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. The regiment served in combat during World War II, and regimental elements have served in combat in the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The 503rd Infantry Regiment, formerly the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment and the 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, is an airborne infantry regiment of the United States Army. The regiment served as an independent regiment in the Pacific War during World War II; at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; in Okinawa, Japan; and in Germany. Regimental elements have been assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division, the 11th Airborne Division, the 24th Infantry Division, 25th Infantry Division, the 82nd Airborne Division, 101st Airborne Division, and the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. Regimental elements have participated in campaigns in the Vietnam War, Operation Enduring Freedom–Afghanistan, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The regiment claims 15 Medal of Honor recipients: two from World War II, ten from Vietnam, and three from Afghanistan. A parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System. The regiment's 1st and 2nd Battalions are active, assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade, based at Caserma Ederle, Vicenza, Italy. The 3rd and 4th Battalions as well as Companies E, F, G, H, and I have been inactived.
The 327th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army. During World War II, the 327th was a glider-borne regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. It fought during World War I as part of the 82nd Division. It has also been deployed in the Vietnam War, Gulf War, and most recently to Iraq and Afghanistan. The song "Glider Rider" describes (humorously) some of the slights that glider-borne troops felt they received from the Army during World War II; though the regiment's public fame rose with the 1949 movie Battleground about the Siege of Bastogne in late 1944.
The 1st Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment is the field artillery battalion assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has been assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 11th Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has participated in World War I, World War II, Operation Power Pack, Operation Urgent Fury, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Inherent Resolve.
The 18th Field Artillery Brigade is the XVIII Airborne Corps field artillery brigade, based at Fort Liberty, North Carolina.
The 4th Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment is the field artillery battalion assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Nicknamed "The King of the Herd", 4–319th AFAR has participated in battles from World War I to current operations around the globe. The battalion's mission is to provide direct supporting fires to the brigade. The unit is skilled in both the art of integrating and synchronizing all available fire support assets and in the science of delivering accurate and timely lethal and non-lethal fires. "King of the Herd" Paratroopers in the 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne) are able to accomplish both of these tasks and other assigned missions after rapidly deploying via parachute assault.
The 3rd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment is the field artillery battalion that directly supports the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. Known as the "Gun Devils", 3–319th AFAR has participated in battles from World War I to the current day, and is one of the most highly decorated field artillery units in the United States Army. The battalion's mission is "3-319th AFAR stands ready to deploy worldwide within 18 hours of notification, execute a parachute assault and conduct full-spectrum operations. Specifically, the battalion will provide responsive lethal and nonlethal fires in support of forcible entry and airfield seizure, and integrate and synchronize the effects of fires to achieve the 1BCT commander's intent."
The 319th Field Artillery Regiment, more commonly referred to as the 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, is a parent regiment in the U.S. Army Regimental System. Four battalions of the regiment are currently active. The first three battalions 1st Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment are in the 82nd Airborne Division and the 4th Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment is in the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
The 320th Field Artillery Regiment is a field artillery regiment of the United States Army. A parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System, the 320th FAR currently has two active elements in the 101st Airborne Division : 1st Battalion, 320th FAR "Top Guns" in 2nd Brigade Combat Team; and 3rd Battalion, 320th FAR "Red Knight Rakkasans" in 3rd Brigade Combat Team. The regiment served with the 82nd Airborne Division during World Wars I and II, and regimental elements have served with the 82nd and 101st Airborne Division, the 193rd Infantry Brigade and the Berlin Brigade, and conducted combat operations in the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, Grenada, Operations Desert Shield and Storm, and the Global War on Terror.
The 377th Field Artillery Regiment is a field artillery regiment of the United States Army. A parent regiment under the U.S. Army Regimental System, the regiment's 2nd Battalion, 377th Field Artillery Regiment is assigned to the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division. Elements of the regiment have also served with the 101st Airborne Division and 82nd Airborne Division, and have seen service in World War II, Vietnam, and in both Iraq and Afghanistan during the Global War on Terror. The 1st and 3rd Battalions as well as Batteries D and E are Inactive.
The 2nd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment is the field artillery battalion that is assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. Nicknamed "Black Falcons", 2–319 AFAR has participated in battles from World War I to the current day.
The 82nd Airborne Division Artillery (DIVARTY) is the divisional artillery command for the 82nd Airborne Division of the United States Army, stationed at Fort Liberty, North Carolina. It was organized in 1917, during World War I, was inactivated in 2006 as part of the transformation to modular brigade combat teams, and was reactivated in 2014.
The 3rd Battalion, 321st Field Artillery Regiment is an artillery battalion, assigned to the 18th Field Artillery Brigade, part of the US Army XVIII Airborne Corps at Fort Liberty, NC. The battalion has served in World War I, World War II, Vietnam, and the Global War on Terror. The battalion is equipped with M142 HIMARS rocket launchers.
The 1st Battalion, 321st Field Artillery Regiment is an inactive field artillery battalion of the United States Army. The battalion served in World War I, World War II, Vietnam and the Global War on Terror with the 82nd Airborne and 101st Airborne Divisions, and with the 18th Field Artillery Brigade. The battalion was officially inactivated in March 2014, and its firing batteries were distributed throughout the 82nd Airborne Division.
The 2nd Battalion, 321st Field Artillery Regiment is an inactive field artillery battalion of the United States Army. The battalion served in World War I, World War II, Vietnam and the Global War on Terrorism with the 82nd Airborne and 101st Airborne Divisions. The battalion was inactivated in 2014 as part of force reductions.
The 101st Airborne Division Artillery (DIVARTY) is the force fires headquarters for the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The DIVARTY has served with the division in World War II, Vietnam, Operations Desert Shield and Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and in peacetime at Camp Breckinridge and Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and Fort Jackson, South Carolina. The DIVARTY was inactivated in 2005 as part of transformation to modular brigade combat teams, but was reactivated on 16 October 2014 to provide fire support coordination and mission command for the training and readiness of field artillery units across the division.
The 2nd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment is an inactive field artillery battalion of the United States Army. The battalion has been assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 11th Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has participated in World War I, World War II, Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom. The battalion deactivated in July 2015 as part of ongoing force reductions, and its personnel and equipment were reflagged as the 2nd Battalion, 32nd Field Artillery Regiment.
The 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment is a Field Artillery Branch battalion assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has been assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 11th Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has participated in World War I, World War II, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The 4th Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment is an inactive field artillery battalion of the United States Army. The battalion has been assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 11th Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division. The battalion has participated in World War I, World War II, Operation Just Cause, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom. The battalion inactivated in 2014 as part of ongoing force reductions.