Setran was a part of the 315 th Infantry Regiment of the 79 th Infantry Division. It was then ordered to Camp Phillips, Kansas for training in the winter conditions. Moving swiftly to the Franco-Belgian frontier near St. Amand (east of Lille), the division was then moved to XV Corps in eastern France, where it encountered heavy resistance in taking Charmes in street fighting, 12 September. These soldiers had behind them a wealth of pre-combat experience, plus the last word in equipment. 3/331, 79th Artillery Division 2 I11!g1#WtxR1B8)BH-RYSC:FJAeEJ5u$7?)S>c$P6N $Pc$Hk I#t2JQkS,zi8 7> - LrF@x .Nb4ydzgrw9=]_RwWpz_^vuhWiKZu6FZfg&^&^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^xZZuyEmy&M7!oB y%K/!_B| %/K y&M7!oB ys7G9,RyB\rWCZ. Beyond these the country rolled to the north in hills and valleys dotted with small clumps of woods and underbrush, and traversed by band after band of barbed wire entanglements. After training in the United Kingdom from 17 April 1944, the 79th Infantry Division landed on Utah Beach, Normandy, 1214 June and entered combat 19 June 1944, with an attack on the high ground west and northwest of Valognes and high ground south of Cherbourg Naval Base. This was the Esnes-Malancourt-Montfaucon Road. This poor boy was wounded by a shell fragment which entered the landing craft through a porthole while he was still onboard. The division was inactivated June 1919 and returned to the United States. 79th Infantry Division History The division was activated at the Camp Pickett, Virginia on June 15, 1942. D-Day and Battle of Normandy media library: archives photos and videos, Souvenir shop featuring t-shirts, caps, mugs, models or posters inspired by D-Day and the Battle of Normandy, D-Day Overlord - Marc Laurenceau 2003-2023. Do you have 315TH INFANTRY REGIMENT, 79TH INFANTRY DIVISION Reunion information you'd like to share, "When I Joined VetFriends, I read about the email locator service, and sent an email to my old friend. (p. 57, 59), Reports had come into Regimental headquarters early that morning that conditions on the right of the Malancourt-Montfaucon road would make it impossible for troops to move forward without being subjected to heavy machine gun fire from the direction of the village of Cuisy. Soldiers of the regiment reported that many civilians came to discuss, even if there were troubles of communications, the troops knew civilians were filled with happiness. The 315th Infantry (79th Division, United States Army) was a combat unit of the American Expeditionary Forces in France (p. 6). The 315th Infantry was made up of three battalions and four special units: Giovanni Angelillo served in Company "K", Third Battalion, until his death on 27 September 1918. It began on 31 December 1944 in Rhineland-Palatinate, Alsace and Lorraine in southwestern Germany and northeastern France, and ended on 25 January 1945. World War Two, ". He was the first men of the 79th Infantry Division to receive the Purple Heart. The advance was resumed at 7:00 A.M. on September 27th, but we had practically nothing to do this day but follow the 314th Infantry. "E" and "D" Companies of the 2 nd Battalion of the 749 th Tank Battalion. ), At eleven o'clock on the night of September 25th, a deep boom far behind the American lines announced the beginning of the six-hour Allied barrage. After a period of training, he became a private in the 315th Infantry Regiment of the 79th Infantry Division. In 1942 a typical infantry regiment consisted of a headquarters and band, a headquarters company, a service company, an anti-tank company, a cannon company, and three infantry battalions. Until then, fightings were exchanges of fire between the two camps, but soon hand to hand fighting became necessary to dislodge the German forces from their dug-in emplacements, more so, the 88mm German guns delivered hell on the Allied troops. ), Nevertheless, the troops drove ahead long after darkness fell, and by ten o'clock that evening the Regimental front line had been carried to a point nearly a kilometer beyond the Montfaucon-Septsarges Road. (p. 36), This advance guard of the Regiment, after many twistings and turnings, reached its camping ground at midnight and pitched shelter tents in a driving downpour of rain. [Because of the rain Company "K" stayed in the train at Revigny from 9 P.M. until 12:30 A.M. and then bivouacked for the night at a short distance from the train. Wood The front line companies, however, made repeated attempts to advance and gradually the line edged forward. He said we were like brothers and then all of a sudden, we lost all contact. Men of the 79th Infantry Division fighting in the streets of Cherbourg. (p. 62-63), Under these circumstances, the morning of the 27th found the Esnes-Malancourt-Montfaucon Road buried under a hopeless jam of ambulances, artillery, supply trucks, and vehicles of all descriptions. Here the men of the Third Battalion were subjected to the fire of German snipers who had taken up positions in the ruins of Malancourt. /^6 ;ei;Tf>b:eXgl1lC?.J@t U&2Z[L}d55SBlD+?#jS P~PNq&U7gHwT66.&)oh
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On 26 July, the 79th attacked across the Ay River, took Lessay, crossed the Sarthe River and entered Le Mans, 8 August, meeting only light resistance. This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 23:40. Following the issuance of this order, however, word was received from Division Headquarters that no aid would be given the leading regiment at this time, and, in consequence, the orders for two companies to reinforce the 314th Infantry were immediately revoked. Owing to the strong resistance encountered by both the 313th and 314th Infantry, the front line of the Division at the end of the first day was considerably behind the line established by the 4th Division on the right and the 37th Division on the left. 79th Infantry Division. 2,951,213, MILITARY UNITS - 315th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Division. The 315th Infantry (79th Division, United States Army) was a combat unit of the American Expeditionary Forces in France. [The soldiers of Company "K" left at 8 P.M. hiking to Vaux in a heavy rain with slickers fastened to their packs. 29 September 1944: Third Army, 12th Army Group, but attached to the XV Corps. The air was filled with the whistling of passing shells, and above all rose the thunder of the guns. 7 September 1944: XV Corps, Third Army, 12th Army Group. The Company was scattered about in dug-outs for two days and then went forward to a position from which it was to begin its advance in the biggest drive of the war. [3] It held a defensive line at the Ollonde River until 2 July 1944 and then returned to the offensive, taking La Haye du Puits in house-to-house fighting, 8 July. Thank you for signing up for the VetFriends Newsletter! By six o'clock on the evening of 26 September the first wave of the 315th Infantry had crawled up the hill slopes and into the Hindenburg trench. (ibid. The ship was one of a convoy of five steamers which carried a total of nearly 22,000 troops, at that time one of the largest, if not the largest, single shipment of troops ever made. motor trucks (p. 263)]. 313th Infantry Regiment 314th Infantry Regiment 315th Infantry Regiment 1/331 Normally overshadowed by the Battle of the Bulge, Nordwind battles were just as intense and the troops involved faced the same bitter weather . Lives were the main concern of Headquarters, despite the american advance toward Cherbourg, the 315th Infantry Regiment and the other two (313th and 314ths) were withdrawn in preparation for a coordinated attack scheduled on the 23rd of June. I called the number ans wow he was blown away when he found out who I was. August 10th, 1944: Chanteloup We wonder about the rest that served with us in the artillery unit we served in. Here the Regiment took up positions for the night; Companies "I" and "K" of the Third Battalion, east of the Malancourt-Montfaucon road; Companies "L" and "M" and the First Battalion, west of the road; the Second Battalion in a system of trenches about 400 meters south of the Third Battalion; and Regimental Headquarters one kilometer southeast of Malancourt. (p. 54-55), By three o'clock in the afternoon, the Third Battalion, despite the continuous fire of snipers from the front and flanks, had "mopped up" Malancourt and had advanced a half kilometer beyond. August 1st, 1944: Saint-Lger (p. 162), There was an accident on the night of July 14th: at 11:50 P.M. the America rammed and sank the British freight steamer Indestructo; the steamer was struck amidships, cut almost in two, and kicked off about fifty yards to the starboard, where it sank stern down in seven minutes. (p. 41), For its first experience of the battle-front, the 315th Infantry was assigned to replace the French Army in the Favry sub-sector of the right half of the 79th Division's sector of the Allied line, Sector "304". The beach was in such excellent secured organized state. Close at hand was the sharp, staccato of the French 75-millimeter [3-inch] guns, farther back the roar of the six- and nine-inch howitzers, while, in the distant rear, hills and valleys reverberated to the deep boom of the huge naval guns along the Dombasle road. During the three days which the Regiment spent in the fields outside the city of Brest, it rained almost continuously. Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 79th Infantry Division Artillery, 79th Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized), Headquarters, Special Troops, 79th Infantry Division, Headquarters Company, 79th Infantry Division. Both regiments had now started to push ahead, but the advancing troops were already beginning to get beyond the range of their light calibre supporting artillery, and the enemy was resisting with increasing vigor. World War I [ edit] Activated: August 1917 Overseas: July 1918 Major operations: Meuse-Argonne This resistance was finally overcome and the advance resumed. These soldiers had behind them a wealth of pre-combat experience, plus the last word in equipment. Having distinguished itself at Montfaucon, in Lorraine, the. The 314th Regiment had advanced across the front of the entire German 16th Infantry Division (deployed from Neufchateau to the Moselle) and was unaware they did so. (p. 35), The night of July 8th was spent aboard ship [Each man received a life preserver and a copy of the Naval I. D. R. All ammunition, flashlights and matches were turned in: it was a court-martial offense to strike a light on deck after dark when the ship was out at sea (p. 262)], and late in the afternoon of the 9 July 1918, the America, in a gray mist, steamed down the Hudson, past Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty, and sailed out into the Atlantic. (p. 51), After the necessary changes of position had been accomplished, the Regiment was disposed in support of the 314th Infantry as follows: The First Battalion occupied the front line on the left half of the Regimental sector; Company "C" in trench Delacroix, Companies "D", "A" and "B" along the Boyau Tournefiere. 315th Infantry Regiment walking through the village of Saint-Joseph - CombatReels.com. Army Photo ), Although the firing ahead had been in progress for quite a time, the advance went on rapidly. Subscribe to 313th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Division Footer menu. The 315th and 316th Regiments together formed the 158th Infantry Brigade (p. 21). The official history of the 315th Infantry U. S. A.; being a true record of its organization and training, of its operations in the World War, and of its activities following the signing of the armistice. The Third Battalion was posted on the front line on the right half of the Regimental sector; Company "I" in trench Cant, Companies "K" and "L" in Boyau de la Cannebiere and Boyau des Zouaves, Company "M" in trench Raoul Duval. During the first days of the American drive, the Engineers did what was possible, but a single day was not enough to build a road that could satisfy the transportation needs of two entire divisions. Some had been with the division since its activation at, The first units of the regiment went to their assembly area near Sainte-Marie-du-Mont waiting there until, "A" Company was the first to make contact with the Germans near Flottemanville. The captain of the America ordered that life-boats be lowered and succeeded in rescuing eleven of the forty-two crew members of the Indestructo. Immediately following its declaration of war against the Imperial Government of Germany (on 6 April 1917), the U.S. Government rented some 15 square miles of land in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, which the War Department proposed making into a national army cantonment to receive recruits from eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland and the District of Columbia. It was also at this moment, that officers and enlisted men who were engaged in the regiment since its activation got killed in action, nevertheless casualties were extremely light. 2/313 Lieutenant-Colonel McMahon - 79thUnitHistory. Upon his arrival at the camp, his column had grown to around six hundred! Cecil Earl Workman, WWII Veteran, "L" Co., 129th Inf. During the next two days, men continued on their way to Fortress Cherbourg. This is the reason why 3rd Battalion was given the mission to clean out the village of Lieusaint (D-2) of German snipers. An important note about how I have used this book to write this page: what follows is not an exact reproduction. But when reconnaissance of the front line positions showed that an advance on the right of the road would not be so seriously held up as reported, the Second and Third Battalions were at once ordered to reform on the right of the road and to push forward until contact was regained with the rear elements of the 314th Infantry. [1] Organization [ edit] 1st Brigade 313th Infantry Regiment 314th Infantry Regiment 2nd Brigade 315th Infantry Regiment 316th Infantry Regiment 79th Artillery Brigade References [ edit] find my friend. 6 February 1945: Seventh Army, 6th Army Group. Thanks VetFriends, It was a wonderful moment that we will both remember for the rest of our lives, and we owe it to VetFriends. The 315th Infantry Machine Gun Company supported the First Battalion, and Company "A," of the 312th Machine Gun Battalion, supported the Third Battalion. WWII 315th Infantry Regiment | Normandy American Heroes provides custom World War II tours of Normandy and beyond On our blog, we write about World War II, .