Unit History
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2nd Armored M3 tanks training in the Mojave Desert. |
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2nd Armored troops shipping out to North Africa. |
Combat Record
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2nd Armored Division staging in Southern England for Normandy. |
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Training for the large operation was conducted in Tidworth, England. In March of 1944, the division gained a new commander, General Edward Brooks. When the operation Operation: COBRA was the action to break out of the Bocage area and 2nd Armored, along with 3rd Armored, acted as the main exploitation force after a spearhead of three infantry divisions broke through German lines. Racing to cut-off Germans in retreat from the attack, Combat Command B ignored threats to flanks and pushed through German roadblocks until it reached far behind enemy lines. This deep push confused the enemy and 2nd Armored caught the Germans when they least expected it. 2nd Armored was proving it's phrase, "Hell On Wheels," to be quite appropriate. |
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41st Armored Infantry pushing through hedgerow country. |
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During it's fight against the Axis, the 2nd Armored Division took 94,151 prisoners; liberated 22,538 Allied Prisoners of War, shot down, or captured on the ground, 266 enemy planes; fired a total of 17,308,972 rounds of cannon, |
The 2nd Armored Division was one of the first two American armored divisions formed. Activated at Fort Benning, Goergia, on July 15th, 1940, the division was based out of the existing infantry tank units. The division's commander at that time was Major General Charles L. Scott. In charge of training the newly formed division was then Colonel George S. Patton, Jr. That November, Maj. Gen. Scott was appointed commander of the First Armored Corps. Thus, Patton assumed command of 2nd Armored Division and a month after he took control, the division completed a 600 mile administrative march through Florida... a first for any armored division. This also marked the first public appearance of the 2nd Armored Division. General Patton put the unit through serious training and unified the division. During training maneuvers through four different southern states, Patton stated that his division would be "Hell On Wheels" when it met the enemy. The phrase had since stuck with 2nd Armored.
The 2nd Armored Division still retained the heavy table of organization developed in 1942. During a redrafting of armored divisions structure in 1943, the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Armored Divisions were already deployed (2nd and 3rd stationed in England in preperation for the Normandy Invasion and the 1st still fighting in Italy). The older table of organization was known as Tank Division (Heavy) and once the 1st Armored Division was pulled off the line after campaigns in Anzio and Rome, the 2nd and 3rd were the only armored divisions with this set up. Essentially, the newer 1943 configuration left the 2nd and 3rd Armored Divisions 40 tanks stronger compared to the other, newer units being trained or reorganized after them (three tank battalions versus six). Because of this larger battalion size, 2nd Armored's tank battalions were still retained Regimental strength units as opposed to individual operating battalion structures.
2nd Armored's combat record is impressive and probably the most varied of all the armored units that fought in World War II. Now commanded by General Ernest Harmon, the division was initially deployed to North Africa, landing in Casablanca. Safi, and Port Lyautey of French Morocco on November 8th, 1942 during Operation: TORCH. Initially, the entire division was not committed and only select elements were pulled for this invasion. The landings took place at Safi and, despite nearly all plans going awry, the port was taken and 2nd Armored was on land. Though it was kept in reserve after the landings, some of these elements saw action near Beja, Tunisia, mainly because they were pulled to reinforce the battered 1st Armored Division after the loss at Kasserine Pass.
kicked off, 2nd Armored crossed the channel, landing in Normandy on June 9th, 1944 (D+3). They immediately took action in the area and spent several days in attempts to link up with friendly units and fill in the seams of the beachhead. On July 12th, orders were given to reinforce the paratroopers at Carentan who had been there defending on their own since the invasion start. Combat Command A reinforced the tired 101st Airborne in the midst of a heavy German counter-attack by the 17th SS. CCA stopped the attack and inflicted 800 casualties while only losing 4 tanks and 12 men. As the Allies pushed inward, the difficulties of the French Bocage (hedgerow) country became apparent and casualties became higher. On June 19th, 2nd Armored was put in to reserve to replace and resupply as well as await the rest of the division to come over. During this time, Sergeant Curtis Culin came up with idea to be able to plow through the high hedgerows by welding steel girder scrap from the German beach obstacles on to front of a tank. The idea was successful and tanks could now breach the hedgerows where the Germans least expected it.
After the breakout from Normandy and the Allies racing through France, 2nd Armored drove through at breakneck speed and reached the Belgium border with the unit's 82nd Recon Battalion, Company A, being the first Allied unit to enter Belgium. The division took the city of Tournai two hours ahead of its deadline, where it ran out of fuel and thus stayed for several nights. When it kicked off again, it forged a path to the Albert Canal, reaching it on September 8th, 1944. The canal crossing was difficult as all bridges had been blown by the Germans and only one crossing established by the British had been established. 2nd Armored crossed the canal and made way to the German border. The unit attacked the Siegfried Line and broke through, crossing the River Wurm and seizing two towns. Penetrating the Westwall, the division was unexpectedly stopped along the Roer River, which heavy rains had saturated the area with sticky mud and engorged the river. While they took up defensive positions, Germans began an offensive which kicked off the event known as the Battle of The Bulge.
To help contain the German breakthrough, 2nd Armored was ordered to join a counter-attack force in northern Belgium. The group raced southward, travelling over 100 miles of icy roads in less than 24 hours, and stopped the lead elements of the German Fifth Panzer Army near Dinant around Christmas time. Towards the end of December, 2nd Armored crushed the spearheads of the 2nd and 9th Panzer Divisions, which marked some of the largest tank battles the US fought during the war.
After the Germans were stopped dead in their tracks, the division cleared the Ardennes and took rest in February, only to get called up in to action again. 2nd Armored returned to their positions in Germany and partook in Operation: GRENADE, the assault along the Rhine River. From this point, the unit was the spearhead of the US 9th Army all the way to the Rhine. The division was later linked up with 3rd Armored to complete an encirclement of German Army Group B in the Ruhr Pocket in April of 1945, which led to roughly 300,000 prisoners - one of the largest surrenders during the war. By April 12th, the 2nd Armored Division put a tank force across the Elbe River, thanks to a bridgehead secured by the 30th Infantry Division. In July, well after Germany's surrender, 2nd Armored became the first US division to enter Berlin and took up constabulary duties in the American sector of the city.
rifle, and machinegun ammunition; destroyed or captured uncounted numbers of tanks and tremendous amounts of equipment and supplies. In 247 days in battle, the division suffered 7,348 casualties, including 1,160 killed in action. The unit was recognized for distinguished service and bravery with 9,369 individual awards, including two medals of honor, twenty-three distinguished service crosses, and 2,302 silver stars, as well as nearly 6,000 purple hearts. The unit was also twice cited by the Belgian Government and divison soldiers for the next 50 years proudly wore the fourragere of the Belgian Croix de Guerre.|
Headquarters Subsections |
