79th Infantry Regiment (USA)

79th Infantry Regiment (USA)
Unit name	79th Infantry Regiment
Dates	1918–present (various activations)
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Type	Infantry
Role	Light infantry, training
Size	Regiment

79th Infantry Regiment (USA) The 79th Infantry Regiment is a United States Army infantry regiment constituted during World War I that has undergone multiple activations, redesignations, and assignments across the Regular Army, National Army, and Army Reserve. The regiment's lineage connects to divisions and organizations involved in major twentieth-century conflicts and Cold War-era restructuring, with elements serving in training, occupation, and combat support roles during engagements linked to the American Expeditionary Forces, New Guinea, and Europe.

History

The regiment was constituted amid the mobilization for World War I and organized to provide rifle companies for the American Expeditionary Forces in the context of operations influenced by the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, the Battle of Saint-Mihiel, and broader Allied offensives coordinated by the Supreme War Council. During the interwar period, the unit's status shifted in parallel with the National Defense Act of 1920 reforms and the reorganization of the United States Army that affected units tied to the Fort Bragg, Fort Benning, and Fort Lewis postings. Elements of the regiment were reactivated for World War II service, participating in campaigns associated with the European Theater of Operations (WWII) and the Pacific War logistics and training networks. Postwar, the regiment's elements were reflagged, consolidated, and assigned to training commands and the United States Army Reserve, reflecting the Army's adoption of the Pentomic and later ROAD (Reorganization Objective Army Divisions) structures and the influence of Secretary of Defense policies.

Organization and Lineage

The regiment was originally constituted in the National Army and organized under the auspices of the Adjutant General of the Army with battalions and companies attached to brigade and divisional headquarters such as the Infantry Division structures of the era. Over time the regiment underwent redesignation under the United States Army Center of Military History lineage practices, with battalions converted to separate training units, reconnaissance elements, and support detachments. The 79th's lineage intersects with units assigned to the 7th Infantry Division, the 24th Infantry Division, and nondivisional training commands at installations including Fort Jackson, Fort Gordon, and Camp Shelby. Organizational changes reflected doctrine influenced by leaders such as George C. Marshall, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and planners from the War Department mobilization boards.

World War I and Interwar Period

Activated for World War I as part of the rapid expansion of the American Expeditionary Forces, the regiment provided replacements and formed rifle companies to augment divisions preparing for offensives coordinated with Ferdinand Foch's Allied commands. Following the Armistice of 11 November 1918, demobilization at camps such as Camp Grant and Camp Dix reduced the regiment to cadre strength. During the interwar years, the regiment's administrative identity was preserved through Organized Reserve Corps allocations and federal regulations stemming from the National Defense Act of 1920, with peacetime training ties to ROTC programs at institutions like The Citadel, Virginia Military Institute, and Reserve Officers' Training Corps detachments.

World War II Service

Elements reactivated before and during World War II were integrated into campaigns that involved coordination with theater commands such as Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe and United States Army Forces, Pacific in the Pacific. Subordinate units provided infantry replacements, conducted amphibious training influenced by doctrine from the United States Marine Corps and Amphibious Corps, Pacific Fleet, and participated in occupation duties following victories including those associated with the Normandy landings logistics chain and island-hopping operations leading to bases like Guadalcanal and Leyte. The regiment's companies were affected by personnel policies issued by the War Department, and its veterans were among recipients of decorations administered by the Department of the Army and cited in unit histories compiled by the Army Center of Military History.

Postwar Activities and Reassignments

After World War II, the regiment experienced inactivations, reconstitutions, and reassignments as part of the Army's global posture adjustments during the Cold War. Units were allocated to the Army Reserve and redesignated for training missions under commands such as the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command and the First United States Army, supporting mobilization exercises like Operation Reforger and mobilization training at installations including Fort McClellan and Fort Eustis. Administrative consolidations followed Department of Defense directives and the Army's regimental system experiments, producing battalions that served as training, light infantry, and military police units during crises such as the Berlin Crisis and operations linked to Vietnam War manpower management.

Honors and Campaigns

Units tracing to the 79th received campaign credit and decorations consistent with their service in major campaigns in World War I and World War II, including citations for participation in offensives recognized by the Department of the Army and campaign streamers authenticated by the Army Institute of Heraldry. Individual soldiers from the regiment were awarded decorations such as the Bronze Star Medal, Silver Star, Purple Heart, and occasionally higher honors administered under regulations of the Department of Defense. Unit citations and campaign participation emblems reflected engagements affiliated with the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, operations in the European Theater of Operations (WWII), and select Pacific campaigns.

Notable Personnel and Commanders

Commanders and personnel associated with the regiment include officers who later held positions within higher echelons like the United States Army Forces Command, the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command, and joint organizations. Some leaders went on to work with Allied staff elements or served in senior roles under figures such as Omar Bradley, George S. Patton Jr., and Douglas MacArthur. Enlisted graduates entered careers influenced by institutions like the United States Military Academy at West Point and the Officer Candidate School system. Several veterans contributed to historical scholarship preserved by the National Archives and the Army Center of Military History.

Category:Infantry regiments of the United States Army