15th Cavalry Division (United States)

Last updated

15th Cavalry Division
Active27 November 1917 – 12 May 1918
CountryUnited States
Branch United States Army
TypeCavalry
Size18,176 (including trains)
Garrison/HQ Fort Bliss
Commanders
Notable
commanders
George Windle Read
U.S. Cavalry Divisions
PreviousNext
3rd Cavalry Division 21st Cavalry Division

The 15th Cavalry Division was a cavalry division of the United States Army during World War I, the only United States cavalry division formed during the war.

Contents

It was created with three cavalry brigades between November 1917 and February 1918 in Texas and Arizona, and included the Regular Army cavalry regiments that had guarded the Mexico–United States border. The division was originally trained for deployment to Europe, but only two of its regiments were sent there. The division was inactivated on 12 May 1918 and its remaining units sent back to the border as replacement National Army regiments were considered insufficiently trained. Elements of the division were reconstituted as the 1st Cavalry Division in 1921.

History

The organization of the division was ordered by the United States War Department on 27 November 1917 from the nine Regular Army cavalry regiments guarding the Mexico–United States border, in response to the desire of American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) commander on the Western Front General John J. Pershing for a mobile cavalry reserve despite French and British suggestions against establishing such a unit. Under the command of Major General George Windle Read from 10 December, the division was intended to be sent to the AEF, and began forming in early December. The divisional headquarters was organized at Fort Bliss, Texas, the headquarters of the 1st Cavalry Brigade at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, that of the 2nd Cavalry Brigade at Fort Bliss, and that of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade at Douglas, Arizona. [2] [3] The three cavalry brigades were authorized 14,268 combatants and non-combatants, out of the total division strength (including support units) of 18,176. [4]

A United States Signal Corps-produced film including footage of cavalry training at Forts Sill and Sam Houston, 1917–1918

For the next several months, the division conducted methodical training by concentrating two out of three regiments in each brigade, with the third regiment periodically rotating off border duty. When it left the border, the division was intended to be replaced on border duty by new National Army cavalry regiments, then in the process of organization. The organization of the division was completed in February 1918 with the organization of the 1st Cavalry Brigade headquarters, [4] and the 6th, 7th, 14th, and 15th Cavalry Regiments were alerted for deployment to the AEF in response to a request from Pershing for corps troops. However, only the 6th and 15th Cavalry were sent to the AEF via Camp Merritt, New Jersey on 4 March. [2] [3]

Brigadier General DeRosey Caroll Cabell became commanding general on 30 April, and commanded it for the rest of its brief existence. [4] The Commanding General of the Southern Department, Major General Willard Ames Holbrook, proposed that the division be broken up on 6 May 1918, as he considered the National Army regiments insufficiently trained to be able to replace the Regulars within nine months, and the divisional organization unwieldy for border patrol duty. In response, the War Department disbanded the division on 12 May; its subordinate units remained on the border. [2] Pershing was informed by Secretary of War Newton D. Baker that all remaining cavalrymen were required for border duty, ending the possibility of employing a cavalry division on the Western Front. The brigade headquarters remained active in the border until they were demobilized in July 1919. [3]

Perpetuation

The 1st Cavalry Division was constituted in the Regular Army on 20 August 1921 and was activated on 13 September 1921. It was formed from two of the three reconstituted cavalry brigades that were formerly part of the 15th Cavalry Division. Only the 1st and 2nd Brigades were part of the 1st Cavalry Division because of a reduced table of organization for the cavalry division developed after the war; the 3rd Cavalry Brigade (3rd Brigade, 15th Cavalry Division) became part of the new 2nd Cavalry Division. [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

3rd Infantry Division (United States) United States Army infantry division

The 3rd Infantry Division is a combined arms division of the United States Army based at Fort Stewart, Georgia. It is a direct subordinate unit of the XVIII Airborne Corps and U.S. Army Forces Command. Its current organization includes a division headquarters and headquarters battalion, two armored brigade combat teams, one National Guard infantry brigade combat team, one task force battalion, one aviation brigade, a division artillery, a sustainment brigade and a combat sustainment support battalion along with a maneuver enhancement brigade. The division has a distinguished history, having seen active service in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam War, and the Global War on Terror. The Medal of Honor has been awarded to 61 members of the 3rd Infantry Division, making the division the most honored in the Army.

1st Infantry Division (United States) United States Army combat formation, oldest continuously serving division in the Regular Army

The 1st Infantry Division is a combined arms division of the United States Army, and is the oldest continuously serving division in the Regular Army. It has seen continuous service since its organization in 1917 during World War I. It was officially nicknamed "The Big Red One" after its shoulder patch and is also nicknamed "The Fighting First." The division has also received troop monikers of "The Big Dead One" and "The Bloody First" as puns on the respective officially sanctioned nicknames. It is currently based at Fort Riley, Kansas.

American Expeditionary Forces U.S. Army formation on the Western Front of World War I

The American Expeditionary Forces was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The AEF was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing. It fought alongside French Army, British Army, Canadian Army, and Australian Army units against the Imperial German Army. A minority of the AEF troops also fought alongside Italian Army units in that same year against the Austro-Hungarian Army. The AEF helped the French Army on the Western Front during the Aisne Offensive in the summer of 1918, and fought its major actions in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in the latter part of 1918.

4th Infantry Division (United States) United States Army infantry division

The 4th Infantry Division is a division of the United States Army based at Fort Carson, Colorado. It is composed of a division headquarters battalion, three brigade combat teams, a combat aviation brigade, a division sustainment brigade, and a division artillery.

5th Infantry Division (United States) United States Army infantry unit

The 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized)—nicknamed the "Red Diamond", or the "Red Devils" —was an infantry division of the United States Army that served in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War, and with NATO and the U.S. Army III Corps. It was inactivated on 24 November 1992 and reflagged as the 2nd Armored Division.

First United States Army Field army of the United States Army

First Army is the oldest and longest-established field army of the United States Army. It served as a theater army, having seen service in both World War I and World War II, and supplied the US army with soldiers and equipment during the Korean War and the Vietnam war under some of the most famous and distinguished officers of the U.S. Army. It now serves as a mobilization, readiness and training command.

35th Infantry Division (United States) Military unit

The 35th Infantry Division, formerly known as the 35th Division, is an infantry formation of the Army National Guard at Fort Leavenworth.

42nd Infantry Division (United States) Division of the New York ARNG

The 42nd Infantry Division (42ID) ("Rainbow") is a division of the United States Army National Guard. The 42nd Infantry Division has served in World War I, World War II and the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). The division is currently headquartered at the Glenmore Road Armory in Troy, New York.

31st Infantry Division (United States) Military unit

The 31st Infantry Division ("Dixie") was an infantry division of the United States Army National Guard, active almost continuously from 1917 to 1968. Composed of men from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Illinois, and Mississippi at various points in its existence, the division saw service in both World War I and World War II, and was mobilized during the Korean War, although it was not sent overseas in the latter.

Pancho Villa Expedition 1916 U.S. military operation against revolutionary forces in northern Mexico

The Pancho Villa Expedition—now known officially in the United States as the Mexican Expedition, but originally referred to as the "Punitive Expedition, U.S. Army"—was a military operation conducted by the United States Army against the paramilitary forces of Mexican revolutionary Francisco "Pancho" Villa from March 14, 1916, to February 7, 1917, during the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920.

1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division (United States) Military unit

The 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division is a cavalry unit of the United States Army based in Fort Hood, Texas.

10th Cavalry Regiment (United States) Military unit

The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original "Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during the Indian Wars in the western United States, the Spanish–American War in Cuba and in the Philippine–American War. The regiment was trained as a combat unit but later relegated to non-combat duty and served in that capacity in World War II until its deactivation in 1944.

11th Infantry Brigade (United States) Military unit

The 11th Infantry Brigade is an inactive infantry brigade of the United States Army. It was first formed as part of the 6th Division during World War I. It is best known for its service with the 23rd Infantry Division from 1967 through 1971 in the Vietnam War as a light infantry brigade. The brigade is known for its responsibility in the My Lai Massacre.

62nd Cavalry Division (United States) Military unit

The 62nd Cavalry Division was an Organized Reserve cavalry unit of the United States Army.

John J. Pershing Commanding general of the American Expeditionary Force in World War I

General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing, nicknamed "Black Jack", was a senior United States Army officer. He served most famously as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on the Western Front during World War I, from 1917 to 1918. In addition to leading the AEF to victory in World War I, Pershing notably served as a mentor to many in the generation of generals who led the United States Army during World War II, including George C. Marshall, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Omar Bradley, Lesley J. McNair, George S. Patton and Douglas MacArthur.

Herbert J. Brees United States Army general

Herbert Jay Brees was a lieutenant general in the United States Army.

56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (United States) Military unit

The 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is a brigade combat team unit of the Texas Army National Guard, part of the 36th Infantry Division.

Edward Mann Lewis

Major General Edward Mann Lewis, KCMG, was a highly decorated United States Army officer who served his nation for 46 years. During the First World War, he led the 30th Infantry Division when they broke the Hindenburg Line. Upon arrival in France in 1917, he was placed in command of all U.S. forces in Paris. In 1918 he led the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Infantry Division at Château-Thierry where he was responsible for planning and leading the attack on the strategic town of Vaux. General John J. Pershing then promoted him and placed him in command of the 30th Infantry Division in July 1918. Assigned to the Fourth British Army, the 30th Division broke the Hindenburg Line on September 29, hastening the end of the Great War.

Beaumont B. Buck United States Army general

Major General Beaumont Bonaparte Buck was a United States Army officer who served in the Spanish–American War, the Philippine–American War, and World War I. He is best known for his service with the 1st Division during World War I, where he commanded a regiment, brigade and division.

124th Cavalry Regiment (United States) Military unit

The 124th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment, represented in the Texas Army National Guard by 1st Squadron, 124th Cavalry, part of the 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team at Waco.

References

Citations

Bibliography