4th Infantry Division 12th Infantry Regiment

This book chronicles the story of the members of Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division from their Basic Training days in early 1966 through their fighting as a unit in Vietnam. It includes stories about the soldiers who led during that year and other soldiers who came, served, and went home to lead normal lives. Two stories stand out. One is the story of Donald Evans, the first 4th Infantry Division soldier (and Medic) to receive the Medal of Honor (posthumously) for Vietnam service. His story is told from long before he was drafted and illustrates the many tributes he has received since his untimely and heroic death in Vietnam. Also, inside is the story of the notorious 9th Vietcong Division and their crushing defeat on March 21, 1967 when they challenged the 3rd Brigade of the 4th ID at the Battle of Suoi Tre. It was an amazing team effort to achieve that great American victory. The bravery and determination of American soldiers who refused to lose, even against overwhelming odds, is a story you must read.

The 4th Infantry Division has always been there in AmericaÕs modern wars. On 14 September 1918 the men of the ÒIvyÓ Division stood up in their trenches and prepared to attack. It would be one of the first times that American troops would operate autonomously, aside from Anglo-Franco command. They would go over the top on uneven ground to be blown to pieces by German artillery and fall in their hundreds to the spitting of German machine guns, yet nevertheless win the day. In World War II on D-Day they scrambled ashore across the sands of Utah beach and remained fighting in Europe until Hitler was dead and Germany had surrendered. From the Normandy campaign to the hell of the HŸrtgen Forest and the Battle of the Bulge, no other American division suffered more casualties in the European theater than the 4th, and no other division accomplished as much. In Vietnam they would execute precarious Òsearch and destroyÓ missions in dense jungles against a determined and resourceful enemy. They experienced a series of major engagements that would entail 33 consecutive days of vicious, close-quarters combat in the battle of Dak To in 1967. For their actions in Indochina they would receive no less than 11 Medals of Honor. They fought in Iraq to topple Saddam Hussein, and in May 2009, at the height of Operation Enduring Freedom, the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team deployed to Afghanistan for a 12-month combat mission. They operated in the birthplace of the Taliban along the Arghandab River Valley, west of Kandahar City, a place often ominously referred to as "The Heart of Darkness." The 2nd Battalion 12th Infantry Regiment saw heavy combat throughout. Through firsthand interviews with veterans, across the decades, and the expert analysis of the authors, the role of one of AmericaÕs mainstay divisions in its modern conflicts is in these pages illuminated.

The U.S. 70th Tank Battalion boasts one of the most impressive combat records of any American armored unit in World War II. It landed in North Africa as part of Operation Torch and participated in the invasion of Sicily, D-Day, the Normandy campaign, the Battle of the Bulge, and the final drive into Germany. It remains in service today as the 70th Armor Regiment, the U.S. Army's most decorated armor unit.

Includes accounts of landings at corps level and below and relates the course of VII Corps combat operations which resulted in the capture of Cherbourg on June 27, 1944. This is the last of three narratives dealing with American military operations in Normandy.

An illustrated guide to the markings used on WWII Era U.S. Army tanks, lorries and Jeeps—an invaluable reference for historians, modelers and collectors. The markings of a 1944 U.S. Army Jeep are an iconic image of American military and the Second World War. But few people know what the distinctive white letters, numbers and symbols actually mean. This uniquely detailed guide explains how these and other markings were integral to organizing the U.S. Army on the move. U.S. Army Vehicle Markings 1944 covers all the markings used on American military vehicles to denote their unit and classification. It also covers tactical markings and the debarkation codes used in the Normandy landings. Hundreds of contemporary photographs are paired with precise color diagrams to show exactly how markings appeared on vehicles, including the exact measurements. The volume explains all the variations in the use of these markings and includes a chapter on the varieties of camouflage used on vehicles.