He had been a cadet in our company so the funeral detail was drawn from that company. Team Battlehard redeployed back to Ft. Myer in July 2004. The Old Guard's ceremonial task list includes full honor arrivals for visiting dignitaries, wreath ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknowns, and full honor reviews in support of senior army leaders and retiring soldiers. National Guard Bureau Accelerated Officer Candidate School The Old Guard's current duties include, but are not limited to, providing funeral details at Arlington National Cemetery, guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, providing honor guards for visiting dignitaries, supporting official ceremonies and providing a quick reaction force for the Washington, D.C. area. My sense was those who dodged Vietnam were married guys who felt they owed their new wives a non-Vietnam tour before they went off to war. I only had one West Point classmate who was. I never taught a course on communication. Nor did I ever want to be. The Regiment marched 941 miles from Camp Sherman to Fort Snelling, Minnesota, arriving on 17 November 1921. This was the beginning of the 3rd Infantry's current mission of performing ceremonial duties in the Washington, D.C. area. I was especially interested in the line “Every PL that I had in any of my units that was from West Point never earned our respect.” In 2011, I had supper with a West Pointer on his way from Afghanistan to the Old Guard. To show off their medals. • choreography Adkins had previously served in World War II, the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Sounds like it's different now, but it should not be. Indeed, part of it is a band. However theater commanders were authorized to award Campaign Participation Credit to select campaigns even after the technical end of that campaign, the Northern France Campaign being one of those, since the 3rd Infantry Regiment assisted with the mission of containing the German Garrison at St.Nazaire. We practiced all of most weekends or days that we were supposed to have off so that the families would have the best funeral possible. The 1st Battalion is composed of the following units: Stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington, the 2nd Battalion, 3rd US Infantry Regiment, serves as one of three infantry battalions of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 2nd Infantry Division ('Indian Head'). The 4th Battalion was reactivated at Fort Myer in 2008. He implies he is, or was, a member of the Old Guard. • imitating a marble statue And by the way, going around bragging "in" any sort of infantry unit is disgusting. This went on for over an hour. When I was an Army officer, the Old Guard seemed to be a rare assignment for a West Point graduate. The unit also trains for its support role to civil authorities in a wide range of scenarios and for deployments in support of overseas contingency operations. The guy behind me in class rank almost kissed me when I let him have it. Shooting with a rifle would also be fragging. Now that I do know about it, my only thought is why does it exist as a part of the Old Guard. • living statues like the Queen’s Beefeaters. ", "The Old Guard Transfers Possible 170-year-old Brothers in Arms", "3rd Infantry Regiment | Lineage and Honors | U.S. Army Center of Military History (CMH)", "Department of the Army Pamphlet 672–3", "Movie Review - - FILM: 'GARDENS OF STONE' PORTRAYS VIETNAM ERA - NYTimes.com", "MDW commander visits deployed Old Guard unit", "U.S. Army Capt. If, somehow, I had been assigned to the Old Guard, I would have asked to be transferred to a different kind of unit. [33], Unique badges awarded to specific members of "The Old Guard", Current organization of the 3rd Infantry Regiment, Regimental Headquarters and Headquarters Company, War of 1812 and reorganization of the Army. But what IQ does a single woman who is dazzled by an ultra neat human toy soldier have? For whatever reason, Colby sees to draw immense self-esteem from the 2/3 although I do not recall saying he was in the 2/3. [19], On 3 July 1969 while Company D, 2nd Battalion was patrolling in Long Khanh Province during Operation Toan Thang III it was ambushed by the People's Army of Vietnam 33rd Regiment losing nine killed including Corporal Michael Fleming Folland who smothered an enemy hand grenade with his body, he was later posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.[20]. The training you had at West Point for both ceremonies and combat is a complete and utter joke. My anger at losing my free time gave way to deference to their far greater loss. Catching thrown rifles that are tipped with chromed bayonets? Been there done that. Your jealousy, obviously stemming from a harsh rejection letter from the Old Guard (most likely due to the fact that you were not Infantry) is shameful. In fact, if you enlist in one of the Combat Arms MOS's, … The Sentinels at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stand guard 24 hours a day year-round to protect those that gave everything in service of their nation. • show-offs You probably had to be there, but I expect that any of my classmates who were would send me an email saying they were thinking the exact same thing that day. 1 January 1866, to 30 June 1909. pp. • flawless is the only standard It served as part of the first deployment of a Stryker brigade combat team in 2003. My WP classmate who was in the Old Guard ranked below me in our class in the “general order of merit” which is primarily based on grades. After the Civil War, the 3rd Infantry served in Kansas, Colorado and the Indian Territory (later the state of Oklahoma) from 1866 to 1874. By 31 December 1966, the battalion strength had increased to 37 officers, two warrant officers and 492 enlisted men. We got to pick our branch. He had been a cadet in our company so the funeral de… It then returned to the United States where it was stationed in Kentucky, Ohio and Illinois. • “standards [of appearance] will be enforced ruthlessly” (from Old Guard manual) Honor Guard follows U.S. Army soldiers who volunteer for the grueling training required to serve at the 3rd Infantry Regiment, aka The Old Guard, the oldest active infantry regiment in the Army. After returning from Cuba, the 3rd Infantry was stationed at Fort Snelling in Minnesota. Every soldier who is in the 3rd Infantry Regiment is just that, an Infantry Soldier primarily. When I was a cadet at West Point, I once as assigned to a funeral detail on a Saturday. Like all new personnel in the Army National Guard, you must complete 10 weeks of Basic Combat Training. The reason the Army has the Old Guard is because an Army officer career is a 30-year, marathon suck-up tournament. These actions give the regiment campaign credit for the War of 1812. 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