101st Cavalry Regiment

This page is about the 101st Cavalry Regiment. The 101st Cavalry Group was its headquarters unit.

101st Cavalry Regiment
101st Cavalry Regt coat of arms
Active	1838-Present
Country	United States
Allegiance	New York
Branch	New York Army National Guard
Size	350px
Nickname(s)	Wingfoot, Guardian
Motto(s)	To The Utmost
Branch color	Yellow
Engagements	American Civil War Spanish–American War Mexican Border Conflict World War I World War II War in Afghanistan
Commanders
Squadron Commander	LTC Gary L Barney
Command Sergeant Major	CSM Jon Cross
Insignia
Distinctive Unit Insignia

The 101st Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the New York National Guard that has existed in various forms since 1838 and which saw service in the American Civil War, the Spanish–American War, the Mexican Border Conflict, World War I, World War II, and Afghanistan. Currently, the regiment consists of one battalion, the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry, which also carries the lineage of the former 1st Battalion, 127th Armored Regiment (founded 1838), and 1st Battalion, 210th Armor (founded 1860).

History

Troop A, Volunteer Cavalry from New York City, Camp Alger, Virginia 1898

The 101st Cavalry Regiment was constituted on 30 December 1920^[1] from the 1st and 2nd New York Cavalry Regiments and had its headquarters in Brooklyn. The regiment was initially assigned to the 21st Cavalry Division.

The regiment was inducted into federal service in January 1941 and reorganized into the:

• 101st Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (Mechanized), the former 1st Squadron
• 116th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (Mechanized), the former 2nd Squadron
• 101st Cavalry Group (Mechanized), its headquarters unit, the former regimental headquarters troop

World War II

With this organization, the group saw combat in northwest Europe during World War II with the XV and the XXI Corps of the U.S. Seventh Army in the Sixth Army Group.^[2][3][4][5] Late in the war it was attached to the 12th Armored Division of XXI Corps.^[6]

Among other exploits, troops of the 101st Cavalry captured German field marshal Albert Kesselring as well as the Japanese ambassador to Germany in May 1945. Following the war, the 101st Group was inactivated on 25 October 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts.

Post-War

The regiment was reformed as the 101st Armored Cavalry Regiment on 1 January 1950 with headquarters again at Brooklyn. On 16 March 1959, the unit was retitled the 101st Armored Regiment, which endured until 15 April 1963 when the unit was renamed the 101st Cavalry, reduced in strength to one squadron, and subordinated to the 42nd Infantry Division.Pope, pp. 13–15^[7]

In 1993, the 101st was consolidated with the 1st Battalion, 210th Armor, taking the 210th's lineage but keeping its designation as the 101st Cavalry.^[8] The 1st squadron of the 101 Cavalry was disbanded in August 2006.

The 2nd squadron remains and is headquartered in Niagara Falls, NY. 2nd Squadron is the reconnaissance squadron of the 27th IBCT, and they consist of A Troop (Mounted) stationed in Geneva, New York, B Troop (Mounted), and C Troop (Dismounted). The 2nd Squadron also carries the lineage of the 1st Battalion, 127th Armor Regiment, which converted into the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry when the New York National Guard reorganized in 2005–2006.^[9] The squadron deployed to Afghanistan in 2008 and again in 2012.^[10] The Squadron, with additional support from the 27th IBCT, deployed to Ukraine in 2017 in order to support the training of Ukrainian soldiers.^[11] Elements of the Squadron deployed to Germany and Horn of Africa in 2022.

Unit Commendations

• Meritorious Unit Commendation - 2005 - Iraq
• Philippine Unit Commendation - 1945 - Philippines

References

1. Clay, p. 628
2. 101st Cavalry Regiment World War Two
3. WITH THE 101st CAVALRY IN WORLD WAR II 1940-1945 [1]
4. Official History of the 101st Cavalry Group, Part I
5. Official History of the 101st Cavalry Group, Part II
6. Speed is the Password: The Story of the 12th Armored Division [2] April 1945: "Large enemy areas were surrounded and cleared by the fast-moving task forces, supported by the 101st Cav. Group, now attached to the division."
7.  This article incorporates public domain material from 101st Cavalry Regiment. United States Army Institute of Heraldry.
8. Pope, Jeffrey Lynn; Kondratiuk, Leonid E. (June 1995). Armor-Cavalry Regiments: Army National Guard Lineage. ISBN 9780788182068.
9. "Buffalo Guardsmen conduct Water Borne Training Reconnaissance at Fort Drum".
10. http://readme.readmedia.com/Army-Announces-2012-Deployment-of-New-York-Army-National-Guard-Brigade/2183426; http://readme.readmedia.com/New-York-National-Guard-Cavalry-Squadron-Welcomes-New-Leadership/1206784.
11. "Photos: America's longest war ends as last U.S. troops leave Afghanistan". Los Angeles Times. 30 August 2021.

Reading

• Clay, Steven E., U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1941 (Vol. 2), Fort Leavenworth: Combat Studies Institute Press, 2010.
• Pope, Jeffrey L. and Kondratiuk, Leonid E., Armor-Cavalry Regiments, Washington: National Guard Bureau, 1995.

External links

• 101st Cavalry Regiment World War Two
• WITH THE 101st CAVALRY IN WORLD WAR II 1940-1945
• Official History of the 101st Cavalry Group, Part I
• Official History of the 101st Cavalry Group, Part II
• https://www.nationalguard.mil/News/Article/1959494/ny-national-guard-cavalry-troopers-earn-their-spurs/ - Order of the Spur, September 2019