3rd ID Artillery

HISTORY

The Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Division Artillery was first constituted on 12 November 1917 in the Regular Army as Headquarters, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade, and assigned to the 3rd Division. It was initially organized on 26 November 1917 at Camp Stanley, Texas. It served in France with the 3rd Division in the Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, and Champagne 1918 Campaigns. It was disbanded on 16 October 1939 at Fort Lewis, Washington, and reconstituted on 1 October 1940 in the Regular Army as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Division Artillery at Fort Lewis, Washington.

 During World War II, the Division Artillery served with the 3rd Division in 9 campaigns throughout North Africa, the Mediterranean, Italy, Southern France, and Central Europe. It was awarded campaign streamer arrowheads for amphibious landings at Sicily, Anzio, and Southern France. The Division Artillery was also awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and the French Croix de Guerre with Palm for actions in the Colmar Pocket, and the Fourragere, French Croix de Guerre, for service in World War II.

 The Division Artillery deployed to the Republic of Korea in 1950 and served in 8 campaigns from the Intervention to the Summer Campaign of 1953. The Unit awards include the Republic of Korea Presidential Citation, with streamers for UIJONGBU and THE IRON TRIANGLE, and the Chryssoun Aristion Andrias (Bravery Gold Medal of Greece), embroidered Korea. The DIVARTY was redesignated on 1 July 1957 as Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Infantry Division Artillery and in 1958 returned to the Federal Republic of Germany.

 For almost 20 years the DIVARTY stood guard on the front line in Europe. 

 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) Artillery was inactivated in the Federal Republic of Germany. The 24th Infantry Division was reflagged as the 3rd Infantry Division and the Division was reactivated at Fort Stewart, Georgia, on 15 February 1996.

 The split based nature of the 24th Infantry Division and subsequently the 3rd Infantry Division meant that elements of the DIVARTY were stationed both at Fort Stewart and Fort Benning, Georgia.

 In 2004, as part of the Army's transformation towards a modular force, various elements of the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) were reorganized, re-designated, or inactivated. The Division Artillery was re-designated and reorganized Division Fires Brigade. 1st Battalion, 3rd Air Defense Artillery was relieved of its assignment to the 3rd Infantry Division.

 The reorganized Brigade consisted of a Headquarters and Headquarters Battery and the 1st Battalion, 39th Field Artillery. The remaining Battalions were reassigned to the Brigades they had habitually supported as organic elements of the newly reorganized and re-designated Brigade Combat Teams.

 The Division Fires Brigade was inactivated in May 2006. The 1st Battalion, 39th Field Artillery was also inactivated.

A short seven years later, the 42nd Fires Brigade, which was inactivated at Fort Polk, LA in 1995, was reactivated at Fort Stewart October 2013. On 16 October 2014 the 42nd Fires Brigade was re-designated as 3rd Infantry Division Artillery (DIVARTY). This watershed moment marked the official return of Marne Thunder as proud Dog Faced Soldiers in support of the 3rd Infantry Division