507th Infantry Regiment (United States)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name=507th Infantry Regiment


caption=507th Infantry Regiment coat of arms
nickname=Raff's Ruffians
motto=Down to Earth
colors=
march=
ceremonial_chief=
type=Parachute Infantry
branch=Army
dates=1942–1945
1948-1949
1985-present
country=USA
allegiance=
command_structure=U.S. Army Infantry School
size=
specialization=
current_commander=
garrison=Fort Benning
battles=World War II
notable_commanders=Edson Raff
anniversaries=
identification_symbol=
identification_symbol_label=Distinctive Unit Insignia
identification_symbol_2=
identification_symbol_2_label=US Regiments
previous=506th Infantry Regiment
next=508th Infantry RegimentDuring World War II, the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment (507th PIR) was a regiment of the 82d Airborne Division and, later, 17th Airborne Division of the United States Army.

The regiment was initially formed at Camp Toccoa, Georgia on 20 July 1942. It would participate in three operations during the war: D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.

Assigned to the 82d Airborne Division after arriving in Britain, their D-Day objective was to help secure the Merderet River crossings. Although their target was supposed to be in Drop Zone T, north of Amfreville, the confusion caused by clouds and flak resulted in a wide scattering of the unit. Because their initial commander, Colonel George V Millett Jr was captured after a few days in Amfreville, Colonel Edson Raff, who had recently led the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, to command the regiment. As such, the regiment became known as "Raff's Ruffians". After returning to England, the 507th was permanently assigned to the 17th Airborne Division, because another of the 82d's regiments, the 504th, had returned by then from Anzio.

As part of the 17th, the 507th was not utilized in Operation Market Garden and was still in England training with the new division when the Battle of the Bulge began. The unit redeployed to France on 25 December 1944, and was used in the counter-attacks against the Germans in January and early February of 1945.

Finally, the regiment dropped near Wesel, Germany on 24 March to spearhead the Division's assault during Operation Varsity. During this action, Private George J. Peters earned the Medal of Honor for single-handedly attacking a German machine gun emplacement.

The regiment was shipped home and de-activated in September 1945.

Recent history

The regiment was briefly re-activated in the late 1940s, then again in 1985. On 23 October 1985, it was reorganized and redesignated as the 507th Infantry, a parent regiment under the United States Army Regimental System, and transferred to the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command. The 1st Battalion serves as the U.S. Army Airborne School. In December 2004 the unit was reactivated into combat status. The 507th was deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom(OIF2) as part of the 1st Special Forces Group(ABN). After the 21 month long combat tour in locations varring from Ramadi, Bagdad, and other cities in Iraq. After returning from Iraq the 507th's 2nd Battalion was deactivated from combat duties again.

In 2004, two documentaries aired on the 507th. PBS aired the documentary, D-Day: Down to Earth — Return of the 507th. This film connects the regiment's contribution in the war with their journey back to Normandy for the unveiling of a monument in 2002. On 1 June 2004, Investigating History aired, D-Day: The Secret Massacre. The story focuses on the Nazi massacre of French civilians, and wounded paratroopers of the 507th, in retaliation for battle at the village of Graignes.

References

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ee also

* [http://www.507th.com/index.html D-Day: Down to Earth — Return of the 507th] film website