- 5th Ranger Battalion (United States)
Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= Fifth Ranger Infantry Battalion
caption=Shoulder sleeve patch of the 5th Ranger Battalion
dates=September 1 ,1943 -October 2 ,1945
country= United States flagicon|US
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branch=U.S. Army
type= Infantry battalion
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identification_symbol_2_label=The Fifth Ranger Infantry Battalion was a
World War II Ranger battalion activated onSeptember 1 ,1943 atCamp Forrest , Tennessee. By this time, while in maneuvers on the United States, they were commanded by the Major Owen Carter. Later, when they moved to England, they began to be commanded by Major (later Lieutenant Colonel)Max Schneider , former executive officer of the4th Ranger Battalion , who led the 5th Rangers as part of the provisionalRanger Assault Force commanded by ColonelJames Earl Rudder .During the
Battle of Normandy , the battalion landed onOmaha Beach along with companies A, B and C of the2nd Ranger Battalion , where elements of the116th Regiment of the 29th Infantry Division were pinned down by murderous machinegun fire and mortars from the heights above. It was there that the situation was so critical that GeneralOmar Bradley was seriously considering redirecting reinforcements to other areas of the beachhead. And it was then and there that GeneralNorman Cota , Assistant Division Commander of the 29th Infantry Division, gave the now famous order that has become themotto of the 75th Ranger Regiment: "Rangers, Lead The Way!"The Fifth Battalion Rangers broke across the sea wall and
barbed wire entanglements, and up thepillbox -rimmed heights under intense enemymachine-gun and mortar fire and with A and B Companies of the 2nd Battalion and some elements of the 116th Infantry Regiment, advanced four miles (6 km) to the key town ofVierville , thus opening the breach for supporting troops to follow-up and expand the beachhead. Meanwhile C Company of the 2nd Battalion, due to rough seas, landed west of the Vierville draw and suffered 50 percent casualties during the landing, but still scaled a convert|90|ft|m|sing=on cliff using ropes and bayonets to knock out a formidable enemy position that was sweeping the beach with deadly fire.The Fifth Battalion with elements of the 116th Regiment finally linked up with the beleaguered 2nd Battalion on D+3, although Lieutenant Charles Parker of A Company, 5th Battalion, had penetrated deep behind enemy lines on D-Day and reached the 2nd Battalion with 20 prisoners. Later, with the 2nd Battalion the unit distinguished itself in the hard-fought battle of Brest. Under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel
Richard Sullivan the 5th Ranger Battalion took part in theBattle of the Bulge ,Battle of Huertgen Forest and other tough battles throughout central Europe, earning two Distinguished Unit Citations and theFrench Croix de Guerre . The outfit was deactivated October 22 1945 atCamp Miles Standish , Massachusetts.
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