11th ACR - History

The 11th U.S. Cavalry was activated on 2 February 1901 at Fort Myer, Virginia.   The regiment's first deployment came in December 1901, when it deployed to help put down the Philippine insurrection.  The Philippine campaign is symbolized on the regiment's crest with a bolo knife that the soldiers of the 11th regiment were issued to cut through the thick foliage of the Philippine islands.

In March 1916, the 11th Cavalry was mobilized to help General John J. Pershing's expedition against Francisco "Pancho" Villa, who had raided the boarder town of Columbus, New Mexico.  During this expedition, the regiment's second squadron led the last mounted cavalry charge in U.S. history.  The charge occurred on May 5th, 1916, near the town of Ojo Azules, where the squadron was surprised by some of Villa's men, and resulted in the elimination of the

  
Following WWI, the 11th Cavalry was ordered to start experimenting with scout cars, in preparation for the cavalry's transition to a mechanized unit.  On 15 July 1942, the 11th US Cavalry was inactivated at Fort Benning, Georgia. The Headquarters and Headquarters Troop (HHT) was redesignated on 19 April 1943 as the Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 11th Cavalry Group Mechanized. The former squadrons of the 11th Cavalry were sent to fight with the 10th Armored Division and the 90th Infantry Division overseas. The redesignated HHT, 11th Cavalry Group Mechanized drew new squadrons, the 36th and 4th.

On September 29, 1944, the 11th Cavalry was sent to England in preparation for the invasion of Europe.  The regiment entered France on 23 November 1944.  In  France and Germany, the regiment was assigned to protect the flank of the Ninth U.S. Army and attached to the XIII Corps.  On May 1946, the 11th Cavalry Group Mechanized was redesignated as the 11th Constabulary Regiment.  The regiment remained in Germany on occupation duty until November 1948, when it was redesignated as the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR) and inactivated.

On 1 April 1951, the  11th Armored Cavalry Regiment was reactivated as at Camp Carson, Colorado. In 1954, the Regiment transferred to Fort Knox, Kentucky, to train in armored tactics.  In mid-March 1957, the entire Regiment rotated to southern Germany, where it stayed until 1964.

In early 1966, the Regiment began redesigning its equipment for a new   type of warfare based on recommendations from American advisors based in Vietnam. Additional armor and two more 30-cal. machine guns were added to the Regiment’s M113s, transforming them into what became known as Armored Cavalry Assault Vehicles or ACAVs. The new design of armored gun shields provided a measure of protection for the crew and track commander. The result was a rapid all terrain fighting vehicle which could deliver devastating firepower. The Blackhorse troops arrived in South Vietnam on September 7, 1966, (the Air Troop arrived in December), and quickly engaged the enemy with M-48 tanks, ACAV’s, artillery and helicopters. The Regiment established the justification to receive its own patch on 1 May 1967 from the Department of Heraldry and was the first of five Armored Cavalry Regiments to receive a distinctive shoulder sleeve insignia.

  The main operational areas for the Blackhorse squadrons were the provinces around Saigon and up to the Cambodian border. The unit clearly demonstrated it's rapid mobility when Saigon came under siege during the 1968 Tet Offensive. The unit raced over 100 kilometers in eight hours to the defense of the city and fought street by street to overcome the attacking Viet Cong. History now points out that the Viet Cong were virtually annihilated during these battles. From that time forward North Vietnamese Army units, well supplied and equipped by the communist superpowers, would fight a war of attrition against the United States. Rarely however, would they risk a head-to-head confrontation with their most feared adversary, the 11^th ACR.

 In July of 1968, the 39^th Colonel of the Regiment, George S. Patton Jr., assumed command and soon applied his expertise in armored combat tactics. The Regiment moved the armor off the roads and into the jungles in search of the enemy, a concept previously thought not feasible. This action was so successful that the enemy could no longer move freely and was forced to seek sanctuary inside neutral Cambodia. Colonel Patton coined the phrase, “FIND THE BASTARDS, THEN PILE ON”, which remains today as the Regiment’s battle cry.

 From well-established bases inside Cambodia, the communists would strike out into South Vietnam and then return across the border to resupply and regroup. On 1 May 1970, the 11th ACR spearheaded a historic attack across the Cambodian border into an area called the Fish Hook to deny the enemy of these safe havens. Commanded by the 41^st Colonel of the Regiment, Don A. Starry, the Blackhorse penetrated for more than 60 kilometers to capture the town of Snoul.

The Cambodian Incursion was the last unrestrained offensive use of U.S. ground forces in the war. The capture and destruction of tons of enemy weapons and supplies left the enemy devastated and demoralized. The result was a smoother transition of responsibility to the South Vietnamese military as the American combat forces continued to withdraw. Countless American and allied lives were saved by the operation that left the North Vietnamese Army crippled and unable to mount an effective offensive for some time.

  In February of 1971, First and Third Squadron redeployed to the U.S. and were inactivated. On 6 April 1972, after almost six years of continuous combat the Blackhorse Regiment’s Air Troop and Second Squadron departed Vietnam having never lost a battle. One year later, on 29 March 1973, the last American combat troops were withdrawn from Vietnam. Within two years, on 30 April 1975, Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese.

 In all, 768 Blackhorse troopers made the ultimate sacrifice by helping to protect and defend the people of South Vietnam from their north communist aggressors. The Regiment’s wounded totaled 5,761. Three 11^th ACR troopers were awarded the Medal of Honor, two of which were posthumous. In its best performance, the gallant troopers of the Blackhorse Regiment earned fourteen battle streamers for bravery and forever secured a place in American military history and legend.

    
 In February 1971, the Regiment redeployed to the US and inactivated. The Regiment was reactivated on May 17, 1972 when  the 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment, was redesignated the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. In the 1980's, the Regiment underwent several force modernization's, obtaining M1A1 Abrams tanks, M3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, and UH-60A Blackhawk helicopters. The Regiment also received Heavy Equipment Movement Transport Trucks (HEMTT), High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV), M109A2 Howitzers, and Field Artillery Ammunition Support Vehicles (FAASV).

During Operation Desert Shield, the Regiment's First Platoon, E Troop, 2nd Squadron deployed with the 3rd ACR, while the remainder of the Regiment trained Reserve Component Scouts for war at Camp Colt, Germany.   On April 10, 1991, the Regiment deployed an Aviation Task Force to support Kurdish relief operations in Turkey and Iraq. The regiment returned to Germany in October 1991, where it remained until it was deactivated on March 15, 1994.  The 11th Cavalry was reactivated again on October 15th 1994 and assigned to Fort Irwin, California to act as the Army's opposing force at the National Training Center.