Shoulder sleeve patch of the United States Army 9th Armored Division.

The 9th Armored Division (nicknamed "Phantom Division") was an armored division of the United States Army in World War II. Shoulder sleeve patch of the 9th Armored Division File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Shoulder sleeve patch of the 9th Armored Division File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... A Patch can refer to several different things: A piece of fabric. ... Symbol of the Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division in NATO code A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of around ten to twenty thousand soldiers. ... The United States Army is one of the armed forces of the United States and has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

History

The division was activated on 15 July 1942. It reached the United Kingdom in September 1944. July 15 is the 196th day (197th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 169 days remaining. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ...

The 9th Division was one of several real US Army divisions that participated in Operation Fortitude, the deception operation mounted by the US-British to deceive the Germans about the real landing site for Operation Neptune, the amphibious invasion of Northern France. The 9th was assigned to a camp on the British coastline opposite of the German defenses in Pas-de-Calais, ostensibly as part of the "First US Army Group" (FUSAG) under General Patton. While its members undertook training for the real invasion of the Normandy coast, the divisional headquarters was used to convey phony radio messages with the fake FUSAG HQ to make the Germans believe that an invasion of Pas-de-Calais by a massive army was the real intent of the Allies. The ruse was so successful that the German high command was completely fooled, and concentrated their reserves away from the Normandy Coast. In honor of their participation in this deception, the 9th was officially nicknamed the "Phantom Division."

The 9th Armored Division landed in Normandy late in September 1944, and first went into line, 23 October, on patrol duty in a quiet sector along the Luxembourg-German frontier. When the Germans launched their winter offensive, the 9th, with no real combat experience, suddenly found itself engaged in heavy fighting. The Division saw its severest action at St. Vith, Echternach, and Bastogne, its units fighting in widely separated areas. Its stand at Bastogne held off the Germans long enough to enable the 101st Airborne to dig in for a defense of the city. After a rest period in January 1945, the Division made preparations for a drive across the Rur river. The offensive was launched, 28 February, and the 9th smashed across the Rur to Rheinbach, sending patrols into Remagen. The Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen was found intact, and was seized by elements of the 9th Armored minutes before demolition charges were set to explode on 7 March 1945. The Division exploited the bridgehead, moving south and east across the river Lahn toward Limburg an der Lahn, where thousands of Allied prisoners were liberated. The Division drove on to Frankfurt and then turned to assist in the closing of the Ruhr Pocket. In April it continued east, encircled Leipzig and secured a line along the Mulde river. The Division was shifting south to Czechoslovakia when the war in Europe ended. Flag of Normandy Normandy (in French: Normandie, and in Norman: Normaundie) is a geographical region in northern France. ... October 23 is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Sankt Vith (French: Saint-Vith) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Liège. ... District Grevenmacher Canton Echternach LAU 2 LU00006005 Geography Area Area rank 20. ... The coat of arms of the Bastogne municipality. ... The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)—nicknamed the “Screaming Eagles”—is an airborne division of the United States Army primarily trained for air assault operations. ... The Rur (-German, in Dutch and French: Roer, not to be confused with the Ruhr) is a river in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. ... February 28 is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Rheinbach is a town and a municipality in the Rhein-Sieg district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... Remagen is a city in Germany in the Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate, district Ahrweiler. ... The Ludendorff Bridge was a railroad bridge across the Rhine in Germany, connecting the cities of Remagen and Erpel. ... March 7 is the 66th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (67th in leap years). ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... The river Lahn in Limburg The Lahn is a river in Germany. ... Limburg an der Lahn (Limburg on the Lahn river) is a German town and the capital of the district Limburg-Weilburg in the west of Hessen. ... For other uses, see Frankfurt (disambiguation). ... The Ruhr Pocket was a battle that took place at the end of World War II in the Ruhr Area, Germany. ... [] (Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk) is the largest city in the Federal State (Bundesland) of Saxony in Germany. ... The Mulde is a river in Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. ...

It was inactivated on 13 October 1945. October 13 is the 286th day of the year (287th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...

External link

• The 9th: The Story of the 9th Armored Division (WWII unit history booklet)