Why U.S. Infantry Regiments got Armor in the Pacific
- 2 hours ago
- 1 min read
New video on how the U.S. Army authorized self-propelled howitzers for its Infantry Regiments during World War II. Cannon Companies were artillery organic to the Infantry Regiment supplementing the Division Artillery. It was one of the most interesting sub-units in the regiment in my opinion because every theater did something differently. I cover the following:
The history of the Infantry Regiment's organic artillery from WW1 through WW2
The overall organization of the Cannon Company in 1942 (MTO), 1943 (ETO), 1944 (PTO), and 1945 (Redeployment from ETO to PTO). I also compare it to the 1943/1944 Armored Field Artillery Battery with M7 Priests in Armored Divisions, as they were similar but had key differences due to their different roles
The detailed organization of the 1944 PTO version, which had M7 Priest 105mm self-propelled howitzers as its main armament
Lessons learned from all theaters, with a particular focus on unit reports from the Pacific (especially the Philippines and Okinawa)
