Is This a Di ?

[tigerfan]

Just acquired this with a small lot of WWII insignia. The back has unusual attachments but I have an inf. regt. di with the identical back. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Grant S.]

The design doesn't really follow typical US distinctive insignia design (but that doesn't mean it isn't one). The quartering, the red color and the lion make me think English school or fraternal organization.

[rlyoun3910]

Here's four crests from the 13th Armored Division. The 66th Infantry Regiment was broken up into three separate armored infantry battalions. Looks very much like your UI crest.

 

 

 

[tigerfan]

Thanks for the info. Certainly looks like the one I have only in red.

[patches]

Curious ones to be sure. The 66th Infantry (not to be confused with the 66th Infantry (Light Tanks) of the 1930s that was in 1940 redesignated as the 66th Armored) was activated in July 1943 and fought with the old 71st Infantry Division in the later phase of the campaign in Germany, the 71st Inf Div composed of also the 5th and 14th Infantry Regiments,The WWII era 66th Infanty had no unit crest of DI.

 

After the war the 71st Inf Div was inactivated at Cp Kilmer New Jersey in March 1946, in the immidiate post war period the 71st Inf Div was still allotted to the Regular Army on paper, the 66th Inf was still assigned on paper to it as well, the other two Infantry Regiments, the 5th and 14th inactivated too, but were as far as we can tell were not allotted to the 71st Inf Div post war, they both were eventually reactivated and assigned elsewhere on active regular army status, the 5th out in Korea (1949), and later in Hawaii before going to Korea again, this time to war, the 14th was sent to Cp Carson Colorado. The 13th Armored Division seen active duty in WWII, also in the final phase of the campaign in Germany, here it's Infantry Order of Battle were the 16th, 59th, and 67th Armored Infantry Battalions, it was inactivated in November 1945 at Cp Cooke California.

 

Now the tricky part, the 13th Armored Division was reactivated in the Army Reserves in August 1947 with it HQ in Los Angeles California, a more abt term was reflagged, reflagged from the 19th Armored Division, a late activated unit, activated in fact quite awhile after after WWII ended in July 1947, it was the unit in LA in the Reserves, don't know it's Order of Battle, but I gather when it was reflagged as the 13th Armored Division, the 13th Armd Div had it's three wartime Armd Inf Bns still assigned to it.

 

On to the 66th Infantry Regiment, it was "relieved" from the 71st Inf Div in Feburary 1953, at this time the 71st Inf Div was in fact still inactive, it's elements were broken up to from four differant units, 66th Infantry (less 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions) as the 266th Armored Infantry Battalion, 1st Battalion as the 267th Armored Infantry Battalion, 2nd Battalion as the 268th Armored Infantry Battalion, 3rd Battalion as the 269th Armored Infantry Battalion and assigned to the 13th Armored Division. Problem, the 13th Armored Division itself was reflagged as the 63rd Infantry Division in March 1952, and it had it's traditional Infantry assigned to it, the 253rd, 254th, and 255th Infantry Regiments.

 

What this means is by the time the 66th Infantry was broken up to four Armored Infantry Battalions, of which only three would be assigned to an Armored Division, the parent unit it was assigned to, the 13th Armored Division was no longer active either inthe Regular Army or the Army Reserves.

So we do see that there were four Armored Infantry Battalions organized from the 66th Infantry, which gels completly with the four differant simliarly looking DI of differant colors, but just when they might of been worn? It's possible these four units were active as Separate Armd Inf Bns somewhere after 1953 however briefly????

[patches]

Tiger you say you have an Infantry Regiment DI with this same kind of prong like attachment, what is this unit please.

[rlyoun3910]

here's what I got for the 66th infantry regiment

[rlyoun3910]

here's another 266th AIB

[patches]

here's what I got for the 66th infantry regiment66th Inf Bn (Armored) 12th Armor Div v3.jpg

German made right?

[rlyoun3910]

The 66th Inf Rgt is not that I can tell, but the 266th is foreign made. I can only assume German. Nothing showing any HM. The metal looks almost like pewter. Probably that silver/nickel type.

[patches]

The 66th Inf Rgt is not that I can tell, but the 266th is foreign made. I can only assume German. Nothing showing any HM. The metal looks almost like pewter. Probably that silver/nickel type.

Can we see the back of the 66th Inf DI, I'm gathering it's an unautherized type, these were usually made post war in Germany for a unit that had no official DI autherized for them.

 

This 266th Armd Inf Bn you posted, could it be for one of the wartime 13th Armd Div's Armd Inf Bns?

[rlyoun3910]

I'll get back to you on the HM for the 266th if there's one marked. Unsure about wartime or occupation made timeframe. No records or eye witness accounts.

Ray

[tredhed2]

On 9/20/2014 at 7:06 PM, patches said:

Tiger you say you have an Infantry Regiment DI with this same kind of prong like attachment, what is this unit please.

Both the 473rd Inf Regt and 601st TD Bn have prong attachments.