506th Parachute Infantry Regiment

The emblem of the 506th

The 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division is a U.S.A. Army/Airborne Regiment used in WWII.

History

The Regiment was activated in 1942, as an American Infantry Parachute/Army regiment, for assaulting enemy territory by dropping American troops in hostile territory. It was assigned to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.

It was activated at Camp Toccoa, Georgia, where it earned the nickname, "Currahees" after Currahee mountain, which is near the camp. It was given command by Colonel Robert F. Sink. He made his men march 118 miles to Atlanta Georgia, to break the Japanese march world record. There, the Regiment went through basic training at parachuting camp Mackall, named after the first American parachuter, to die in combat in WWII.

It then headed to Aldbourne, England to await its mission. It was chosen for Operation Chicago and Operation Overlord, or the Battle of Normandy, a D-day invasion of Normandy, France to free the country from Nazi rule. The units all got scattered though and had trouble getting together.

One unit in the Regiment, called Easy Company, was involved in the Brecourt Manor Assault, where they destroyed a German Artillery Unit, with few casualties. It stayed for more than 20 days. Later it participated in the Battle of Carentan, a French city that was important to the Germans.

It captured the city but sustained a major German offensive near a gulch to recapture the town called "The Battle of Bloody Gulch" which they were able to hold off. It stayed for a few more days, 'till it returned to Aldbourne. Its next mission was Operation Market Garden, an American, British and Polish offensive on German-occupied Holland, to make a shortcut to Germany.

It was dropped off at Eindhoven. They captured all bridges in bloody battles, except one, which was destroyed by Germans. They made a replacement and headed to a town called Nuenen. But they received a vicious German counterattack at the town and were forced to retreat. They weren't able to make a shortcut to Germany but continued on to be involved in more skirmishes between Nazi soldiers in Holland. Particularly the Crossroads fight.

Easy Company carried out the mission to capture the Crossroads, which was occupied by the infamous SS. They were reassigned to a Belgium town called Bastogne. The Germans were planning an offensive on Belgium, and the 506th couldn't let that happen.

They fought in the icy winter for days. It became part of the Battle of Bulge. They defended the town, and headed on to the towns of Foy and Noville, to break up the remaining German offensive. They were transferred to Heageuna to rest. It later assisted in the encirclement of the Ruhr pocket and the capture of Berchtesgaden, or Hitler’s Eagle Nest in Austria. After Germany surrendered, they returned to the States to regroup for the Pacific Theater but got cancelled due to Japan‘s surrender. It was later deactivated.

After the war

The 506th was reactivated several times for the Vietnam War, Operation Enduring Freedom, Iraq, and Afghanistan. It is still active.