56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team

56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team
56th SBCT / 28th Division shoulder sleeve insignia
Active	1747 – present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Type	Infantry Brigade
Role	Stryker Infantry
Size	4,000
Part of	28th Infantry Division
Garrison/HQ	Horsham Air Guard Station Willow Grove, Pennsylvania
Nickname(s)	"Independence Brigade"
Engagements	American Civil War World War I World War II Operation Iraqi Freedom
Commanders
Notable commanders	George C. Rickards
Insignia
Combat service identification badge

The 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, also known as the Independence Brigade, is a brigade combat team of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. The 56th SBCT is one of nine Stryker Brigade Combat Teams in the United States Army and one of five brigades of the 28th Infantry Division. It is the only reserve component Stryker unit in the Army and provides light infantry land assets for both federal and state active duty missions. The federal mission is to deploy on short notice as part of the 28th Infantry Division and destroy, capture, or repel enemy forces using maneuver and shock effect. The state mission of the brigade is to serve the Governor and the citizens of the Commonwealth as needed in times of natural disaster or civil unrest. The 56th SBCT headquarters is located at Horsham Air Guard Station in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania.

The 56th SBCT is composed of some of the oldest units in the United States Army. Units of the 111th Infantry trace their lineage back to 1747, when Benjamin Franklin first established his famed "Associators" in Philadelphia. The battalions, as well as the brigade, carry battle streamers from nearly every conflict throughout American history.

The 56th Infantry Brigade was formed in September 1917 as part of the 28th Division. The brigade initially included the 111th and 112th Infantry Regiments. During World War I it was involved in the Meuse-Argonne, Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, Oise-Aisne, and Ypres-Lys (FA) operations. During the war, the 28th Infantry Division took a total of 14,139 casualties (KIA-2,165 ; WIA-11,974).