4th Armored Division | |
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4th Armored Division shoulder sleeve insignia
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Active | 1941–72 |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Army |
Type | Armor |
Role | Armored warfare |
Size | Division |
Nickname(s) | "Breakthrough" (1954) "Name Enough" (Unofficial) |
Motto(s) | "They shall be known by their deeds alone" (WWII) |
Colors | Red, Blue and Yellow |
Engagements | |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
MG Henry W. Baird (4/41-5/42) MG John S. Wood (5/42-12/44) MG Hugh J. Gaffey (12/44-3/45) MG William M. Hoge (3-6/45) BG Bruce C. Clarke (6-7/45) BG William. L. Roberts (7-9/45) MG Fay B. Prickett (9/45-5/46) MG Thomas Trapnell (54-55) MG Leonard H. Kieley |
Insignia | |
Distinctive Unit Insignia |
U.S. Armored Divisions | |
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3rd Armored Division (Inactive) | 5th Armored Division (Inactive) |
The 4th Armored Division of the United States Army was an Armored Division that earned distinction while spearheading General Patton's Third Army in the European theater of World War II.
The 4th Armored Division, unlike most other U.S. armored divisions during World War II, didn't officially adopt a nickname for the division during the war. However, their unofficial nickname "Name Enough" came into use postwar; the division commander having said, "Fourth Armored Division was name enough"; "They shall be known by their deeds alone". The 4th was named the "Breakthrough" division in 1954, but that name was eventually discontinued.
The 4th Armored Division was activated during World War II on 15 April 1941 with 3,800 men (10,000 by end of May 1941) from various other units, at Pine Camp (Camp Drum, 1951; Fort Drum, 1974), New York under Henry W. Baird. The division was organized as a full Armored Division in May and June 1942 under the command of Major General John Shirley Wood. It left Pine Camp for Camp Forrest for the Tennessee maneuvers in the Cumberland Mountains held in September and October. In Mid-November, it was transferred to the Desert Training Center (DTC) in the California-Arizona maneuver area and was the first Armored Division to occupy Camp Ibis near Needles, California in the Mojave Desert, which was close to the Arizona and Nevada borders. On 3 June, the 4th AD arrived at Camp Bowie, Texas, an armored training center located at the southern end of the Piute Valley, for more maneuvers until 11–18 July when it departed for Camp Myles Standish in Massachusetts for winter training. On 29 December, the 4th AD departed Boston to conduct training in England in preparation for the invasion of Normandy.