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"Toujours Prêt"
 (Updated 5-30-08)
The unit that most Cold War era veterans knew as the
2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR) has recently fielded the Stryker Armored
Vehicle and is now designated as the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (SCR). The
2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment is a military unit within the United States Army
that can trace its lineage back to the early part of the 19th century. 2SCR has
the distinction of being the longest continuously serving unit in the United
States Army. The mission of the 2nd Cav is, upon receiving orders, to rapidly
deploy and execute reconnaissance and security operations anywhere in the world
and be prepared to fight upon arrival and win.
The 2nd Regiment of Dragoons was constituted on 23 May
1836 to fight in the Seminole Indian Campaigns in Florida. The Dragoon was
basically a mounted infantryman. That type of unit was considered to be the
most capable in defeating the agile and elusive Seminole. From these campaigns
the Regiment earned their first Battle Streamer. The Second Dragoons then
served on the Texas frontier guarding the western expansion of the nation. The
regiment fought in the Mexican-American War, the early frontier Indian Wars,
Bleeding Kansas, and the Mormon War in Utah.
When the Civil War began in the spring of 1861, the
2nd Dragoons made the long trek across the United States to join Federal Forces
around Washington D.C. Elements of the unit arrived in time to participate in
the First Battle of Bull Run. The 2nd Dragoons, like all mounted units, were
re-organized and became the 2nd U.S. Cavalry on August 3, 1861. The Second U.S.
Cavalry served in almost every major battle and campaign that the Federal Army
of the Potomac participated in. The Regiment earned 14 Battle Streamers during
the Civil War and three 2nd Cavalry Troopers were awarded the Congressional
Medal of Honor.
After the Civil War the 2nd Cavalry returned to the
West. Through 1890 the Regiment participated in the Indian Wars. The 2nd
Cavalry Regiment was scattered across the frontier, where they were called upon
to keep the peace, explore the vast unknown lands of new territory, establish
forts and develop road systems and telegraph lines. The 2nd U.S. Regiment of
Cavalry added eleven additional Battle Streamers from the Indian Wars to their
Colors. Fifteen more Troopers of the 2nd Cavalry were awarded the Congressional
Medal of Honor during this period.
In 1898, during the Spanish-American War, the 2nd
Cavalry deployed to Cuba, joining Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders in the
fighting at El Canay, San Juan Hill, Aquadores, and Santiago. The 2nd Cavalry
Regiment stayed in Cuba on occupation duty until 1903. From 1903 to 1906 and
again from 1910 to 1912, the Regiment served in the Philippine Islands. There
they conducted operations against the Moro Natives and the insurrection against
the established Philippine government. Upon returning from the Philippines, the
2nd Cavalry was stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas to conduct border security
during the turbulent years of the Mexican Revolution.
World War I was another era during which the 2nd
Cavalry Regiment distinguished itself. By 1917 the Regiment, based at Forts
Ethan Allan, VT and Fort Myers, VA was training additional cavalry units for
the coming war. Based on its reputation and history, General Pershing called on
the Regiment to serve in the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) and in 1917 the
Regiment deployed to Europe as the only American horse mounted Cavalry unit to
fight in WWI. The Regiment served throughout the American sector conducting
cavalry operations and was used as an exploitation force in several combat
operations, working as Dragoons, dismounting to hold key terrain. Through these
actions the Regiment proved that horse-mounted cavalry units still had value on
the modern battlefield. The Second Cavalry remained with the Army of Occupation
in Germany at Koblenz until August 1919.
During the Inter-War years, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment
was stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas. There the Regiment performed peacetime
duties as the Cavalry School Training Regiment from 1919 to 1939. At Fort Riley
the Regiment experimented with the first armored cars, and in 1936, as more
money became available for maneuvers, it participated in the first armored and
cavalry maneuvers.
When the United States entered World War II on
December 7, 1941, the 2nd U.S. Cavalry Regiment was deeply involved in training
cavalry troopers in mechanized operations at Fort Riley. Adjustments were made
within all of the existing Cavalry Regiments to help create new armored units
that were needed to fight in Europe. After the restructuring, in January 1943,
the Regiment was re-designated as the 2nd Cavalry Group (Mechanized).
During World War II, the Regiment, under the new
designation of "2nd Cavalry Group," landed in France on July 19, 1944, becoming
part of General Patton's Third Army. During this period, the Regiment became
known as the "Ghosts of Patton's Army" due to their ability to conduct
reconnaissance, materializing seemingly at will behind German lines. The
Regiment made the deepest penetration of the war, arriving in Czechoslovakia
before finally linking up with Soviet forces heading west. The Regiment also
conducted a famous raid behind Soviet lines to rescue the famous Lipizzaner
Stallions.
At the end of the war, units that held the lineage of
the Second Dragoons were re-designated as the 2nd U.S. Constabulary Regiment.
Their mission was to first serve as occupation forces, then as surveillance and
security along the Iron Curtain of East Germany and Czechoslovakia. The
Regiment remained in Germany for the next 47 years. The 2nd Constabulary
Regiment was re-organized and re-designated the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment in
1948. The 2nd ACR served along the East German and Czechoslovakian geopolitical
borders for the remainder of the Cold War, until 1992. Throughout this period
the Dragoons fielded newer weapons, tanks and equipment while serving on the
forward edge of freedom's frontier.
When Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, the 2d ACR
was a fully trained, combined arms combat unit, equipped with M1A1 Abrams Tanks
and M-2 Bradley Cavalry Fighting Vehicles. While the Regiment's peacetime
mission had been defense and deterrence along the border, their wartime mission
was to be the covering force for the U.S. VII Corps. In November of 1990 the
2nd ACR deployed to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Shield (later
Operation Desert Storm) where they would spearhead the VII Corps' attack. On
the 26th of February 1991, the Regiment was heavily involved in blocking the
Iraqi counterattack into Kuwait by seven of Saddam Hussein's Republican Guard
Divisions. At a desolate spot deep in the eastern Iraqi desert the 2nd Armored
Cavalry Regiment engaged the Tawakalna Division. This engagement became known
as the "Battle of 73 Easting." The outcome of this battle was the destruction
of the Iraqi armored force which earned the Regiment the Army's Valorous Unit
Award. The actions against the Iraqi Divisions have become instructional
examples of modern high intensity armored warfare.
Returning from the Gulf, the Regiment was relocated
from Germany to Fort Lewis, Washington after 49 years of continuous overseas
service. The Regiment's ground squadrons were converted into a light cavalry
unit consisting of Humvees (Scout HMMWV) mounted with TOW launchers, MK-19
grenade launchers, .50 caliber machine guns and squad automatic weapons (SAW).
The 2nd ACR (Light) was then sent to Ft Polk, LA in 1992. The 2nd Armored
Cavalry Regiment (Light) became the "Corps Cavalry" or the eyes and ears of the
XVIII Airborne Corps. At Fort Polk, the 4th Squadron (Regimental Aviation
Squadron) was added to the new Regiment's organization. The addition of the 4/2
ACR (Air Cav), with their OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopters and UH-60
helicopters, completed the Regiment's re-organization into a Light Cavalry
Regiment.
The Regiment next deployed in support of Operation
Uphold Democracy in Haiti from 1995 to 1996. In 1997, the 2nd ACR was deployed
to Bosnia to serve as part of NATO's SFOR in support of Operation Joint Guard
for peacekeeping operations in that country.
After returning from Bosnia, the Regiment returned to
Fort Polk, Louisiana. In 2002, elements of the Regiment were deployed to
Southwest Asia in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan as part
of the Global War On Terrorism. Soon the unit deployed again to the Gulf, this
time for Operation Iraqi Freedom. With only 96 hours notice, the Regiment
deployed the Second Squadron and O Troop (Air Cavalry) to protect the V Corps
lines of communication during major combat operations against the Iraqi Army.
By May of 2003 the entire Regiment was deployed and served in the Baghdad Area
of Operations. Upon the Sadr Uprising of April 2004, the Regiment's tour was
extended in combat. The 2nd ACR fought urban battles in Sadr City, Diwaniya, Al
Kut, Kufa, and An Najaf. The Regiment remained for a total of 16 months and
earned the Presidential Unit Citation.
In March of 2005, the 2nd ACR was moved to Fort Lewis,
Washington. In April 2005, the Regiment was re-designated the 2nd Cavalry
Regiment and began reorganizing into the Army's newest Stryker Brigade Combat
Team (SBCT). The Regiment was returning to its original mission as Dragoons, or
mounted infantry.
On June 1, 2006, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and the 1st
Brigade of the 25th Infantry Division conducted a joint re-flagging and casing
ceremony. The 2nd CR was re-flagged as the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
(Stryker). The 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division cased its brigade colors and
was re-flagged as the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (SCR). As of September 15,
2006, the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment has been home-based at Rose Barracks,
Vilseck, Germany, near the Regiment's Cold War home of Nuremberg. With a
foundation of infantry-based tactics and the mobility of the Stryker vehicle,
the Stryker brigade has become more of a hybrid unit, filling the gap between
pure light infantry and the mechanized, heavy infantry.
On August 3, 2007, a farewell ceremony was held in
Vilseck as the 2nd SCR prepared to deploy to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi
Freedom once again. They are scheduled for up to a 15 month tour. From the
Swamps of Florida to the Deserts of Iraq, the 2nd Dragoons have lived up to
their Motto of "Toujours Prêt," meaning "Always Ready," when our Nation
calls.
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