Overview
The 1st Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army that draws its lineage from a line of post American Revolutionary War units and is credited with thirty-nine campaign streamers. The 1st Battalion, 1st Infantry is assigned as support to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York and to furnish the enlisted garrison for the academy and the Stewart Army Subpost. 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment is an infantry component serving with the 2nd Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division at Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Washington.
History
Origins
On 3 March 1791, Congress added to the Army "The Second Regiment of Infantry" from which today's First Infantry draws its heritage. In September of that year, elements of it and the original 1st Infantry Regiment (today's 3rd United States Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard)), with sizable militia complements, all under command of General Arthur St. Clair, were sent against the Native American nations of the Ohio country. St. Clair served as a major general in the Continental Army and was now appointed "General in Chief," superseding the first commander of the regiment, Josiah Harmar. Fighting against the Miamis, St. Clair's soldiers were untrained, ill-equipped, underfed, and sickly. This resulted in a disastrous defeat in which the entire U.S. Army suffered a loss of about 700 killed and some 300 wounded out of a total strength of around 1,700, with some 100 civilians killed and 50 wounded as well.
Early history
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).