Post by quincannon on Jul 24, 2017 15:45:09 GMT
At the very beginning of the American Civil War the Regular United States Army consisted of ten regiments of Infantry, numbered sequentially 1 to 10. These regiments were structured as a single battalion, with the regimental headquarters having both a tactical and administrative function. They consisted of ten companies.
In May 1861 President Lincoln asked for and Congress authorized the formation of nine additional Regular Army Infantry Regiments. These regiments however were not constructed in the same manner as the first ten. A recommendation to the President was made that these regiments be organized along the lines of the then prevailing French system, where the regimental headquarters would be an administrative entity, and each regiment be organized with three battalions, and each of those battalions consist of eight companies. The recommendation was accepted and the regiments so formed.
In practice the first two battalions were the fighting elements and the third was used as a recruit depot to train personnel then transfer them to either of the other two battalions as the need arose.
Following the ACW the Army dropped this system of organization as fast as the could. It had become an administrative nightmare.
So by mid 1866 the Army adopted a reorganization plan for its existing Infantry.
As before the first 10 regiments were not effected at all. The reorganization effected only the 11th through 19th regiments.
1st Battalion, 11th Infantry - redesignated as the 11th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 11th Infantry - redesignated as the 20th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 11th Infantry - redesignated as the 29th Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 12th Infantry - redesignated as the 12th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry - redesignated as the 21st Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 12th Infantry - redesignated as the 30th Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 13th Infantry - redesignated as the 13th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 13th Infantry - redesignated as the 22nd Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 13th Infantry - redesignated as the 31st Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 14th Infantry - redesignated as the 14th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry - redesignated as the 23rd Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 14th Infantry - redesignated as the 32nd Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 15th Infantry - redesignated as the 15th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 15th Infantry - redesignated as the 24th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry - redesignated as the 33rd Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 16th Infantry - redesignated as the 16th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry - redesignated as the 25th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 16th Infantry - redesignated as the 34th Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 17th Infantry - redesignated as the 17th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 17th Infantry - redesignated as the 26th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 17th Infantry - reorganized as the 35th Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 18th Infantry - redesignated as the 18th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry - redesignated as the 27th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 18th Infantry - redesignated as the 36th Infantry Regiment
1st Battalion, 19th Infantry - redesignated as the 19th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry - redesignated as the 28th Infantry Regiment
3rd Battalion, 19th Infantry - redesignated as the 37th Infantry Regiment
38th Infantry Regiment (Colored) - newly constituted unit
39th Infantry Regiment (Colored) - newly constituted unit
40th Infantry Regiment (Colored) - newly constituted unit
41st Infantry Regiment (Colored) - newly constituted unit
42nd Infantry Regiment (Veteran Reserve Corps) - newly constituted unit
43rd Infantry Regiment (Veteran Reserve Corps) - newly constituted unit
44th Infantry Regiment (Veteran Reserve Corps) - newly constituted unit
45th Infantry Regiment (Veteran Reserve Corps) - newly constituted unit
In March 1869 the Congress reduced the number of regiments to 25, and the following reorganizations took place shortly thereafter
43th Infantry consolidated with the 1st Infantry to form the new 1st Infantry Regiment
16th Infantry consolidated with the 2nd Infantry to form the new 2nd Infantry Regiment
Half of the 37th Infantry consolidated with the 3rd Infantry to form the new 3rd Infantry Regiment
30th Infantry consolidated with the 4th Infantry to form the new 4th Infantry Regiment
Half of the 37th Infantry consolidated with the 5th Infantry to form the new 5th Infantry
42nd Infantry consolidated the 6th Infantry to form the new 6th Infantry Regiment
36th Infantry consolidated with the 7th Infantry to form the new 7th Infantry Regiment
33rd Infantry consolidated with the 8th Infantry to form the new 8th Infantry Regiment
27th Infantry consolidated with the 9th Infantry to form the new 9th Infantry Regiment
26th Infantry consolidated with the 10th Infantry to form the new 10th Infantry Regiment
24th Infantry consolidated with the 29th Infantry to form the new 11th Infantry Regiment
12th Infantry Regiment not effected by reorganization
13th Infantry Regiment not effected by reorganization
45th Infantry consolidated with the 14th Infantry to form the new 14th Infantry Regiment
35th Infantry consolidated with the 15th Infantry to form the new 15th Infantry Regiment
11th Infantry consolidated with the 34th Infantry to form the new 16th Infantry Regiment
44th Infantry consolidated with the 17th Infantry to form the new 17th Infantry Regiment
25th Infantry consolidated with the 18th Infantry to form the new 18th Infantry Regiment
28th Infantry consolidated with the 19th Infantry to form the new 19th Infantry Regiment
20th Infantry Regiment not effected by reorganization
32nd Infantry consolidated with the 21st Infantry to form the new 21st Infantry Regiment
31st Infantry consolidated with the 22nd Infantry to form the new 22nd Infantry Regiment
23rd Infantry Regiment not effected by reorganization
38th Infantry consolidated with the 41st Infantry to form the new 24th Infantry Regiment (Colored)
39th Infantry consolidated with the 40th Infantry to form the new 25th Infantry Regiment (Colored)
Note: The word consolidation is a lineage term used as a means to convey that two or more organizations become one in terms of physical organization, lineage, battle honors, campaign participation. It is used in a similar manner as the word amalgamation is within the British Commonwealth. As an example you will see directly above that the 27th and 9th Infantry were consolidated, and reading even further above that the 27th Infantry originated from the 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry. The 27th Infantry had no ACW battle honors. those were passed to the 27th from its original designation as 2/18. The 9th Infantry Regiment spent the entire ACW on the west coast and saw no combat. When the 27th was consolidated with the 9th, all the honors gained by both 2/18 and 27th passed to the 9th Infantry Regiment. So were you to look at the Lineage and Honors of the 9th Infantry today you would see eight battle honors from the ACW and one, Wyoming 1866 (from 2/18th) and one, Wyoming 1867 (from 27th).
You also must understand that any current Infantry Regiment in the Regular Army numbered 26 and above has no existence in any form, before 2 February 1901, therefore no historical connection with Infantry regiments that carried the same number in the period 1867-1869. Before the National Defense Act of 1921 when a unit was disbanded in the Army it ceased to exist. There was no provision for keeping units on an inactive list, to be activated in time of need. It was largely at the insistence of World War I vets that this provision of an inactive list be incorporated into NDA21 so that units that had distinguished themselves during the World War could be retained on the rolls of the Army even though they were inactive, and activated again without loss of history, battle honors, or campaign participation credit .
