“Courage without Fear”: The Story of the 126th IN Regiment
Few units in the US military can claim a long and storied history as the 126th IN can having been active since the before the start of the American Civil War. They can trace their roots back to the first militia companies created around the Grand Rapids, Michigan area. At the outbreak of the Civil War the 126th then known as the 3rd Michigan Volunteer Regiment began to muster in order to meet the Confederate menace in open combat. They would participate in some of the most horrific battles of the war including; both Battles of Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, and Cold Harbor. They would end their service in 1864 after 3 years of brutal fighting with their southern neighbors and brothers. Two men from the 3rd MVI would receive the Medal of Honor for bravery in battle Corporal Walter Mundell and Private Benjamin Morse.
They would not see a shot fired in anger till the entrance of America in the Great War, by then the unit had officially became the 126th IN Regiment, assigned to the 32nd Infantry Division compromised of men from Michigan and Wisconsin. They would arrive to the hellscape of the Western Front in February of 1918. Participating in the Battle of the Marne, the Battle of Oise, and the Meuse- Argonne Offensive. The 32nd ID would be the only American division in the American Expeditionary Force to be given a nickname by the French Army for feats in battle, they would be forever known as “Les Terribles”. By the end of the Great War the division as a whole would suffer over 13,000 casualties.
The storm of war had been raging in Europe since 1939, and it seemed as if it would consume the entire world, by 1940 the 126th along with the 32nd ID had been involved in various training exercises in preparation for the inevitable. Though they had figured they would fight the German horde once more, yet fate had them face an even fiercer opponent the men of the Imperial Japanese Army. The 126th IN was bound for the Pacific Theater of Operations. The Battle of Buna-Gona from November 1942 to January 1943, would be their first engagement with Imperial Japanese forces. The regiment had learned the consequences of fighting a modern war the difficult way as they took enormous casualties, 32 officers, 579 enlisted remained out of the 131 and 3,040 original respectively. After replacing the horrific losses, the 126th would participate in the battles for Leyte and Luzon. The 126th IN along with the 32nd ID had the distinction of logging more that 600 hours of combat operations more than any other American division during the Second World War. Three men from the 126th IN would receive the Medal of Honor for gallantry in the face of the enemy; Sgt. Leroy Johnson, Pfc. Dirk Vlug and Pfc. William McWhorter. The 32nd ID would end the war pulling occupation duty of mainland Japan.
Following peace time, the 126th IN would return to the National Guard command and would be called up numerous times during the Cold War to restore or maintain civil order, especially after the assassination of Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In the 1990’s following the end of the Cold War with the collapse of the Soviet Union the 126th IN was re-designated as the 126th AR, ending its infantry roots. By 2006 the 126th was once again re-designated into a cavalry regiment. Having deployed multiple times in support of both Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, the later in which ten members were awarded Purple Hearts and the regiment was recognized for its valor under fire. In 2016 the 126th would finally return back to its infantry roots becoming once again the 126th IN and being assigned to the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Michigan Army National Guard.
