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Provisional Tank Destroyer Battalion, Fort Meade, Maryland, 1941
About the same time the Army introduced two new distinctions into its official lexicon. First, the word "infantry" was made a part of the official designation of such divisions. In the past the word infantry was understood, but, because of the expanding variety of divisions, the Army needed some way to distinguish among them. The adjutant general specified that unit designations thus include the major combat element or even the type of unit when the former was not sufficiently descriptive. Some divisions issued general orders introducing infantry as a part of the official name, and the adjutant general constituted the 25th specifically as an infantry division. The term, however, was not officially added to the tables of organization, documents that technically controlled the names of units, until 1942.[1]
The second change concerned the meaning of the term "Army of the United States." Before 1940 it had embraced the Regular Army, the National Guard while in the service of the United States, and the Organized Reserves. With the growth of the force, the term Army of the United States was broadened to encompass units that had not been a part of the mobilization plans during the interwar years. The 25th Infantry Division was the first division-size unit activated under the expanded definition.[2]
In the Pacific area, the defense of the Philippine Islands presented unique problems. They were too distant and too scattered for ground defense. Nevertheless, Marshall asked the local commander, General Douglas MacArthur, whether
- ↑ Memo, G–3 for CofS, 19 May 41, sub: Designation of Divisions, Army Corps, and Armies, G–3/45832, Division General file, DAMH-HSO; WD Cir 197, 1941; "Army Designations," Army and Navy Register, 9 Aug 1941; author's notes, The use of the word infantry in divisional designations; T/O 7, 1 Aug 1942.
- ↑ "Lineage and Honors: History, Principles, and Preparation," Organizational History Branch, Office, Chief of Military History (OCMH), June 1962; Ltr, TAG to CG, Hawaiian Dept, 26 Aug 41, sub: Constitution and Reorganization of Units, Hawaiian Department, 24th Inf Div file, DAMH-HSO.
