505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division

505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division. "Panthers". Constituted as the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR) and activated at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1942, the Regiment became part of the 82nd Airborne Division (ABD) in February 1943. Led by Colonel James M. Gavin, the 505th PIR was reinforced by selected engineer, artillery, and antitank units and would operate as a regimental combat team. Later in 1943, it earned a superb reputation for hard fighting and collected campaign credits for its service in Operation HUSKY on Sicily and Operation Avalanche at Salerno, Italy. , , Transferred to the British Isles in late 1943, the 505th PIR landed at Belfast, Northern Ireland, and then moved to the English Midlands to conduct six months' intensive training as one of the initial airborne assault units participating in Operation OVERLORD. Following Colonel Gavin' promotion in March of 1944, Lieutenant Colonel William E. Ekman assumed command of the Panthers and would lead the unit for the remainder of World War Il. , In May, the Regiment moved to its final staging area. Revised orders issued just before the invasion of Normandy tasked the 505th PIR to capture the key road junction at Ste. Mére-Eglise, clear the western portion of the beachhead between the Merderet and Douve Rivers, and establish a bridgehead on the west bank of the Merderet. After World War II, the 82nd ABD commander, General Matthew B. Ridgway, recalled: "The 505th was the only parachute regiment in the Division with combat experience... assigned it the most important task - the capture and retention of Ste. Mére-Eglise." Departing from England shortly before midnight on 5 June, the Regiment's soldiers jumped into the night sly over France early on the morning of 6 June 1944, a little before H-Hour, from which the "H-Minus" motto derives. Landing northwest of their principal D-Day objective of Ste. Mére-Eglise, the paratroopers fought German troops in the fields, villages, and roadways of Normandy as they attacked and seized the town. The unit defended Ste. Mére-Eglise against determined German counterattacks, thereby helping prevent a German assault against UTAH Beach. Subsequently, the 505th PIR attacked toward the coastal port of Cherbourg and captured key terrain near La Hayedo-Puits. The 505th PIR completed its combat missions in France on 11 July 1944 and subsequently returned to England to prepare for future airborne assaults. , , Several members of the 505th PIR earned the Distinguished Service Cross for their gallantry in action and many others earned the Silver Star. The Regiment was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and the French Croix de Guerre with Palm-for its gallant conduct at Ste. Mére-Eglise, A grateful French government recognized the Panthers with a second Groin de Guerre with Palm for battlefield accomplishments on the Cotentin Peninsula: , , In England, the 505th PIR absorbed replacements, welcomed the return of troopers injured or wounded in Normandy, and began training for Operation MARKET GARDEN, which followed in the Netherlands. Later, the Panthers would win new laurels while fighting in Belgium and in Germany, , In memory of Lt. Carl Howard Cartledge (Bronze Star with V and 3 Oak Leaf Clusters, Purple Heart with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters, and Combat Infantryman Badge), who jumped in on D-Day with the 501st PIR, 101st Airborne Division, given by George B. Cartledge, Jr. dedicated on Memorial Day 2008.