Category / Stryker Brigade

by Old Guard History

2d Battalion activated – March 15, 2001

On March 15, 2001, the 2d Battalion, 3d Infantry Regiment activated at Fort Lewis, Washington. The 2d Battalion adopted the nickname “Patriots” and organized as part of the 3d Brigade, 2d Infantry Division. They were part of the first Stryker brigades to deploy into combat (2003). The Patriots have deployed four times in support of Operation: Iraqi Freedom and Operation: Enduring Freedom.


Before 2001, the 2d Battalion had been active July 1957-July 1963 (as 2nd Battle Group) and June 1966-October 1970. Those time frames saw the battalion deployed to South Korea and Vietnam, respectively.
by Old Guard History

2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment Inactivated – October 15, 1970

On October 15, 1970, the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) was inactivated at Fort Benning, Georgia. The 2nd Battalion re-activated four years earlier at Fort Benning, before deploying to Vietnam. During the deployment, the 2d Battalion participated in eleven campaigns and earned the Valorous Unit Award for its actions during the Tet Offensive (31 Jan – 19 Feb 1968). The 2nd Battalion was assigned to the 199th Infantry Brigade (known as the Redcatchers) throughout its deployment. The 2d Battalion was next re-activated on 16 March 2001, as part of the Army’s first Stryker Brigade Combat Team under the 3d Brigade, 2d Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, Washington.