The 1st Cavalry Division activated in September 1921 at Fort Bliss, Texas, and served in the United States through the early years of World War II. Sent to the Pacific Theater, the division fought in an infantry role, first entering combat in New Guinea and on the Bismarck Archipelago. The division was in the vanguard of the force liberating the Philippine Islands, landing at Leyte as an element of 6th Army on 20 Oct 1944. The 1st Cav fought out the balance of the war in the Philippines before undertaking occupation duty in Japan following VJ Day. The division saw heavy combat in both Korea and Vietnam. In the latter conflict, the division participated in more than a dozen combat campaigns, pioneering airmobile insertion techniques. Stationed at Fort Hood, Texas since Vietnam, the 1st Cavalry Division deployed to the Persian Gulf in the Fall of 1990, fighting in Operation Desert Storm in early 1991.
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