VII Corps was originally constituted in France as VII Army Corps in France in August 1918, but saw no action during The Great War. The first VII Corps Shoulder Sleeve Insignia, unapproved yet worn nonetheless, featured a shieldlike shape with six sides and points, bordered along the circumference by stitching and a Arabic numeral “7” in the center. This served as inspiration for the Corps’ first authorized insignia, which kept the same design but eliminated the stitching; it was approved on 19 November 1918 and worn up until April 1944.
The third time was the charm for VII Corps insignia. It replaced the oddly shaped shield with a seven-pointed red star and the Roman numeral VII for its numerical designation, dividing the number into blue and white halves so the insignia contained our national colors.
You can learn more about the lineage, combat history, and final inactivation date of VII Corps by reading our entry regarding the
VII Corps Combat Service ID Badge, which is of course identical in design to the VII Corps unit patch.