The history of the 229th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Virginia Army National Guard dates back to June 1858 and November 1859 and the organization of the Washington Guards and the Fredericksburg Grays, respectively, as volunteer companies in the 16th Regiment. They were mustered into Confederate service 1 July 1861 as Companies A and B, 30th Virginia Infantry and fought in eleven Civil War campaigns before surrendering at Appomattox Court House in April 1865.
As you might imagine, the two units underwent myriad redesignation, reorganizations, and consolidations over the decades, taking part in the Meuse-Argonne and Alsace 1918 campaigns of World War I and four World War II campaigns in the European Theater and earning an Arrowhead device for participating in an assault landing during the Normandy campaign. Following the consolidation, reorganization, and redesignation of two Engineer Companies—one from the 103rd Engineer Battalion and another from the 276th Engineer Battalion—into the 237th Engineer Company in April 1975; it was expanded, reorganized, and redesignated on 1 July 1985 as the 229th Engineer Battalion and assigned to the 29th Infantry Division.
Just over twenty years later, the Battalion was converted and redesignated as the Special Troops Battalion, 116th Brigade Combat Team, 29th Infantry Division and a new Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI) was authorized for it. On 15 October 2016, the Special Troops Battalion was again designated as an Engineer organization, this time as the 229th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and reassigned its old DUI. As of Autumn 2023, the Battalion remains assigned to the 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and is headquartered in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
The 229th Engineer Battalion Distinctive Unit Insignia, most commonly referred to as a unit crest or DUI, was originally approved on 1 July 1986. Occupying almost all of the area of the shield portion of the insignia is a castle tower, a symbol of strength and fortifications that recalls the imagery of the Corps of Engineers branch insignia. A pair of crossed poleaxes symbolize the unit's dual mission of construction of bridges and forts and combat preparedness.
At the intersection of the poleaxes, a fireball represents the military engineer's duty of handling explosives and mines; its four flames recall the four main points on a compass rose, emphasizing the capability of Engineers to mobilize rapidly and deploy anywhere in the world. In the upper left is an inset, called a “canton” in heraldry, that contains a fleur-de-lis (for the unit’s service in France and Europe during both World Wars) superimposed on a Confederate battle flag (for the units in its lineage that fought as Graybacks during the Civil War. “Sappers Lead,” the Battalion motto, emphasizes the crucial role Engineers play in creating breakthrough points in enemy lines.Guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.