Headquartered at Camp Lincoln in Springfield, Illinois, the 129th Regiment (Regional Training Institute) descended from the Illinois Army National Guard’s 129th Infantry Regiment, which has a lineage that stretches back to 1721 and pre-World War I battle honors from the Civil War, Indian Wars, War With Spain and the Mexican Expedition. Nicknamed the “Third Illinois,” the 129th Infantry Regiment fought in four World War I campaigns (Somme, Meuse-Argonne, Lorraine 1918, Picardy 1918) and in two Asiatic-Pacific campaigns of World War II (Northern Solomons, Luzon).
The Regiment assumed its role as heading up the Illinois National Guard’s Training Institute on 1 December 1996. Training is carried out in such Military Occupational Specialty fields as Transportation, Signals, Military Police, Field Artillery, and Office Candidate School. In January 2012, the 129th Regiment RTI was awarded the Institution of Excellence accreditation, the highest accreditation level awarded.
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The 129th Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia, often called a unit crest or referred to as a DUI for short, was originally approved for the 129th Infantry Regiment—the “Third Illinois”—on 20 June 1933. On 11 June 1968, it was amended with the addition of the motto PRO MAIORE SECURITAT, a Latin phrase meaning “For Greater Security.” A blue shield denotes the organization’s founding in the Infantry branch, while the Spanish castle and cactus are emblems alluding to the War With Spain and Mexican Border service. Four fleurs-de-lis represent the Regiment’s four battle honors from the First World War in France.
Distinctive Unit Insignias are worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.