A training unit under the command of First Army Division West and headquartered at Fort Hood, Texas, the 120th Infantry Brigade was originally constituted as HQ, 3rd Armored Group Infantry Group on 26 March 1943 in the Army of the United States and activated on 31 March 1943. Before it was deployed into combat, it was redesignated three times (3rd Armored Group, 12th Tank Group, and 12th Armored Group). Attached to the 9th Armored Division, the Group fought in three campaigns in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater, with its most notable combat action occurring in the Siege of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge; it was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for the exceptional bravery and courage its personnel displayed.
Inactivated in October 1945 and disbanded in July 1952, the unit wad reconstituted on 24 October 1997 in the Regular Army as the 120th Infantry Brigade and activated at Fort Sam Houston, Texax, only to be inactivated just shy of two years later on 16 October 1999. It was activated again on 1 December 2006 at Fort Sam Houston when the 2nd Brigade, 75th Division was reflagged as the 120th Infantry Brigade. Transferred to Fort Hood (now Fort Cavazos) in 2008, the Brigade earned an Army Superior Unit Award for its excellence in the pre- and post-mobilization training of Army Reserve and Army National Guard Soldiers between that date and 2011.
The 120th Infantry Brigade Distinctive Unit Insignia—often called a “unit crest” by many soldiers, or a DUI for short—was approved on 9 February 2007. Its design recalls the unit’s heroic performance at the Battle of the Bulge through an arched horizontal band populated with caltrops, defensive weapons once scattered on the ground to disable or slow down enemy forces (especially cavalry). The band is placed on a field of Gutte de Sang (French for “blood drop”) that symbolizes the Ardennes campaign and the Siege of the town of Bastogne where the Brigade’s heroic stand earned it a Presidential Unit Commendation. The unit motto of “Our Outfits In The Fight” embodies the dedication to achieve combat objectives and stay in the battle as long as it takes to do so.
Full 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.Related Items
120th Infantry Brigade Patch (SSI)