35th Infantry Division

The U.S. Army's 35th Infantry Division, nicknamed the Santa Fe Division, was engaged on the European front from 1944 onwards. Formed from the Missouri and Kansas National Guard, it was mobilized for federal service before the United States entered World War II and spent several years training on U.S. soil and in the United Kingdom before seeing combat.

The division landed in Normandy in August 1944, a few weeks after D-Day, and was incorporated into General George S. Patton's Third U.S. Army. It took part in operations in Normandy to secure the liberated areas and support the Allied breakthrough from Saint-Lô. The division took part in the rapid advance through northern and eastern France, liberating towns and villages and participating in combat against entrenched German forces.

In the fall of 1944, the 35th Infantry Division was engaged in the Lorraine campaign, advancing toward the German border and taking part in offensive operations along the Moselle River and in the Metz area. It then participated in the Rhineland campaign, breaking through German lines and contributing to the fighting for control of strategic points on the Rhine.

During the winter of 1944-1945, the division took part in the Battle of the Bulge, operating in its sector to contain German forces and recapture lost positions, before resuming the offensive in early 1945. It was then engaged in the final offensive in Germany, crossing the Rhine, advancing into the Rhineland and central Germany, and participating in the reduction of enemy pockets of resistance until the German surrender in May 1945.

The campaign credits awarded to the 35th Infantry Division include Normandy, Northern France, Lorraine, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe. The division participated in all major American operations on the Western Front, from its landing in Normandy to the final operations in Germany.