623rd Field Artillery Regiment

The 623rd Field Artillery Regiment (Morgan's Men) is a single-battalion unit of the Kentucky Army National Guard. The unit draws its lineage from cavalry and infantry units of the Kentucky Militia formed in 1846 for service in the Mexican–American War. Its antecedents include units that served on both sides of the American Civil War as well as those that fought for the United States in the Spanish–American War, World War One and World War Two. The unit was first designated as the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion in 1947, serving under that name in the Korean War. It was part of the 138th Artillery Regiment in the 1960s before becoming the 623rd Artillery Regiment in 1969 and the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment in 1972. The unit served in the Gulf War as a self-propelled artillery unit; it is now equipped with the M142 HIMARS system.

Lineage

The unit draws official lineage from the 1st Kentucky Cavalry and 2nd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, formed in the Kentucky Militia on 22 May 1846 during the Mexican–American War. The unit was mustered into Federal Service for a year before returning to the state as separate militia companies. The companies were reorganized on 15 June 1860 as the Lexington Battalion of the Kentucky State Guard, absorbing the Lexington Rifles, founded in 1857 by John Hunt Morgan. With the coming of the American Civil War in 1861 the unit broke up as men joined the Confederate or Union forces. The Lexington Rifles were reorganized as an independent cavalry company and amalgamated with two other companies in October 1861 to form Morgan's Squadron, Kentucky Cavalry. This unit expanded in June 1862 to form the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment (Morgan's Men). == History as 623rd ==

History as 623rd

The 106th Antiaircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion became the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion on 29 January 1947. The unit entered Federal Service in 1951 during the Korean War, becoming the 623rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion and then the 623rd Field Artillery Battalion. It returned to state service on 18 March 1955. The unit was reorganized as the 4th Howitzer Battalion of the 138th Artillery Regiment on 1 October 1959. It lost the howitzer designation on 1 February 1968 and on 1 May 1969 was reorganized as the 623rd Artillery Regiment, a single-battalion unit under the U.S. Army Combat Arms Regimental System. It became the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment on 1 March 1972. The 623rd took part in the June 2018 Operation Saber Strike United States Army Europe and Africa training exercise in Lithuania, supporting the regular 2nd Cavalry Regiment. By this point it was equipped with the M142 HIMARS system. == Special designation ==

Special designation

The special designation (official nickname) of the 623rd Field Artillery Regiment is "Morgan's Men", in reference to its Confederate lineage. The unit applied for and received the designation in 1969. The choice of the name appears to have been associated with the Lost Cause movement, of which Morgan is a hero. The 623rd is one of at least three American military units to retain special designations associated with a Confederate lineage, at least three others have names otherwise associated with the Confederacy. All of these units are within the state-controlled National Guard. In reference to the special designation the commander of the 623rd uses "Morgan 6" as his radio call sign. == Insignia and motto ==

Insignia and motto

The 623rd Field Artillery Regiment's distinctive unit insignia was approved on 1 May 1952 and references the combat record of units in its lineage. A cactus references the Mexican-American War and a saltire references the American Civil War. The saltire is gray, indicating Confederate service and the field is yellow, indicating the cavalry role. Two blue pallets (vertical stripes) represent the Spanish-American War and World War One and a fleurs-de-lys represents World War Two. ==Campaign participation credits ==

Campaign participation credits

The unit has been awarded campaign participation credits for the following actions: ;Mexican War • Battle of Buena Vista ;Civil War (Union service) • Battle of Shiloh • Battle of Murfreesboro • Battle of Chickamauga • Western Virginia campaign 1861 • Mississippi campaign 1862 • Kentucky campaign 1862 • Kentucky campaign 1864 • Tennessee campaign 1863 ;Civil War (Confederate service) • Battles of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson • Battle of Shiloh • Battle of Murfreesboro • Battle of Chickamauga • Battle of Atlanta • Kentucky campaign 1862 • Kentucky campaign 1864 • Louisiana 1862 • Mississippi campaign 1862 • Tennessee campaign 1862 • Tennessee campaign 1863 • Indiana campaign (Morgan's Raid)1863 • South Carolina 1865 ;World War I • Awarded campaign streamer with no inscription ;World War II • Algeria-French Morocco campaign (with arrowhead) • Tunisia campaign • Sicily campaign (with arrowhead) • Naples-Foggia campaign (with arrowhead) • Battle of Anzio (with arrowhead) • Rome-Arno • Southern France (with arrowhead) • Rhineland • Ardennes-Alsace • Central Europe ;Korean War • Second Korean Winter • Korea, Summer-Fall 1952 • Third Korean Winter • Korea, Summer 1953 ;Southwest Asia • Liberation and Defense of Kuwait • Cease-Fire The unit's Battery B (Campbellsville) is additionally entitled to the credits: ;World War II • New Guinea campaign • Battle of Leyte • Battle of Luzon == Unit decorations ==

Unit decorations

For service in the Korean War the unit was awarded a Navy Unit Commendation with a streamer embroidered "Panmunjom" and a Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation with streamer embroidered "Korea 1951–1952". Battery B (Campbellsville) was additionally awarded a Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation with streamer embroidered "17 October 1944 to 4 July 1945" for service in the Pacific Theater of World War Two. == References ==

Source: Wikipedia ↗

tickerdossier.com tickerdossier.substack.com