U.S. Second Army
Encyclopedia
Second United States Army was formed 15 October 1918 during World War I
. It functioned as a training and administrative headquarters until being inactivated 15 April 1919.
The Second United States Army was activated again and served as a training army for much of its existence until inactivation in 1966.
It is presently based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia as U.S. Army Cyber Command/Second Army.
in France following the end of the Saint-Mihiel offensive
along the Western Front
. The army was also tasked with reinforcing units from the active-in-combat soldiers of the U.S. First Army
.
On 10 November, Second Army advanced on German positions, already in disorder and retreating. Word did not reach the units advancing until after eleven-hundred hours on 11 November, making it one of the last units to fight to the very conclusion of the war. On 15 April 1919, Second Army was inactivated.
Douglas MacArthur
to consolidate forces in the continental United States under four regional army commands. It was headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee In 1940, with the activation of Army General Headquarters (succeeded by Army Ground Forces in 1942), the four field armies were given responsibility for training forces in their respective areas and conducting maneuvers to evaluate training and readiness. In September 1941, Second U.S. Army participated in large-scale maneuvers pitting it against Third U.S. Army in what were known as the Louisiana Maneuvers
. Over 350,000 troops took part. Also in 1941, four regional defense commands were established coterminous with the army areas, and the Commander, Second U.S. Army became also Commanding General, Central Defense Command
.
With First and Fourth Armies be given primary responsibility for defense of the eastern and western coasts of the United States, and later with First Army's relocation to England to command U.S. Army forces in the invasion of France, Second and Third Armies assumed increasing responsibility for the training and organization of the rapidly expanding army and preparing troops for overseas deployment. When Third Army headquarters was relocated to France in 1944 to serve as a combat command, Second Army assumed its stateside responsibilities as well.
Second U.S. Army was commanded from 1940 to 1943 by Lt. Gen. Ben Lear
. He was succeeded by Lt. Gen. Lloyd Fredendall
after Fredendall's removal from command in North Africa. General Fredendall held command until war's end.
at Governors Island
New York and the relocation of U.S. First Army to Fort Meade, Maryland
. First and Second Armies would merge and Second Army subsequently inactivated. It had been proposed that First Army be inactivated, but its commander Lt. General Robert W. Porter, Jr. strongly protested the proposal and it was dropped. In the end, Second Army headquarters staff were retained and became the new staff for U.S. First Army. On 1 January 1966 at Fort Meade, Second Army was inactivated and its colors cased by commander, Lt. General William F. Train
who then assumed command of U.S. First Army.
Second Army was reactivated on 1 October 1983 under U.S. Army Forces Command
as a regional command to control Army Reserve forces in the southeastern United States, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was headquartered at Fort Gillem
, Georgia. It was again inactivated on 3 July 1995 with First Army once again assuming its functions. First Army was then relocated to Fort Gillem.
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. It functioned as a training and administrative headquarters until being inactivated 15 April 1919.
The Second United States Army was activated again and served as a training army for much of its existence until inactivation in 1966.
It is presently based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia as U.S. Army Cyber Command/Second Army.
World War I
Second Army's task during the First World War was to hold the line a short distance east of the Moselle RiverMoselle River
The Moselle is a river flowing through France, Luxembourg, and Germany. It is a left tributary of the Rhine, joining the Rhine at Koblenz. A small part of Belgium is also drained by the Mosel through the Our....
in France following the end of the Saint-Mihiel offensive
Battle of Saint-Mihiel
The Battle of Saint-Mihiel was a World War I battle fought between September 12–15, 1918, involving the American Expeditionary Force and 48,000 French troops under the command of U.S. general John J. Pershing against German positions...
along the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
. The army was also tasked with reinforcing units from the active-in-combat soldiers of the U.S. First Army
U.S. First Army
The First United States Army is a field army of the United States Army. It now serves a mobilization, readiness and training command.- Establishment and World War I :...
.
On 10 November, Second Army advanced on German positions, already in disorder and retreating. Word did not reach the units advancing until after eleven-hundred hours on 11 November, making it one of the last units to fight to the very conclusion of the war. On 15 April 1919, Second Army was inactivated.
Along the line
- U.S. 33rd Division (IllinoisIllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
National GuardUnited States National GuardThe National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
) - U.S. 28th DivisionU.S. 28th Infantry DivisionThe 28th Infantry Division is a unit of the Army National Guard and is the oldest division-sized unit in the armed forces of the United States. The division was officially established in 1879 and was later redesignated as the 28th Division in 1917, after the entry of America into the First World War...
(PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
National Guard) - U.S. 7th Division (Regular ArmyRegular ArmyThe Regular Army of the United States was and is the successor to the Continental Army as the country's permanent, professional military establishment. Even in modern times the professional core of the United States Army continues to be called the Regular Army...
) - U.S. 92nd Division (United States Colored TroopsUnited States Colored TroopsThe United States Colored Troops were regiments of the United States Army during the American Civil War that were composed of African American soldiers. First recruited in 1863, by the end of the Civil War, the men of the 175 regiments of the USCT constituted approximately one-tenth of the Union...
)
In reserve
- U.S. 4th DivisionU.S. 4th Infantry DivisionThe 4th Infantry Division is a modular division of the United States Army based at Fort Carson, Colorado, with four brigade combat teams. It is a very technically advanced combat division in the U.S. Army....
(Regular Army) - U.S. 35th Division (MissouriMissouriMissouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
and KansasKansasKansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
National Guard) - one brigade, U.S. 88th Division (MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and North DakotaNorth DakotaNorth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
National Guard)
World War II
Second United States Army was reactivated on 1 October 1933 under a plan developed by then-Army Chief of StaffChief of Staff of the United States Army
The Chief of Staff of the Army is a statutory office held by a four-star general in the United States Army, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, and as such is the principal military advisor and a deputy to the Secretary of the Army; and is in...
Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
to consolidate forces in the continental United States under four regional army commands. It was headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee In 1940, with the activation of Army General Headquarters (succeeded by Army Ground Forces in 1942), the four field armies were given responsibility for training forces in their respective areas and conducting maneuvers to evaluate training and readiness. In September 1941, Second U.S. Army participated in large-scale maneuvers pitting it against Third U.S. Army in what were known as the Louisiana Maneuvers
Louisiana Maneuvers
The Louisiana Maneuvers were a series of military exercises held all over north and west-central Louisiana, including Fort Polk, Camp Claiborne and Camp Livingston, in August and September 1941...
. Over 350,000 troops took part. Also in 1941, four regional defense commands were established coterminous with the army areas, and the Commander, Second U.S. Army became also Commanding General, Central Defense Command
Central Defense Command
Central Defense Command was established on 17 March 1941 as the command formation of the U.S. Army responsible for coordinating the defense of the Midwest region of the United States. A second major responsibility of CDC was the training of soldiers prior to their deployment overseas...
.
With First and Fourth Armies be given primary responsibility for defense of the eastern and western coasts of the United States, and later with First Army's relocation to England to command U.S. Army forces in the invasion of France, Second and Third Armies assumed increasing responsibility for the training and organization of the rapidly expanding army and preparing troops for overseas deployment. When Third Army headquarters was relocated to France in 1944 to serve as a combat command, Second Army assumed its stateside responsibilities as well.
Second U.S. Army was commanded from 1940 to 1943 by Lt. Gen. Ben Lear
Ben Lear
Benjamin Lear was a United States Army General.Ben Lear was born in Hamilton, Ontario on May 12, 1879. His military service began in 1898, when he enlisted with the 1st Colorado Infantry, USV, for the Spanish-American War as a First Sergeant...
. He was succeeded by Lt. Gen. Lloyd Fredendall
Lloyd Fredendall
Lloyd Fredendall was an American General during World War II. Major General Fredendall is best known for his command of the Central Task Force landings during Operation Torch, and his command of the US II Corps during the early stages of the Tunisia Campaign...
after Fredendall's removal from command in North Africa. General Fredendall held command until war's end.
Post-World War II
In November 1964, as an effort to reorganize military operations, the Department of the Army announced the closure of Fort JayFort Jay
Fort Jay is a harbor fortification and the name of the former Army post located on Governors Island in New York Harbor. Fort Jay is the oldest defensive structure on the island, built to defend Upper New York Bay, but has served other purposes...
at Governors Island
Governors Island
Governors Island is a island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City...
New York and the relocation of U.S. First Army to Fort Meade, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. First and Second Armies would merge and Second Army subsequently inactivated. It had been proposed that First Army be inactivated, but its commander Lt. General Robert W. Porter, Jr. strongly protested the proposal and it was dropped. In the end, Second Army headquarters staff were retained and became the new staff for U.S. First Army. On 1 January 1966 at Fort Meade, Second Army was inactivated and its colors cased by commander, Lt. General William F. Train
William F. Train
William F. Train II was a United States Army lieutenant general and veteran of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.-Biography:...
who then assumed command of U.S. First Army.
Second Army was reactivated on 1 October 1983 under U.S. Army Forces Command
United States Army Forces Command
United States Army Forces Command is the largest Army Command and the preeminent provider of expeditionary, campaign-capable land forces to Combatant Commanders. Headquartered at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, FORSCOM consists of more than 750,000 Active Army, U.S. Army Reserve, and Army National...
as a regional command to control Army Reserve forces in the southeastern United States, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was headquartered at Fort Gillem
Fort Gillem
Fort Gillem is a United States Army military base located in Forest Park, Georgia, on the southeast edge of Atlanta. Founded in 1941, it was a satellite installation of nearby Fort McPherson it has closed due to BRAC. The base houses many different supply and support units including the U.S...
, Georgia. It was again inactivated on 3 July 1995 with First Army once again assuming its functions. First Army was then relocated to Fort Gillem.
Current
On 1 October 2010 2nd Army was again re-activated as United States Army Cyber Command (ARCYBER)/US 2nd Army. The new command is based out of Fort Belvoir, Virginia and a part of the larger, Joint U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM). Lientenant General Rhett Hernandez became the first commander of the newly reactivated Army.Past Commanders
| Date Began | Date Ended | Commanding General |
|---|---|---|
| 15 October 1918 | 15 April 1919 | Robert Lee Bullard Robert Lee Bullard Robert Lee Bullard was a United States General.General Bullard attended the United States Military Academy and graduated in 1885... |
| 20 October 1939 | 25 April 1943 | Ben Lear Ben Lear Benjamin Lear was a United States Army General.Ben Lear was born in Hamilton, Ontario on May 12, 1879. His military service began in 1898, when he enlisted with the 1st Colorado Infantry, USV, for the Spanish-American War as a First Sergeant... |
| 25 April 1943 | 7 May 1945 | Lloyd Fredendall Lloyd Fredendall Lloyd Fredendall was an American General during World War II. Major General Fredendall is best known for his command of the Central Task Force landings during Operation Torch, and his command of the US II Corps during the early stages of the Tunisia Campaign... |
| 1945 October | 1946 November | William Simpson William Hood Simpson General William Hood Simpson was a distinguished U.S. Army officer who commanded the U.S. Ninth Army in northern Europe, during World War II, among other roles.... |
| 1948 January | 1950 July | Leonard T. Gerow Leonard T. Gerow Leonard Townsend Gerow was a United States Army general.-Early life:Gerow was born in Petersburg, Virginia. The name Gerow is derived from the French name "Giraud". Gerow attended high school in Petersburg and then attended the Virginia Military Institute. He was three times elected class... |
| 10 August 1950 | 11 April 1951 | James Alward Van Fleet |
| 11 April 1951 | 1953 April | Edward H. Brooks Edward H. Brooks Edward Hale Brooks was a decorated officer in the United States Army and a veteran of World War I, World War II and the Korean War... |
| 1953 | 1956 | Floyd L. Parks Floyd Lavinius Parks Floyd Lavinius Parks was a US Army General during World War II. During the war, he was chief of staff of the US Army Ground Forces and the First Allied Airborne Army. As such, he participated in Operation Market Garden that directed air drops into the Netherlands behind the German lines which... |
| 1957 | 1960 | George Windle Read, Jr. George Windle Read, Jr. George Windle Read, Jr. was a Lieutenant General in the United States Army. He was prominent as a top-tier polo player, a successful commander of World War II armor units, and the U.S... |
| 1960 | 1962 | Ridgely Gaither Ridgely Gaither Ridgely Gaither was a United States Army lieutenant general prominent as commander of the 40th Infantry Division during the Korean War, and commander of the XVIII Airborne Corps, U.S... |
See also
- U.S. Army Cyber Command
- Army Network Enterprise Technology Command / 9th Army Signal Command
- 1st Information Operations Command (Land)1st Information Operations Command (Land)The 1st Information Operations Command , formerly the Land Information Warfare Activity Information Dominance Center , is an information operations command of the U.S. Army Cyber Command ....
- United States Army Intelligence and Security CommandUnited States Army Intelligence and Security CommandThe United States Army Intelligence and Security Command is a direct reporting unit that conducts intelligence, security, and information operations for U.S. Army commanders and national decision makers. INSCOM is both an organization within the United States Army and the National Security Agency,...