The Japanese-American Regiment of the U.S. Army during World War 2

The Infantry Regiment Combat Team and 100th Infantry Battalion were forbidden from participating in the Pacific war theatre. The only Nisei that the US used there were those that were fluent in Japanese in order to work for the military intelligence service, as translator, spy and interrogator.

Now, the 100th Infantry Battalion was sent to the European war theatre before the 442nd. They landed at Salerno on Sicily on the 19th of September 1943. They participated in the Battle of Monte Cassino and the liberation of Italy. The Battle of Monte Cassino was a major assault that took four months and led to the defeat of the Germans holding the Gustav line. Nevertheless, the 100th suffered a disproportionate amount of casualties. Due to this siege, they earned the nickname ‘The Purple Heart Battalion’, because of the amount of Purple Heart medals that were awarded following the battle. As they were sent to Europe before the 442nd, the soldiers from that regiment were often sent to replenish the ranks of the 100th infantry, an acute need that emerged after the battle of Monte Cassino. By February 1944, after six months of seeing combat, the fighting had been brutal to the degree that of the originally 1300-strong battalion only 521 remained. The number of casualties did not just affect regular soldiers. SPC Margaret Higgins COL Mikel J. Burroughs CW5 Jack Cardwell Lt Col Charlie Brown SGT (Join to see) CPL Dave Hoover SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth SSG Michael Noll SGT Steve McFarland 1SG Steven Imerman CPL Douglas Chrysler SPC Douglas Bolton PO1 H Gene Lawrence Sgt (Join to see) LTC Stephen F. PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Maj Marty Hogan