After World War One, the colors of the 325th Regiment were cased but were to be unveiled once again on March 25, 1942 under the command of Colonel Claudius Easley.  Located at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, the Regiment was again to be part of the 82nd Division.  Late in July 1942, the heavy equipment arrived that would turn the regiment into the 325th Motorized Infantry Regiment.

This suddenly changed when the Chief of Staff, General Marshall had decided that the 82nd Division would be an excellent division to use as a base for his proposed Airborne force.  General Omar Bradley, because of his excellent work in training the 82nd Division, was to be transferred to the 28th Division which was having a great deal of trouble in meeting its training objectives.  General Matthew Ridgeway, the 82nd Assistant Division Commander, would become its Commander.

The 325th Glider Infantry Regiment was formed and given the task of arriving into battle by glider.  Parachutes could, and often did, wind up scattered for miles on a drop zone.  The same held true for equipment and supplies.  The glider was the answer to all these problems.  As long as a glider stayed in one piece,  the items inside it would too.  This meant no more searching through the swamp looking for the missing barrel to a Howitzer.  Jeeps could also fit into a glider.  Best of all, troops could be put into a glider and land as a cohesive fighting unit.

Gliderborne assaults, however, were not without their risks.  Gliders and their tow planes were slow, fat targets.  They had no armor to protect the men inside.  Landing in a glider was also an adventure and little more than a controlled crash.  Even if the pilot had the time and altitude to select a good spot to land, conditions on the ground of which he might be totally ignorant could wreck a landing.  Ditches, wire, fences, tree stumps or a host of other possible ailments could flip, twist, or gut an unfortunate glider.

During the time of its introduction to the gliders, the Regiment lost its Commander.  Colonel Easley was promoted to Brigadier General and went to the 96th Division.  He was replaced by Colonel Harry Lewis who would guide the Regiment through its glider training and on to combat overseas.

The Regiment arrived to its first battle, not by air, but by sea.  Boarding beach landing craft, the Regiment was sent to Salerno, Italy, to reinforce American units already there.  On September 15th at about 2300, they landed at Paestum, some eighteen miles south of Salerno where they awaited orders.  Daybreak on the 16th brought orders.  The 2nd Battalion was to re-board the landing craft and farther north to the town of Maiori.  Here they were to be attached to Colonel William O. Darby’s Ranger Task Force and relieve Ranger units currently holding positions on 4000 foot Mount St. Angelo di Cava.  The Battalion was welcomed the next morning by a German artillery barrage.  The Germans probed the Battalion lines.  Despite numerous attempts to throw the Glidermen off the mountain, the Americans held their ground.  It was here that the Regiment received its first casualties of the war.

The Normandy Campaign

The seaborne element of the Regiment was the first to leave the base camp as Scraptoft. The motor officer and 73 enlisted men departed with the heavy equipment for the marshalling area at Cardiff, Wales, on the 25th of May. The following day, Capt. James M Harney, of Co F, 401st Glider Infantry, left for Kingswear with 2 other officers, 2 aid men, and 90 men from his company. The mission of this detachment was to support a company of tanks going in from the beach on D day. The 3 battalions of the Regiment departed on the 29th of May for the various airfields from which they would take off for the invasion of the continent. The 1st Battalion went to Ramsbury airfield. The 2nd Battalion was sent to Upottery. The 3rd Battalion also went to Upottery (which was the 2nd Battalion, 401st Glider Infantry, attached to this unit since the 11th of March, 1944 so that the Regiment might operate tactically as a 3 battalion organization). Capt Harney's detachment was drawn from this battalion. Service Company and the supply sections of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions went to Merryfield. Regimental Headquarters Company moved to Aldermaston airfield, also on the 29th of May. On June 3rd the Regimental staff sections left for Greenham Commons airfield where it was expected tht the CP would be set up. However, since Regiment was informed that there was no room at Greenham Commons, the CP (command post) was actually set up at Aldermaston.

The period between arrival at the airfields and the take-off for the continent was one of briefings, of last minute issue of impregnated clothing, and the tying of various stray ends.  Apart from that, the Regiment spent its time quietly in the closely controlled conditions of the marshalling areas.

Gliders were loaded with equipment well in advance of D-day, which was one of idleness for the Regiment, spiced with a very keen interest in such news broadcasts as were received.  That night maps were distributed to the glider commanders and the passwords for the next 3 days given out.  The mood of the men was quiet and matter of fact.

The lifts from Aldermaston and Ramsburg started into the air about 0435 (4:30a) on 7 June 1944, D + 1.  Those from the other 2 airfields began their take-off an hour later.  The flights had fighter escort across the channel, but no opposition was encountered.  At 0700 (7:00a) the gliders began landing over an area some 2500 yards southeast of the Ste Mere Eglise and extending toward the region east of Blosville.  The fields available for landing proved to be smaller than anticipated and the hedges and trees around them much higher than expected.  There were many crash landings and some opposition from small arms fire.  Mortar shells were also dropping in the landing areas.  Landing casualties amounted to about 7.5%.  On the whole, the CG4A gliders fared better than the Horsas, particularly in condition after landing, but also in casualties.  All of the 35 deaths from injuries in landing were among passengers in the Horsa gliders.  By 0900 Kettenkraftrad the Regimental CP was established some 3700 yards east of Chef du Pont, at the junction of the Ste Mere Eglise-Blosville road.  At about the same time, the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were landing.  By this time also the tank company with which Capt Harney and his detachment had come over the beach had made contact with the in-coming glider forces.  By 0935 the 1st Battalion was moving west toward its assembly area and word was received the the 2nd Battalion command group had landed and assembled.  The commanders of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions had reported to the Regimental CP by 1015.

The 3rd Battalion was given the mission of attacking Carquebut when they were organized and assembled.  They moved out toward Carquebut at 1415 (2:15p), passing through it and going on to le Port without encountering opposition.  The 1st and 2nd Battalions were placed in Division reserve and were to move along the east-west road in the vicinity of Ste Mere-Eglise.  At 1300 it was reported that the 505th Parachute Infantry held Chef du Pont.  Company 'C', the leading element of the 1st Battalion, occupied that town at 1615 (4:15p).  At 1700 (5:00p) the 1st Battalion was moving from Chef du Pont to the Division reserve east of the railroad near la Fiere and north of the Ste Mere-Eglise - Amfreville road.  At about the same time the 3rd Battalion was passing through Carquebut and preparing to blow up the railroad bridge south of it.  Shortly thereafter the 3rd Battalion was directed to proceed to the Division reserve area.  At 1715 the 2nd Battalion started its march to the area to be occupied by the Division reserve.  The 3rd Battalion reported 22 officers and 528 enlisted men present for duty at 1915.  Earlier, the 1st Battalion had reported 22 officers and 523 enlisted men present for duty, and the 2nd Battalion 24 officers and 600 enlisted men present.  The Regimental CP was set up for the night about 900 yards northeast of Chef du Pont and was outposted by the 3rd Battalion.  The 2nd Battalion was attached to the 505th Parachute Infantry and moved out at 2115 (9:00p).  (The 2nd Battalion would do some hard fighting during the next few days as part of the drive which took le Ham on the 11th of June.) The night was quiet except for some sniper activity.

Assembly of the entire Regiment on June 7th, except for Capt. Harney's detachment, was completed within 5 hours of the landing of the last glider lifts about 0900.  Capt. Harney and his men were still employed on their Corps mission of supporting Company 'C' of the 746th Tank Battalion and the 1st Platoon of Troop 'B' of the 4th Cavalry, and armored reconnaissance outfit.  The work of these infantrymen deserves mention here.  They had a lively time of it, beginning with a landing under shell fire south of Red Utah Beach at 1400 on June 6, 1944, forming with the the armored elements a task force under Colonel Raff.  One LCT load became seperated from the rest in landing and was pinned down on the beach for 3 hours.  This misadventure meant that 52 men and 2 officers of Capt. Harney's detachment could not be found when the rest of the force started inland at 1600 after dewaterproofing.  The force encountered no resistance until it reached the crossroad of the Blosville - Ste-Mere-Eglise road with the east-west road to Chef du Pont.  Here they received heavy artillery, mortar, and small arms fire, which was holding up the advance of the 8th Infantry.  Col. Raff committed a platoon of tanks and such infantry as Capt. Harney had with him, including 19 paratroopers and 2 paratroop officers picked up along the way.  The enemy strong point from which the fire was coming proved too powerful.  Two tanks were knocked out by 88's and 1 by a mine.  Capt. Harney and his men had to assume the defensive.  They did, however, manage to divert enemy attention from some of the Division coming in by glider a little after midnight on the 7th and landing on and around the enemy position.

At 0630 on the 7th, Capt. Harney's infantry aided the tanks in support of the 3rd Battalion of the 8th Infantry in driving toward Ste-Mere-Eglise.  During the day's fighting, the rest of the detachment  from Company 'F', 401st Glider Infantry, was reunited with the group which had come in with the tanks.  They had lost 10 men in an ambush at Ste Marie du Mont, which was clear when the task force had passed through it.  On the 8th, Capt. Harney's group was used with the tanks in support of the 505th Parachute Infantry and the left flank of the 4th Infantry Division in moving from Neuvill-au-Plain to Fesville.  The night of the 8th, they spent in bivouac east of the Merderet River.  On the 9th of June the task force was relieved of its Corps mission, and Capt. Harney's detachment joined the rest of their Company - half an hour before the attack by the 3rd Battalion on the Merderet bridgehead at la Fiere.

The day of 8 June 44 was a quiet prelude to the 9th for those troops under Regimental control.  The 3rd Battalion was in position south and west of the Regimental CP.  The 1st Battalion remained in its position east of la Fiere until 2300 that night.  During the morning 5 men from the Regimental Intelligence & Reconnaissance Platoon were attached to the Division Reconnaissance Platoon.  This day was marked, as was the day before, by interrogation of German prisoners.  Various German documents were brought in during the day.  During the afternoon information was received of 3 Germans, 2 of them wounded, forcing a French family southwest of Coquerie to take care of them. Investigation of the latter intelligence resulted in the capture of not 3, but 42 men by a 7 man patrol.  The same group captured 13 German half-track motorcycles (Kettenkraftrads), many with trailers, in the Coquerie area.  The following day this captured German transportation was to prove extremely valuable in getting up ammunition in the fight for the Merderet bridgehead.

During the 8th the Division Commander directed Colonel Lewis, commanding the 325th Glider Infantry, to send a battalion across the Merderet River, approximately 1500 yards west of la Fiere, to seize and hold the town of Amfreville and to establish contact with a group of 120 men from the 507th Parachute Infantry who were pinned down some 500 years east of that town.  Later information concerning enemy strength at Amfreville caused a change in the mission.  Amfreville was to be bypassed and the bridgehead 1500 yards west of la Fiere to be seized.  Since the railroad line and the unimproved road leading west from it at a point 2000 yards north of la Fiere formed the only practical route of crossing the inundated land around the river and since most of this area was under enemy observation, the decision was made to cross during darkness.  At 2330 (11:30p) therefore, the 1st Battalion (under command of Lt. Col. Teddy Sanford, vice Lt. Col. Boyd, who was injured in the glider landing) began crossing the river via the railroad bridge and embankment.  After crossing the river, the battalion made its way westward along an unimproved road, wading through about a foot of water for a distance of 500 yards.  All supply vehicles as well as the attached anti-tank platoon were across the river before any (enemy) fire was encountered.  Col. Harry Lewis, Regimental Commander, kept in touch with the battalion throughout the night from a position north of la Fiere, on the railroad line.  The first sign of enemy activity was from a group of buildings (referred to by the 507th as "The Grey Castle") about 700 yards northeast of Amfreville.  There developed a fire fight lasting half an hour.  This was broken off in order to enable the battalion to continue its mission.

At 0400 on the 9th the battalion moved across the low ground in front of the position held by the group from the 507th to attack the Germans defending the bridge crossing the Merderet River west of la Fiere.  In the vicinity of Canquigny the battalion ran into strong resistance from a force which was later determined to consist of about 1 regiment supported by artillery.  The fight developed into isolated actions by small groups.  Col. Sanford therefore withdrew his forces to the position in an orchard which the 507th had occupied.  Here the battalion reorganized under heavy shelling from enemy mortars and artillery.  For 6 hours the battalion was pinned down, suffering many casualties.  The battalion was under fire not only from the Germans holding the bridgehead but from those in "The Grey Castle" and from German forces in Amfreville itself.

Upon receipt of information that the 1st Battalion was pinned down, the Division Commander directed that the remainder of the 325th, less the 2nd Battalion, attack the bridgehead across the causeway west of la Fiere.  A 15 minute artillery concentration was scheduled for 1045.  Col. Lewis ordered the regiment to be ready to move by 0800.  At about this time Major Arthur W. Gardner replaced Lt. Col. Carrell as commander of the 3rd Battalion.  Col. Carrell was evacuated as a result of injuries received in landing on the 7th.  At 0830 the 3rd Battalion and the forward CP group moved out, followed an hour later by Headquarters Company and the rest of the CP personnel.  The artillery barrage went off as scheduled, except that the smoke which had been requested was not fired.  Following the barrage, the leading elements of Company 'G', 401st Glider Infantry took off on a dead run across the causeway, managing to cross several hundred yards of open space without casualties in spite of heavy machine gun and rifle fire.  Late elements of the 3rd Battalion became crowed on the bridge and there were heavy casualties.  Col. Lewis went down on the bridge himself to get the men forward.  Once across the Merderet, 'G' Company deployed to the left of the main road and Company 'E', 401st, to the right.  'F' Company, most of which had come in over the beach, was the reserve company.  It, however, followed by the heavy machine guns, went straight on along the main east-west road and attempted to establish a position on high ground about 2500 yards west of the river near Amfreville.  Because of strong enemy resistance and because of a curtain of our own artillery fire, they had to withdraw about 200 yards.  By 1300 the 3rd Battalion had secured the village of Canquigny.  The Regimental and Division Commanders had followed up the leading elements as the attack progressed.  During the attack, Private First Class Charles N. DeGlopper ('G' Company) single-handedly defended his platoon's position and was subsequently, and posthumously, awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions.   The Regimental CP was set up at the road junction at Canquigny.  Casualties for the operation were 40 killed and 180 wounded.  By 1530 the 1st Battalion had established itself in a defensive position on the right flank of the Regiment and adjoining the 507th Parachute Infantry.  The 1st Battalion held this position against several counterattacks until the morning of 11 June 44.  About 1900 the Germans mounted a severe counterattack against the 3rd Battalion position.  At about this time, tanks which had supported the infantry were withdrawn.  The German attack resulted in the withdrawal of the infantry.  Capt. Samuel L Ogden, headquarters commandant, and Capt. Berkut, the Regimental S-2, went forward to rally the troops and hold the line.  About 2000 Col. Lewis was evacuated with combat fatigue and Lt. Col. Herbert G. Sitler, Executive Officer, took charge of the Regiment.  Lt. Wyant acted as Regimental S-3.  All CP personnel were alerted, and many of them were sent forward to take their place in the line.  By 2100, Company 'A', 307th Airborne Engineers were in positionin the line and 350 men of the 507th Parachute Infantry were coming up as reinforcements.  The German attack was rolled back as quickly as it had developed.

At 2130 (9:30p) word was received that the 357th Infantry, 90th Division, were to pass through the 325th early the next morning.  Their leading elements passed the CP about 0300 on the 10th.  At 0440 the staff of the 357th had passed through the positions of the 1st and 3rd Battalions.

On 10 June plans were made to move the Regiment into an assembly area.  However, the Regiment remained in position as a reserve throughout the day and overnight.  The number of prisoners taken during the 9th and sent to the rear by the morning of the 10th is not accurately known, but one group of 30 another of 22 were captured early in the advance of the 9th.  The interrogation team was busy.  A barracks bag full of enemy documents was sent back to the Division G-2 (division intelliegence officer).  Much information on the German 1057th Regiment, 91st Division, was obtained.  The driver for General Falley, commanding the German 91st Division, was brought in by the 3rd Battalion and proved a valuable prisoner.  Major General Collins, commanding the VII Corps, was a visitor at the CP on this day.  The evening was enlived by 2 German pursuit ships (fighter planes) which strafed the front line troops and dropped bombs in the vicinity of the Regimental CP.

On the 11th of June, orders were received to move into an assembly area.  Movement was delayed, however, until the 359th Infantry could move up into position.  At 0900 Col. Lewis returned to the Regiment.  By 1000 the 359th passed through our lines.  At 1320 the move southwest to the assembly area at Guetteville began.  The Regimental CP was established there at 1700.  By this time the Regiment, less the 2nd Battalion, had an effective strength of 1102 enlisted men and 47 officers.  Five officers were known to be dead, 5 were missing, and 22 were wounded and evacuated.  Among the enlisted men, 55 had been reported killed, 241 were missing, and 261 had been evacuated with wounds.  At 2100 Col. Lewis returned from Division with orders that the Division was to protect the south flank of the Corps.  A member of the 3rd Battalion intelligence section found a copy of a field order of the 1057th Grenadier Regiment, dated 8 June 44, which gave the plan of defense for the Merderet River and told of the landings of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions, the 4th Division (Infantry) and armored units on the east coast of the Cotentin Peninsula.

The day of the 12th was quiet.  Two volleys of shells fell in the vicinity of an artillery battalion near the CP and an enemy plane strafed a few hundred yards to the northeast.  The Regiment's mission was defined as defending the south flank of the Corps along the Douve River.  The Regiment was to patrol along the north bank.  This, also, ws a day of intelligence activity.  German documents and handbooks, together with signal equipment, were brought in.  Prisoner of war interrogation continued.  Extensive reorganization among the officer personnel had to be carried out.  Few rifle companies had more than 1 officer apiece.  Lt Col. John H Swenson, commanding the 2nd Battalion, was seriously wounded on June 11th.  Major Osmund A Leahy, his executive officer, was made Regimental S-3, and Major Roscoe A Roy was relieved as executive officer of the 1st Battalion and placed in command of the 2nd Battalion.  Major Charles W Major, Jr. was relieved as Regimental S-4 and became 1st Battalion executive officer. 

While the rest of the Regiment had been taking the bridgehead across the Merderet River and moving to the assembly area, the 2nd Battalion, 325th Glider Infantry, was taking part in the capture of la Ham.  On the night of 7 June 44 the 2nd Battalion moved from the Division reserve area between Ste Mere-Eglise and Chef du Pont toward Neuville-au-Plain.  The battalion was in a defensive position 2000 yards west of that town on the 8th.  Early on the morning of the 9th the battalion moved up to a line of departure near Grainville and at 0630 advanced on the left flank of the 4th Division.  At 0730 the battalion met unexpectedly strong resistance at the south bank of a canal in that vicinity.  The outfit came under heavy mortar, artillery, and small arms fire.  As happened on other occasions to troops of the Division and Regiment in Normandy, the battalion had advanced beyond their flanking units, in this case 4th Infantry Division troops on the right.  The battalion remained under heavy fire from the north and northwest throughout that day, the left flank of teh 8th Infantry passing through the battalion's right at 1430.  During the 10th, the battalion remained in the same position, holding the left flank of the 505th Parachute Infantry while that regiment attacked.  On the 11th the drive against le Ham reached its climax.  The battalion attacked in the morning with all 3 rifle companies (E, F, and G) in line, backed by artillery and 81mm mortars.  The terrain which had to be crossed was open, swampy, and cut up by canals.  However, the battalion went at it hard, taking the open ground at a run and firing from the hip.  The fighting was severe.  Lt. Col. Swenson was wounded while leading his men within grenade range of the enemy.  At 1800 the troops stopped to reorganize, but by 2300 the battalion had passed through the town of la Ham and set up a defensive position to the northwest.  There the unit remained until relieved on the 12th by a battalion of the 359th Infantry, 90th Division.  The 2nd Battalion moved to rejoin the regiment at the assembly area at Guetteville on the 13th, closing in that area at 1000 after a motor march.

A new mission for the Regiment was received at 1230 on the 13th.  The Regiment was to attack toward St. Sauveur le Vicomte.  The Regiment closed at 1615 in a new assembly area about 1500 yards southeast of Etienville and 1000 yards from the Douve River.

At 0630 on the morning of the 14th, the Regiment moved out for its LD (line of departure), which was a north-south line running through a crossroad at the west end of Etienville.  Troops of the 90th Division were still fighting in Etienville.  The 3rd Battalion of the 325th Glider Infantry, which was in the lead, followed by the 1st and 2nd Battalions in turn, swung north around Etienville to reach the LD.  The 3rd Battalion reached the LD at 1000 and found the crossroad on the LD held by the enemy.  The result was that the Regiment had to fight for the LD against strong resistance.  IN the course of this fight Major Gardner, commanding the 3rd Battalion, was killed, and Major Charles E. Moore assumed command.  By 1340 the 3rd Battalion had pushed west to a line south and slightly east of Renouf.

At 1510 (3:10p) the 1st Battalion was passed through the 3rd to continue the attack.  The 1st Battalion moved south of the highway.  It was 1830 before the LD was fully secured, and the 1st Battalion had passed on.  The attack was carried on some 400 yards further, and was then halted for the night.  Company 'F' of the 2nd Battalion moving in between the 1st Battalion and the Douve River.  Word was received about this time that Major Roy, commanding the 2nd Battalion, had been hit very badly, and Major Charles W Major replaced him.  Shortly after midnight artillery fire was laid on Crosville.  Later that night artillery fire was resumed and at 0500 was again employed.  At 0500 the 1st Battalion began its advance, followed 16 minutes later by the 2nd Battalion with the 3rd 600 yards behind the 2nd.  At 0545 the 1st Battalion was being held up by automatic weapons fire, and tank support was called for.  By 0700 the 1st Battalion was 1800 yards west of Etienville, and half an hour later, about 600 yards further, with the right flank of the Etienville-St Sauveur le Vicomte road, which was the northern limit of the Regiment's area.  The creek, 700 yards further west, was reached by the 1st Battalion at 0810.  By 0950 the tanks had come up and lent their weight to the attack.  With support from the artillery the advance went on, in spite of continued strong resistance from infantry and artillery.  Toward noon artillery fire was again placed on Crosville.  At 1230 the tanks reached the next stream west without opposition.  In this vicinity the attack bogged down about 1300 (1:00p) with the battalions under heavy shellfire; contact had been lost with the adjacent unit on the right.  Col. Sitler, Regimental Executive Officer, was sent forward to straighten out matters and started the battalions advancing again.  At 1715 the 3rd Battalion relieved the 1st in the line.  By 1925 the 3rd Battalion was just outside Crosville, which was found a little later to have been evacuated.  During the night a patrol of 5 men under Lt. Scott Cole crossed the Douve River to the main road west of St Sauveur le Vicomte to observe traffic and determine the condition of the ground.  Heavy traffic of tracked vehicles was noted shortly after midnight.  It was found that the river would present an obstacle to all but foot troops.  By 0700 on the morning of 16 June 44, the Regiment was in position around Rauville, and the worst was over.  There remained only to occupy the final objective, high ground east of the Douve River overlooking the town St Sauveur le Vicomte.  This was accomplished against slight resistance  by 1015.  Two other elements of the Division were alloted the task of taking the town itself.  Two battalions of the 505th Parachute Infantry were reported to be in the town at 1715.

As far as the 325th was concerned, the rest of the 16th was a day of staying put, except for a 24 man patrol across the Douve River, which returned at 2115 (9:15p) with a negative report.  At 2045 the Regiment was notified of the 60th Infantry passing through our position.

At 2300 the Regimental CP moved from Rauville back to the area southeast of Etienville and north of the Douve River which had been occupied on the 13th.  Another mission had been assigned.  The Regiment closed in the new assembly area at 0400.

The new mission was the establishment of a bridgehead across the Douve River south of Etienville.  It was probably the smoothest and certainly the least costly operation that the Regiment engaged while in Normandy.  The plan was for one squad of the Regimental Intelligence and Reconnaissance Platoon to cross the river west of Etienville and distract the enemy while the 2nd Battalion crossed east of the town and took the enemy defending the bridgehead from the rear.  The rest of the Regiment was to cross the causeway  over the river at Etienville.  A company of tanks, one of tank destroyers, a chemical company (4.2 inch mortars) were attached.  The 307th Airborne Engineers were to furnish the assault boats, and the Corps of Engineers were to repair the bridge.

The day of the 18th was spent in preparation, making Gammond grenades, collecting and packing ammunition and, when possible, sleeping.  At 2330 the CP was established in the town of Entienville.  The engineers started clearing the mines of the causeway.  The reconnaissance squad started its feint, and the 2nd Battalion began loading assault boats.

Ten minutes before midnight the 2nd Battalion, less heavy weapons, started across the river.  Theirs was a wet landing in the inundated ground on the south side, but, thanks to the noisy demonstration of the squad executing the feint to the west, to a good native (french) guide and to good fortune, they had completed their maneuver without detection.  By 0055 they had reached their position to the rear of the bridgehead, reorganized, and were ready for the artillery barrage.  Col. Lewis called for a 15 minute concentration.  After the barrage, the 2nd Battalion went to work on the Germans between them and the bridge.  Besides several prisoners, their score included 3 tanks knocked out with bazookas.

In the meantime the engineers continued work on the bridge in spite of some small arms fire and casualties from artillery.  A truck crossed a 0020, and at 0215 the 1st Battalion moved up to the bridge.  The 2nd Battalion was near the town on the opposite side of the river and was instructed to clean up machine guns at the far end of the bridge so that the 1st Battalion could begin to cross.  At 0300 the 1st Battalion was crossing, followed by the CP group.  Once across, the 1st Battalion spread out to the right from les Motiers en Bauptois, which had been cleared by 2nd Battalion.  The 1st Battalion met little or no opposition.  At 0400 the CP was established about 500 yards south of the river.  While the 2nd Battalion continued mopping up, the 3rd Battalion had crossed and pushed south on the left of the 1st Battalion.  It met considerably stiffer resistance that the 1st Battalion and suffered most of the casualties sustained in this operation.

The 507th Parachute Infantry, which had crossed the Douve River east of Liesville, was moving in toward the 325th during the 12 days the Division was in a defensive position.  The 3rd Battalion of the 508th Parachute Infantry was attached to the 325th Glider Infantry, crossing the river where the 2nd Battalion, 325th, had crossed.  Their battalion commander reported to Col. Lewis at 1000.  The 3rd Battalion, 508th, was used on the left flank of the regiment.  It advanced south astride the Etienville-Pretot Road.

The 1st Battalion, 325th, had reached its objective, a sector extending in an arc from the east side of the creek east of la Hau de Haut south and east along the Bois de Limors, by 0730.  At 1030 the 3rd Battalion, 325th, had reached the sector they were to hold, which was a continuation of the arc for 3000 yards south and east to an area a few hundred yards north of la Dranguerie on the right flank of the 508th.  Contact was established by patrol with the 507th about 1100.  At 1405 the main body of the 3rd Battalion, 508th, passed through the 1st Battalion of the 507th and moved on toward Pretot.

Behind the lines, the engineers were working hard to get the bridge across the Douve River at Etienville in shape for heavy traffic.  Col. Lewis was waiting for this to get up the antitank guns.  The bridge was ready for heavy vehicular movement at 1740.  That evening the CP was moved south of the river to a farmhouse some 3000 yards south of the Etienville Bridge.  About 2000 the battalion of the 508th was in position some 500 yards north of Pretot, and the 2nd Battalion, 325th, relieved the 507th of responsibility for Vindefontaine and the road block about 900 yards west of it.

The situation stabilized along these general lines.  On the 20th, the 3rd Battalion, 508th, advanced south and took Pretot, but came under very severe enemy mortar and sniper fire.  The Battalion was ordered to withdraw under cover of an artillery concentration to the higher ground to their rear.  About midnight of the 21st, the 2nd Battalion, 325th, and the latter units went into reserve.  The Regiment stayed in the line with little activity throught the 2nd of July.  The Germans did not counterattack but apparently used the time to consolidate their own positions.  There was constant patrol activity on the part of the Regiment and of the 507th on the left.  Except for clashes with patrols, there was little small arms fire.  Mortars and artillery, however, took their toll.  Cannonading was a nightly habit with our artillery, and the Germans generally groped around for our batteries with a few rounds of an evening.

On July 2d the Regiment had 55 officers, 4 of them replacements and 2 attached, and 1245 enlisted men, some having returned to duty.  Although enlisted replacements were in training at the base camp, none were brought to Normandy, possibly because it had not been expected that the Division would stay in action so long, possibly because it was felt that so many new men could not be advantageously absorbed.

Another mission, the final one of the campaign for the Regiment, was assigned for the 3d of July.  The Division was to seize a series of hills near la Haye du Puits.  The Regimental objective was originally announced at Hill 95 near the village of Ste Catherine and about 2100 yards northeast of la Haye du Puits.  The drive was to take a generally southwesterly direction, bearing more nearly west as it went along.  The 90th Division was to be on our left flank to the south.  The 325th was next to the 90th's sector, with the 507th on the Regiment's right and the 508th to the right of the 507th.  At 0515 an arillery and mortar barrage preceded the attack.  Air support was scheduled, but the rainy weather precluded such assistance.  At 0630, the regiment left the line of departure, which ran about 800 yards northwest from a point 2 or 3 hundred yards northeast of la Dranguerie.  The 1st Battalion was on the left and the 2nd Battalion on the right.  The 3rd Battalion followed the 1st.  The 1st Battalion, after a slow start crossing the creek near la Dranguerie, moved forward with little resistance.  The 2nd Battalion had tougher going, and the 3rd Battalion was committed to fill the gap between them at 0958.  By noontime, however, it was brought back in reserve.  The 359th Infantry of the 90th Division had not kept pace with the advance of the 325th, and as the day went on the flank became more and more exposed.  About 1600 the 2nd Battalion was north of Faudemer, and the 1st Battalion was west of the town.  At 1700 the Regiment was informed that its objective had been changed to the town of la Poterie, about 3700 yards east of teh original objective.  The 505th had taken Hill 131, about 4500 yards northeast of la Haye du Puits.  The 508th and the 507th were assigned objectives southeast of this hill, the effect of all this being that the Division changed direction so as to establish a defensive position for the night extending roughly east and west and covering the gap left by the slow progress of the 90th Division.  The 325th's sector was from northeast of la Poterie to and including Faudemer.  The 1st and 2nd Battalions continued the advance toward la Poterie.  However, by 2200 their attack had stalled 600 yards short of the town.  The companies were badly depleted.  The 3rd Battalion was therefore placed in line.

On the morning of 4 July the attack was resumed at 0800, 1st and 3nd Battalions in line, 2nd in reserve.  Artillery fire was used before the take-off.  A little after noontime the town of la Poterie had fallen.  The Regiment remained pretty much were it was.  Patrols found tanks and other signs of enemy activity, and there was some mortar and artillery fire.  The enemy began the 5th of July with a counter-attack against the 507th.  Forty minutes later the 2nd Battalion, 325th, reported a breakthrough in 'E' Company's area.  However, matters were straightened out, and at 1240 the Regiment was attacking south to make contact with the 90th Division.  No artillery preparation was forthcoming, and mortars were used instead to support the attack.  It was found that enemy resistance was coming from isolated strong points.  An overlay was received from the 359th Infantry at 1330.  Their regiment was shown to be on Hill 122, about 1800 yards south of la Poterie.  The Regiment continued its advance, cleaning out strong points as it went.  The Regimental objective along the east-west road was reached at 1600.  Mopping up continued.  Two pleasant incidents marked the day.  It was reported at 1430 that elements o fthe 79th Division were in the railway station at la Haye du Puits, and shortly before 2000 hours officers from the 8th Infantry Division visited the Regimental CP.  The 6th of July was a day of reorganization, taking stock of captured equipment and of minor activity.  The enemy was seen in retreat.  The effective strength of the Regiment on this day was 41 officers and 956 men.  Company 'G', 325th, had only 12 men report for duty.  Company 'G', 2nd Battalion, 401st, was the strongest company in the Regiment with 57 men.  At 0445 on 7 July, the 2nd Battalion was moved to fill a gap between the 2nd and 3rd Battalions, 507th.  However, a few hours later it was relieved.  On this day the entire Regiment was moved to an assembly area at le Comterie.  The Regiment was kept in Corps reserve through 10 Juy, the rear CP personnel moving up to join the main body on the 8th.  On 11 July the Regiment began its move to an assembly area along Utah Beach, closing its last CP in Normandy at 2330 that date.  On the 12th and 13th the men of the Regiment enjoyed teh comparative luxury of travel by LST.  At 1230 on 14, July, the Regiment closed in its basecamp at Scraptoft, England.  Training began again in earnest on the 1st of August.

It was for the above-mentioned success of their efforts in Normandy that the soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division were awarded the red and green braided French Fourregerre, and the prestigious Presidential Unit Citation.

The next glider assault for the 325th was during Operation Market Garden, the largest airborne operation ever conducted.  During this battle, the 325th landed among German positions that had surrounded other elements of the 82nd Airborne Division.  This glider attack turned the tide of battle and earned the Regiment even more recognition for its performance, the Netherland's Military Order of William.

The 325th saw more combat in December 1944 when it decimated two German Divisions during the Battle of the Bulge.  In 1945, the 325th’s action in Germany ended with the Regiment driving deep into the heart of Germany.  After the war, the Regiment assisted in Berlin occupational duties until it returned to the United States in 1946 and was deactivated on December 15, 1947.

The Regiment returned to the All American Division on December 15, 1948 and was redesignated this time as the 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment.