US 12TH ARMORED DIVISION
Hellcat Division

The 12th Armored Division was established in September 1942. The division deployed to France in 1944 and fought there, Germany and Austria before VE Day. Company D was an integrated unit of which Sgt Edward A Carter Jr was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Medal of Honor (posthumously).

Stateside training was begun at Camp Campbell, Kentucky and continued at Camp Barkeley, Texas. Components initially were the 56th Armored Infantry Rgt, 43rd and 44th Tank Rgts. in 1943 12th Armored Division reorganized its Tank components to the 23rd, 43rd, 44th, 714th, and 779th Tank Battalions. In November 1943, the 44th and 779th Tank Battalions were reassigned to the PTO (the 44th distinguished itself on Luzon being the first US tankers in Manila).
The 56th Armored Infantry Rgt was reorganized as 3 separate Armored Infantry Battalions (AIB), 17th, 56, and 66th AIB's

The 12th Armored Division shipped out to England and arrived in November 1944 where it awaited replacement tanks as their allotment had been "borrowed" by 3rd Army. Deployment to France under the US 7th Army commenced in November and the 12th Armored Division entered combat on 5th December 1944 near Wiesslingen in the Alsace region of France.

In January 1945, 12th Armored Division found itself tasked to reduce the bridgehead established by the German Nordwind Offensive (a secondary offensive to the Ardennes effort aimed at clearing the Allies from Germany West of the Rhine). The Division's attack at Herrlisheim met with severe heavy losses as the tanks and halftracks advanced over flat open ground with little air or artillery support. Fortunately, the remnants and all hands of the HQ Battalion stemmed the subsequent German counterattack and saved the day. The 12th Armored Division had suffered 1,700 casualties in the January battles and was pulled off the line to rest and refit.

The 12th Armored Division was then assigned to the French 1st Army and on 5th February 1945 attacked from Colmar to Rouffach where they and French units met sealing off and ending German resistance in the Vosges Mountains.

By 18 March 12th Armored Division was assigned to Patton's 3rd Army for the eventual Rhine River crossing operations. For matters of deception, all personnel and vehicles unit identification markings were painted over, thus earning the Division the nickname "Mystery Division". The Rhine was crossed on 28th March at Worms via pontoon bridge. By April 17, 12th Armored Division had taken part in capturing Wurtzburg, Schweinfurt. Neustadt, and Munich and captured an intact bridge over the Danube River at Dillingen.

In Late April 1945, 12th Armored Division returned to the US 7th Army, spearheading the drive into Southern Bavaria and into Austria by May 3, liberating Dachau Concentration Camp and several POW camps along the way. On May 4/5, Lt John C Lee Jr of Co. B, 23rd TB took part in the unique Castle Itter battle where a handful of his men and German Vehrmacht soldiers fought off Waffen SS forces attempting to seize and execute some VIP French internees held there.

Other organic units:

92nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron
12th Armored Divisional Artillery;
493 Field Artillery Battalion
494 Field Artillery Battalion
495 Field Artillery Battalion
119th Armored Engineer Battalion

primary source * wikipedia*