A Brief History of the Georgia National Guard, 1733-Present

By Maj. William Carraway
Historian, Georgia Army National Guard

For nearly three centuries, Georgia’s citizens have volunteered to leave home and family to protect their fellow citizens. Lord James Oglethorpe established the first elements of the Georgia National Guard. Upon arriving in Savannah In 1733 Oglethorpe moved swiftly to establish and train the Georgia Militia.

In 1742, a Spanish force of more than 2,000 troops threatened Simons Island. Among the units Oglethorpe had at his disposal was a troop of mounted rangers, a forerunner of today’s 1st Battalion, 118th Field Artillery Regiment.

On July 7, 1742, the rangers spotted Spanish troops near Gully Hole Creek. Oglethorpe personally led an assault that blunted the Spanish advance. Subsequently, Oglethorpe’s small force routed the numerically superior Spanish at Bloody Marsh. The Spanish withdrew from St. Simons and would not again seriously contend for Georgian soil.

Since the first rattle of musket fire at Gully Hole Creek, Georgia Guardsmen have served their state and nation in conflicts and in times of emergency. Units such as the Chatham Artillery of Savannah and the Liberty Independent Troop of Hinesville were formed before the American Revolution, served through that conflict, and continue in service today.

Georgia artillerymen employed their cannons during the War of 1812 and Macon infantry served in the Seminole Wars. Georgians fell at the Alamo and crossed Mexico with Zachary Taylor. During the great shattering of the American Civil War, more than 130,000 Georgians served, and more than 18,000 lost their lives. Georgia Guardsmen mobilized for the Spanish American War and served on the Mexican Border in 1916. More than sixty Georgia Guard companies were deployed to Europe during World War I.

More than 70 units of the Georgia Army National Guard served during World War II. Field artillery units from Savannah and infantry units from across the state went ashore at Omaha and Utah Beach. Expanding the Normandy beachhead, these units soldiered east across France and entered Germany, achieving victory, but at a terrible price. The casualty list for the 121st Infantry Regiment alone is 70 pages long. In the Pacific Theater, field artillery and anti-aircraft units protected the skies over Allied bases in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Guadalcanal, where their guns stood watch over Henderson Field. Georgia Guardsmen participated in the beach assault at Makin Island as part of the 193^rd Tank Battalion and engaged in the bloody conflict for Okinawa.

During the Korean War, the Marietta, Ga.-based 54^th Fighter Wing was activated and units of the Georgia Air National Guard deployed to Japan and Korea. Citizen-Airmen flew missions over the skies of Korea and six Airmen made the ultimate sacrifice. Soldiers of the Georgia Army National Guard’s 108^th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigade was activated to protect the skies over American cities.

In 1961, with the Cold War escalating, the Georgia Army National Guard activated the 111th Signal Battalion in response to the Berlin Crisis. Beginning in 1965, the Georgia Air National Guard flew global air transport missions to Vietnam delivering supplies and evacuating wounded personnel.

Nearly 6,000 Georgia Guardsmen were mobilized for Desert Shield in 1990. During Desert Storm, the 138^th Medical Company cared for American and Iraqi patients while the 265^th Engineer Group commanded the largest engineer force in the XVIII Airborne Corps, constructing more than 800 miles of road.

More than 33,000 Georgia National Guard Soldiers and Airmen mobilized overseas to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other nations within the Central Command area of operations following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Elements of the 48^th Infantry Brigade Combat Team were serving in Bosnia-Herzegovina at the time of the attacks and units of the Georgia National Guard were swiftly called to support missions overseas and at home.

As you read this, it is likely that Citizen Soldiers and Airmen are deployed on six continents supporting missions in all geographic combat commands, as they have continuously for decades. The spirit of service and courage that defended Georgia in the 18^th century is carried on by today’s generation of Georgia Guardsmen.

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The 3rd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment: Lineage and Legacy

 By Maj. William Carraway

Historian, Georgia Army National Guard

 

Left: The colors of the 121st Infantry Regiment's three battalions. Right:  Soldiers of the Company I, 3rd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment move down
the main road amid the ruins of Hurtgen, Germany Dec. 5, 1944. Photo 270805, National Archives Records Administration,

 

The Headquarters Company of the 3^rd Battalion, 121^st Infantry Regiment, was federally recognized June 3, 2010, as Headquarters Company, 560^th Battlefield Surveillance Brigade.[1] With the inactivation of the 560^th BFSB, the company received its current designation.[2] While it carries on the lineage and honors of the 560^th BFSB, the 3^rd Battalion also recalls the history and legacy of the 121^st Infantry Regiment.

 

Georgia National Guard Soldiers of 3rd Battalion 121st Infantry Regiment in 1939. Georgia National Guard Archives.

From 1917 to 1955, the 121^st Infantry Regiment consisted of three infantry battalions. These battalions were deployed to the Mexican border from 1916-1917, mobilized to France in both world wars, and were part of the post-World War II reorganization of the Georgia National Guard in 1946. The battalions carried forward as armored infantry battalions and other units assigned to the 48^th Armor Division from 1956 to 1968. With the inactivation of the 48^th Armor Division in 1968, the 3^rd Battalion was also inactivated.

 

Soldiers of Company C, 3rd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment receive an operations order during the eXportable Combat Training Capability exercise
 at Fort Stewart, Ga. June 14, 2017. Photo by Capt. William Carraway.

For decades, the 121^st Infantry consisted of the 1^st and 2^nd Battalion. It wasn’t until September 16, 2016, that the colors of all three battalions would once again assemble on the same field as the 48^th Infantry Brigade Combat Team entered into the associated unit pilot program with the 3^rd Infantry Division.[3]

 

Command Sergeant Major Clint Cowser addresses Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion 121st Infantry Regiment  during the battalion’s change of command
and change of responsibility ceremony January 11, 2020 at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta, Ga. Photo by Maj. William Carraway.

In 2018, the 121^st Infantry Regiment deployed three battalions for the first time since World War II. The regiment mobilized with the 48^th Infantry Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan where the 3^rd Battalion worked with U.S. Special Forces and trained Afghan National Army Soldiers.

Georgia Army National Guard Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 121st Infantry Regiment, maintain a security presence in Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta
while assisting local law enforcement during protest demonstrations May 30, 2020. Photo by Maj. William Carraway

Just months after their return from Afghanistan, Soldiers of the 3^rd Battalion were activated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and supported law enforcement in Atlanta in response to civil unrest. Soldiers of the 3^rd Battalion provided security at Centennial Park during demonstrations in June 2020[4] and were again tasked to support security operations during the presidential inauguration in Washington D.C. in January 2021. 

The command team of the 48th IBCT visits Soldiers of the 3-121 in Tbilisi, Georgia for Exercise Agile Spirit 23. Photo courtesy of the 3-121.

Soldiers of the 3rd Battalion continued to support overseas operations, mobilizing to the country of Georgia in 2023 for Exercise Agile Spirit. In January 2024, Soldiers of 3-121 mobilized with the 48th IBCT in support of missions in the Central Command area of operations and returned to Georgia in December 2024.

Soldiers of Company A, 3-121, conduct base defense and dismounted operations  in support of Operation Spartan Shield in April 2024.
Photo courtesy of 3-121.

 

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[1] OA 171-10 June 9, 2010 effective January 1, 2010.

[2] OA 545-15 January 8, 2016 effective September 1, 2016.

[3] William Carraway. “Georgia Army Guard Soldiers don 3rd ID patch as part of associated unit program.” Nationalguard.mil. September 19, 2016. https://www.nationalguard.mil/News/State-Partnership-Program/Article/948257/georgia-army-guard-soldiers-don-3rd-id-patch-as-part-of-associated-unit-program/

[4] William Carraway. “Eight Decades of Coordinated Domestic Response Operations: The Ga. DoD and GSP.” The Georgia Guardsman. Vol. 20, 2020, 6. https://issuu.com/georgiaguard/docs/covid-19_20magazine_20vol_20ii