View source for Twelfth United States Army Group

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name=Twelfth United States Army Group
|image=12th Army Group.svg
|image_size=150px
|caption=Shoulder sleeve insignia
|dates=1944–45
|country={{flagicon|USA}} [[United States]]
|branch={{army|United States}}
|type=[[Army group]]
|role=Army Group [[Headquarters#Military|Headquarters]]
|size= 1.3 million men
|command_structure=[[Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force|Allied Expeditionary Force]]
|current_commander=
|garrison=
|ceremonial_chief=
|colonel_of_the_regiment=
|nickname=
|patron=
|motto=
|colors=
|march=
|mascot=
|battles=[[World War II]]
|notable_commanders=[[Omar Bradley]]
|anniversaries=
}}
The '''Twelfth United States [[Army group|Army Group]]''' was the largest and most powerful [[United States Army]] formation ever to take to the field, commanding four [[Field army|field armies]] at its peak in 1945: [[First United States Army]], [[United States Army Central|Third United States Army]], [[Ninth United States Army]], and [[Fifteenth United States Army]].<ref name="A General's Life">{{cite book|isbn=978-0-671-41023-0|title=A General's Life|last=Bradley|first=Omar N.|authorlink=Omar Bradley|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|year=1983|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/generalslifeaut00brad}}</ref> The [[order of battle]] across the four armies comprised 12 [[corps]], containing a total of 48 [[Division (military)|divisions]]. Formed eight days after the [[Normandy landings]], it initially controlled the First and the Third US Armies. Through various configurations in 1944 and 1945, the Twelfth US Army Group controlled the majority of American forces on the [[Western Front (World War II)|Western Front]]. It was commanded by General [[Omar Bradley]] with its headquarters established in London on 14 July 1944.
During the first week of the Normandy landings and the [[Operation Overlord|Battle of Normandy]], Bradley's First US Army formed the right wing of the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] lines. They were joined during July by the Third US Army, under the command of General [[George S. Patton]], to form the Twelfth Army Group.  Twelfth Army Group became operational in France on 1 August 1944.  With General Omar Bradley assuming command of the Twelfth Army Group, Lieutenant General [[Courtney Hodges]] assumed command of the First Army. In addition, the [[United States Army Air Forces|USAAF]]'s [[Ninth Air Force#Operations in Europe 1944–1945|Ninth Air Force]] (not included in the 1.3 million soldiers figure) was attached to support the field armies of the Twelfth Army Group.<ref name=ROFAAR/>
Until 1 September 1944, when [[Dwight D. Eisenhower|General Dwight D. Eisenhower]] assumed overall command of the Allied land forces in [[Western Front (World War II)|Northwest Europe]], the US forces in Normandy were included with the [[Second Army (United Kingdom)|British Second Army]] and the [[First Canadian Army]] in the British headquarters formation [[21st Army Group]], commanded by [[Bernard Montgomery|General Bernard Montgomery]].
After the breakout from the beach-head at Normandy, the Twelfth Army Group formed the center of the Allied forces on the Western Front. To the north was the British 21st Army Group (the First Canadian and British Second) and, to the south, advancing from their [[Operation Dragoon|landing]] on the Mediterranean coast, was the [[Sixth United States Army Group]] ([[United States Army Europe|Seventh United States Army]] and [[First Army (France)|French First Army]]).
As the Twelfth advanced through Germany in 1945, it grew to control four United States field armies: the [[First United States Army|First]], the [[United States Army Central|Third]], the [[Ninth United States Army|Ninth]] and the [[Fifteenth United States Army|Fifteenth]]. By [[Victory in Europe Day|V-E Day]], the Twelfth Army Group was a force that numbered over 1.3 million men.<ref>CSI REPORT No. 6, Larger units: Theater Army – Army Group – Field Army, Combat Studies Institute, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, January 1985 [http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS71523]</ref>
Twelfth Army Group was inactivated on 12 July 1945 upon Bradley's departure to become Director of the [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|Veterans Administration]].  Its subordinate elements then became directly subordinate to [[United States Army Europe and Africa|United States Army Europe]].
==Staff==
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Headquarters Twelfth United States Army Group<br>Commanding General and Chiefs of Staff Sections<ref name=ROFAAR>{{cite report |editor-last=Landon |editor-first=Charles R. |title=Report of Operations (Final After Action Report) 12th Army Group |volume=I Summary |pp=1,4 |date=31 July 1945 |oclc=4520568 |url=https://cgsc.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p4013coll8/id/3141/ |access-date=29 April 2022 |ref=none |quote=[page 1] 12th Army Group "Eagle" [w/talons holding [[shoulder sleeve insignia]]s of the four numbered armies and the one numbered air force]; [page 4 - table of the headquarters: commander and personal staff; coordinating assistant chiefs of staff; coordinating special staff]}}</ref>
! Position !! 1 August 1944 !! 8 May 1945
|-
|Commanding General || Lieutenant General Omar N. Bradley || General Omar N. Bradley
|-
|Chief of Staff || Major General [[Leven Cooper Allen|Leven C. Allen]] || Major General Leven C. Allen
|-
|Deputy Chief of Staff || Brigadier General [[Robert W. Hasbrouck]] || Brigadier General [[Henry Balding Lewis|Henry B. Lewis]]
|-
|Secretary, General Staff || Lieutenant Colonel Eldon L. Bailey || Colonel Eldon L. Bailey
|-
|G-1 (Personnel)<ref name=ARSOF>{{cite web |title=The General Staff System {{!}} Basic Structure |work=[[United States Army Special Operations Command]] History Office |url=https://arsof-history.org/articles/v7n2_general_staff_system_page_1.html#:~:text=The%20roles%20of%20each%20staff,Logistics%20(G4)%20(S4) |access-date=}}</ref> || Colonel Joseph J. O'Hare || Brigadier General Joseph O'Hare
|-
|G-2 (Intelligence)<ref name=ARSOF/> || Brigadier General [[Edwin L. Sibert]] || Brigadier General Edwin L. Sibert
|-
|G-3 (Operations and training)<ref name=ARSOF/> || Brigadier General A. Franklin Kibler || Brigadier General A. Franklin Kibler
|-
|G-4 (Logistics)<ref name=ARSOF/> || Brigadier General Raymond G. Moses || Brigadier General Raymond G. Moses
|-
|G-5 (Civil-military operations)<ref name=ARSOF/> || Colonel [[Cornelius E. Ryan]] || Brigadier General Cornelius E. Ryan
|-
|Adjutant General || Brigadier General Henry B. Lewis || Colonel Charles R. Landon
|-
|Artillery Officer || Brigadier General [[John H. Hinds]] || Colonel Thomas B. Hedekin
|-
|Armored || Colonel [[Edwin Kennedy Wright|Edwin K. Wright]] || Colonel Edwin K. Wright
|-
|Chaplain ||  || Lieutenant Colonel Morgan J. O'Brien
|-
|Chemical || Colonel John C. MacArthur || Colonel Patrick F. Powers
|-
|Engineer || Colonel Patrick H. Timothy || Brigadier General Patrick H. Timothy
|-
|Finance || Lieutenant Colonel Paul G. Hommeyer || Major Eugene R. Melton
|-
|Headquarters Commandant || Colonel Harry J. Karakas || Colonel Harry J. Karakas
|-
|Inspector General || Lieutenant Colonel Walter B. Cramer || Colonel Frank G. Ringland
|-
|Judge Advocate || Colonel Claude B. Mickelwait || Colonel Claude B. Mickelwait
|-
|Ordnance || Colonel Harold A. Nisley || Brigadier General Harold A. Nisley
|-
|{{abbr|P & PW|Publicity and Psychological Warfare}} || Colonel [[Clifford Ross Powell|Clifford R. Powell]] || Colonel Francis J. Fitzgerald
|-
|Provost Marshal || Colonel Claud E. Stadtman || Colonel Claud E. Stadtman
|-
|Quartermaster || Colonel James W. Younger || Brigadier General James W. Younger
|-
|Signal || Colonel Garland C. Black || Brigadier General Garland C. Black
|-
|Special Service || Lieutenant Colonel Francis E. Conder || Colonel Thomas M. Crawford
|-
|Surgeon || Colonel Alvin L. Gorby || Colonel Alvin L. Gorby
|-
|Transportation || Colonel Calvin L. Whittle || Colonel Calvin L. Whittle
|-
|Commanding General, Special Troops || Brigadier General Charles R. Doran || Brigadier General Charles R. Doran
|-
|}
==Order of battle – 8 May 1945==
{{see also|Sixth United States Army Group#Order of battle – 8 May 1945}}
* [[File:12th Army Group.svg|22px]] 12th Army Group – General [[Omar Bradley|Omar N. Bradley]]
** [[File:1st Army.svg|22px]] [[First United States Army|First Army]] – General [[Courtney Hodges|Courtney H. Hodges]]
*** [[File:78th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[78th Infantry Division (United States)|78th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Edwin P. Parker Jr.]]
*** [[File:US VII Corps SSI.png|22px]] [[VII Corps (United States)|VII Corps]] – Lieutenant General [[J. Lawton Collins]]
**** [[File:3rd US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[3rd Armored Division (United States)|3rd Armored Division]] – Brigadier General [[Doyle Overton Hickey|Doyle O. Hickey]]
**** [[File:9th Infantry Division patch.svg|22px]] [[9th Infantry Division (United States)|9th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Louis A. Craig]]
**** [[File:US 69th Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[69th Infantry Division (United States)|69th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Emil F. Reinhardt]]
**** [[File:104TrngDivLdrTrngSSI.svg|22px]] [[104th Infantry Division (United States)|104th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr.]]
*** [[File:VIII CORPS SSI.gif|22px]] [[VIII Corps (United States)|VIII Corps]] – Major General [[Troy H. Middleton]]
**** [[File:6th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[6th Armored Division (United States)|6th Armored Division]] – Major General [[Robert W. Grow]]
**** [[File:76 Inf Div SSI.svg|22px]] [[76th Infantry Division (United States)|76th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[William R. Schmidt]]
**** [[File:US 87th Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[87th Infantry Division (United States)|87th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Frank L. Culin Jr.]]
**** [[File:89th Regional Readiness Command SSI.svg|22px]] [[89th Infantry Division (United States)|89th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Thomas D. Finley]]
** [[File:US3ASSI.svg|22px]] [[United States Army Central|Third Army]] – General [[George S. Patton|George S. Patton Jr.]]
*** [[File:4th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[4th Infantry Division (United States)|4th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Harold W. Blakeley]]
*** [[File:70th Infantry Division patch.svg|22px]] [[70th Infantry Division (United States)|70th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Allison J. Barnett]]
*** [[File:3 Corps Shoulder Sleeve Insignia.svg|22px]] [[III Armored Corps|III Corps]] – Major General [[James Van Fleet]]
**** [[File:14th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[14th Armored Division (United States)|14th Armored Division]] – Major General [[Albert C. Smith (United States Army officer)|Albert C. Smith]]
**** [[File:US 99th Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[99th Infantry Division (United States)|99th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Walter E. Lauer]]
*** [[File:V Corps.svg|22px]] [[V Corps (United States)|V Corps]] – Major General [[Clarence R. Huebner]]
**** [[File:9th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[9th Armored Division (United States)|9th Armored Division]] – Major General [[John W. Leonard]]
**** [[File:16th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[16th Armored Division (United States)|16th Armored Division]] – Brigadier General [[John L. Pierce]]
**** [[File:US 1st Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[1st Infantry Division (United States)|1st Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Clift Andrus]]
**** [[File:2nd Infantry Division SSI (full color).svg|22px]] [[2nd Infantry Division (United States)|2nd Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Walter M. Robertson]]
**** [[File:97THID.svg|22px]] [[97th Infantry Division (United States)|97th Infantry Division]] – Brigadier General [[Milton B. Halsey]]
*** [[File:XII CORPS SSI.gif|22px]] [[XII Corps (United States)|XII Corps]] – Major General [[Stafford LeRoy Irwin]]
**** [[File:4th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[4th Armored Division (United States)|4th Armored Division]] – Major General [[William M. Hoge]]
**** [[File:11th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[11th Armored Division (United States)|11th Armored Division]] – Major General [[Holmes E. Dager]]
**** [[File:US 5th Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[5th Infantry Division (United States)|5th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Albert E. Brown]]
**** [[File:Yankee Division.svg|22px]] [[26th Infantry Division (United States)|26th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Willard Stewart Paul|Willard S. Paul]]
**** [[File:90th Infantry Division.patch.svg|22px]] [[90th Infantry Division (United States)|90th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Herbert L. Earnest]]
*** [[File:XX Corps ssi.gif|22px]] [[XX Corps (United States)|XX Corps]] – Major General [[Walton Walker|Walton H. Walker]]
**** [[File:13th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[13th Armored Division (United States)|13th Armored Division]] – Major General [[John Millikin]]
**** [[File:65th Infantry Division SVG.svg|22px]] [[65th Infantry Division (United States)|65th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Stanley Eric Reinhart|Stanley E. Reinhart]]
**** [[File:US 71st Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[71st Infantry Division (United States)|71st Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Willard G. Wyman]]
**** [[File:80th Inf Div SSI SVG.svg|22px]] [[80th Division (United States)|80th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Horace L. McBride]]
** [[File:US Ninth Army patch.svg|22px]] [[Ninth United States Army|Ninth Army]] – Lieutenant General [[William Hood Simpson|William H. Simpson]]
*** [[File:USA - XIII Corps.png|22px]] [[XIII Corps (United States)|XIII Corps]] – Major General [[Alvan Cullom Gillem Jr.|Alvan C. Gillem, Jr.]]
**** [[File:35th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[35th Infantry Division (United States)|35th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Paul W. Baade]]
**** [[File:US 84th Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[84th Division (United States)|84th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Alexander R. Bolling]]
**** [[File:102 INF DIV SSI.svg|22px]] [[102nd Infantry Division (United States)|102nd Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Frank A. Keating]]
*** [[File:XVI Corps SSI.svg|22px]] [[XVI Corps (United States)|XVI Corps]] – Major General [[John B. Anderson (United States Army officer)|John B. Anderson]]
**** [[File:29th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[29th Infantry Division (United States)|29th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Charles H. Gerhardt]]
**** [[File:75e Division d'Infanterie (USA).svg|22px]] [[75th Innovation Command|75th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Ray E. Porter]]
**** [[File:79th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[79th Infantry Division (United States)|79th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Ira T. Wyche]]
**** [[File:95TrainingDivSSI SVG.svg|22px]] [[95th Infantry Division (United States)|95th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Harry L. Twaddle]]
*** [[File:XIX Corps SSI.svg|22px]] [[XIX Corps (United States)|XIX Corps]] – Major General [[Raymond S. McLain]]
**** [[File:United States Army 2nd Armored Division CSIB.svg|22px]] [[2nd Armored Division (United States)|2nd Armored Division]] – Major General [[Isaac D. White]]
**** [[File:8th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[8th Armored Division (United States)|8th Armored Division]] – Major General [[John M. Devine]]
**** [[File:30th Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[30th Infantry Division (United States)|30th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Leland Hobbs|Leland S. Hobbs]]
**** [[File:83rd Infantry Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[83rd Infantry Division (United States)|83rd Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Robert C. Macon]]
** [[File:15th US Army SSI.svg|22px]] [[Fifteenth United States Army|Fifteenth Army]] – Lieutenant General [[Leonard T. Gerow]]
*** [[File:66th Infantry Division shoulder sleeve insignia.jpg|22px]] [[66th Infantry Division (United States)|66th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Herman F. Kramer]]
*** [[File:106Infantry Division.svg|22px]] [[106th Infantry Division (United States)|106th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Donald A. Stroh]]
*** [[File:XXII Corps SSI.svg|22px]] [[XXII Corps (United States)|XXII Corps]] – Major General [[Ernest N. Harmon]]
**** [[File:USA - 17 ABN DIV.svg|22px]] [[17th Airborne Division (United States)|17th Airborne Division]] – Major General [[William M. Miley]]
**** [[File:94th Regional Readiness Command SSI.svg|22px]] [[94th Infantry Division (United States)|94th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Harry J. Malony]]
*** [[File:XXIII Corps SSI.gif|22px]] [[XXIII Corps (United States)|XXIII Corps]] – Major General [[Hugh Joseph Gaffey|Hugh J. Gaffey]]
**** [[File:28th Infantry Division SSI (1918-2015).svg|22px]] [[28th Infantry Division (United States)|28th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Norman Cota|Norman D. Cota]]
** [[File:XVIII Airborne Corps CSIB.svg|22px]] [[XVIII Airborne Corps]] (attached to 21st Army Group) – Major General [[Matthew Ridgway|Matthew B. Ridgway]]
*** [[File:5th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[5th Armored Division (United States)|5th Armored Division]] – Major General [[Lunsford E. Oliver]]
*** [[File:7th US Armored Division SSI.svg|22px]] [[7th Armored Division (United States)|7th Armored Division]] – Major General [[Robert W. Hasbrouck]]
*** [[File:8th Infantry Division patch.svg|22px]] [[8th Infantry Division (United States)|8th Infantry Division]] – Major General [[Bryant Moore|Bryant E. Moore]]
*** [[File:82nd Airborne Division CSIB.svg|22px]] [[82nd Airborne Division]] – Major General [[James M. Gavin]]
Source: Bradley, Omar, ''A Soldier's Story'', New York: Henry Holt and Company (1950), pp.&nbsp;557–561
==References and notes==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* [https://www.loc.gov/search/?fa=contributor%3Aallied+forces.+army+group%2C+12th.+engineer+section Military situation maps produced by the Engineering Section of the 12th Army Group] – Library of Congress
* [http://historicalregistry.com/?page_id=222 Omar Nelson Bradley, Lt. General FUSAG 12TH AG] – Omar Bradley's D-Day June 6, 1944 Maps restored, preserved and displayed at Historical Registry
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[[Category:Army groups of the United States Army|12]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1944]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1945]]