The motto of the infantry is “follow me,” for the infantry is always in the Vanguard of Battle. The infantry is the oldest of the combat arms. Its roots begin with the first cavemen who stood together to protect their tribe and have continued throughout history.
Let us look at the missions of the other two major combat arms, artillery and armor. Artillery lends support through indirect fire and armor provides firepower and mobility to the battlefield. The artillery supports from as much as 17 kilometers or more behind the battle lines and armor provides its fire power and mobility in the form of a main battle tank made of sixty two tons of homogenous steel. The infantry men's mission is to close with, kill or destroy the enemy by means of fire and maneuver, a deadly game of leap frog where one group of Infantrymen lay down a base of fire while others maneuver toward the objective. This deadly game is repeated until the objective is taken! His protection, a cloth uniform.
The Infantryman has many ways of arriving at the Battlefield. He may drop in on the silent canopy of a parachute, or arrive on the beating blades of a helicopter. He may ride in the protection of an Armored Personnel Carrier, or as so many have done, simply walk to battle. Regardless of his means of transportation he must, in the end, face the enemy and begin his deadly game of fire and maneuver.
As much pride as a combat Infantryman has, he knows that he does not stand-alone. The welcome sound of an Air Force forward air controller telling him that he has fighters on station, the call from the helicopter gunship lead saying that he is rolling in on the enemy, the whistle of friendly artillery putting steel on the target, or the tank spitting out its deadly munitions. All are in support of the Infantry.
We cannot forget the support personnel that provide the Infantrymen with the means to do their job. Weapons, ammunition, food, water, uniforms, repair, medical care, military intelligence, yes and pay as well. In fact, in the past, the ratio of support personnel to combat personnel has been five to one. In Vietnam it was as much as ten to one.
It is ironic; however, that in this day of high technology, the only ground gaining arm is still the Infantryman himself. You may bomb it or strafe it, you may call artillery fire on it, or run a tank over it; but it's not yours until a man with a rifle is standing on it. The next time that you see a man who has been in the military ask him what he was. If he has seen the hell of battle as an Infantryman, you will see the pride in his eyes; but look closely as you will also see the sadness as he remembers.
An Infantryman's war is a very personal war. The pilot flies home without seeing the results of his endeavors, in fact, if an enemy aircraft is shot down one does not kill the enemy pilot hanging helpless in his parachute. The artilleryman rarely sees the results of steel on the target, but the Infantryman measures his endeavors in human life, both friend and foe. Battle is not forgotten, ever. Another gentleman, a World War II veteran of the 11th Airborne Division who jumped on Corregidor, and fought his way through the Philippines and Okinawa, remarked I have forgotten the names of some of my buddies as I am seventy-eight and my memory is not as good as it once was; but I can still see all their faces. Somewhere, in a shoebox or a desk drawer these men will have a little blue badge with a rifle on it and a wreath around it. It is the Combat Infantrymen's Badge, a symbol of pride and sacrifice. To many, if not all, it is a treasured possession.
