NEW YORK - Soldiers from the New York Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry Regiment will commemorate leading the world's largest St. Patrick's Day parade for the past 160 years with fellow Soldiers from the Irish Defense Forces.
Joining the Soldiers and veterans of the 69th Infantry will be more than 40 volunteers from Ireland's 58th Reserve Infantry Battalion for the city parade march up Fifth Avenue.
"It was truly an honor to be part of a 249 year old tradition," said Irish Lt. John McCandless on his blog discussing last year's participation in the 2010 parade.
This year also marks the city's 250th annual St. Patrick's Day parade.
More than 800 Soldiers of the New York Army National Guard's 69th Infantry Regiment and support elements, including the 42nd Infantry Division Band, will lead the city parade.
An estimated 40 soldiers from the 58th Reserve Infantry in County Sligo in Ireland are expected to join their U.S. counterparts in the day-long celebration of Irish American culture.
The two military organizations share a common bond in Col. Michael Corcoran, a native of Ballymote, Ireland and commander of the Irish regiment for the Battle of Bull Run in the American Civil War.
The 69th Infantry, based at the Lexington Avenue Armory here in New York City, has served as the St. Patrick's Day parade Honor Guard since 1851. Anti-immigrant emotions in that era often led to violence and the Irish troops participated to ensure the safety of the celebration. The National Guard troops of Irish heraldry have led the city parade in every year since.
The 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry
The 69th Regiment's history and lineage begins when predecessor units were organized in December 1849 in New York City from companies of the 1st Irish Regiment.
Over a year later, the 2nd Regiment was organized in October 1851. A month later, the 2nd Irish Regiment was mustered into the New York State Militia as the 69th Infantry Regiment.
The regiment received its nickname as the "Fighting 69th" from Confederate General Robert E. Lee during the Battle of Malvern Hill in 1862 in Virginia.
In World War I the 69th was re-designated the 165th Infantry and fought as part of the 42nd Infantry Division, the Rainbow Division, the second U.S. division to arrive in France. The famous author of the poem "Trees," Sgt. Joyce Kilmer, was a scout in the 69th Infantry and died while serving in France.
In World War II the 69th was part of the New York National Guard's 27th Infantry Division and invaded the Islands of Makin and Saipan and fought on Okinawa.
In 2004 the battalion was mobilized for service in Operation Iraqi Freedom. As part of the 256th Brigade Combat Team the battalion secured "Route Irish", the road from Baghdad International Airport to downtown Baghdad. At one time this was termed the most dangerous road in Iraq and the 1-69th turned that around.
Hundreds of battalion members were assigned to the 2008 deployment of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team to Afghanistan for Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix, the training and mentoring mission for the developing Afghan security forces.
The battalion expects to transfer hundreds more of its Soldiers to the brigade again in 2011 for a second Afghan deployment in 2012.