Happy Birthday, U.S. Army!

June 14th, is the 245th birthday of the U.S. Army

The battles of Lexington and Concord were fought on April 19, 1775 in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. These fights were the opening military engagements of the American War of Independence.

Two months later, the U.S. Army was established on June 14, 1775. On that date, the Continental Congress directed that “six companies of expert riflemen, be immediately raised in Pennsylvania, two in Maryland, and two in Virginia … [and] as soon as completed, shall march and join the army near Boston, to be there employed as light infantry, under the command of the chief Officer in that army.”

The U.S. Army was in the field a year before the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776.

The story of the U.S. Army is the story of the United States of America. Protecting the liberties and rights of the American people, and fighting our nation’s battles has been the U.S. Army’s responsibility and its honor.

Soldiers of the U.S. Army have earned a legacy of commitment and bravery in service to the United States of America for 245 years.

For each major campaign fought by the U.S. Army throughout the history of the United States, a campaign streamer, a thin strip of embroidered fabric, is added, one by one through blood and sacrifice, to the flag of the U.S. Army.

The U.S. Army’s first 19 campaign streamers were earned during the American War of Independence. This is where the story begins.

LEXINGTON: April 19, 1775
TICONDEROGA: May 10, 1775
BOSTON: April 19, 1775 to March 17, 1776
QUEBEC: August 28, 1775 to July 1776
CHARLESTON: June 28, 1776
LONG ISLAND: August 27, 1776
TRENTON: December 26, 1776
PRINCETON: January 3, 1777
SARATOGA: July 30 to October 17, 1777
BRANDYWINE: September 11, 1777
GERMANTOWN: October 4, 1777
MONMOUTH: June 28, 1778
SAVANNAH: December 29, 1778
SAVANNAH: September 16 to October 10, 1779
CHARLESTON: March 29 to May 12, 1780
CAMDEN: August 16, 1780
COWPENS: January 17, 1781
GUILFORD COURT HOUSE: March 16, 1781
YORKTOWN: September 28 to October 19, 1781

Between the first streamer, LEXINGTON, and the most recent streamer, OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE, the military intervention against the Islamic State, are 188 other streamers. Each one represents the commitment of duty, honor, and country of the men and women of the U.S. Army.

“From one end of the world to the other, [American men and women] have drained deep the chalice of courage.”
– General Douglas MacArthur

Happy 245th, U.S. Army!