The US Army National Guard’s 34th 'Red Bull' Infantry Division was mobilized against the complex backdrop of the United States’ lack of readiness for modern war before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. After training, the 34th ID would be deployed in early 1942 to the United Kingdom as the first US division sent overseas, before participating in Operation TORCH and the capture of Algiers. Shocking engagements with Axis forces led to early traumatic defeats in Tunisia, battles that ultimately transformed the division’s men into the killer soldiers they needed to become. Their mettle would be tested when they won the bitter fight at Hill 609, where the Red Bull broke the Axis defensive line in Tunisia, resulting in the destruction of two Axis armies and the Allied conquest of the North African shore. For the first time, almost 80 years after Nazi forces in Italy surrendered to the Allies, the complete story of the US Army National Guard’s 34th “Red Bull” Infantry Division during WWII is finally told. The Division comes to life through a narrative based on original papers, declassified documents, and personal accounts of the soldiers themselves as they changed from green troops to veteran destroyers of the Third Reich. With constant focus on what happened to the men on the battle line, this book vividly sets forth major battles and little-known events of the Red Bull’s brutal introduction to war and its heroic metamorphosis into an effective combat organization, within the context of Allied strategy and leadership. -- $c Provided by Amazon

PART I: “SOLDIERS ARE CITIZENS”: PREPARING THE NATION FOR WAR -- 1 The Strategic and Political Situation -- 2 Congress and the Army of the United States -- 3 National Pre-War Mobilization and Foreign Policy -- 4 The 34ID Federalized: Prewar Mobilization and Early Training -- 5 The War Comes to America -- 6 34th Infantry Division in Ireland -- Part II: “SOLDIERS ARE SWORN TO ACTION”: OPERATION TORCH -- 7 Algiers -- 8 The Early Tunisian Campaign, November 1942–February 1943 -- 9 Allied Dispositions and Plans, January 1943 -- 10 The Enemy’s Attack on the Eastern Dorsal Passes, January 18–28, 1943 -- 11 Allied Expectations and Axis Intentions -- 12 Changes in Allied Field Command: Eisenhower’s Directives -- 13 The Enemy Attacks to Seize FaÏd Pass -- 14 Failure at Maknassy and the Loss of FaÏd Pass -- PART III: “CITZENS OF DEATH’S GREY LAND”: THE KASSERINE BATTLES -- 15 The Axis Strikes at II Corps -- 16 Combat Command A and the 168th Infantry Regiment at Sidi Bou Zid -- 17 The Destruction of Two Battalions of the 168th Infantry --18 SbeÏtla -- 19 The Red Bull’s Fight at Sbiba -- 20 The Axis Breakthrough at Kasserine Pass -- 21 The Battles on the Roads to Thala and Tébessa -- 22 “Each with his feuds, and jealousies, and sorrows”: Balance Sheet of the February Battles -- PART IV: “SOME FLAMING, GATAL CLIMAX”: THE FINAL BATTLES IN TUNISIA -- 23 The Allies Prepare to Destroy the Axis Armies in Tunisia -- 24 II Corps and 34ID Prepare to Attack -- 25 The Battle of Supply: The Buildup for the Allied Offensive -- 26 An Axis Spoiling Attack Fails -- 27 The Crucible of Combat -- 28 “Death Rides With Us” -- 29 34ID and the Aftermath of Second Fondouk -- 30 II Corps and 34ID Move to the North -- 31 “In the great hour of destiny they stand” -- 32 Reducing the Outworks -- 33 Breaching the Citadel -- 34 Victory in Tunisia -- 35 “Time’s Tomorrows”.