Original Items: Only one set available. This is a great condition U.S. Army 332nd Infantry Regiment Ambulance Service American Red Cross Private's M1912 tunic and breeches. This uniform ensemble features scalloped patch breast and hip pockets, double line stitching along the sleeve bottoms, stand-up collar with grommets for attaching the collar service discs, coarse olive drab wool, five eagle button front closure, two hook collar closure and shoulder epaulettes. The interior is lined with tan cotton, and looks to be marked with a size 38.
On the left collar is the "Caduceus" insignia, indicating his American Red Cross assignment and on the right collar is the round U.S. Army disc. All buttons for the pockets and front closure and epaulettes display the U.S. Army eagle insignia. The upper right sleeve does not have any rank insignia present, and there are no insignia on the epaulettes, so the owner held the enlisted rank of "Private" in the U.S. Army.
The left sleeve bears the "Lion of St. Mark" insignia of the 332nd Infantry regiment, with ARC for American Red Cross executed in bold bullion thread and hand-stitched to the uniform. Below this is a red "Discharge Chevron", which indicated that the owner had been honorably discharged from the U.S. Army, similar to the "Ruptured Duck" badge of WWII. At the bottom of the sleeve is a gold "Overseas Service Chevron", indicating overseas war service for at least 6 months.
The model 1912 breeches feature two front maternity style pockets along with a watch pocket. The seat also displays two pockets as well. Each pant leg ends with a double row of five grommets for lacing the breeches. The interior waistline is lined with cream cotton fabric.
This is a fine original and rare World War I U.S. Army uniform in great shape, ready to display!
Measurements:
Collar to Shoulder: 10.5”
Shoulder to Sleeve: 24”
Shoulder to Shoulder: 18”
Chest Width: 16”
Waist Width: 17”
Hip Width: 23”
Front Length: 31”
Inseam: 23”
Waist: 34”
More on the 332nd Infantry Regiment During WWI:
The 332nd Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the United States Army, active during World War I. It was initially part of the 83rd Division, but was detached to serve on the Italian front during the war, taking part in the Battle of Vittorio Veneto. It was disbanded in May 1919.
Formation
The 332nd Infantry Regiment was formed on 30 August 1917 as part of the 83rd Division. Following a number of months of training in the United States, the regiment, under the command of Colonel William Wallace, embarked upon the troopship RMS Aquitania at New York, and departed for Europe on 8 June 1918. They arrived in Liverpool, England on 15 June, and entrained for Southampton from where they embarked again for the trip across the English Channel to France.
Service in Italy
Shortly after the regiment's arrival in France, they were informed that they would be sent to serve in Italy instead. They arrived there in July 1918 in response from an urgent request from the Italian Government. In addition to the American infantry force, 30 American ambulance sections, a base hospital, and 54 airplane pilots also served with the Italian Army. The American pilots, as members of the Italian bombardment squadrons, engaged in bombing raids behind Austrian lines, being especially active during the progress of the Vittorio Veneto offensive.
Its principal missions were to build up Italian morale and to depress that of the enemy by creating the impression that a large force of Americans had reached the front and was preparing to enter that battle line and take an active part in the fighting. The regiment was first stationed near Lake Garda, where it trained in methods of warfare suitable for the difficult mountain terrain which comprised the greater part of the Italian Theater of Operations. Early in October it moved to Treviso, behind the Piave River Front, where it was assigned to the Italian 31st Division. From there, for the purposes of deceiving the enemy, it staged a series of marches in which each battalion, with different articles of uniform and equipment, left the city by different road, circulated during daylight hours in exposed positions for both the Italians and Austrians to see, and returned after nightfall to its station at Treviso in as inconspicuous a manner as possible.
On 24 October, the opening day of the Vittorio Veneto offensive, the Italian 31st Division with the 332nd Infantry attached, was in reserve. It joined the pursuit of the fleeing Austrians on 29 October as part of the British XIV Corps of the Italian Tenth Army, the American regiment forming the advance guard of the corps. On 3 November, after several hard marches, the 332nd Infantry established contact with an enemy rear-guard battalion which was defending the crossings of the Tagliamento River near the village of Ponte-della-Delizia. Early on 4 November, the 2nd Battalion crossed the river on a narrow foot bridge, and—after a brief fight—captured the Austrian position on the far side. Continuing to move forward along the Treviso-Udine railroad, the 2nd battalion occupied the town of Codroipo where it took possession of large stores of munitions and supplies. At 3:00 p.m., 4 November, when the armistice between Italy and Austria-Hungary became effective, the leading American elements were at Villaorba.
After the Armistice, the American troops formed part of the Allied forces stationed in Austria and along the Dalmatian coast. The 1st and 3rd Battalions were at Cormons near Gorizia, Austria. Later in November, the 1st Battalion was ordered to go to Treviso and the 3rd Battalion to Fiume, Austria. The 2nd Battalion was stationed at Cattaro, Dalmatia, and a detachment from it was sent to Cetinje, Montenegro. During this time, the regiment undertook peacekeeping duties.
Shoulder sleeve insignia
The 332nd Infantry Regiment's insignia was created as a commemoration of its service in Italy. It consisted of an embroidered winged Lion of St. Mark (symbol of Venice) with one paw resting on an open Bible, and the Bible inscribed with the number "332".
