PR 65 IR

"Borinqueneers" 1899-1945

The 65th Infantry Regiment

"Honor et Fidelitas"
Dedication, Service, Loyalty

The 65th Infantry Regiment is a Puerto Rico regiment of the United States Army. The Regiment nickname is "The "Borinqueneers" from the original Taíno name of the island (Borinquen), The Regiment motto is Honor et Fidelitas, which is Latin for Honor and Fidelity. The 65th Infantry Regiment participated in World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. The Puerto Rico 65th Infantry Regiment was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014.

By an act of congress on March 2, 1899, the first Puerto Rican US military service unit was formed. The unit was an all volunteer battalion with four companies. A second battalion with four companies was added in February of 1900 and the two battalions were combined to form the Puerto Rico Regiment of U.S. Volunteers. As was typical of the time, all of the Puerto Rico Regiment of U.S. Volunteers' officers and First Sergeants were continental Americans, none were Puerto Rican. In March of 1900, the regiment was renamed the Puerto Rico Regiment, U.S. Volunteer Infantry. Soon after renaming the unit, the US Army once again reorganized the force and renamed it the Puerto Rico Provisional Regiment of Infantry. This new unit consisted of two battalions, one was mounted and the other dismounted. On July 1, 1908, the Army again renamed the unit. The new unit became the Puerto Rico Regiment of Infantry, United States Army and was made part of the "regular" army on May 27, 1908.

On 1 July 1916, in anticipation of American entry into World War I, the Army activated a 3rd Battalion, a machine gun company, and a supply company for the Puerto Rico Provisional Regiment of Infantry. In March of 1917, Congress conferred US citizenship to all Puerto Ricans. Many surmise that this was done in preparation for the coming war, as in May of 1917, the U.S.government extend the draft law to Puerto Rico. In May of 1917, the Puerto Rico Provisional Regiment of Infantry and its 4,000 men set sail from San Juan Harbor for the Republic of Panama, where they remained for the duration of the war. When the regiment returned to Puerto Rico in March of 1919, it was renamed "The 65th Infantry Regiment" by authorization of the Army Reorganization Act of June 4, 1920.

In June of 1940, after the outbreak of hostilities in Europe, the 65th Infantry Regiment’s 3rd Battalion was reactivated and an anti-tank company was created. By the beginning of 1942, nearly 17,000 Puerto Ricans were under arms for the US Army and the entire regiment participated in intensive training at Salinas Training Area in Puerto Rico until December of 1942. In January of 1943, the 65th Infantry Regiment was deployed to the Panama Canal Zone and joined the Panama Canal Department’s Mobile Force. While in Panama, the Regiment distinguished itself by exhibiting a high degree of efficiency and was praised for its performance.

On November 25, 1943, Colonel Antulio Segarra became the first Puerto Rican Regular Army officer to command a Regular Army regiment when he succeeded Colonel John R. Menclenhall as commander of the 65th Infantry. By January of 1944, the Regiment was sent on to Fort Eustis to prepare for overseas deployment. Men in the various battalions and companies of the 65th Infantry Regiment saw combat in the WWII European Theater of Operations in places like North Africa, Italy, France, and Germany.

Colonel Antulio Segarra

In September of 1944, the 65th Infantry Regiment faced action on the Maritime Alps at Peira Cava in southern France. On 13 December 1944, the 65th Infantry, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Juan César Cordero Dávila, relieved the 2nd Battalion of the 442nd “Nisei” Infantry Regiment under the command of Col. Virgil R. Miller, a native of San Germán, Puerto Rico and former member of the 65th Infantry Regiment. In December of 1944, the 3rd Battalion faced the German 34th Infantry Division's 107th Grenadier Regiment. In March 1945, the 65th crossed the Rhine and was sent to the Mannheim District in Germany as part of the Army of Occupation assigned to Military Government activities, anti-sabotage and security missions.

In all, 65th Infantry Regiment soldiers participated in the campaigns of Naples-Foggia, Rome-Arno, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe before sailing for home on October 27, 1945. The regiment arrived back in Puerto Rico on November 9, 1945. By the end of the action in the European, the soldiers of the 65th Infantry Regiment of Puerto Rico had won a Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars and 90 Purple Hearts in combat.

Memorial Park In Connecticut

A total of 65,034 Puerto Ricans served in the US military during World War II.

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