US 2nd Armored Division

The US 2nd Armored Division, nicknamed 'Hell on Wheels', fought with distinction in the ETO and was the first US division to reach the Elbe and to enter Berlin. It was commanded by the charismatic Major-General George S. Patton from January 1941 to February 1942. Elements of 2nd Armored first saw action in North Africa, landing at Casablanca, and later taking part in the fighting at Beja, Tunisia, but the division as a whole did not enter combat until the invasion of Sicily, where it performed well. After the Sicilian campaign, the division trained in England for the invasion of Normandy, landing on D+3, and going into action near Carentan; it would go on to play a significant role in the Falaise Gap battles, subsequently racing across France through Belgium and into Germany at Schimmert on 18 September 1944. The division also played an important role during the Ardennes offensive, blunting the German Fifth Panzer Army's penetration of American lines.