The 55^th AIB plaque is on the right-hand side of the village war memorial plaques. They are placed on a wall at the back of a raised paved space, accessed from the street by four steps.

A rectangular black plaque with a gold border and relief of the Combat Infantryman badge at the top center. The plaque is inscribed in English in raised and gold lettering.

The 55th armored Infantry Battalion was created from part of the 55th Armored Infantry Regiment. The regiment was activated at Camp Polk, Louisiana on August 15, 1942 as part of the newly formed 11th Armored Division. Colonel Virgil Bell was named regimental commander.

The officers and enlisted cadres came from other armored divisions. Recruits began to arrive in October. Together the veterans and rookies trained hard at Camp Polk. In June and August of 1943 the 11th Armored Division participated in the Third Army’s Louisiana-Texas maneuvers. Afterwards the division moved west to Camp Barkeley, Texas.

On September 20th the three battalions of the 55th Regiment became independent units. The 1st Battalion became the 63rd Armored Infantry Battalion, the 2nd Battalion became the 21st Armored Infantry Battalion and the 3rd Battalion became the 55th Armored Infantry Battalion. 

The division trained at Camp Barkeley about two months then moved west again to Camp Ibis, California for rigorous desert warfare training. In the summer of 1944 the Thunderbolts shifted farther west to Camp Cooke, California on the Pacific Ocean.

On September 13 and 14, 1944 the division began the long move east, boarding trains for Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. The division did not tarry, the Army had immediate need for them in Europe.

On September 28th the division sailed for England with 5000 aboard the U.S.S. “Hermitage” and 4800 aboard the HMS “Samaria” The troopships docked at Southampton and Liverpool. The 11th Armored troops moved inland to Camp Upton Lovell and other locations in the County of Wiltshire. The 55th Battalion moved into Nissen huts at Tisbury.

It was almost winter before the division was ordered to France. The 55th left Southampton with 39 officers, 3 warrant officers, and 979 enlisted men on December 15th and was ashore at Cherbourg, France the next day. The battalion was ordered to move south and clear a large pocket of stubborn German resistance at St Nazaire, France from where a sizeable fleet of German submarines roamed the Atlantic.

Source of information: www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk, Imperial War Museum War Memorials Register, http://www.11tharmoreddivision.com

Source of images: www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk 

IN MEMORY OF THE MEN OF THE

55TH ARMORED INFANTRY BATTALION

11TH ARMORED DIVISION

THIRD UNITED STATES ARMY

("PATTON'S THUNDERBOLTS"),

WHO WERE ENCAMPED AT FONTHILL GIFFORD IN TISBURY

AND WHO TRAINED ON THE SALISBURY PLAIN

FROM OCTOBER 10 UNTIL DECEMBER 14, 1944

BEFORE EMBARKING TO THE CONTINENT

TO FIGHT IN THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE

DURING WORLD WAR II.

SEPTEMBER 10, 2004.

"THIS IS UNDOUBTEDLY THE GREATEST BATTLE OF THE WAR AND WILL,

I BELIEVE, BE REGARDED AS AN EVER-FAMOUS AMERICAN VICTORY."

                                                                           SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL