About 1st Squadron, 124th Cavalry Regiment1st Squadron, 124th Cavalry Regiment
MOTTO: "Golpeo Rapidamente" “I strike quickly.”
The 124th Cavalry Regiment nicknamed "Mars Men" is a United States Army cavalry regiment, represented in the Texas Army National Guard by 1st Squadron, 124th Cavalry, part of the 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team at Waco. The 124th was originally constituted and organized in 1929 in the Texas National Guard.
It was Federalized in 1940 but remained stateside, patrolling the Mexico–United States border, after the Attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in the United States entry into World War II. In 1944 it moved to Fort Riley. At that time, the Regiment was the last horse-mounted regiment in the United States Army. The regiment was sent to India in August 1944, and was reinforced with the 613th Field Artillery Battalion becoming the The 124th Special Cavalry. The 124th Special Cavalry became part of the MARS Task Force and moved into the mountains of Northern Burma in December 1944. The Regiment fought many pitched battles with the Japanese in and around the Burma Road, and in May 1945 were flown over "the Hump" to Kumming, China. The fighting had been characterized by operations deep in enemy territory, the use of pack mules, and aerial resupply. Operating alongside Chinese troops, the 124th Special Cavalry and the task force recaptured the Burma Road from the Japanese in early 1945.
The 1st Squadron was mobilized in early 2004 to deploy to Iraq to participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom, attached to the 89th Military Police Brigade. The 124th also provided security for the early 2005 Iraqi elections. 15 August 2008 the 1st Squadron was activated to provide stability and support operations in Baghdad. On 1 April 2011, Task Force Raptor was established by reinforcing the 3rd Squadron with the 702nd and 712th Military Police Companies. In February 2012, the 3rd Squadron, as part of Task Force Raptor, took over the Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa security role at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, from the 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery. In January 2018, 1-124 Cavalry deployed to the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt as multinational force and observers, tasked with ensuring peace between Israel and Egypt in accordance with the 1979 treaty between the two nations.
Distinctive Unit Insignia:
That symbol is a lion grasping the astrological symbol for Mars, and commemorates the unit’s participation in the Central Burma and India-Burman campaigns in World War II. The lion is taken from the seal of Burma (now called Myanmar), while the sign of Mars—the god whom Romans saw as the protector of Soldiers—is a reference to the Mars Task Force which the unit was part of during World War II. The crest is the seal of Texas, famously known as the “Lone Star State.” The unit motto, GOLPEO RAPIDAMENTE, translates in English as “I Strike Quickly.”
Coat of Arms:
Official blazon
Shield: Per bend Or and Sable, a lion sejant of the last grasping the astronomical symbol for Mars Vert.
Crest: That for the regiments and separate battalions of the Texas Army National Guard: On a wreath of the colors Or and Sable, a mullet Argent encircled by a garland of live oak and olive Proper. Motto: GOLPEO RAPIDAMENTE = I Strike Quickly.