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Hawaii Army National Guard History
State militias established as early as 1636 later became the National Guard of the United States, making it the oldest component of the U.S. military. The Militia Act of 1903 created the modern National Guard and affirmed the National Guard as the nation’s primary organized combat reserve force.
The Hawaii National Guard can trace its lineage to the volunteers of the 1st Hawaiian Guard, organized on November 17th, 1852. A volunteer infantry company was formed by the members of the 1st Hawaiian Guard, and they were called the Honolulu Rifles. Under King David Kalakaua, the unit became the First Regiment, Hawaiian Volunteers. On July 6th, 1894, a new military unit was formed, and an Adjutant General was named. The unit was called the 1st Regiment of the National Guard of Hawaii and Col. John H. Soper became the first Adjutant General of the Republic of Hawaii. In 1916, Congress federalized the National Guard and placed it directly under the control of the War Department till 1919 after the war ended.
On December 7, 1941, Hawaii Army National Guard Soldiers captured the first Japanese prisoner of war on a beach in Waimanalo, Oahu. During World War II the 298th and 299th Infantries were ordered into Federal Service and stationed at Schofield Barracks. They were used mainly for defense of the Hawaiian Islands, while some units served with the 24th Infantry Division in the South Pacific. In 1956 Hawaii was the first National Guard in the United States to convert to the Nike-Hercules Air Defense System. By the time 1964 rolls around B Battery, 1st Missile Battalion, 298th Artillery Group sets the World Nike-Hercules Intercept Record. Early 1970 the 298th Artillery Group is “phased-out” of the Air Defense System with this unit having provided round-the-clock air defense since 1961.
During the Vietnam War, the Hawaii National Guard’s 29th Infantry Brigade was one of only four National Guard Brigades mobilized nationwide. In 1973 the 29th Infantry Brigade converted into a divisional brigade configuration. The 29th was designated as a “roundout” unit for the Army’s 25th Infantry Division. The Hawaii National Guard’s Counterdrug program became the first of its kind in the nation in 1977, employing troops and helicopters in marijuana eradication that would continue into the 90’s. In 1999 The Hawaii Army National Guard’s 29th Infantry Brigade successfully completed its rotation at the Joint Readiness Training Center in Louisiana and was one of fifteen elite Enhanced Readiness Brigades in the nation. The Hawaii National Guard sprang into action playing a vital role in protecting our homeland after September 11th and for the next two decades continued to support the global war on terrorism. 29th Brigade call ups would occur in 2004, 2008 and then again in 2012 to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait.
Today the Hawaii Army National Guard is comprised of Headquarters, 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 103rd Troop Command, Medical Detachment, Recruiting and Retention Battalion, and the 298th Regiment, Regional Training Institute. The Hawaii Army National Guard has two missions. The state mission is to provide organized, trained units to protect Hawaii’s citizens and property, preserve peace, and ensure public safety in response to natural or human-caused disasters. While the federal mission is to provide operationally ready combat units, combat support units, and qualified personnel for active duty in the U.S. Army in time of war, national emergency, or operational contingency.