On 3 February 1941, the First Maryland Infantry Regiment, Maryland Army National Guard, was inducted into federal service as the 115th Infantry Regiment at Frederick, Maryland as part of the second partial mobilization of the National Guard for World War II, and then moved to Fort George G. Meade on 18 February 1941 to join the 29th Infantry Division. The regiment completed in-processing, traded in its equipment for modern equipment, and started to repeat its division level training. It was then transferred to the A.P. Hill Military Reservation on 22 April 1942 to participate in maneuvers, and then moved to the Carolina Maneuvers to participate in large unit maneuvers on 8 July 1942. It then moved on to Camp Blanding to fill its empty personnel slots on 19 August 1942, and then staged at Camp Kilmer on 20 September 1942, and shipped out from the New York Port of Embarkation on 5 October 1942 on the RMS Queen Mary and RMS Queen Elizabeth. They arrived in England on 11 October 1942, and then were attached to the 1st Infantry Division in preparation for the D-Day invasion. They moved with the 1st Infantry Division from 2 June 1944, and remained with 1st Infantry Division until 7 June 1944, when they returned to the 29th Infantry Division for further operations. Their participation in the Normandy Campaign continued until it was over on 24 July 1944. They immediately moved into the Northern France Campaign on 25 July 1944, which continued until it was over on 14 September 1944.

During this period the 115th Infantry Regiment was engaged in one of the war's forgotten chapters, "The Battle of Brest". The Battle for Brest was one of the fiercest battles fought during Operation Cobra, the Allied breakout of Normandy which began on 27 July 1944, during the Battle of Normandy during World War II.

Part of the Allied plan for the invasion of mainland Europe called for the capture of port facilities, in order to ensure the timely delivery of the enormous amount of war material required to supply the invading Allied forces (it was estimated that the 37 Allied divisions to be on the continent by September 1944 would need 26,000 tons of supplies each day). The main port the Allied forces hoped to seize and put into their service was Brest, in northwestern France.

Concrete Submarine Pens at Brest

Brest also served as a major German U-Boat base from 18 June 1940 until its surrender to U.S forces during the Brittany Campaign.

Hurshel A Hester