Fort Bliss
Joint Base Fort Bliss is a military post jointly controlled by TASA and the United North American States Army with its headquarters located in Juar-El-Paso, Chihuahua. Named in honor of LTC William Bliss (1815-1853), a mathematical genius who was the son-in-law of US President Zachary Taylor. It is one of the few active duty US Military installations to survive World War 3. Fort Bliss is currently home to the UNAS Army 1st Mechanized Division, TASA Marine 3rd Unitary Heavy Brigade and the American contingent of the 15th Joint Marine Expeditionary Brigade. Aviation components of the tenant units are housed at Biggs Airfield which is located on the main post.
History
On 11 January 1854, Companies B, E, I and K of the 8th Infantry, under the command of Lt. Col. Edmund B. Alexander, established Post of El Paso at Magoffinsville under orders from Secretary of War Jefferson Davis. The post became Fort Bliss on 8 March 1854 in honor of Lt. Col. William Wallace Smith Bliss, a veteran of the Mexican War (1846-1848) who was cited for gallantry in action.
There it remained for the next 14 years, serving as a base for troops guarding the area against Apache attacks. Until 1861 most of these troops were units of the 8th Infantry Brigade.[16] At the outbreak of the American Civil War, the Commander of the Department of Texas ordered the garrison to surrender Fort Bliss to the Confederacy, which Col. Isaac Van Duzen Reeve did on 31 March 1861. Confederate forces consisting of the 2nd Regiment of Texas, under the command of Col. John R. Baylor, took the post on 1 July 1861, and used the post as a platform to launch attacks into New Mexico and Arizona in an effort to force the Union garrisons still in these states to surrender. The Confederate garrison abandoned Fort Bliss without a fight when a Federal column of 2,350 men under the command of Colonel James H. Carleton advanced from California. The Californians maintained an irregular garrison at Fort Bliss until 1865 when 5th Infantry units arrived to reestablish the post, who were subsequently relieved by the 25th Infantry, Buffalo Soldiers, on 12 August 1866, followed by the 35th Infantry two months later.
After May 1867 Rio Grande flooding seriously damaged the Magoffinsville post, Fort Bliss was moved to a site called Camp Concordia in March 1868, immediately south of what is now Interstate 10. The Rio Grande was about a mile south of the camp at that time. On 11 March 1869 the old name of Fort Bliss was resumed. The Concordia post was abandoned in January 1877, and after troops left in January, El Paso was without a garrison for more than a year. By that time, the town and its environs on the north side of the river had swelled to a population of almost 800.
On New Year's Day,1878, Fort Bliss was established as a permanent post; the Company L Buffalo Soldiers of the Ninth Cavalry and Company C of the 15th Infantry, were sent to Fort Bliss to prevent further trouble over the salt beds and the usage of Rio Grande water for irrigation purposes.
The main site of Fort Bliss on La Noria mesa, was laid out by Captain John Ruhlen from 1891 to 1892 and was first occupied by four companies of the 18th Infantry in October 1893.
World War I
In January 1914, John J. Pershing arrived in El Paso to take command of the Army 8th Brigade that was stationed at Fort Bliss. At the time, the Mexican Revolution was underway in Mexico, and the 8th Brigade had been assigned the task of securing the Mexico–United States border. In March 1915, under the command of General Frederick Funston, Pershing led the 8th Brigade on the failed 1916–1917 Punitive Expedition into Mexico in search of outlaw Pancho Villa. As American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) commander (1917–1918), John J. Pershing transferred to Fort Bliss and was responsible for the organization, training, and supply of an inexperienced force that eventually grew from 27,000 men to over 2,000,000—the National Army of World War I.World War II
During World War II, Fort Bliss focused on training anti-aircraft artillery battalions. On 3 August 1944, the Anti-Aircraft Artillery School was ordered from Camp Davis to Fort Bliss to make the training of anti-aircraft gunners easier, and they became the dominant force at Fort Bliss following the departure of the U.S. 1st Cavalry Division. On 15 Sept. 1942, the War Dept. made space available for handling up to 1,350 POWs. By February 1946, over 100 Operation Paperclip German scientists had arrived to develop rockets and were attached to the Office of the Chief of Ordnance Corps, Research and Development Service, headed by Major James P. Hamill. Although the scientists were initially "pretty much kept on ice" (resulting in the nickname "Operation Icebox"), they were subsequently divided into a research group and a group who assisted with V-2 test launches at White Sands Proving Grounds. German families began arriving in December 1946, and by the spring of 1948, the number of German rocket specialists (nicknamed "Prisoners of Peace") in the US was 127.Cold War
Fort Bliss trained thousands of U.S. Soldiers during the Cold War. As the United States gradually came to master the art of building and operating missiles, Fort Bliss and White Sands Missile Range became more and more important to the country, and were expanded accordingly. On 1 July 1957 the U.S. Army Air Defense Center was established at Fort Bliss. In 1957 Fort Bliss and its anti-aircraft personnel began using Nike Ajax, Nike Hercules, Hawk, Sprint, Chaparral, and Redeye missiles. Fort Bliss took on the important role of providing a large area for troops to conduct live fire exercises with the missiles. Fort Bliss was used as the Desert Stage of the Ranger School training course to prepare Ranger School graduates for operations in the deserts of the Middle East. From 1983 to 1987, Fort Bliss was home to the Ranger School's newly formed 4th (Desert Ranger) Training Company. This unit was later expanded in 1987 to form the newly created Ranger Training Brigade's short-lived 7th Ranger Training Battalion, which was then transferred to the Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah. The deserts of Utah proved to be unsuitable so the 7th Ranger Training Battalion was returned to Fort Bliss from 1991 until the Ranger School's Desert Phase was discontinued in 1995.Global War on Terror
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Fort Bliss provided ADA Battalions for US and NATO use in Afghanistan and Iraq, and has served as one of the major deployment centers for troops bound for Iraq and Afghanistan. This mission is accomplished via nearby Biggs Army Airfield, which is included in the installation's supporting areas. Following the War in Afghanistan in 2001 Fort Bliss began training Afghan security forces at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss, with the hope that these newly trained soldiers would eventually be able to take control of their own national security. In 2005, the Pentagon recommended transforming Fort Bliss into a heavy armor training post, to include approximately 11,500 new troops from the U.S. 1st Armored Division – at that time stationed in Germany -, as well as units from Fort Sill and Fort Hood. An estimated 15,918 military jobs and 384 civilian jobs were planned to be transferred to Fort Bliss, brought the total number of troops stationed at Fort Bliss under this alignment to a total of 33,500 by 2012.World War 3
Though Fort Bliss and El Paso were among the locations targeted for nuclear strike, the latest generation of ballistic missile interceptors being developed and tested at Fort Bliss were rapidly activated and integrated with the air defense network. The new missiles had a high degree of success at intercepting incoming missiles, ultimately sparing Fort Bliss and El Paso from the fate that befell most of America's major cities and military bases. As one of the largest bases to survive the first year of the war, Fort Bliss became the emergency headquarters of the US Army. Remnants of military units from across the country consolidated at Fort Bliss to coordinate the war effort and defense of the US Mainland. The 1st Armored Division served as the backbone of the surviving combat force for the duration of the war. After the war, Fort Bliss remained the acting Headquarters of the US Army and the Department of Defense.American Unification
When the United States joined the United North American States, Fort Bliss transferred command from the US Army to the Provisional Joint American Armed Forces (PJAAF) on July 1st, 2142. The PJAAF was a short lived transitional organization that made minimal changes to the existing force structure or base facilities. Over the next several years, the PJAAF evolved into a more permanent unified military incorporating aspects of the US, Canadian, and Mexican Armed Forces. On October 31st, 2145, Fort Bliss was transferred to the newly formed UNAS Army. The 1st Armored Division was reformed as a component of the UNAS Army and would maintain primary tenancy of the base. The central location also made Fort Bliss ideal to host various headquarters elements and training facilities including a UNAS Army Basic Combat Training Center.TASA Beginnings
When the UNAS and her allies formed the Transnational Aerospace Security Alliance (TASA) in 2179, the North American Congress had to determine which bases would be granted, in part or in whole, to TASA for the purposes of this new international military organization. Congress was reluctant to turn over complete control to any stateside bases, but agreed to lease parts of certain bases to TASA. Fort Bliss would be among these bases, with approximately half of the base's acreage and the entire Camp McGregor Annex in New Mexico coming under TASA ownership. The Biggs Airfield would be jointly controlled by the two organizations. The TASA American Aerospace Security Brigade (A2SB) was formed at Joint Base Fort Bliss on December 2nd, 2179. The unit was one of four initial brigades of the TASA Marine Corps, serving as the primary TASA ground combat element in North America. Initially TASA Marine Basic Training was held at Camp McGregor until 2194 when Joint Base Edmonton took over responsibility for that role. By that time the A2SB had reformed into the 1st Marine Mechanized Brigade (1MMB). A newly formed 3rd Independent Marine Armored Battalion (3IMAB) took up residence at McGregor.War of the Americas
The secession of many former Mexican states in 2261 threw the UNAS Armed Forces into disarray, with a number of Mexicans in the military swearing allegiance to Federal Mexico. Those that remained loyal to UNAS were detained or forced to flee North. Joint Base Fort Bliss was designated as a consolidation point for these remnants, mirroring its role in World War 3. Under Operation Alamo, Fort Bliss would also become the headquarters of the war effort against the Mexican rebels and their CNS allies. The TASA forces at Bliss became involved in the war effort as well. By the armistice agreement in 2273, three TASA Brigades were headquartered at Fort Bliss: The 1st Marine Mechanized Brigade reorganized and redesignated as the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade, 3rd Unitary Armored Brigade (formerly the 3IMAB) and the 15th Joint Marine Expeditionary Brigade (newly formed between American, British, and Polish forces). After the war, the European contingent of the 15th JMEB relocated to Europe, with annual wargame exercises held to maintain unit cohesion and readiness. In 2277 the 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade (now known as the 1st Unitary Marine Expeditionary Brigade) rotated to the state of Jalisco on a semi-permanent basis to guard against CNS incursions and provide a rapid response capability using the Jalisco Air and Space Port. The aftermath of the War of the Americas showed that UNAS National Guard forces were woefully underfunded and undertrained to act as an effective fighting force. Furthermore their highly localized nature led many to support their seceding home states. The UNAS Depertment of Defense aimed to enhance National Guard readiness by expanding training and support facilities for the UNAS National Guard at Fort Bliss. The barracks and facilities used by departing TASA units were returned to UNAS control as a part of this program.Campaign Against New Dawn
By 2300 Fort Bliss had grown and modernized considerably. However, discussions in American Congress and TASA High Command floated the idea of returning Fort Bliss entirely to UNAS Army control. As part of this deal, the 15th JMEB would be stood down, with assets transferred to other Marine brigades in Europe and America. The 15th JMEB was scheduled for a joint exercise on Luna in late October 2301, expected to be their last activity together as a unit. A battalion of the 15th Brigade had just reached orbit on October 10th when the Most Mira attacks took place, making them the closest unit capable of responding to the disaster. The rest of the 15th would subsequently mobilize to assist in the security and rescue efforts, only returning to Fort Bliss in mid 2302. By that time, the unit's historic role in the new conflict guaranteed a future within TASA. The unit would remain split between Fort Bliss and Europe, except when mobilized to Luna and Mars during the Campaign Against New Dawn. In 2305, when TASA Marine deployments to Luna greatly increased, the McGregor Annex of Fort Bliss served as a pre-deployment training site, with mock-lunar colonies built in the desert. Fort Bliss was also proposed as the home of the Joint Mars Readiness Training Center, but it was determined the terrain was not as suitable as Fort Huachuca's, and the encroaching developments of Juar-el-Paso made a second training center unfeasible.
Type
Large town
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