The 103rd Field Artillery Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia—also called a unit crest or a DUI for short—was first approved on 28 March 1931. It has been redesignated three times since then, once when the unit was designated as the 103rd Field Artillery Battalion (January 1943), and the other two times to reflects changes in its Regimental title (103rd Artillery in June 1961, 103rd Field Artillery Regiment in June 1972).
Red is used for the shield’s background to reflect that the organization is in the Artillery branch. The field piece and stacked cannon balls are taken from the onetime Providence Marine Corps Artillery coat-button insignia, but with the cannon facing dexter; they also refer to Civil War action at Bunker Hill, Virginia. A gold chevron denotes the origins of the Regiment’s 2nd Battalion in the Cavalry, and a half-dozen fleurs-de-lis reflect the six campaigns that the 103rd Field Artillery fought in France during World War I.
Distinctive Unit Insignias are worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1, Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e), "Beret" and "Garrison Cap," respectively.
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The history of the 103rd Field Artillery Regiment begins in October 1801 with the organization of the Providence Marine Corps of Artillery (PMCA) in the Rhode Island Militia. Founded by the Providence Marine Society, a private organization for captains of merchant ships, the PMCA was a source for trained gun crews about commercial vessels at a time they were threatened by both Barbary Pirates and the French navy. While members of the PMCA did fight in the War of 1812, the organization as whole was not credited with wartime participation, but during the Civil War several of its batteries were mustered in to Federal service and eventually fought in fifteen Civil War campaigns.
After going through myriad structural changes and reorganizations, the unit was expanded to become the 1st Separate Battalion, Rhode Island Field Artillery and was drafted into Federal service on 5 August 1917. Redesignated later that month as the 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery and made an element of the 26th Division, the unit would take part in a half-dozen campaigns during World War I. It was redesignated as the 103rd Field Artillery in January 1930 and was inducted into Federal Service in February 1941, but the regiment was broken up in February 1942, its HQ disbanded and its two battalions (103d and 169th) made elements of the 43rd Division.
These units took part in six campaigns during the Second World War and garnered a Philippine Presidential Unit Citation for the regiment, which was reconstituted as the 103rd Artillery in the Combat Arms Regimental System. It would be redesignated as the 103rd Field Artillery on 1 March 1972. Today, the 1st Battalion, a part of the Rhode Island Army National Guard, is the 103rd Field Artillery Regiment’s only active unit. The Battalion's The Headquarters and Alpha Batteries are located in the historic Armory of Mounted Commands in Providence, while its Bravo and Charlie Batteries are stationed in North Smithfield and Bristol, respectively.