The 200th Infantry Regiment Distinctive Unit Insignia also called a DUI or a unit crest, was originally approved for the 111rth Cavalry Regiment on 19 June 1926, and would not be approved for the 200th Infantry Regiment until 22 August 2006. Between those two dates, it would be redesignated for four other units in the Regiment’s lineage: the 200th Coast Artillery Regiment (AA) in March 1941, the 717th Antiaircraft Artillery Gun Battalion in October 1952, the 200th Artillery Regiment in June 1960, and the 200th Air Defense Artillery Regiment in February 1973.
The most eye-catching aspect of the insignia is a swastika-style design in its center called an Avanyu device. The Avanyu device is a variant on a shape called a triskelion, a talisman that symbolizes energy, motion, and victory. For the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico, the Regiment’s home area, it is an emblem of the “whirling sun” and “lightning in air,” and on this insignia it serves as an allusion to the firepower and air-defense capabilities of the organization. PRO CIVITATE ET PATRIA, the Regimental motto, is Latin for “For State And Country.”
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. More 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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Known by its official special designation “First New Mexico,” the 200th Infantry Regiment can trace its roots back 1 September 1880 and the organization of the 1st Regiment in the New Mexico Volunteer Militia. Since that time, it has undergone a dizzying series of reorganizations, redesignations, and consolidations that resulted in it (and predecessor units in its lineage) serving in a wide variety of roles, including but limited to Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, Coast Artillery, Antiaircraft / Air Defense Artillery, and Military Police.
The Regiment saw combat early in its service life: Just a year after being organized, it would fight the Comanches in two campaigns from the Indian Wars. It would serve overseas in the Santiago campaign in Puerto Rico before the end of the century, and during World War I it would earn an uninscribed campaign streamer for serving as a source of replacement troops while assigned to the 40th Division, called the 6th Depot Division during WWI.
Its World War II combat credits reflect the service of the many units that are in the Regiment’s official lineage: the Regiment is credited with participation in eleven campaigns from both European and Pacific Theaters, three of which saw units taking part in assault landings. (The Regiment as a whole was awarded four Presidential Unit Citations and a Philippine Presidential Unit Citation.
Since the launch of the War On Terrorism, the 200th Infantry Regiment—reorganized and redesignated from the 200th Air Defense Artillery to its current designation in 2005—has deployed component units to Iraq and Afghanistan on several occasions. Two of its Companies, Company A from the 1st Battalion and Company C from the now-inactivated 2nd Battalion—were honored with Meritorious Unit Commendations issued in 2009 for their actions between August 2007 and February 2008.
As of Autumn 2023, 1st Battalion, 200th Infantry Regiment is assigned to the 93rd Troop Command, New Mexico Army National Guard, but this assignment is of course subject to change at any time. The Battalion is headquartered at Las Cruces, New Mexico.