Africa to join the forces destined to invade Italy. Reunion with the 100th The 442nd Combat Team, less its 1st Battalion, which had remained in the U.S. to train Nisei replacements after many of its members were levied as replacements for the 100th, sailed from Hampton Roads, Virginia, on 1 May 1944 and landed at Anzio on 28 May. The 442nd would join the 100th Battalion in Civitavecchia north of Rome on 11 June 1944, attached to the 34th Infantry Division. The 100th was placed under the command of the 442nd on 15 June 1944 but on 14 August 1944, the 100th Battalion was officially assigned to the 442nd as its 1st battalion, but was allowed to keep its unit designation in recognition of its distinguished fighting record. The 1st Battalion, 442nd Infantry at Camp Shelby was then redesignated the 171st Infantry Battalion (Separate) on 5 September 1944. The 100th Battalion's high casualty rate at Anzio and Monte Cassino earned it the unofficial nickname "Purple Heart Battalion." First contact The newly formed Nisei unit went into battle together on 26 June 1944 at the village of Belvedere in Suvereto, Tuscany. Although the 100th was attached to the 442nd, its actions earned it a separate Presidential Unit Citation. Second and Third Battalions were the first to engage the enemy, in a fierce firefight. F Company bore the worst fighting. A, B, and C Companies of the 100th were called into combat and advanced east using a covered route to reach the high ground northeast of Belvedere. The enemy did not know that the 100th was flanking the German exit, trapping them in Belvedere. C Company blocked the town's entrance while A Company blocked the exit. Meanwhile, the 442nd's 2nd Battalion was receiving a heavy barrage by the Germans from inside Belvedere, and the Germans remained unaware of their situation. B Company stayed on the high ground and conducted a surprise attack on the German battalion's exposed east flank, forcing the Germans to flee and run into C Company, which then drove the Germans to A Company. The 442nd, along with its first battalion, the 100th, kept driving the enemy north, engaging in multiple skirmishes until they had passed Sassetta. The battle of Belvedere showed that the 442nd could hold their own and showed them the kind of fighting the 100th Battalion had gone through in the prior months. After only a