June 3, 1863, began as a steamy day for Confederate soldiers preparing for day three of the battle that would signal the beginning of the end for the Rebels in the Civil War.

Col. David Lang from the 8th Florida Infantry had moved his men from Fayetteville, Pa., to Gettysburg-about 18 miles-two days before.

On the battle's decisive third day, Colonel Lang, 25, commanded three Florida regiments, after replacing Brig. Gen. Edward Aylesworth Perry, who was sidelined with typhoid fever.

His position on this day was a front-row seat to one of the most infamous efforts in U.S. military history, when Maj. Gen. Edward Pickett charged the Union line-with the support of Florida infantry. After rushing across a wide-open field, General Pickett's troops almost broke the Union line, but were repelled.

Colonel Lang recounted the events in late July 1863 at brigade headquarters, noting the near-impossible circumstances surrounding the charge and the ultimate cost as Union troops moved in.

"To remain ... unsupported by either infantry or artillery, with infantry on both flanks and in front and artillery playing upon us with grape and canister, was certain annihilation," he wrote. "To advance was only to hasten that result, and therefore I ordered retreat, which, however, was not in time to save a large number of the Second Florida Infantry, together with their colors, from being cut off and captured by the flanking force on the left. ... I am afraid that many men, while firing from behind rocks and trees, did not hear the order, and remained there until captured."

But this wasn't the last Florida would hear from Colonel Lang. His efforts during the Civil War touched nearly every major battle, which included Second Manassas, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor and Petersburg, according to Robert Hawk in his article, "Dickinson and Lang: Rebel Colonels to Adjutant Generals," written for the Florida National Guard Heritage Center.

But the young Colonel Lang was just beginning. After the war, General Perry became Florida governor and named Colonel Lang his adjutant general.

Comparatively, a state militia force's war exploits and figures such as Colonel Lang tend to occur early in a state's military history. In some states, such as Texas, which found itself under six different flags by 1846, Guard participation isn't even recognized until 1873 ("Lone Star Lore," NATIONAL GUARD, November 2006).

But Florida is a definite exception. Colonel Lang, who loaned his efforts to the Confederate cause, acted in the historical and often independent spirit of Florida militiamen, who found themselves-by virtue of Florida's loyalties for hundreds of years-changing with the times but always contributing to the state's defense.

For the Florida Guard's beginning, however, it's a walk backward about 300 years from Colonel Lang's exploits at Gettysburg.

Historians trace the state's military history to Sept. 16, 1565-just 73 years after Christopher Columbus arrived in the new world.

Prior to departing with a contingent of regular soldiers to drive the French from Fort Caroline on the St. Johns River, Pedro Menendez de Aviles mustered civilian settlers that had accompanied him, numbering about 50, into the "malicia" to defend the newly founded settlement of St. Augustine, Fla.

The malicia was a difficult maintenance situation. With the small regular garrison rarely up to full-authorized strength, the malicia was continuously tested.

For example, Sir Francis Drake attacked St. Augustine in 1586. Capt. John Davis took a shot at the presidio town in 1665, and various native-American rebellions swept across the area throughout the 1600s.

Such events endured as the Florida militia grew for nearly 200 years under Spanish rule.

In 1763, however, Florida became an English possession. Although new in terms of English heritage, Florida citizen-soldiers played a significant role in defending the colony's borders against the incursion from the revolutionaries making history in the north.

East Florida Rangers, for example, commanded by Col. Thomas Browne, kept the rebels off balance and patrolling their own territory rather than conducting raids into Florida.

In the fall of 1778, Colonel Browne's rangers and friendly Indians cleared the way and scouted the flanks of the two British columns led into Georgia by British Gen. Augustine Prevost.

They took part in the capture of Savannah in early 1779 and later in the advance on Charleston and in the Battle of Huston's Ferry. In 1780 and 1781, these same men joined in the southern campaigns of the English army.

After the English departure in 1783, Florida's militia tradition reverted to its Spanish heritage for another 64 years.

In 1795, a coalition of current and former Florida and Georgia residents quietly invaded the territory with intentions of declaring it a French colony and then seeking annexation to the United States.

They successfully captured the Spanish posts at Guana, a few miles north of St. Augustine, and St. Nicholas, near the St. Johns River.

Spanish militia were called out and led regular soldiers and other volunteers in recapturing these lost posts.

On July 10, 1821, Spain officially transferred ownership of Florida to the United States, and the citizen-soldiers, whose families had served under the Spanish and British, became American militiamen.

Almost immediately upon becoming a territory, militiamen participated in the seven-year struggle that pitted the majority of the regular U.S. Army against Florida's Seminole Indians.

Shortly thereafter, five Florida companies were raised for the Mexican War of 1847-1848.

Next on their plate was the Civil War, where thousands like Colonel Lang rallied to contribute to the Southern cause until the end of the war, fighting in virtually every major Confederate campaign.

After Reconstruction, the 1st Florida Volunteer Regiment stepped forward to help fight in the Spanish-American War.

On the eve of the World War I, the 2nd Florida Regiment of Infantry, under the command of Col. Albert Hazen Blanding, for whom Camp Blanding Joint Training Center is named, served along the Mexican border in 1916 and 1917 in response to threats from Mexican marauders led by Pancho Villa.

But it was not until World War I that the modern Florida Guard emerged.

Florida Guardsmen arrived in France in October 1918, along with members of the Alabama and Georgia Guard as part of the 31st Division. This depot division provided replacements for others serving in combat units.

But that experience formed the nucleus of Army units in today's organization, which included Florida's 124th Infantry Regiment and 116th Field Artillery Regiment.

Between World War I and World War II, Florida Guardsmen were refitted with modern equipment.

But their experience moving into the middle of the 20th century led them to participate in the numerous calls for assistance following hurricanes, fires and civil unrest. In 1935, for example, the "Labor Day" hurricane slammed into the Florida Keys, killing more than 400 people.

But overseas duty called again during World War II.

Even though it would be a year before the Pearl Harbor attack, the entire Florida Guard was called to active federal duty in November 1940.

The 124th Infantry and 116th Field Artillery served with the 31st "Dixie" Division in the Pacific theater, and the 265th Coastal Artillery played an important role in the defense of the Aleutian Islands.

In addition, many Florida Guardsmen served in other divisions and in the Army Air Corps.

Florida also provided troops in the Korean War, including the 227th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group. And for the first time, the newly organized Florida Air Guard contributed the 159th Fighter-Bomber Squadron and associated units.

The 159th not only flew combat missions over the Korean peninsula, it also made history as the first unit to conduct aerial refueling on a combat mission in 1952.

At home, Floridians battled Mother Nature. Hurricane Donna arrived Sept. 11, 1960, leaving a path of devastation and destruction. The Florida panhandle dealt with Hurricane Agnes in 1972; but nothing could compare to Hurricane Andrew in 1992, leaving a $25 billion bill in its wake.

More than 2,000 Florida Guardsmen were called to provide security, augment local law enforcement and man comfort stations for citizens displaced by the 1992 storm.

This occurred not long after more than 1,500 Florida Guardsmen deployed in 1990 and 1991 to Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm.

The Florida National Guard continued to be an integral part of the state's emergency response system, and in both 1998 and 1999 the Guard mobilized for state active duty during the two years of very active fire seasons.

As with the Guard as a whole, 9/11 began a series of mobilizations at home and abroad. Through November, the Florida Guard has deployed more than 9,000 troops to all comers of the globe, including Iraq, Afghanistan and locations such as the Balkans.

Unlike many other states, Florida Guardsmen do not simply represent a longstanding and continuing commitment to the country. Their Spanish influences provide a contrast to many states' French and British roots.

They represent not only a connection to the country. They represent a connection to the continent, with a legacy that traces its early steps nearly 450 years ago to North American discovery itself.

Christopher Prawdzik contributed to this report.

© 2006 National Guard Association of the United States Provided by ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved.