A replacement depot in United States military terminology is a unit containing reserves or replacements for large front-line formations, such as field armies. As such, the term refers to formations similar to, but larger than, march battalions in other countries. The slang term "repple depple" came into common use in the US Army during World War II.
Replacement depots were under the command of the Ground Forces Replacement System (GFRS) later renamed the Ground Force Reinforcement Command (GFRC) during World War II.
These depots were used by the US Army in the Pacific, North Africa, Italy, and Europe in World War II. They were efficient at continuously keeping fighting units at high numerical strength during prolonged combat when compared to the German system, but were found to be deleterious to morale as the men assigned from these large pools often had poor esprit de corps and were unfamiliar with the names, history, and traditions of the formations to which they were subsequently assigned. The handling of the replacements in a bulk, impersonal way by permanent depot staff tended to cause psychological trauma such that they were weakened by the experience. The Oxford English Dictionary notes, in a citation from The New York Times Magazine, 9 December 1945, that "repple depples, in short, are dreary places."
The depots of the GFRC reduced training in order to rush soldiers to the front lines. This meant soldiers would arrive at the front to their new units without weapons. It also meant that replacement officers were often only given 90 days of training and sent directly into combat.
In June of 1944, the GFRC introduced the policy of sending casualties back to their original units automatically. This greatly improved morale of the soldiers in hospitals and depots.
Locations World War I 1st Replacement Depot, St Aignan, France: support for the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF).
World War II Location of replacement depots in Europe c. January 1945. + List of Replacement depot in European theatre Depot Location Purpose(s) Training Center No. 1 Shrivenham, England Retraining of limited assignment men for new duty 2nd Replacement Depot Thaon, France US Seventh Army direct support depot 3rd Replacement Depot Verviers, Belgium US First Army direct support depot 9th Replacement Depot Fontainebleau, France Officer and officer candidate retraining center 10th Replacement Depot Lichfield, England Processing of hospital returnees 11th Replacement Depot Givet, France US First Army intermediate depot US Ninth Army intermediate depot 12th Replacement Depot Tidworth, England Theater reception depot Enlisted retraining center 14th Replacement Depot Neufchâteau, France US Third Army intermediate depot US Seventh Army intermediate depot 15th Replacement Depot Le Havre, France Theater reception depot 16th Replacement Depot Compiègne, France Enlisted retraining center 17th Replacement Depot Angervilliers, France US Third Army direct support depot 18th Replacement Depot Tonges, Belgium US Ninth Army direct support depot 19th Replacement Depot Étampes, France Processing of hospital returnees 51st Replacement Battalion Charleville, France US Fifteenth Army direct support depot 54th Replacement Battalion Marseilles, France Theater reception depot 6900th Provisional Depot Verviers, Belgium Field army intermediate depot Officer and officer candidate retraining center 6960th Provisional Depot Coëtquidan, France Enlisted retraining center
+ List of Replacement depot in Asian theatre Depot Location date Purpose(s) Note Hawaii Replacement Depot Scofield Barracks November 19, 1942 ~ November 1, 1943 1st Replace Depot 4th Replacement Depot Australia Camp Zama, Japan November 5, 1942 ~ January 25, 1945 14th Personnel Center U.S. Army Center of Military History, November 15, 2006 5th Replace Depot 6th Replace Depot New Caledonia 13rd Replace Depot Oahu 23rd Replace Depot Saipan 25th Replace Depot Scofield Barracks
After World War II Location of replacement depots after World War II and the Cold War.
Depot Location Formation served Note 8068th Replacement Depot Beppu, Japan 8069th Replacement Depot Pusan, South Korea 8091st Replacement Depot 8609th Replacement Depot Camp Drake, Sasebo, Japan
References