Chemical Corps
![Seal of the Chemical Corps](/Images/godic/202501/04/Cmlsea1913.png")
![The CWS provided support for flame weapons, such as this flame thrower being employed during the Battle of Tarawa, during WWII.](/Images/godic/202501/04/Flamethrower_in_Tarawa_jungle1913.jpg")
![A chemical mortar battalion in action at Utah Beach, 1944](/Images/godic/202501/04/M2_4.2_Inch_Mortars_at_Utah_Beach1913.jpg")
![As in World War II, chemical soldiers would have employed the 4.2 inch chemical mortar in Korea, had chemical weapons been used](/Images/godic/202501/04/Mortar-korea-195205051913.jpg")
The Chemical Corps is the branch of the United States Army tasked with defending against chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons. The corps was founded as the U.S. Chemical Warfare Service (CWS) during World War I. Its name was changed to the Chemical Corps in 1946.