Discussion of exploits of Medal Of Honor recipients...

I would like to start a "quiz" like thing for MOH recipients to be discussed.
I would like to start with 2 old favourites-one from WW2 and one from Korea.

Sgt Ralph George Neppel-He was leader of a machinegun squad defending an approach to the village of Birgel, Germany, on 14 December 1944, when an enemy tank, supported by 20 infantrymen, counterattacked. He held his fire until the Germans were within 100 yards and then raked the foot soldiers beside the tank killing several of them. The enemy armor continued to press forward and, at the pointblank range of 30 yards, fired a high-velocity shell into the American emplacement, wounding the entire squad. Sgt. Neppel, blown 10 yards from his gun, had 1 leg severed below the knee and suffered other wounds. Despite his injuries and the danger from the onrushing tank and infantry, he dragged himself back to his position on his elbows, remounted his gun and killed the remaining enemy riflemen. Stripped of its infantry protection, the tank was forced to withdraw. By his superb courage and indomitable fighting spirit, Sgt. Neppel inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy and broke a determined counterattack.

And from the war in Korea, William Richard Charette-Participating in a fierce encounter with a cleverly concealed and well-entrenched enemy force occupying positions on a vital and bitterly contested outpost far in advance of the main line of resistance, HC3c. Charette repeatedly and unhesitatingly moved about through a murderous barrage of hostile small-arms and mortar fire to render assistance to his wounded comrades. When an enemy grenade landed within a few feet of a marine he was attending, he immediately threw himself upon the stricken man and absorbed the entire concussion of the deadly missile with his body. Although sustaining painful facial wounds, and undergoing shock from the intensity of the blast which ripped the helmet and medical aid kit from his person, HC3c. Charette resourcefully improvised emergency bandages by tearing off part of his clothing, and gallantly continued to administer medical aid to the wounded in his own unit and to those in adjacent platoon areas as well. Observing a seriously wounded comrade whose armored vest had been torn from his body by the blast from an exploding shell, he selflessly removed his own battle vest and placed it upon the helpless man although fully aware of the added jeopardy to himself. Moving to the side of another casualty who was suffering excruciating pain from a serious leg wound, HC3c. Charette stood upright in the trench line and exposed himself to a deadly hail of enemy fire in order to lend more effective aid to the victim and to alleviate his anguish while being removed to a position of safety. By his indomitable courage and inspiring efforts in behalf of his wounded comrades, HC3c. Charette was directly responsible for saving many lives.

Please share your thoughts here to gentlemen on teh outsatnding exploits of such brave men....COMING SOON....Randy Shughart and Gary Gordon.....

 

Ah HA, I see that you have the CmoHers covered--now we need someone to do the Victoria Cross Recipients and Hero of the Soviet Union Recipients--as you know--I have the pleasure of continuing the work on the Knights Cross Recipients--along with Timos expertise.

 

"THE BOYS" Gary Ivan Gordon first...

. Master Sergeant Gordon's sniper team provided precision fires from the lead helicopter during an assault and at two helicopter crash sites, while subjected to intense automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade fires. When Master Sergeant Gordon learned that ground forces were not immediately available to secure the second crash site, he and another sniper unhesitatingly volunteered to be inserted to protect the four critically wounded personnel, despite being well aware of the growing number of enemy personnel closing in on the site. After his third request to be inserted, Master Sergeant Gordon received permission to perform his volunteer mission. When debris and enemy ground fires at the site caused them to abort the first attempt, Master Sergeant Gordon was inserted one hundred meters south of the crash site. Equipped with only his sniper rifle and a pistol, Master Sergeant Gordon and his fellow sniper, while under intense small arms fire from the enemy, fought their way through a dense maze of shanties and shacks to reach the critically injured crew members. Master Sergeant Gordon immediately pulled the pilot and the other crew members from the aircraft, establishing a perimeter which placed him and his fellow sniper in the most vulnerable position. Master Sergeant Gordon used his long range rifle and side arm to kill an undetermined number of attackers until he depleted his ammunition. Master Sergeant Gordon then went back to the wreckage, recovering some of the crew's weapons and ammunition. Despite the fact that he was critically low on ammunition, he provided some of it to the dazed pilot and then radioed for help. Master Sergeant Gordon continued to travel the perimeter, protecting the downed crew. After his team member was fatally wounded and his own rifle ammunition exhausted, Master Sergeant Gordon returned to the wreckage, recovering a rifle with the last five rounds of ammunition and gave it to the pilot with the words, "good luck." Then, armed only with his pistol, Master Sergeant Gordon continued to fight until he was fatally wounded. His actions saved the pilot's (CWO Michael Durant)life.

 

Randall David Shughart...

Sergeant First Class Shughart provided precision sniper fires from the lead helicopter during an assault on a building and at two helicopter crash sites, while subjected to intense automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade fires. While providing critical suppressive fires at the second crash site, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader learned that ground forces were not immediately available to secure the site. Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader unhesitatingly volunteered to be inserted to protect the four critically wounded personnel, despite being well aware of the growing number of enemy personnel closing in on the site. After their third request to be inserted, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader received permission to perform this volunteer mission. When debris and enemy ground fires at the site caused them to abort the first attempt, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader were inserted one hundred meters south of the crash site. Equipped with only his sniper rifle and a pistol, Sergeant First Class Shughart and his team leader, while under intense small arms fire from the enemy, fought their way through a dense maze of shanties and shacks to reach the critically injured crew members. Sergeant First Class Shughart pulled the pilot and the other crew members from the aircraft, establishing a perimeter which placed him and his fellow sniper in the most vulnerable position. Sergeant First Class Shughart used his long range rifle and side arm to kill an undetermined number of attackers while traveling the perimeter, protecting the downed crew. Sergeant First Class Shughart continued his protective fire until he depleted his ammunition and was fatally wounded. His actions saved the pilot's life.

 

Very well done Ryan!!! but arent you saving those guys for part of your project?

 

Of course Carl-i just thought their action was so heroic it deserved a special mention...

PS-Is anyone else going to add this list??? Or is it a solitary project of mine???

 

Ill try to post one on Audie Leon Murphy if time permits. His was especially interesting as will as Francis S. Curry, Mitchel Paige and Walter D. Ehlers.

I think your doing an exceptional job on writing about the Medal of Honor Recipients.

 

Thankyou very much Carl-this will be a huge undertaking as there are so many that I want to include-I will try later today to get the story of the recipient who swam across the Meuse to gather intel, but seized up with cramps and drowned on the way back...

 

Mitchell Paige-was he the one that held off a Japanese advance on Guadalcanal with a M1917 Browning .30 MG, and a .45???

 

your welcome and...yep--that was Mitchell paige. PS, I have his address along with Doss, Ehlers and others if interested.

 

ARE YOU KIDDING??? Absolutely Carl that would be outstanding...

 

If you get a chance pick get a copy of Doss' book, "Hero Without a Gun". He was an unarmed combat medic with the 77th Division in the Pacific. He was credited with saving the lives of 75 men from his unit after everyone else fell back after encountering heavy Japanese fire during an attack. I met him several times when I lived in Tennessee.

 

Ryan--do Apples grow on Trees? Do trees provide shade? Do eagles gracefully fly through the sky? Do American Indians live in Teepees? In other words--Dont I? (Big grin)

I also think I have Doss's address as well and appx 80 or so other Medal of Honor Recipients addresses. Let me see what I can dig up and will let you know--Carl.

 

Stanley Taylor Adams distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against an enemy. At approximately 0100 hours, M/Sgt. Adams' platoon, holding an outpost some 200 yards ahead of his company, came under a determined attack by an estimated 250 enemy troops. Intense small-arms, machinegun, and mortar fire from 3 sides pressed the platoon back against the main line of resistance. Observing approximately 150 hostile troops silhouetted against the skyline advancing against his platoon, M/Sgt. Adams leaped to his feet, urged his men to fix bayonets, and he, with 13 members of his platoon, charged this hostile force with indomitable courage. Within 50 yards of the enemy M/Sgt. Adams was knocked to the ground when pierced in the leg by an enemy bullet. He jumped to his feet and, ignoring his wound, continued on to close with the enemy when he was knocked down 4 times from the concussion of grenades which had bounced off his body. Shouting orders he charged the enemy positions and engaged them in hand-to-hand combat where man after man fell before his terrific onslaught with bayonet and rifle butt. After nearly an hour of vicious action M/Sgt. Adams and his comrades routed the fanatical foe, killing over 50 and forcing the remainder to withdraw. Upon receiving orders that his battalion was moving back he provided cover fire while his men withdrew. M/Sgt. Adams' superb leadership, incredible courage, and consummate devotion to duty so inspired his comrades that the enemy attack was completely thwarted, saving his battalion from possible disaster.

 

Henry Erwin - was the radio operator of a B-29 airplane leading a group formation to attack Koriyama, Japan. He was charged with the additional duty of dropping phosphoresce smoke bombs to aid in assembling the group when the launching point was reached. Upon entering the assembly area, aircraft fire and enemy fighter opposition was encountered. Among the phosphoresce bombs launched by S/Sgt. Erwin, 1 proved faulty, exploding in the launching chute, and shot back into the interior of the aircraft, striking him in the face. The burning phosphoresce obliterated his nose and completely blinded him. Smoke filled the plane, obscuring the vision of the pilot. S/Sgt. Erwin realized that the aircraft and crew would be lost if the burning bomb remained in the plane. Without regard for his own safety, he picked it up and feeling his way, instinctively, crawled around the gun turret and headed for the copilot's window. He found the navigator's table obstructing his passage. Grasping the burning bomb between his forearm and body, he unleashed the spring lock and raised the table. Struggling through the narrow passage he stumbled forward into the smoke-filled pilot's compartment. Groping with his burning hands, he located the window and threw the bomb out. Completely aflame, he fell back upon the floor. The smoke cleared, the pilot, at 300 feet, pulled the plane out of its dive. S/Sgt. Erwin's gallantry and heroism above and beyond the call of duty saved the lives of his comrades.

 

Ryan--if your wanting Mitchell Paiges address--please send me a reminder email--Carl.

 

Sadly, "Red" Erwin passed from us on January 16, 2002. He is by far one of the bravest MOH recipients that I have researched--please all, have a good look at his citation on his topic, and any feedback is most appreciated...

 

Thanks for letting me know. That now leaves under 50 ww2 MoHs still living--or about triple the number of all V.C. still living.

 

Just found this and thought I´d put it here:

Audie Murphy

Audie Murphy was born on June 20, 1924 near Kingston, Texas. However, some accounts place his actual birthdate in 1925.




http://www.audiemurphy.com/news1.htm

On Jan 26, 1945, Audie Murphy climbed aboard a burning tank destroyer and fought off six Tiger tanks and two reinforced rifle companies, earning what is still considered today as the most famous Medal of Honor act in World War II.

Willis, secretary/treasurer of the Audie Murphy Research Foundation in Santa Clarita, Calif., said Murphy took the gamble because he was the last defense against the attacking enemy and possible encirclement or breakthrough of the 15th Infantry.

Simpson's research concluded that a German "breakthrough, properly exploited, could endanger the entire 3rd (Infantry) Division position. And Murphy knew that with control of the road, the Germans could "punch a hole in the 15th Infantry's defense line" and overrun its regimental headquarters and possibly put several thousand soldiers of the 3rd Inf. Div. in peril.

And Murphy himself barely mentions it in "To Hell and Back," his autobiographical novel and movie.

While Murphy's legend is centered around his Medal of Honor action, his lore actually began on the Anzio beachhead during some of the toughest fighting Co B, 15th Inf, 3rd Inf Div would ever see.

Murphy's first Bronze Star came on March 2, 1944, in an incident highlighed in "To Hell and Back."

Murphy leaves his squad behind and crawls to within 15 yards of a disabled Tiger tank. After throwing two Molotov Cocktails at the beast, he destroys it with a grenade launcher.

The Oak Leaf Cluster was added May 8, 1944, as a result of many hazardous patrols Murphy led at Anzio. According to Smith's records, it was for "exemplary conduct in ground combat."

On Aug. 15, 1944, Murphy landed in France and almost immediately earned the Distinguished Service Cross.

Murphy liked to work alone, putting only himself at risk, Willis said. But this time, he agreed to let Pvt. Lattie Tipton help out - at Tipton's insistence.

Operating alone on an enemy fortified hill, Murphy first killed two German soldiers in close combat and then started a series of duels with foxhole occupants. After his ammunition expired, he journeys back down the hill and retrieves a light machine gun from a squad that is pinned down and refuses to move.

Murphy takes the gun and crawls back up the hill and cleans out the foxholes. Then Tipton joins him and immediately kills two Germans with two shots, after they shoot off part of his ear.

After killing a couple of more defenders and knocking out another gun emplacement, Tipton stands up to accept what appears to be a German surrender and is immediately gunned down.

He was Murphy's best friend and the Texan, known for his humor and his temper, goes wild. "I remember the experience as I do a nightmare. A demon seems to have entered my body," Murphy recalled in "To Hell and Back."

Murphy then kills two more Germans with a grenade and finds the gun crew that faked surrender and killed Tipton. He kills them all and does not stop firing until his weapon is empty.

Then he grabbed an enemy machine gun and, firing from the hip, he charges the stronghold and wipes out all remaining resistance.

"His extraordinary heroisim resulted in the capture of a fiercely contested enemy-held hill and the capture of the entire enemy garrison," the DSC citation reads.

In about a three week period in October 1944, Murphy earned two Silver Stars, was wounded for the second time and received a battlefield commission.

The first Silver Star came on Oct. 2, when Murphy single-handedly rescues an ambushed patrol by killing all eight ambushers near Cleurie Quarry in France.

Smith's information shows the second came just three days later when Murphy, alone, "crawled 50 yards under a severe enemy machine gun and rifle fire to a point 200 yards from a strongly entrenched enemy. For an hour, Audie directed artillery fire upon the enemy, killing 15 Germans and inflicting 35 casualities."

on Jan. 25, all officers except Murphy were killed and 102 of the 120 men were killed or wounded before they reached their assigned position on the edge of the woods.

Murphy, the lone surviving officer, was wounded but kept going. He took over command of the company.

That night, two M-10 tank destroyers from the attached 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion joined Murphy and his now depleted 18-man company, and it got colder.

The next afternoon, the Germans attacked right at Murphy's position with six Tiger tanks and approximately 250 infantry. The tank destroyers, which had open turrets and were built on a Sherman chassis, could not damage the German armor.

But the Tiger's 88-mm guns quickly put one M-10 out of action and the other got stuck in a ditch trying to improve its firing position, a move that rendered its guns useless.

Murphy did what he always seemed to do. He ordered his men back to cover while he stayed. Alone again, except for his field phone, map and carbine.

Willis said Murphy realized "somebody had to hold that road." She added that later in life Murphy recalled there was nothing else to do but try to hold the road by directing artillery fire, and that was a one-man job.

Using his map and phone, Murphy directed and corrected the barrage as he emptied his carbine at the ever-closing infantry. As the tanks and riflemen closed in, along with the artillery Murphy himself self directed, he refused to budge.

Then he made the decision that forever changed his life. He climbed onto the 31-tons of burning tank destroyer and employed its 50-cal. machine gun on the infantry, all the while continuing to direct artillery almost on top of his own position.

At one point, when the officer on the other end of the phone asked how close was the enemy, Murphy replied, "Hold the phone and I'll let you talk to one of the bastards." Another time, when the officer thought Murphy might be dead and asked if he was still there, Murphy asked him, "And, what are your plans after the war?"

The battle raged and Murphy continued to fight an enemy that sometimes was only 10 yards away. One thing that confused the Germans was that none of them could locate Murphy because they never believed anyone would be on that burning time bomb. Luckily, smoke from burning diesel fuel covered his position.

Even the enemy tank commanders kept away from the tank destroyer thinking it would blow up at any minute. Three more 88-mm rounds hit the tank destroyer while Murphy fired away for an hour without receiving a single wound.

Finally, the Germans gave up.

They could not dislodge this determined American and retreated. Just seconds after Murphy got down and headed for the woods, the tank destroyer exploded and remained there for years after the war.

After vacating the tank destroyer, Murphy joined his unit and lead a successful counterattack.

Reports vary, but most agree that Murphy personally killed at least 50 of the enemy that day. Some accounts go up to 100. Overall, Murphy is credited with killing 241 enemy soldiers during World War II. He stayed with his unit to the end of the war. Bullets missed him by inches. Countless duels were won.

Audie Murphy's storied life ended in an airplane crash near Roanoke, Va., on May 28, 1971. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

-------------

http://www.grunts.net/legends/audiemurphy.html

Audie Murphy was the most decorated American combat soldier of the war. He was awarded every American medal for bravery and several foreign awards. is list of medals include:

Medal of Honor
Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star with First Oak Leaf Cluster
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device and First Oak Leaf Cluster
Purple Heart with Second Oak Leaf Cluster
U.S. Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal
Good Conduct Medal
Distinguished Unit Emblem with First Oak Leaf Cluster
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with One Silver Star, Four Bronze Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead (representing assault landing at Sicily and Southern France)
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
Armed Forces Reserve Medal
Combat Infantry Badge
Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar
Expert Badge with Bayonet Bar
French Fourragere in Colors of the Croix de Guerre
French Legion of Honor, Grade of Chevalier
French Croix de Guerre With Silver Star
French Croix de Guerre with Palm
Medal of Liberated France
Belgian Croix de Guerre 1940 Palm

 

Thank you for posting this list of Murphys medals. Many more of these medals and he would ruin his back with all that weight.