Navy and Marine Reservists Well-Represented on MOH Roster
By DAVID F. WINKLER
Dr. David F. Winkler is a historian with the Naval Historical Foundation.
With sea-service reservists contributing significantly to the U.S.-led war against international terrorism, it is appropriate to reflect on the heroic contributions made by citizen-Sailors and Marines in past conflicts. The nation's highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor (MOH), has been bestowed on 23 Naval and 62 Marine Reservists. (The one Coast Guard Medal of Honor recipient was not a reservist.)
This prestigious award, given "in the name of the Congress of the United States," was first awarded by the Navy Department to Marines and Sailors fighting on behalf of the Union during the Civil War. With the founding of the Naval and Marine Corps Reserves in 1915 and 1916 respectively, the first opportunities for reservists to distinguish themselves came during World War I. Indeed, five Navy reservists were recipients of the nation's highest honor in this "war to end all wars."
While members of the newly formed Marine Corps Reserve did not receive any MOHs during the Great War, they more than made up for it during World War II when Marine reservists earned the majority (47 of the 81) of the Medals of Honor awarded to Marines. Naval reservists received 15 Medals of Honor for their heroic achievements during World War II.
Again during the Korean War, Marine Corps reservists contributed their fair share of valor on the battlefield, earning 13 Medals of Honor. Naval reservists also made important contributions to the war effort, but did not receive any of the MOHs awarded.
With the decision of the nation's leaders not to commit Reserve units to the war in Vietnam, only a small percentage of the Medals of Honor awarded went to members of the Reserve components: Three Naval Reserve and two Marine Corps Reserve personnel received the award during that long struggle.
Further statistical breakdowns show that a majority (15) of the Naval Reserve recipients were officers, while enlisted Marines (41) earned the majority of medals for the Corps. Eight Navy and 38 Marine reservists received the awards posthumously.
Besides calling attention to a small sample of the courageous contributions made by all sea-service reservists to the nation, it is fitting to reflect on how many of these Sailors and Marines earned their awards supporting the Navy-Marine Corps team.
For example, one of the Navy's first recipients, Lt. Orlando H. Petty, of the Navy's Medical Reserve Corps, performed heroically during the World War I Battle of Belleau Wood when his aid station was hit by an exploding gas shell, knocking him to the ground. He still tended wounded Marines and managed to evacuate the station, assisting an injured officer to safety during an artillery barrage.
During World War II, heroism in the battle for Iwo Jima earned reservists from the two sea-service components 23 medals (12 awarded posthumously). Two of the three Naval Reserve recipients were pharmacist's mates serving with Marine platoons. Three more Medals of Honor were awarded to enlisted Naval Reserve medical personnel during the next major struggle, the battle for Okinawa. Eight more Marine reservists received MOH awards for actions conducted during that same Pacific War campaign.
Two Naval Reserve chaplains received the highest honor. The legendary tale of Cdr. Joseph O'Callahan rallying Sailors to save the devastated aircraft carrier USS Franklin (CV 13) after two Japanese bomb hits is fairly well known. With the recent publication of The Grunt Padre by Daniel Mode, the story of Lt. Vincent Capadonno and his heroic actions during the Vietnam War tending wounded Marines under intense fire that eventually claimed his life is receiving greater recognition. The inspirational feats performed by the 85 naval and Marine reservists and other servicemen to earn the nation's highest military honor are well worth reading. The Naval Historical Center website (www.history.navy.mil) lists all Navy and Marine Corps recipients and includes the Navy citations. The Naval Reserve Force website (www.navres.navy.mil) provides historical narratives for its 23 MOH recipients. The Marine Corps Historical Center website provides detailed biographies for many of the Marine recipients, and the Center of Military History website has award citations for all services. Both centers are easily accessed through the service's main homepage (www.usmc.mil or www.army.mil; click the history tab). In addition, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society website (www.cmohs.org) provides a wealth of other information about the history of the U.S. Medal of Honor and the recipients now surviving.*
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