Remembering an American Patriot

by Gina L. Diorio

Most Americans today who are familiar with Audie Murphy probably know him as the boy-faced actor who graced the screen in more than 40 films in the 1940s, ‘50s, and ‘60s  – films like The Red Badge of Courage, Destry, and Night Passage. But what many Americans don’t realize is that far beyond being a much-loved actor, Audie Murphy was also the most decorated American war hero of World War II, earning  a total of 28 medals: twenty-four from the U.S. government – including the Congressional Medal of Honor – one from Belgium, and three from France.

And it was on this day in 1945, while serving near Holtzwihr in the U.S. Army, Company B 1 5th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division, that Second Lieutenant Murphy performed the act of heroism that earned him the Medal of Honor.

According to the citation taken from the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Report, Medal of Honor Recipients: 1863-1978 (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1979):

2d Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by 6 tanks and waves of infantry. 2d Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to prepared positions in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by telephone. Behind him, to his right, 1 of our tank destroyers received a direct hit and began to burn. Its crew withdrew to the woods. 2d Lt. Murphy continued to direct artillery fire which killed large numbers of the advancing enemy infantry. With the enemy tanks abreast of his position, 2d Lt. Murphy climbed on the burning tank destroyer, which was in danger of blowing up at any moment, and employed its .50 caliber machinegun against the enemy. He was alone and exposed to German fire from 3 sides, but his deadly fire killed dozens of Germans and caused their infantry attack to waver. The enemy tanks, losing infantry support, began to fall back. For an hour the Germans tried every available weapon to eliminate 2d Lt. Murphy, but he continued to hold his position and wiped out a squad which was trying to creep up unnoticed on his right flank. Germans reached as close as 10 yards, only to be mowed down by his fire. He received a leg wound, but ignored it and continued the single-handed fight until his ammunition was exhausted. He then made his way to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. 2d Lt. Murphy's indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy's objective.

This heroism came from a man just 20 years old.

After returning to the States, Murphy went on to become the silver screen actor loved by so many. His youthful appearance, however, belied his wartime experiences. Sadly, Murphy died in a plane crash in 1971. He was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, and his gravesite is the second-most visited in the cemetery, surpassed only by President Kennedy’s.

Today may have passed with very few people remembering Audie Murphy, but he deserves the honor of our memory.

One of Murphy’s best-known films is To Hell and Back, based on his autobiography by the same title. In the movie, you’ll find Murphy the actor playing Murphy the soldier, and in the book you’ll experience his candid and open reflections on the wartime experiences of a young soldier. I highly recommend both.

At the very least, however, I hope you take a moment to think about Murphy and the thousands of brave Americans of his patriotic caliber who have fought and sacrificed for our nation.

“The true meaning of America, you ask? … It’s in a Texas rodeo, in a policeman’s badge, in the sound of laughing children, in a political rally, in a newspaper…. In all these things, and many more, you’ll find America. In all these things, you’ll find freedom. And freedom is what America means to the world.”
– Audie Murphy
(from The American Patriot’s Almanac by William J. Bennett and John T.E. Cribb)

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Gina L. Diorio is a full-time freelance writer. Please visit her website at www.LibertyWritingSolutions.com.