Medal of Honor Archives - TogetherWeServed Blog

The Last Airborne Deployment of WWII

Military Myths and Legends, World War II

In the early morning hours of March 24, 1945, a massive WWII airborne operation known as Operation Varsity launched with an attempt to deploy 17,000 American and British Airborne troops across the Rhine River. It was the largest single-day airborne operation in history. Operation Varsity Launches Bold Airborne Assault C-47 Transport Planes Release Hundreds of Paratroopers during Operation Varsity. In the final months of WWII, Western Allied Forces advanced east into Germany. This meant...

Cpl William Thomas Perkins Jr., U.S.M.C. (1966-1967) – Vietnam War Combat Photographer

Profiles in Courage, Vietnam War

The only Medal of Honor to be awarded to a combat photographer is now on display in the Medal of Honor Gallery in the "Price of Freedom" exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. William Perkins Jr’s Medal of Honor at the Smithsonian Marine Cpl. William Thomas Perkins Jr. died at the age of 20 on Oct. 12, 1967, when he flung himself on a grenade to preserve the lives of three other Marines during Operation Medina, a Marine search and destroy operation in Quang Tri...

MSG Gary Gordon (1978–1993) and SFC Randy Shughart (1976–1993), U.S. Army

Cold War, Profiles in Courage

The story of Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart is one of the most extraordinary acts of bravery and self-sacrifice in modern military history. Both were soldiers; U.S. Army Delta Force members who gave their lives trying to protect their fallen comrades in the face of overwhelming odds. It came in 1993, during the Battle of Mogadishu, famously depicted on the screen in the 2001 film, "Black Hawk Down." Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart Faced Chaos American forces in Somalia were looking to...

Distinguished Military Unit: 3rd Bn, 1st Marines (Fallujah) by A3C Michael Bell

Famous Military Units, Global War on Terror

"In this case, we were in an extremely violent political campaign over ideas, and we were trying to treat the problem of Fallujah like a conventional war… But that was the order: Attack."James Mattis, General, USMC (Ret), SecDef (2017-19) The 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines (3/1) is an infantry unit in the United States Marine Corps. Nicknamed the "Thundering Third," the Battalion consists of approximately 1,200 Marines and Sailors. It falls under the command of the 1st Marine Regiment and 1st...

Service Reflections of SSgt Michael Weaver, U.S. Marine Corps (1983-1993)

Cold War, Marine Reflections

I thought after high school that I might go into the Navy. However, my brother was killed in an accident in the Army, and my mother did not want me to attend, so I didn’t. I floundered around for two years, trying college, working for Transcontinental Bolt Company selling tools, nuts, and bolts door-to-door to farmers in western PA, and then working at Wendy’s. My father was a Marine during WWII. After a bad day at Wendy’s, I went home and announced that I was going to the Marine recruiting station. Dad, would you like to go with me? He did, we went, and I left for the Marines shortly thereafter.

SFC Paul Ray Smith, U.S. Army (1989–2003)

Global War on Terror, Profiles in Courage

Despite the years of civil war and insurgency that followed, the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was a well-planned and well-timed operation, so successful in its initial phases that American and Coalition forces had captured Baghdad within just three weeks. Major combat operations famously ended on May 1, 2003, in less than two months. But despite the speed and skill of the Americans, it was not without considerable effort – or losses. SFC Paul Ray Smith: A Soldier's Journey One of those...

The Lost Battalion

Military Myths and Legends, World War I

The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the final push of World War I on the Western Front, lasting from Sept. 28, 1918, until the end of the war, Nov. 11, 1918. The allied forces of Britain, France, and the United States advanced all along the front, making the largest offensive in U.S. military history, involving more than 1.2 million troops. It was also the deadliest, inflicting 350,000 casualties in less than seven weeks. The allies made relatively major gains, considering the course of the war...

The Ship That Wouldn’t Die

Military Myths and Legends, World War II

The USS Laffey (DD-724) was laid down 28 June 1943 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine. She was launched 21 November; sponsored by Miss Beatrice F. Laffey, daughter of Medal of Honor recipient S1c Bartlett Laffey. Commissioned 8 February 1944, Cdr. F. Julian. Becton as her first "Captain". The USS Laffey's Heroic Beginning After shakedown, the Laffey traveled the world in the war effort. She was off the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. Off Cherbourg, France where an unexploded shell bounced off...

PFC Harold Agerholm, U.S. Marine Corps (1942-1944)

Profiles in Courage, World War II

PFC Harold Agerholm had a quiet start to his life. After qualifying from school in Racine, Wisconsin, he worked as a multigraph operator for the Ranch Manufacturing Company. Then in July 1942, he joined the Marine Corps Reserve. Upon completing his recruit training in San Diego, California, Harold Agerholm was sent to the Headquarters and Service Battery, 4th Battalion, 10th Marines, and 2nd Marine Division. He received further training for eleven months with his battalion in Wellington, New...

WW2 – The Battle of Iwo Jima

Battlefield Chronicles, World War II

The year 2025 will mark the 80th anniversary of the World War II Battle of Iwo Jima, one of the most storied contests in American military history. Many are familiar with the myriad stories surrounding the battle, from the two flag raisings over Mount Suribachi to any of the 27 men who received the Medal of Honor for their actions on the island. What fails to get a mention in history books is the sheer scale of the battle itself and the defensive planning of the enemy's commander. The...

5 Legendary Heroes of the U.S. Air Force

Military Myths and Legends

We all know the Marine Corps celebrates its birthday in a big way, but that doesn't mean the other branches aren't worth celebrating. The United States Air Force was created after President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947. On September 18, 1947, W. Stuart Symington became Secretary of the Air Force, making September 18 the service's official birthday. In honor of its 77th birthday, let's take a look at some of the airmen who shaped the history and development of the...

SgtMaj Daniel J. Daly, U.S. Marine Corps (1899–1929)

Profiles in Courage, World War I

Only two Marines have received the Medal of Honor for two separate actions: Maj. Gen Smedley Butler and SgtMaj. Daniel J. Daly. And you know it has to mean something when Butler called Daly "the fightingest Marine I ever knew." SgtMaj Daniel J. Daly and the Boxer Rebellion Daly served in the Marine Corps for 30 years, seeing every major Marine Corps campaign between 1899 and 1929. Growing up in New York City as a slender youth, he had to be tough; he even became a semi-pro boxer before joining...

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