TODAY IN MILITARY HISTORY
18 September
◆327 Battle of Chrysopolis: Constantine the Great defeats Licinius, to become sole emperor.
◆1454 Battle of Konitz: The Teutonic Knights defeat the Poles.
◆1497 Two day Battle of Exeter ends: the Earl of Devonshire defeats Perkin Warbeck.
◆1502 Christopher Columbus landed at Costa Rica on his 4th & last voyage.
◆1634 Anne Hutchinson, the first female religious leader in American colonies, arrived at the Massachusetts Bay Colony with her family. She preached that faith alone was sufficient for salvation. As her following grew, she was brought to trial and found guilty of heresy against Puritan orthodoxy and banished from Massachusetts. She left with 70 followers to Providence.
◆1679 New Hampshire became a county of Massachusetts Bay Colony.
◆1755 Ft. Ticonderoga was established in NY.
◆1758 James Abercromby was replaced as supreme commander of British forces after his defeat by French commander, the Marquis of Montcalm, at Fort Ticonderoga during the French and Indian War.
◆1759 Quebec surrendered to the British and the Battle of Quebec ended. The French surrendered to the British after their defeat on the Plains of Abraham.
◆1789 It was bound to happen sometime, and on September 18, 1789, with the nation's finances in something of a mess, the government took out its first loan.Under the supervision of newly appointed Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton, the government took a little under a year to pay back the loan of $191,608.81.
◆1793 President George Washington laid the foundation stone for the U.S. Capitol on Jenkins Hill.
◆1862 Confederate General Robert E. Lee's army pulls away from Antietam Creek, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and heads back to Virginia.★
◆1863 Union cavalry troops clashed with a group of Confederates at Chickamauga Creek.
◆1864 Battle of Martinsburg WV.
◆1914 Battle of the Aisne: the Germans hold the French, trench warfare begins.
◆1921 John Glenn, astronaut, was born.
◆1924 After seven years of occupation, the last Marines departed the Dominican Republic.
◆1926 Joe Kubert, was born in Poland, American soldier and cartoonist ("Sgt. Rock", "Hawkman", etc.), d. 2012.
◆1931 The Mukden Incident was initiated by the Japanese Kwangtung Army in Mukden.★
◆1936 Squadron 40-T, based in the Mediterranean, established to protect U.S. interests and citizens around Iberian peninsula throughout the Spanish Civil War.
◆1940 Italian troops capture Sidi Barrani.
◆1941 U.S. Navy ships escort eastbound British trans-Atlantic convoy for first time (Convoy HX-150). Although the U.S. Navy ships joined HX-150, which left port escorted by British ships on 16th, on night of 17 September, the official escort duty began on 18th.
◆1941 President Roosevelt requests an additional $5,985,000,000 for Lend-Lease Aid to Britain from Congress.
◆1941 The Louisiana Maneuvers: Phase 1 of the combined Second and Third Army Maneuvers opens when the ‘Red Army’ attacks the ‘Blue Army’ southeast of Shreveport.★
◆1942 On Guadalcanal, six transports arrive bringing supplies and the US 7th Marine Regiment. The American base now has 23,000 men and adequate supplies.
◆1943 American planes from the carriers Lexington, Princeton and Belleau Wood attack the island of Tarawa. Admiral Pownall commands the carrier force.
◆1944 American B-17 bombers drop 1284 containers of supplies to the embattled Polish Home Army (AK) in Warsaw. Only 228 fall on territory still controlled by the Poles. This is the only major supply drop, by the western Allies, allowed by the Soviets. The US planes land on Soviet territory after completing their mission.
◆1944 Operation Market Garden continues. The British 30th Corps reaches the troops of the US 101st Airborne Division at Eindhoven and Veghel. There is increasing resistance from German forces. To the north, the US 82nd and British 1st Airborne Divisions continue to resist.
◆1944 On Peleliu, American marines attempt to expand their attacks on Mount Umurgrobol. Japanese forces repulse the marines with heavy losses. On Angaur, US forces advance toward the center of the island. Japanese forces harass the movement.
◆1947 The National Security Act went into effect. It created a Cabinet secretary of defense and unified the Army, Navy and newly formed Air Force into a National Military Establishment. The act established the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
◆1947 The U.S. Air Force was formed as a separate military service out of the old Army Air Corps. The Air Force's motto is: "Uno Ab Alto" (One over all). At the same time the Air National Guard is created as a separate reserve component under control of the National Guard Bureau.
◆1950 Kimpo Airfield, Korea, was up and running. The first aircraft to land on the airfield was a helicopter piloted by Marine Corps Captain Victor A. Armstrong.
◆1954 The US, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, France, Thailand and the Philippines signed a treaty providing for the creation of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), a collective defense pact. The organization was created in response to events in Korea and Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos).The pack formally ended in 1977.
◆1964 South Vietnamese officials claim that two companies from the North Vietnamese army have invaded South Vietnam.★
◆1970 Jimi Hendrix died, musician, soldier.★
◆1988 Coup in Haiti.
◆1990 A new 40-acre training facility for Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) was dedicated at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, by General Alfred M. Gray, Commandant of the Marine Corps.Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
DAY, MATTHIAS W.
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, 9th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Las Animas Canyon, N. Mex., 18 September 1879. Entered service at: Oberlin, Ohio. Birth: Mansfield, Ohio. Date of issue: 7 May 1890. Citation: Advanced alone into the enemy's lines and carried off a wounded soldier of his command under a hot fire and after he had been ordered to retreat.
DENNY, JOHN
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company C, 9th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Las Animas Canyon, N. Mex., 18 September 1879. Entered service at: 1867 Elmira, N.Y. Birth: Big Flats, N.Y. Date of issue: 27 November 189i. Citation: Removed a wounded comrade, under a heavy fire, to a place of safety.
EMMET, ROBERT TEMPLE
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, 9th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Las Animas Canyon, N. Mex., 18 September 1879. Entered service at: New York, N.Y. Birth: New York, N.Y. Date of issue 24 August 1899. Citation: Lt. Emmet was in G Troop which was sent to relieve a detachment of soldiers under attack by hostile Apaches During a flank attack on the Indian camp, made to divert the hostiles Lt. Emmet and 5 of his men became surrounded when the Indians returned to defend their camp. Finding that the Indians were making for a position from which they could direct their fire on the retreating troop, the Lieutenant held his point with his party until the soldiers reached the safety of a canyon. Lt. Emmet then continued to hold his position while his party recovered their horses. The enemy force consisted of approximately 200.
JACKSON, ARTHUR J.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps, 3d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. Place and date: Island of Peleliu in the Palau group, 18 September 1944. Entered service at: Oregon. Born: 18 October 1924, Cleveland Ohio. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 3d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on the Island of Peleliu in the Palau group, 18 September 1944. Boldly taking the initiative when his platoon's left flank advance was held up by the fire of Japanese troops concealed in strongly fortified positions, Pfc. Jackson unhesitatingly proceeded forward of our lines and, courageously defying the heavy barrages, charged a large pillbox housing approximately 35 enemy soldiers. Pouring his automatic fire into the opening of the fixed installation to trap the occupying troops, he hurled white phosphorus grenades and explosive charges brought up by a fellow marine, demolishing the pillbox and killing all of the enemy. Advancing alone under the continuous fire from other hostile emplacements, he employed similar means to smash 2 smaller positions in the immediate vicinity. Determined to crush the entire pocket of resistance although harassed on all sides by the shattering blasts of Japanese weapons and covered only by small rifle parties, he stormed 1 gun position after another, dealing death and destruction to the savagely fighting enemy in his inexorable drive against the remaining defenses, and succeeded in wiping out a total of 12 pillboxes and 50 Japanese soldiers. Stouthearted and indomitable despite the terrific odds. Pfc. Jackson resolutely maintained control of the platoon's left flank movement throughout his valiant 1-man assault and, by his cool decision and relentless fighting spirit during a critical situation, contributed essentially to the complete annihilation of the enemy in the southern sector of the island. His gallant initiative and heroic conduct in the face of extreme peril reflect the highest credit upon Pfc. Jackson and the U.S. Naval Service.
JOHNSON, OSCAR G.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company B, 363d Infantry, 91st Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Scarperia, Italy, 16-18 September 1944. Entered service at: Foster City, Mich. Birth: Foster City, Mich. G.O. No.: 58, 19 July 1945. Citation: (then Pfc.) He practically single-handed protected the left flank of his company's position in the offensive to break the German's gothic line. Company B was the extreme left assault unit of the corps. The advance was stopped by heavy fire from Monticelli Ridge, and the company took cover behind an embankment. Sgt. Johnson, a mortar gunner, having expended his ammunition, assumed the duties of a rifleman. As leader of a squad of 7 men he was ordered to establish a combat post 50 yards to the left of the company to cover its exposed flank. Repeated enemy counterattacks, supported by artillery, mortar, and machinegun fire from the high ground to his front, had by the afternoon of 16 September killed or wounded all his men. Collecting weapons and ammunition from his fallen comrades, in the face of hostile fire, he held his exposed position and inflicted heavy casualties upon the enemy, who several times came close enough to throw hand grenades. On the night of 1617 September, the enemy launched his heaviest attack on Company B, putting his greatest pressure against the lone defender of the left flank. In spite of mortar fire which crashed about him and machinegun bullets which whipped the crest of his shallow trench, Sgt. Johnson stood erect and repulsed the attack with grenades and small arms fire. He remained awake and on the alert throughout the night, frustrating all attempts at infiltration. On 17 September, 25 German soldiers surrendered to him. Two men, sent to reinforce him that afternoon, were caught in a devastating mortar and artillery barrage. With no thought of his own safety, Sgt. Johnson rushed to the shell hole where they lay half buried and seriously wounded, covered their position by his fire, and assisted a Medical Corpsman in rendering aid. That night he secured their removal to the rear and remained on watch until his company was relieved. Five companies of a German paratroop regiment had been repeatedly committed to the attack on Company B without success. Twenty dead Germans were found in front of his position. By his heroic stand and utter disregard for personal safety, Sgt. Johnson was in a large measure responsible for defeating the enemy's attempts to turn the exposed left flank.
*MANN, JOE E.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company H, 502d Parachute Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. Place and date: Best, Holland, 18 September 1944. Entered service at: Seattle, Wash. Birth: Rearden, Wash. G.O. No.: 73, 30 August 1945. Citation: He distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty. On 18 September 1944, in the vicinity of Best., Holland, his platoon, attempting to seize the bridge across the Wilhelmina Canal, was surrounded and isolated by an enemy force greatly superior in personnel and firepower. Acting as lead scout, Pfc. Mann boldly crept to within rocket-launcher range of an enemy artillery position and, in the face of heavy enemy fire, destroyed an 88mm. gun and an ammunition dump. Completely disregarding the great danger involved, he remained in his exposed position, and, with his M-1 rifle, killed the enemy one by one until he was wounded 4 times. Taken to a covered position, he insisted on returning to a forward position to stand guard during the night. On the following morning the enemy launched a concerted attack and advanced to within a few yards of the position, throwing hand grenades as they approached. One of these landed within a few feet of Pfc. Mann. Unable to raise his arms, which were bandaged to his body, he yelled "grenade" and threw his body over the grenade, and as it exploded, died. His outstanding gallantry above and beyond the call of duty and his magnificent conduct were an everlasting inspiration to his comrades for whom he gave his life.
*ROAN, CHARLES HOWARD
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Born: 16 August 1923, Claude, Tex. Accredited to. Texas. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Peleliu, Palau Islands, 18 September 1944. Shortly after his leader ordered a withdrawal upon discovering that the squad was partly cut off from their company as a result of the rapid advance along an exposed ridge during an aggressive attack on the strongly entrenched enemy, Pfc. Roan and his companions were suddenly engaged in a furious exchange of handgrenades by Japanese forces emplaced in a cave on higher ground and to the rear of the squad. Seeking protection with 4 other marines in a depression in the rocky, broken terrain, Pfc. Roan was wounded by an enemy grenade which fell close to their position and, immediately realizing the eminent peril to his comrades when another grenade landed in the midst of the group, unhesitatingly flung himself upon it, covering it with his body and absorbing the full impact of the explosion. By his prompt action and selfless conduct in the face of almost certain death, he saved the lives of 4 men. His great personal valor reflects the highest credit upon himself and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his comrades.
*WILLIAMS, DEWAYNE T.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps, Company H, 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. Place and date: Quang Nam Province, Republic of Vietnam, 18 September 1968. Entered service at: Saint Clair, Mich. Born: 18 September 1949, Brown City, Mich. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifleman with the 1st Platoon, Company H, in action against communist insurgent forces. Pfc. Williams was a member of a combat patrol sent out from the platoon with the mission of establishing positions in the company's area of operations, from which it could intercept and destroy enemy sniper teams operating in the area. In the night as the patrol was preparing to move from its daylight position to a preselected night position, it was attacked from ambush by a squad of enemy using small arms and hand grenades. Although severely wounded in the back by the close intense fire, Pfc. Williams, recognizing the danger to the patrol, immediately began to crawl forward toward a good firing position. While he was moving under the continuing intense fire, he heard one of the members of the patrol sound the alert that an enemy grenade had landed in their position. Reacting instantly to the alert, he saw that the grenade had landed close to where he was Lying and without hesitation, in a valiant act of heroism, rolled on top of the grenade as it exploded, absorbing the full and tremendous impact of the explosion with his body. Through his extraordinary initiative and inspiring valor in the face of certain death, he saved the other members of his patrol from serious injury and possible loss of life, and enabled them to successfully defeat the attackers and hold their position until assistance arrived. His personal heroism and devotion to duty upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.