08OCT1918: In the midst of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive of World War I, CPL Alvin York and a small team of American Soldiers were tasked with taking out a series of German machine gun positions that were causing problems up and down the line. Infiltrating the German lines, CPL York and his team quickly overran a headquarters unit where they captured about 30 prisoners. As they were reorganizing, a series of German machine guns opened up on their position. The initial barrage killed all in the patrol who outranked York so he quickly found himself in charge of the remainder and he went on the attack. Alternating between a prone, kneeling and standing position, York utilized his incredible marksmanship skills to neutralize one enemy machine gunner after another. Every time one would pop his head above the parapet to see where to shoot, York was there to knock him down. Just as he was running out of ammunition, six German soldiers charged York with bayonets drawn. Pulling his sidearm, York shot and killed all six before they reached him. Throughout the engagement, York was yelling for the German enemy to surrender and was finally taken up on it. Assuming they were under a barrage from a much larger force, nearly 90 German prisoners walked down the hill to surrender to York and his 8 able bodied Soldiers. CPL York assembled the prisoners and marched all 132 back to American lines where he would be promoted to Sergeant, awarded the Medal of Honor, and would survive the war.

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related