Medal of Honor Hero Known As The 'One-man Marine Corps' Has Died Aged 92.

[big ned]

A Medal of Honor recipient who was later called a "one-man Marine Corps" died on Wednesday at the age of 92, the Idaho Statesman reported.

Art Jackson, who served with the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, was one of 28,000 Marines who took part in the two-month long of Battle of Peleliu during World War II.

1,800 of them lost their lives, and 8,000 more were wounded.

On Sept. 18, 1944, as Jackson's platoon was pinned down by heavy Japanese fire, he ran forward by himself toward a pillbox holding about 35 enemy soldiers, according to his Medal of Honor citation.

"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," the citation said.

But he didn't stop. He charged and took out 11 more Japanese pillboxes singlehandedly, eventually killing 50 enemy soldiers. He was called a "one-man Marine Corps" in a book that was later written about the battle.

"By his cool decision and relentless fighting spirit during a critical situation, [Jackson] contributed essentially to the complete annihilation of the enemy in the southern sector of the island," the citation said.

Jackson was wounded once during Peleiu and a second time during the Battle of Okinawa, for which he also received two Purple Hearts, the Statesman reported.

“Art Jackson was a true American hero," Rocci Johnson, a family friend, told the Statesman. "He was from the Greatest Generation. If it wasn’t for men and women like him, it would be a very different world ... We owe a lot to his dedication and hope that his legacy will serve as an example for all of those who are currently fighting for freedom.”

In 1961, Jackson, then a Marine captain, was stationed in Guantanamo Bay when a Cuban spy working for Castro lunged at him with a knife. Jackson drew his sidearm and shot him dead. He then tried to hide the body, but it was later discovered.

Jackson was then arrested and later kicked out of the Marine Corps.

Courtesy of Business Insider UK.



Requiescat in Pace.

Regards, Ned.

[MAP]

Thanks Ned! New story/history lesson for me! Quite interesting that they kicked him out. It sounds like self defense. Or maybe it was for hiding the body...eitherway a true hero of the greatest generation.

[AZPhil]

Thanks Ned for sharing that story. I have not read it yet.
He was with the Old Breed. The book 'With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa Is about Eugene Sledge and his time with the 1st Mar. Div. attached to 3/5. In that battle we suffered major losses but they took the island. There were a lot of brave men who gave their all but never came home.

Art mentioned about dropping into water 7 feet deep. They attacked when the tide was low and the landing craft couldn't go over coral reef's
. They had to disembark in deep waters. A lot of Marines drowned. Hench our reason to be swim qualified in boot camp
Its a part of our history that is taught us in Boot Camp .

When he get to heavens gates, To St. Peter he can tell,
Another Marine reporting Sir! I've served my time in Hell.

Rest In Peace Sir!
Semper Fi
Phil

[AZPhil]

Thanks Ned! New story/history lesson for me! Quite interesting that they kicked him out. It sounds like self defense. Or maybe it was for hiding the body...eitherway a true hero of the greatest generation.

This might explain why he was asked to leave the Corps.

"In 1963 Lieutenant William Szili offered his account of the shooting.[1][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] He was the executive officer of a Company of Marines guarding the western boundary of the base. According to Szili, he and his company commander, Captain Arthur J. Jackson, who was awarded a Medal of Honor during World War II, had consumed approximately 6 martini cocktails at the base officer's club, on September 30, 1961. He said he left Jackson at the officer's club, went home to sleep, and was woken by a call from one of the base's provost officers, that Jackson had found Lopez in a "restricted area", and that Jackson needed his help.

The camp police had told Jackson to escort Lopez to the Northeast Gate, the only gate officially in use after the Cuban revolution.[8] But this wasn't possible, because doing so required taking a ferry ride to the eastern side of the bay, and the ferry only ran until midnight. Jackson decided to use a smaller gate that had been abandoned after the Cuban revolution.

When Jackson, Szili and Lopez arrived at the abandoned gate the lock was rusted shut, and Jackson directed Szili to go get a sledge hammer.[8] When Szili returned he found Jackson in a state of panic. Jackson told him he had been able to open the gate after all; he had escorted Lopez to the Cuban side of the boundary; Lopez had attacked him, and he had shot him. Jackson told Szili he had thrown Lopez's body over the cliff where the boundary between the base and Cuban territory met the seashore.

The two officers left Lopez's body lying on the beach below the cliff all day October 1, 1961.[8] The evening of October 1 they decided they would return to the beach on the Cuban side, and bury Lopez's body under rocks. But, after trying to cover the body with rocks on October 2, Jackson decided they should instead bring the body to the American side, and find a place to bury the body.

The next day the first attempt to retrieve Lopez's body failed, when the rope they were using broke.[8] They were eventually able to retrieve the body, with the help of three other officers and six enlisted men. Under Jackson's direction they tried to bury the body well inside the base, 800 feet (240 m) from the boundary fence. After rumors circulated, a search was made for the shallow grave, which was found over two weeks later"

I'm thinking when he got to Heavens gates, St Peter might of had some questions..

Semper Fi
Phil