Military History by Month
March
NATIONAL ANTHEM DAY - March 3 1931 https://youtu.be/FLH8fzAPWYk?si=QvbD-3eodZzmu3np
NATIONAL HUG A G.I. DAY - March 4 https://youtube.com/shorts/EOXw9BCKKHU?si=GFk6RwrybmBJZEQ1
NATIONAL K9 VETERANS DAY - March 13 https://youtu.be/CeW57a2YN9Y?si=DPOpyG9aj6typ-4a
NATIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR DAY - March 25 https://youtu.be/_AylIq4N718?si=_fo3NYZ1nchjZ6Oy
NATIONAL VIETNAM WAR VETERANS DAY - March 29 https://youtu.be/p4XZ8A7Nw24?si=v-5ToScDc-z5kd6J
Military History Notes: Vietnam, Medal of Honor, and Dogs
March 13
1942: The U.S. Army establishes the "K-9 Corps" - training dogs to serve in sentry, scout, messenger, and mine detection duties during World War II. The Quartermaster Corps puts the dogs through an 8-12 week basic training at camps across the United States, weeding out the animals who can't handle the sound of gunfire or handle the military lifestyle. Starting with 32 breeds, the Army eventually cuts down the list to seven breeds: German Shepherds, Doberman Pinschers, Belgian Sheep Dogs, Siberian huskies, farm collies, Eskimo dogs, and Malamutes. Some even serve on the front lines. The Japanese are said to have never attacked a patrol accompanied by a war dog. A German Shepherd named "Chips" serving with a military police company on Sicily attacked a German pillbox, forcing the occupants to surrender. Wounded in his attack, Chips was
awarded Purple Heart and Silver Star.
Mar. 14
1945: on Iwo Jima, Pvt. Franklin E Sigler leads his squad on an assault against a Japanese machine gun nest that had been holding up his company for several days. Sigler reaches the position first and neutralizes it with grenades. As additional enemy troops begin firing from tunnels and caves near his location, he keeps pressing the attack. Despite his own painful wounds and heavy incoming fire, Sigler carries three of his wounded Marines to safety before returning to the fight. Pvt. Sigler will be awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions, as will fellow Marine, Pvt. George Philips, who leapt on an enemy grenade to shield his comrades from the deadly blast - sacrificing his life.
Mar. 17
1973: The first U.S. prisoners of war are released from the infamous "Hanoi Hilton" prison camp in North Vietnam.
Mar. 19
1945: The aircraft carrier USS Franklin sails to within 50 miles of the Japanese mainland - closer than any U.S. carrier during World War II. A lone Japanese bomber slips through the flattop's defenses and hits Franklin with two armor-piercing bombs. The bombs detonate below the flight deck, igniting fires and devastating the ship. Around 800 sailors are killed and another 400 wounded - the highest casualties for a surviving ship during the war."Big Ben's" death toll would have been far higher were it not for men like Lt. (j.g.) Donald A. Gary, who earned the Medal of Honor when he located a blacked-out mess compartment holding 300 trapped sailors. Gary made repeated trips through the ship, guiding the men to (relative) safety.
March 23
1775: In a speech before the House of Burgesses, future Virginia governor (and colonel of the 1st Virginia Regiment) Patrick Henry exclaims, "Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"
Mar. 24
1959: Elvis Presley is sworn into the Army as a private. He would attend basic and advanced training at Fort Hood, Texas and later serve in Europe in the 3d Armored Division. He ultimately reached the rank of sergeant before completing his two years of active duty service. Elvis was a jeep driver and reconnaissance scout, although he could also drive, load, and fire the M-48 Patton tank.
Mar. 25
1863: Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton presents six Union Army soldiers members of Andrews' Raiders with the first-ever Medals of Honor. Today, America recognizes all of its Medal of Honor recipients on National Medal of Honor Day — Mar. 25 (of each year) — the anniversary of the first presentations.
1915: While on maneuvers off the coast of Hawaii, USS F-4 (SS-23) develops a fatal leak, going down with the entire 21-man crew and becoming the first commissioned submarine lost at sea. When a fellow Navy diver becomes entangled during recovery operations on the sunken vessel in April, Chief Gunner's Mate Frank W. Crilley volunteers to rescue his comrade. Crilley's dive of 306 feet sets a world-record and he is awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions.
March 27
1953: When the Marines launch a counterattack against entrenched communist forces at Outpost Reno, Corpsman Francis C. Hammond exposes himself to enemy fire to treat his wounded Marines for four exhausting hours, becoming critically wounded himself. When his unit was ordered to withdraw, Hammond remains behind to assist the incoming medics treat and evacuate the casualties, but is killed by an enemy mortar. For his actions, Hammond is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
March 28
1966: While serving as a corpsman with the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines in Quang Ngai Province, Petty Officer Robert R. Ingraham's platoon was hammered by automatic weapons fire from around 100 North Vietnamese
soldiers. Over the next several hours, Ingraham disregarded heavy incoming fire and treated his fellow Marines, patching up wounds, distributing ammunition, all the while ignoring four bullet wounds he received during the battle - one of which was life-threatening. For his selfless actions, Ingraham is awarded the Medal of Honor. Today he is one of only 71 surviving recipients of the nation's highest award for combat
valor.
March 29
1911: After a series of disappointing firearm designs The U.S. Army selects Colt's Model of 1911 .45-cal pistol to become the service's new standard-issue sidearm. Designed by John Browning, the M1911 is destined to become the longest-serving pistol in military history, still carried on battlefields by U.S. Army Special Forces, U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Navy.
March 30
1944: During the Nuremburg raid, a Halifax bomber flown by captain Cyril J. Barton fell under attack by German fighters while enroute to the target. Barton manages to throw off the enemy fighters but not before they inflict heavy damage to his Halifax, causing three of his seven-man crew bail out. Despite not having a navigator, radio operator, or bombardier, Barton presses on to the objective and releases the bombs himself, then makes the return trip to England. The badly shot up plane runs out of fuel once they hit the coast, and Barton crash-lands - saving the crew, but at the cost of his life. For his actions, Barton is posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, the British equivalent to our Medal of Honor.
1981: President Ronald Reagan is shot during an assassination attempt at the Washington D.C. Hilton Hotel. While the president lost half his blood and was in shock from the gunshot, the 70-year-old former cavalry officer makes a full recovery - thanks to his fitness and the quick actions of his Secret Service agents.
Jerry Parr, the agent who pushed Reagan into the presidential limousine and made the life-saving decision to reroute the motorcade to George Washington Hospital instead of the medical team waiting at the White House, was inspired to become a Secret Service agent by watching a film starring Ronald Reagan called Code of the Secret Service (1939). Also wounded in the attack is White House Press Secretary James Brady, District of Columbia police officer Thomas Delahanty, and Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy.