Medal of Honor Roll Call: Benjamin L. Salomon

in Our Medal of Honor hero this week is a real improbable one. Benjamin L. Salomon was a dentist drafted in the Army, who found himself serving in the Pacific Theater during the Second World War. In July 1944, Salomon landed on Saipan for one of the most vicious battles of the war. When the Japanese overran his battlefield first aid station, the dentist shielded the evacuation of the wounded by manning a machine gun. Days later, American forces retook the position and found Salomon’s dead body slumped by the machine gun with a semi-circle of 98 dead Japanese soldiers arrayed in front of him.

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Salomon was recommended for the Medal of Honor immediately, but Army lawyers got caught up in questions about the nature of medical personnel in combat.

President George W. Bush finally awarded the MOH to Salomon’s family in 2002.

Make the most of your day!

–RJL

 

Ben L. Salomon

Benjamin L. Salomon

Citation: Captain Ben L. Salomon was serving at Saipan, in the Marianas Islands on July 7, 1944, as the Surgeon for the 2nd Battalion, 105th Infantry Regiment, 27th Infantry Division. The Regiment’s 1st and 2d Battalions were attacked by an overwhelming force estimated between 3,000 and 5,000 Japanese soldiers. It was one of the largest attacks attempted in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Although both units fought furiously, the enemy soon penetrated the Battalions’ combined perimeter and inflicted overwhelming casualties. In the first minutes of the attack, approximately 30 wounded soldiers walked, crawled, or were carried into Captain Salomon’s aid station, and the small tent soon filled with wounded men. As the perimeter began to be overrun, it became increasingly difficult for Captain Salomon to work on the wounded. He then saw a Japanese soldier bayoneting one of the wounded soldiers lying near the tent. Firing from a squatting position, Captain Salomon quickly killed the enemy soldier. Then, as he turned his attention back to the wounded, two more Japanese soldiers appeared in the front entrance of the tent. As these enemy soldiers were killed, four more crawled under the tent walls. Rushing them, Captain Salomon kicked the knife out of the hand of one, shot another, and bayoneted a third. Captain Salomon butted the fourth enemy soldier in the stomach and a wounded comrade then shot and killed the enemy soldier. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Captain Salomon ordered the wounded to make their way as best they could back to the regimental aid station, while he attempted to hold off the enemy until they were clear. Captain Salomon then grabbed a rifle from one of the wounded and rushed out of the tent. After four men were killed while manning a machine gun, Captain Salomon took control of it. When his body was later found, 98 dead enemy soldiers were piled in front of his position. Captain Salomon’s extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

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