Desmond T. Doss (January 17, 1919 – March 23, 2006) was the first conscientious objector to receive the Medal of Honor (Cpl. Thomas W. Bennett, an army medic during World War II, is the only other). He was a Private First Class (at the time of his Medal of Honor heroics) in the U.S. Army assigned to the Medical Detachment, 307th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Lynchburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ... Piedmont is a small, rural town located in Calhoun County, Alabama. ... The United States Army is the largest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... The 77th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. // Activated: 18 August 1917 Overseas: March 1918 Major Operations: Meuse-Argonne Offensive, Oise-Aisne. ... Combatants United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand Empire of Japan Commanders Simon B. Buckner†, Joseph W. Stilwell, Ray Spruance Mitsuru Ushijima† Isamu Cho† Strength 548,000 regulars, 1300 ships,  ? aircraft 100,000 regulars and militia,  ? ships,  ? aircraft Casualties 12,513 dead or missing, 38,916 wounded, 33,096... The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States. ... The Bronze Star Medal is a United States Armed Forces individual military decoration and is the fourth highest award for bravery, heroism or meritorious service. ... For other meanings see Purple Heart (disambiguation). ... January 17 is the 17th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... March 23 is the 82nd day of the year (83rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... John T. Neufeld was a WWI conscientious objector sentenced to 15 years hard labour in the military prison at Leavenworth. ... The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States. ... Thomas W. Bennett (April 7, 1947–February 11, 1969) was a U.S. Army medic and the second conscientious objector to win the Medal of Honor (Desmond Doss, a medic in World War II, was the first). ... US Military In the U.S. Army, Private First Class is the third lowest enlisted rank, just above Private and below Corporal or Specialist. ... The United States Army is the largest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... The 77th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. // Activated: 18 August 1917 Overseas: March 1918 Major Operations: Meuse-Argonne Offensive, Oise-Aisne. ...

Desmond Doss refused to kill, or carry a weapon into combat, because of his personal beliefs as a Seventh-day Adventist. He thus became a medic, and by serving in the Pacific theatre of World War II helped his country by saving the lives of his comrades, while also adhering to his religious convictions. The Seventh-day Adventist (abbreviated Adventist[1]) Church is a Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week, as the Sabbath. ... A combat medic is a trained soldier who is responsible for providing first aid and frontline trauma care on the battlefield. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

His Medal of Honor was earned by the risks he took to save the lives of many comrades.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Medical Detachment, 307th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division. US Military In the U.S. Army, Private First Class is the third lowest enlisted rank, just above Private and below Corporal or Specialist. ... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... The 77th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. // Activated: 18 August 1917 Overseas: March 1918 Major Operations: Meuse-Argonne Offensive, Oise-Aisne. ...

Place and date: Near Urasoe Mura, Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands, 29 April-21 May 1945. Combatants United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand Empire of Japan Commanders Simon B. Buckner†, Joseph W. Stilwell, Ray Spruance Mitsuru Ushijima† Isamu Cho† Strength 548,000 regulars, 1300 ships,  ? aircraft 100,000 regulars and militia,  ? ships,  ? aircraft Casualties 12,513 dead or missing, 38,916 wounded, 33,096... Location of Ryukyu Islands The Ryukyu Islands, in Japanese called the Nansei Islands ) are a chain of Japanese islands in the western Pacific Ocean at the eastern limit of the East China Sea. ... April 29 is the 119th day of the year (120th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... May 21 is the 141st day of the year (142nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945and died 2007 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ...

Entered service at: Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ...

Birth: Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ...

G.O. No.: 97, 1 November 1945. November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... Year 1945and died 2007 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ...

Citation: He was a company aid man when the 1st Battalion assaulted a jagged escarpment 400 feet high. As our troops gained the summit, a heavy concentration of artillery, mortar and machinegun fire crashed into them, inflicting approximately 75 casualties and driving the others back. Pfc. Doss refused to seek cover and remained in the fire-swept area with the many stricken, carrying them 1 by 1 to the edge of the escarpment and there lowering them on a rope-supported litter down the face of a cliff to friendly hands. On 2 May, he exposed himself to heavy rifle and mortar fire in rescuing a wounded man 200 yards forward of the lines on the same escarpment; and 2 days later he treated 4 men who had been cut down while assaulting a strongly defended cave, advancing through a shower of grenades to within 8 yards of enemy forces in a cave's mouth, where he dressed his comrades' wounds before making 4 separate trips under fire to evacuate them to safety. On 5 May, he unhesitatingly braved enemy shelling and small arms fire to assist an artillery officer. He applied bandages, moved his patient to a spot that offered protection from small arms fire and, while artillery and mortar shells fell close by, painstakingly administered plasma. Later that day, when an American was severely wounded by fire from a cave, Pfc. Doss crawled to him where he had fallen 25 feet from the enemy position, rendered aid, and carried him 100 yards to safety while continually exposed to enemy fire. On 21 May, in a night attack on high ground near Shuri, he remained in exposed territory while the rest of his company took cover, fearlessly risking the chance that he would be mistaken for an infiltrating Japanese and giving aid to the injured until he was himself seriously wounded in the legs by the explosion of a grenade. Rather than call another aid man from cover, he cared for his own injuries and waited 5 hours before litter bearers reached him and started carrying him to cover. The trio was caught in an enemy tank attack and Pfc. Doss, seeing a more critically wounded man nearby, crawled off the litter; and directed the bearers to give their first attention to the other man. Awaiting the litter bearers' return, he was again struck, this time suffering a compound fracture of 1 arm. With magnificent fortitude he bound a rifle stock to his shattered arm as a splint and then crawled 300 yards over rough terrain to the aid station. Through his outstanding bravery and unflinching determination in the face of desperately dangerous conditions Pfc. Doss saved the lives of many soldiers. His name became a symbol throughout the 77th Infantry Division for outstanding gallantry far above and beyond the call of duty.^[1] In geology, an escarpment is a transition zone between different physiogeographic provinces that involves an elevation differential, often involving high cliffs. ... Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ... US soldier loading a M224 60-mm mortar. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... Grenade may refer to: The well-known hand grenade commonly used by soldiers. ... Blood plasma is the liquid component of blood, in which the blood cells are suspended. ... ambulancers using a stretcher (profile) ambulancers using a stretcher (front) Soldiers using a simple stretcher A stretcher is a device used in medical professions to carry casualties or an incapacitated person from one place to another. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Bone healing. ... Splint may mean: Splint (programming tool), a tool for checking computer programs Splint (medicine), a medical device for the immobilisation of limbs or spine This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Trivia

Desmond Doss died the same day as another Medal of Honor recipient, David Bleak. David B. Bleak (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2006) was an Idaho native who enlisted in the Army in 1950. ...

Further Reading

The standard biography of Doss is The Unlikeliest Hero: The Story of Desmond T. Doss, Conscientious Objector Who Won His Nation's Highest Military Honor by Booton Herndon (Mountain View, California: Pacific Press Publishing Association).

See also

• Medical Cadet Corps

Medical Cadet Corps The Medical Cadet Corps is an organization based on the beliefs and doctrines of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (Adventist church). ...

References

1. ^ U.S. Army Center for Military History
2. The Chattanoogan: Burial Set April 3 At National Cemetery For Medal Of Honor Winner Desmond Doss (retrieved 28 March, 2006)

External links

• The Conscientious Objector (2004 film)
• big color photo of Doss getting medal
• The Documentary
• MedalOfHonor
• Adventist News Network