SAMUEL I PARKER

At the Battle of Soissons, in July 1918, though badly wounded this lieutenant colonel led his command in silencing German machine guns, becoming the most highly decorated US infantryman of WWI

- MICHAEL E HASKEW

The enemy fire was ferocious, but the attack of the combined 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the US 28th Infantry Regiment had made its way forward in the oppressive heat of 18 July 1918. Second Lieutenant Samuel I Parker, commanding one of the weary platoons that had been fighting for hours, surveyed the situation.

Parker realised that his newly established line was in a precarious position. While the front had been stabilised, at least for the moment, he could see little of the activity on the regiment’s left flank. Just then, several German machine guns began to chatter; bullets ripped into the ground, shattered tree branches and cut down several of his soldiers. The 26-year-old officer responded instinctively.

Scanning the countryside, Parker located the source of the concentrated fire, beyond the slope of a nearby hill and apparently covered by enemy infantrymen actively working their bolt-action Mauser rifles. Despite the torrent of bullets they faced, Parker ordered his men forward, toward the crest of the hill. Along the way, he noticed a group of French colonial soldiers, apparently leaderless and wandering about the battlefield. Somehow, he overcame the language barrier and convinced these troops to join his push forward.

Within minutes, the combined effort had gained the crest of the hill, but Parker was not finished. With a rush, his soldiers silenced six German machine guns concealed in a rock quarry that had unleashed the terrific enfilading fire on his previously exposed position. Along with the machine guns, Parker’s command bagged 40 prisoners. It had been an exhausting day, one of near-misses, narrow escapes and raw courage.