thedrifter
09-20-05, 12:57 PM
September 26, 2005
Sgt. gave his life for his platoon in Hue City
By John W. Flores
Special to the Times
Sgt. Alfredo Gonzalez was 21 when he died, leading and defending his platoon during a February 1968 battle near Hue City, Vietnam.
His company was in Phu Bai — a few miles away from Hue City — when word came of the destructive potential with the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong.
Enemy troops often dressed to look like citizens, but under their clothes they carried machine guns, hand grenades and a burning hatred for American troops.
Gonzalez was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions that saved his platoon — and many others — over a period of three days as the group entered the embattled Hue City area in response to a surprise attack during the annual — normally peaceful and sacred — Vietnamese Tet holiday.
“Immediately after crossing a river south of Hue, the column was … hit by intense enemy fire,” according to Gonzalez’ Medal of Honor citation. “One of the Marines on top of a tank was wounded and fell to the ground in an exposed position. With complete disregard for his safety, Gonzalez ran through the fire-swept area to the assistance of his injured comrade. He lifted him up and though Gonzalez received fragmentation wounds during the rescue, he carried the wounded Marine to a covered position for treatment.”
Gonzalez saved several lives as the company drove tanks and other vehicles into Hue City. He was wounded several times by shrapnel and enemy fire, but disobeyed orders to be evacuated for medical treatment. He insisted on leading his men, despite his wounds.
They finally reached a critical point, Saint Joan of Arc Catholic Church — a key foothold that was being held by the enemy. First Lt. Ray L. Smith, then the commander of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, said the building was square with an open schoolyard in the middle, and it was heavily occupied by 7 a.m.
The company found itself engaged in not only building-to-building, but also room-to-room combat against a deeply entrenched enemy. Battalion commander Lt. Col. Marcus Gravel remembered that in the convent building “in these little cloisters that the ladies live in ... we went wall to wall.” The Marines blasted holes in walls of the rooms with explosives, and then they’d rush through the large hole to the next room.
Meanwhile, Gonzalez was in the school building on the second floor. His platoon secured one wing of the building but then came under heavy enemy rocket and machine-gun fire from across the schoolyard.
Earlier, he’d grabbed about a dozen rockets from his pinned-down platoon, and when in position at a window, he started firing at enemy snipers, running from one room to another. He’d fired about 10 rockets when an enemy B-40 rocket hit him in the abdomen, knocking him back into a schoolroom, where he died shortly after.
When Smith — who eventually retired as a major general — recommended Gonzalez for the Medal of Honor, he credited the tough sergeant with helping save many of the men in his platoon and the company, and again broke a stalemate for them all.
Gonzalez’ name has been given to a Navy warship — the destroyer Gonzalez, based at Norfolk, Va.
John W. Flores is a freelance writer based in Albuquerque, N.M.
Ellie
Sgt. gave his life for his platoon in Hue City
By John W. Flores
Special to the Times
Sgt. Alfredo Gonzalez was 21 when he died, leading and defending his platoon during a February 1968 battle near Hue City, Vietnam.
His company was in Phu Bai — a few miles away from Hue City — when word came of the destructive potential with the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong.
Enemy troops often dressed to look like citizens, but under their clothes they carried machine guns, hand grenades and a burning hatred for American troops.
Gonzalez was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions that saved his platoon — and many others — over a period of three days as the group entered the embattled Hue City area in response to a surprise attack during the annual — normally peaceful and sacred — Vietnamese Tet holiday.
“Immediately after crossing a river south of Hue, the column was … hit by intense enemy fire,” according to Gonzalez’ Medal of Honor citation. “One of the Marines on top of a tank was wounded and fell to the ground in an exposed position. With complete disregard for his safety, Gonzalez ran through the fire-swept area to the assistance of his injured comrade. He lifted him up and though Gonzalez received fragmentation wounds during the rescue, he carried the wounded Marine to a covered position for treatment.”
Gonzalez saved several lives as the company drove tanks and other vehicles into Hue City. He was wounded several times by shrapnel and enemy fire, but disobeyed orders to be evacuated for medical treatment. He insisted on leading his men, despite his wounds.
They finally reached a critical point, Saint Joan of Arc Catholic Church — a key foothold that was being held by the enemy. First Lt. Ray L. Smith, then the commander of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, said the building was square with an open schoolyard in the middle, and it was heavily occupied by 7 a.m.
The company found itself engaged in not only building-to-building, but also room-to-room combat against a deeply entrenched enemy. Battalion commander Lt. Col. Marcus Gravel remembered that in the convent building “in these little cloisters that the ladies live in ... we went wall to wall.” The Marines blasted holes in walls of the rooms with explosives, and then they’d rush through the large hole to the next room.
Meanwhile, Gonzalez was in the school building on the second floor. His platoon secured one wing of the building but then came under heavy enemy rocket and machine-gun fire from across the schoolyard.
Earlier, he’d grabbed about a dozen rockets from his pinned-down platoon, and when in position at a window, he started firing at enemy snipers, running from one room to another. He’d fired about 10 rockets when an enemy B-40 rocket hit him in the abdomen, knocking him back into a schoolroom, where he died shortly after.
When Smith — who eventually retired as a major general — recommended Gonzalez for the Medal of Honor, he credited the tough sergeant with helping save many of the men in his platoon and the company, and again broke a stalemate for them all.
Gonzalez’ name has been given to a Navy warship — the destroyer Gonzalez, based at Norfolk, Va.
John W. Flores is a freelance writer based in Albuquerque, N.M.
Ellie