Hispanics in The United States Marine Corps - World War II

World War II

PFC Richard I. Trujillo was serving aboard the Battleship USS Nevada (BB-36) when on December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The Nevada was among the ships which were in the harbor that day. As her gunners opened fire and her engineers got up steam, she was struck by torpedoes and bombs from the Japanese attackers. Fifty men were killed and 109 wounded. Among those killed was Trujillo who became the first Hispanic Marine casualty of World War II.

After the United States officially entered the war, Hispanic Americans were among the many American citizens who joined the ranks of the United States Marine Corps as volunteers or through the draft. Hispanic Americans in the Marines fought in every major battle in the Pacific Theater of Operations. The battles of Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa saw fierce fighting between U.S. Marines and the Imperial Japanese Army. One Marine of Hispanic descent was awarded the Medal of Honor and 25 Hispanics were awarded the Navy Cross. Fifteen of those Navy Crosses were awarded to Marines. Among them PFC Guy Gabaldon who single-handed captured over 1,000 prisoners. It was during this conflict that four Hispanics would also participate as military commanders in the Marine Corps. The two highest-ranking Hispanics in the Marines were Lieutenant General Pedro Augusto del Valle, the first Hispanic to reach the grade of general in the Marines, and Colonel Jaime Sabater, Sr..

Colonel Pedro del Valle (1893–1978) was the Commanding Officer of the 11th Marine Regiment (artillery). Upon the outbreak of World War II, del Valle led his regiment during the seizure and defense of Guadalcanal, providing artillery support for the 1st Marine Division. In the Battle of the Tenaru, the firepower provided by del Valle's artillery units killed many assaulting Japanese soldiers—almost to the last man—before they reached the Marine positions. As a result of the outcome of the battle the Japanese commander, Colonel Ichiki Kiyonao, committed seppuku shortly afterwards. General Alexander Vandegrift, impressed with del Valle's leadership, recommended his promotion and on October 1, 1942, del Valle became a Brigadier General. Vandegrift retained del Valle as head of the 11th Marines, the only time that the 11th Marines has ever had a general as their commanding officer. In 1943, he served as Commander of Marine Forces overseeing Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and the Russell and Florida Islands. Sergeant Silvio Sanguedolce and PFC Nicholas Sileo were awarded the Navy Cross for their actions in Guadalcanal.

Colonel Jaime Sabater, Sr. (1904–1955), a United States Naval Academy graduate Class of 1927, commanded the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division during the Bougainville amphibious operations. On November 1, 1943. The Allies intended to establish a beachhead around Cape Torokina, within which an airfield would be built. Allied forces did not plan, at this time, to try to capture the entire island of Bougainville from Japanese forces. An attempt by the Japanese Navy to attack the U.S. landing forces was defeated in the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, between November 1 and November 2. A subsequent attempt by Japanese land forces to attack the Allied beachhead was defeated in the Battle of Koromokina Lagoon.

When the Marines landed in Saipan in 1944, among the commanders was Lieutenant Colonel Chester J. Salazar. Salazar was the Commanding Officer of the 2d Battalion, 18th Marines. Salazar had in 1943 served as commanding officer of the same unit in the Gilbert Islands which fought in the Battle of Tarawa. During the Battle of Saipan, PFC Guy Gabaldon captured over a 1,000 prisoners.

PFC Guy Gabaldon (1926–2006) went to live with the parents of his Japanese-American friend at the age of 12. At the outbreak of World War II, his adoptive family was placed in a relocation camp. Gabaldon joined the Marines when he was only 17 years old; he was a Private First Class (PFC) when his unit was engaged in the Battle of Saipan in 1944. Gabaldon, who acted as the Japanese interpreter for the Second Marines, working alone in front of the lines, entered enemy caves, pillboxes, buildings, and jungle brush, frequently in the face of hostile fire, and succeeded in not only obtaining vital military information, but in convincing well over 1,000 enemy soldiers and civilians to surrender. He was nominated for the Medal of Honor, but was awarded the Silver Star instead. His medal was later upgraded to the Navy Cross. He turned in more enemy soldiers than Sergeant Alvin York, who was awarded the Medal of Honor during World War I for having captured 132 enemy German soldiers. Gabaldon's actions on Saipan were later memorialized in the film Hell to Eternity, in which he was portrayed by actor Jeffrey Hunter.

On April 1, 1944, Brigadier General Pedro del Valle, as Commanding General of the Third Corps Artillery, III Marine Amphibious Corps, took part in the Battle of Guam and was awarded a Gold Star in lieu of a second Legion of Merit. The men under his command did such a good job with their heavy artillery that no one man could be singled out for commendation. Instead each man was given a letter of commendation by del Valle, which was carried in his record books. Col. Jaime Sabater who had previously participated in the Bougainville campaign and who was now the Executive officer of the 9th Marines in Guam was wounded in action on July 21, 1944 and awarded the Purple Heart. PFC Abel Bidal Aragon of Company A 1/3 3rd Marine Division was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroic actions in the Battle of Guam.

In late October 1944, Brigadier General Pedro del Valle succeeded Major General William Rupertus as Commanding General of the 1st Marine Division, being personally greeted to his new command by Colonel Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller. At the time, the 1st Marine Division was training on the island of Pavuvu for the invasion of Okinawa.

The Battle of Iwo Jima was marked by some of the fiercest fighting of the Pacific campaign. The battle was the first American attack on the Japanese home islands and the Imperial soldiers defended their positions tenaciously. Of the 21,000 Japanese soldiers present at the beginning of the battle, over 20,000 were killed and only 216 taken prisoner.

On February 23, 1945, Antonio F. Moreno witnessed the first flag raising photographed by staff sergeant Louis R. Lowery and the second flag raising photographed by Joe Rosenthal on Mount Suribachi. On March 8, 1945, Moreno, a Marine medical corpsman assigned to the 2d Platoon, Company E, 27th Marine Regiment, tried to save the life of Lt. Jack Lummus after he (Lummus) had stepped on a land mine a few feet away from Moreno. Lt. Lummus, was a former Baylor University and New York Giants football player who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. During this battle five men of Hispanic descent were awarded Navy Crosses. Two were members of the 4th Marine Division, PFC's Lionel A. Canejo and Robert Manuel Ortiz and three of the 5th Marine Division, Pvt. Salvador Vargas and Corporals Rondo G. Abel and Nicholas Hernandez.

On May 29, 1945, Brigadier General Pedro del Valle participated in one of the most important events that led to victory in Okinawa. After five weeks of fighting, del Valle ordered Company A of the 1st Battalion 5th Marines to capture Shuri Castle, a medieval fortress of the ancient Ryukyuan kings. Seizure of Shuri Castle represented a morale blow for the Japanese and was a milestone in the Okinawa campaign. The fighting in Okinawa would continue for 24 more days. Del Valle was awarded a Distinguished Service Medal for his leadership during the battle and the subsequent occupation and reorganization of Okinawa. PFC Harold Gonsalves of the 6th Marine Division became the only Hispanic Marine in World War II to be awarded the Medal of Honor for gallantly giving his life for his fellow Marines. Two Hispanics who were also from the 6th Marine Division were awarded the Navy Cross, PFC Anthony E. Borgia of Company F 2/22 and Corporal Edward J. Ruiz of Headquarters 2/4.

Navy and Marine Corps Medal of Honor

PFC Harold Gonsalves (1926–1945), had enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve on May 27, 1943 and was called to active duty on June 17, 1943. He was assigned to the 22nd Marines and participated in the assault, capture, and occupation of Engebi and Parry Islands, in the Marshall Islands. PFC Gonsalves accompanied the 22nd Marines to Kwajalein, to Guadalcanal, back to Kwajalein and Eniwetok, then up to Guam in July where he took part in Battle of Guam.

After Guam, the regiment went back to Guadalcanal, where in November they were detached from the 22nd Marines and joined the 15th Marines of the 6th Marine Division. It was with that outfit that PFC Gonsalves landed on Okinawa on April 1, 1945.

Two weeks later, on April 15, the 19-year-old Marine was a member of an eight-man forward observer team which was engaged in directing artillery fire in support of an attack by the infantry on Japanese positions on Motobu Peninsula. When it finally became necessary for the team to advance to the actual front lines, the officer in charge took PFC Gonsalves and one other man with him. PFC Gonsalves was acting Scout Sergeant of the team. He and the other Marine were to lay telephone lines for communication with the artillery battalion.

As the team advanced to the front, they were brought under heavy enemy rifle, grenade and mortar fire. Just as the three had reached the front lines, a Japanese grenade landed among them. It was less than a foot from the two Marines with PFC Gonsalves. Without a moment's hesitation, he flung himself on the grenade, taking the full explosion into his own body. He gallantly gave his life for his fellow Marines and his country. The other two were not even touched by grenade fragments and they successfully completed their mission.

In 1945, when Kwajalein of the Marshall Islands was secured by the U.S. forces, Sergeant Fernando Bernacett was among the Marines who were sent to guard various essential military installations. Bernacett, a combat veteran of the Battle of Midway, guarded the airport and prisoners of war, as well as the atomic bomb as it made its way for Japan.

The following is a list with the names, ranks, units and date of action of the fifteen Hispanic Marines who were awarded the Navy Cross:

Table: Hispanic Navy Cross Recipients for actions during World War II

Name	Rank	Unit	Date of Action	Place of Action
Abel, Rondo G.	E4Corporal	Co. A 1/3 3rd MarDiv	1945-02-24February 24, 1945	Iwo Jima
Aragon, Abel Bidal	E2Private First Class	Co. A 1/3 3rd MarDiv	1944-07-22July 22, 1944	Guam
Borgia, Anthony E.	E2Private First Class	Co. F 2/22 6th MarDiv	1945-06-11June 11, 1945	Okinawa
Canejo, Lionel A.	E2Private First Class	Co. B 1/25 4th MarDiv	1945-02-21February 21, 1945	Iwo Jima
Fajardo, Theodore C.	O1Second Lieutenant	Co. C 1/7 7th MarDiv	1945-04-13May 13, 1945
Gabaldon, Guy L	E2Private First Class	H&S Co. 2nd MarDiv	1944-08-01August 1, 1944	Saipan
Hernandez, Nicholas	E4Corporal	H&S Co. 3/26 5th MarDiv	1945-03-07March 7, 1945	Iwo Jima
Ortiz, Robert Manuel	E2Private First Class	F Co. 2/25 4th MarDiv	1945-03-19March 19, 1945	Iwo Jima
Paredes, Osbaldo Rivera	E4Corporal	2/2 2nd MarDiv	1943-11-20November 20, 1943	Tarawa
Ruiz, Edward J.	E4Corporal	H&S Co. 2/4 6th MarDiv	1945-05-20May 20, 1945	Okinawa
Sandoval, William B.	O1Second Lieutenant	VMF-221	1942-06-04June 4, 1942	Air Mission Battle of Midway
Sanguedolce, Silvio	E5Sergeant	3/1 1st MarDiv	1942-10-23October 23, 1942	Guadalcanal
Sileo, Nicholas	E2Private First Class	L/1 1st MarDiv	1942-08-18August 18, 1942	Guadalcanal
Vargas, Salvador	E1Private	Co. C 1/27 5th MarDiv	1945-03-12March 5, 1945	Iwo Jima

Prior to World War II, traditional Hispanic cultural values expected women to be homemakers, thus they rarely left the home to earn an income. As such, women were discouraged from joining the military. Only a small number of Hispanic women joined the military before World War II. However, with the outbreak of World War II, cultural prohibitions began to change. With the creation of the Marine Corps Women's Reserve, women such as Corporal Maria (Torres) Maes could attend to certain administrative duties left open by the men who were reassigned to combat zones. After completing boot camp at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, she was sent to Quartermaster School and assigned to the Marine Corps Base at Quantico, Virginia.