Medal of Honor Monday: Army Maj. Audie Murphy

View Online Medal of Honor Monday: Army Maj. Audie Murphy Jan. 27, 2025 | By Katie Lange   Army Maj. Audie Leon Murphy is a World War II legend whose name is still easily recognizable today. Murphy was a movie actor, a country-western songwriter and a poet, but it was his wartime heroics and the Medal of Honor he received for them that first made him a household name. Murphy was born June 20, 1924, on a sharecropper farm near Kingston, Texas. He was one of 12 children born to Emmett and Josie Murphy. His father floated in and out of his life until he eventually abandoned the family when Murphy was still young. After only five years of schooling, Murphy left school to chop cotton for $1 a day to support his family. His mother died when he was 16, leaving him and his siblings orphaned. Murphy wanted to join the military, but he was denied entry into the Marine Corps because of his size — he was only 5 feet, 5 inches tall and 110 pounds, according to the Association of the U.S. Army. Eventually, he was able to enlist in the Army in 1942 after altering his birth certificate so that he appeared to be 18 — one year older than he actually was, according to Arlington National Cemetery. After initial military training, Murphy was sent to Europe with the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division, which fought its way through North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany during the war. Along the way, Murphy earned a battlefield commission for his courage and leadership. On Jan. 26, 1945, then-2nd Lt. Murphy was commanding Company B near Holtzwihr, France, when they were attacked by six tanks and waves of enemy infantrymen who were trying to take over a nearby wooded area. Murphy ordered his troops to withdraw into the woods to find better positions while he stayed up front at his command post to continue directing artillery fire by telephone. As this was happening, an American tank destroyer behind Murphy took a direct hit, burning badly enough that its crew also had to withdraw into the woods. Murphy's resolve didn't waver. He continued to direct artillery fire, which killed several advancing enemy soldiers. When the enemy tanks moved close to his position, Murphy climbed onto the burning U.S. tank destroyer, and even though he knew it might blow up at any moment, he got behind its .50-caliber machine gun and opened fire on the enemy. Despite being alone and exposed to German gunfire on three sides, Murphy continued to rain deadly fire onto the enemy, killing dozens of Germans in his path, which caused the infantry attack to waver. As German tanks began to lose infantry support, they also began to fall back. Over the next hour, the Germans tried every weapon they could use to take Murphy out, but he didn't falter and instead wiped out an enemy squad that was trying to creep up on his right flank unnoticed. His Medal of Honor citation said that German troops got to within 10 yards of him, only to be mowed down by his expert fire. Murphy suffered a leg wound at one point, but he ignored it and continued to put up a one-man fight until he ran out of ammunition. Only then did he head to the woods to find his company and get them organized for a counterattack, which finally caused the Germans to withdraw. Nearly singlehandedly, Murphy killed or wounded 50 enemy soldiers during the battle. His refusal to give any ground to the Germans saved his company from possible annihilation and allowed them to hold their position in the woods. According to AUSA, Murphy spent about 400 days on the front lines of the war. During his more than three years of combat, he was wounded three times, fought in nine major campaigns and was credited with killing more than 240 enemy soldiers while wounding and capturing many others. Murphy earned 33 awards, citations and decorations, including all possible medals of valor from the U.S., as well as three French and one Belgian medal. He is still widely known to be the most-decorated U.S. soldier of all time. Murphy received the Medal of Honor from Army Lt. Gen. Alexander M. Patch III during a ceremony on an airfield near Werfen, Austria, June 2, 1945. That September, Murphy was discharged from the Army. Upon an invite from actor James Cagney, who had seen Murphy's photo on the cover of Life Magazine, Murphy moved to Hollywood to see if he could make it as a movie star. He struggled at first; Army records show he slept in a gymnasium until he got his first starring role in a 1949 film called "Bad Boy." A year later, he signed a contract with Universal Pictures, which kickstarted his career as a movie star. Murphy went on to act in 44 films, many of which were Westerns. His best-known movie was "To Hell and Back," which was adapted from a popular book of the same name about his war experience. According to the Army, that film held the record as Universal's highest-grossing picture until "Jaws" in 1975. Murphy was also credited with writing lyrics to 16 country-western songs, the most popular of which was "Shutters and Boards," which went on to be recorded by more than 30 well-known singers. He was an accomplished poet, as well as a successful racehorse owner and breeder. Murphy was married twice', first to Wanda Hendrix from 1949 to 1951, then to Pamela Archer, with whom he had two boys, Terrance and James. As Murphy built his Hollywood career, he didn't forget about his military roots. In 1950, he joined the Texas National Guard's 36th Infantry Division and served with them until 1966. The Army's biography on Murphy says he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and was plagued by insomnia and depression. After becoming addicted to doctor-prescribed sleeping pills and then kicking the habit on his own, Murphy advocated for discussions about mental health problems, something that was taboo at the time. According to Army Garrison Fort Gregg-Adams' website, "In an effort to draw attention to the problems of returning Korean and Vietnam War veterans, Audie Murphy spoke out candidly about his personal problems with PTSD, then known as battle fatigue. He publicly called for the United States government to give more consideration and study to the emotional impact war has on veterans and to extend health care benefits to address PTSD and other mental health problems of returning war vets." Murphy died in a private airplane crash on a mountaintop near Roanoke, Virginia. He and five others were headed from Atlanta to Martinsville, Virginia, on business when bad weather caused the aircraft to crash, May 28, 1971. Murphy's body was recovered two days later, on Memorial Day. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Murphy's Medal of Honor is on display at the Dallas Scottish Rite Library and Museum in Dallas. An award created and named in Murphy's honor recognizes noncommissioned officers who contribute significantly to the development of a professional NCO corps and combat-ready Army. The Sergeant Audie Murphy Award is a rare and distinguished award only given to the top 1% of the Army's enlisted corps. Since 1999, June 20 has been officially known as Audie Murphy Day in Texas.  This article is part of a weekly series called "Medal of Honor Monday" in which we highlight one of the more than 3,500 Medal of Honor recipients who have received the U.S. military's highest medal for valor. More Stories of Valor   Experience: The Highest Awards for Valor

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