Marcellus H. Chiles

Branch

U.S. Army

Era

World War I

Home state

Colorado

Action

Le Champy Bas, France

The citation

Official citation

When his battalion, of which he had just taken command, was halted by machinegun fire from the front and left flank, he picked up the rifle of a dead soldier and, calling on his men to follow led the advance across a stream, waist deep, in the face of the machinegun fire. Upon reaching the opposite bank this gallant officer was seriously wounded in the abdomen by a sniper, but before permitting himself to be evacuated he made complete arrangements for turning over his command to the next senior officer, and under the inspiration of his fearless leadership his battalion reached its objective. Capt. Chiles died shortly after reaching the hospital.

Sources

• U.S. Army Medal of Honor citation index
• Wikipedia. Linked only. The article text is not copied here.