"The Lost Battalion"
During a time when heroic acts were commonplace, one story involving the 442nd RCT stands out as an example of courage and sacrifice in the face of overwhelming odds. Two months after the fighting on Hill 140, the men of the 442nd RCT were transported to eastern France, where they joined forces with the 36th "Texas" Infantry Division, so named because of its origin as the 36th Division, Texas National Guard. Together they took the small French town of Bruyères, located near the German border, and then pushed through the rugged terrain of the surrounding hills. After capturing the small villages of Belmont and then Biffontaine, the soldiers of the 442nd RCT were relieved by other units of the Texas Division and withdrawn to the vicinity of Belmont for a much-deserved rest.
Two days later, however, the Japanese-American soldiers of the 442nd were quickly called to the front lines. The 1st Battalion of the 141st Infantry of the Texas Division was in serious trouble. While advancing along a heavily wooded ridge overlooking a valley, they had been suddenly cut off and surrounded by strong enemy forces. The battalion was in danger of being completely destroyed unless troops could break through German lines. Chosen for this dangerous task were the men of the 442nd RCT.
In complete darkness at four o'clock on the morning of October 27, 1944, the 3rd and 100th Battalions of the 442nd RCT broke camp and marched from Belmont toward the ridge where the 1st Battalion, soon to be dubbed the "Lost Battalion," was pinned down. By 10 a.m. they reached other units of the Texas Division which had been battling the Germans in an unsuccessful effort to break through. For the next two days, the 442nd also had little success, making only slow progress and watching as their casualties mounted
As radio reports from the Lost Battalion spoke of an increasingly desperate situation, the men of the 3rd Battalion, 442nd Infantry, suddenly ran into the main defenses of the Germans, who were dug in and positioned so that maneuver around them was impossible. An attempt was made to breech the German defenses on the left, but the ground was too steep, and the assault was easily beaten back. A platoon of tanks was then brought forward, but it too was forced to halt its advance in the face of concentrated enemy fire.
Normally, heavy artillery would have been brought in to pound the German position, but there was no time for that. The only option was a direct frontal attack. Word was spread in the "Go for Broke" unit to fix bayonets in preparation for an assault through a narrow area leading uphill to the higher ground where the Germans were dug in. The attack was sounded. As men fell, others came forward to take their places. In 30 minutes the Japanese-American soldiers overran a position that would have normally taken at least two days to capture.
Although the German infantry pulled back in retreat, their heavy artillery kept the 442nd from immediately advancing to the Lost Battalion.
"Go for Broke!" a painting in the collection of the Army Center of Military History, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C., depicts the all-Japanese American 442nd Regimental Combat Team assaulting German siege forces in the rescue of "The Lost Battalion," Oct. 27-30, 1944.
S. Don Shimazu, a member of the 442nd's 522nd artillery unit, stated that as he led survey crews carefully through the minefield laid down by German soldiers he saw "so many wounded and dying fellow soldiers.
"There were friends holding their comrades in their arms," said Shimazu.
"I ran into I Company, which at that point only had four guys with a PFC (private first class) -- Clarence Taba -- in charge ... the fighting had been that fierce."
George Oiye, another 522nd forward artillery observer, said the rain, snow, heavy clouds, dark fog and the huge carpet of pine trees overhead made it hard "to tell day from night."
"You couldn't even see your hand in front of your face ... one of the hardest things to describe to a person without military experience or similar combat experience is that feeling ... things were so much in a state of confusion."
It had started to rain. Besides the cold, the nisei soldiers also had to battle trench foot.
By the time I and K companies of the 442nd's 3rd Battalion were forced to dig into the dense forest terrain because of a German counterattack spearheaded by tanks, snow had started to fall.
The 442nd's 100th Battalion was strung out along the 3rd Battalion's right flank. The 2nd Battalion, on the 442nd's left flank, was busy trying to clear out Hill 617.
Facing the brunt of the German counterattack was the 442nd RCT's 3rd battalion. Under a constant barrage of German mortars, rifle fire and artillery, it continued to inch forward on a narrow ridge.
At times German machine gunners would allow the nisei soldiers to advance through the Vosges underbrush only to open fire on the backs of the soldiers after they had passed.
Soldiers sent back through the lines for ammo and other supplies were getting mowed down.
At one point Lt. Col. Alfred Pursall, the 442nd's 3rd Battalion commander, rose from cover and led a charge in a hand-to-hand battle.
It was during this "Banzai Hill" charge that Pvt. Barney Hajiro was recommended for the Medal of Honor after single-handedly destroying two machine-gun nests after getting hit on the cheek, body and forearm. He never got the Medal of Honor and is among the two dozen nisei soldiers whose records are currently under review by the Pentagon for being overlooked.
On Oct. 30, I and K companies made contact with the Texas unit. By then, I company had only eight riflemen left with a sergeant in charge; all others had been killed or wounded.
The same situation was true for K company.
They had lost all their officers and only 17 riflemen survived.
The Lost Battalion, which originally numbered 275, lost 64 soldiers.
For their heroism and sacrifice, the men of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team were proclaimed honorary Texans by the men they rescued. After the war citizens of Bruyères bestowed another honor on them by erecting a small monument near their town. The inscription reads: "To the men of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, U.S. Army. We affirm a historic truth here—that loyalty to one's country is not modified by racial origins."
