An all-black combat unit, the 369th fought under French command in World War I.
At least a dozen soldiers descended upon the two wounded men thought to be inferior by their white U.S. comrades. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Johnson_(World_War_I_soldier) He was a great American hero and received the highest military honor of two different countries.
Herman Johnson had spent most of his life believing his father was laid to rest in some unknown pauper’s grave.
That's when Roberts sprang into action. They are wearing French helmets and using French-issued rifles and equipment. Due to their bravery and heroics, both Roberts and Johnson were awarded the French Coix de Guerre medal. On display are Johnson’s Medal of Honor, a French helmet similar to one worn by members of the 369th Infantry Regiment, an Army-issued bolo knife, a 369th Infantry Regiment patch and the regiment’s flag. Johnson would be singled out for his heroism and actions under fire. He earned that award while serving as a rifleman with Company B, 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry (Band of Brothers regiment) of the 101st Airborne Division on July 11, 1969, during an intense battle at Hill 996 in the A Shau Valley, Thau Thein Providence, South Vietnam, near Laos. Though former U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt called Johnson one of the “five bravest Americans” to serve in World War I, and the government used his image on Victory War stamps and army recruiting materials, Johnson’s discharge papers made no mention of his many wounds, and he received no disability pay after the war. "Our men were unanimous in the opinion that death was to be preferred to a German prison," Little wrote. Suddenly, the Germans were all around, jumping into the trench. Member of the Harlem Hell Fighters Unit World War I Johnson stalled the German patrol with grenades of his own as Roberts was struck down with shrapnel wounds to his arm and hip. By then the Germans had surrounded the two privates, and Johnson used his rifle as a club until the butt splintered. William Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts standing with their French Croix de Guerre medals in 1918. Roberts continued his one-man assault on a second bunker. Roberts — who already had earned a Silver Star for valor on Hamburger Hill two months earlier — and his follow soldiers also were ambushed and pinned down by intense machine gun fire. That action prevented the loss of the lives of at least three fellow soldiers. During a search on an enemy base camp, Guenette smothered an enemy grenade with his body, absorbing its blast.
During the battle, seven of Geissinger's fellow soldiers were killed and 28 others wounded. Johnson, opening a box of grenades, told Roberts to run back and alert the main line of defense. "But Johnson was of the opinion that victory was to be preferred to either.". Gordon Roberts of Lebanon, Ohio. Roberts crawled rapidly toward the closest enemy bunker.