Herman Felhoelter
Herman Gilbert Felhoelter OFM (born July 17, 1913 in Louisville , Kentucky , † July 16, 1950 in Daejeon , Korea ) was a Roman Catholic American priest who was decorated with the highest honors as a field chaplain of the US Army.
Life
He entered the Franciscan order and was ordained a priest in 1939 . Appointed captain in the Chaplains Corps of the US Army in 1944, he was awarded the Bronze Star - Order of Merit for his services under heavy fire during his service in World War II .
After the war, he was temporarily hired as a second pastor in a church in Cincinnati . But in 1948 he was called back into the army, soon to be used in the Korean War.
During the Battle of Daejeon in North Korea near the Kum River , his unit was involved in heavy fighting. Many of his regiment were wounded when he and a company were "stuck" near a small mountain on the river. On their flight from the enemy troops, they had already carried 30 seriously wounded people with them. When it became clear that leaving the wounded behind would bring the majority of soldiers to safety, the chaplain persuaded a medical officer to stay behind and volunteered to stay with the wounded of the 19th Infantry Regiment and provide spiritual assistance .
The positions were quickly overrun by the North Koreans and all men were massacred without regard to martial law . A sergeant , who on the march back wanted to ascertain the fate of the group with binoculars , had to watch how all the men and the praying priest were killed without mercy. Felhoelter could have celebrated his 37th birthday the next day. Four days before his death, he wrote the following deeply religious lines to his mother: “Don't worry, Mother. God's will be done. I feel so good to know the power of your prayers accompanying me (...). I am happy in the thought that I can help some souls who need help (...). "
Congress posthumously awarded the Father the Distinguished Service Cross , one of the highest honors in the United States Armed Forces, at a memorial service held at the National Chaplains Memorial in Arlington , Kentucky. Felhoelter was buried in the St. Michael cemetery in his hometown.
literature
- Ken Wales, David Poling: Sea of Glory , ISBN 0-8054-5000-9 (Appreciation of field chaplains during World War II).
- Rodger R. Venzke: The Battle for Korea from Confidence in Battle, Inspiration in Peace, The United States Army Chaplaincy 1945-1975 , ed. v. Office of the Chief of the Chaplains, Washington 1977.
Web links
Individual evidence
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Felhoelter, Herman |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Felhoelter, Hermann Gilbert |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American Franciscan priest and "war hero" |
DATE OF BIRTH | July 17, 1913 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Louisville , Kentucky , USA |
DATE OF DEATH | July 16, 1950 |
Place of death | Daejeon , Korea |