Staff Sergeant Ambrosio Guillen (December 7, 1929 – July 25, 1953) was a United States Marine who was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

—the

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' highest military award for valor—for his heroic actions and sacrifice of life on July 25, 1953, two days before the

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, during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. He was responsible for his

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

platoon's turning an overwhelming enemy attack into a defeat and disorderly retreat.

Early years

Ambrosio Guillen was born on December 7, 1929, in La Junta, Colorado. He came from a Mexican-American family and grew up in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

, where he attended Bowie High School.Chapter Twenty Two
Guillen enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

at the age of 18. He completed

recruit training Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique deman ...

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, California, and was assigned to the

7th Marine Regiment The 7th Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. Nicknamed the "Magnificent Seventh", the regiment falls under the command of the 1 ...

. Later he was chosen for Sea School, and after graduation, served on the . Following his tour of sea duty, he was appointed a

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at the

Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego Marine Corps Recruit Depot (commonly referred to as MCRD) San Diego is a United States Marine Corps military installation in San Diego, California. It lies between San Diego Bay and Interstate 5, adjacent to San Diego International Airport and th ...

. He trained two recruit honor platoons and was given a Letter of Appreciation by his Commanding General. In that letter, MajGen John T. Walker stated, "your success in training these two platoons has demonstrated your outstanding ability as a leader." That ability was proven in combat soon after SSgt. Guillen arrived in

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

Korean War

On July 25, 1953, while defending a forward outpost against a large enemy attack, near Songuch-on, Korea, SSgt. Guillen and his platoon were able to defeat the enemy and put them in retreat. After the fighting, he died from being wounded during the battle. For his heroic leadership and sacrifice of life, he was awarded the Medal of Honor. The Medal or Honor awarded to SSgt. Guillen was presented to his parents on his behalf by the

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

Charles S. Thomas, during a special ceremony in his office on August 18, 1954.

Medal of Honor

SSgt. Guillen's Medal of Honor citation reads:

Burial

After the Korean War truce, his body was escorted to the United States by his brother, who had been serving in the Far East with the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

. SSgt. Guillen was buried in

Fort Bliss National Cemetery Fort Bliss National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in West Texas, located at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army post adjacent to the city of El Paso. Administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, it encompasses , and as of 2014, had o ...

on October 20, 1953, in

Public namings

* The Ambrosio Guillen Texas State Veterans Home in El Paso is named in his honor. * Guillen Middle School in the

El Paso Independent School District The El Paso Independent School District (or EPISD) is the largest school district serving El Paso, Texas (USA). Originally organized in 1883, it is currently the largest district in the Texas Education Agency's Educational Service Center (ESC) ...

References

: * *

External links

Ambrosio Guillen Texas State Veterans Home
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guillen, Ambrosio 1929 births 1953 deaths United States Marine Corps Medal of Honor recipients People from El Paso, Texas United States Marine Corps non-commissioned officers American military personnel killed in the Korean War Korean War recipients of the Medal of Honor People from La Junta, Colorado United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War