Joseph H. De Castro (November 14, 1844 – May 8, 1892) was the first

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to be awarded the

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's highest military decoration for valor in combat—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 ...

—for having distinguished himself during

Pickett's Charge Pickett's Charge (July 3, 1863), also known as the Pickett–Pettigrew–Trimble Charge, was an infantry assault ordered by Confederate General Robert E. Lee against Major General George G. Meade's Union positions on the last day of the ...

in the

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of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

Early years

De Castro was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Upon the outbreak of the Civil War, he was among the men who joined the all-volunteer 19th Massachusetts Infantry.

Civil War service

De Castro bore the

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for Company I, 19th Massachusetts Infantry. The unit participated in the

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as part of the III Corps, 3rd Brigade,

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under the command of Colonel Norman J. Hall. On July 3, 1863, the third and last day of the battle, his unit participated in the repulse of what became known as

. The charge was a disastrous infantry assault ordered by Confederate General Robert E. Lee against Major General

George G. Meade George Gordon Meade (December 31, 1815 – November 6, 1872) was a United States Army officer and civil engineer best known for decisively defeating Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. H ...

's Union positions on Cemetery Ridge. During the battle, De Castro attacked a Confederate flag bearer from the 14th Virginia Infantry regiment with the staff of his own flag and seized the 19th Virginia's colors, handing the prize to Colonel Arthur F. Devereux. Colonel Devereux is quoted as saying, "At the instant a man broke through my lines and thrust a rebel battle flag into my hands. He never said a word and darted back. It was Corporal Joseph H. De Castro, one of my color bearers. He had knocked down a color bearer in the enemy's line with the staff of the Massachusetts State colors, seized the falling flag and dashed it to me". On December 1, 1864, De Castro was one of seven men from the 19th Massachusetts Infantry to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor citation

Medal of Honor citation:

Post Civil War

After the war De Castro entered the regular Army and served for a few years. De Castro married Rosalia Rodriguez and in 1882 moved to

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. There he was an active member of the Phil Kearny Post Number 8 of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

. During his civilian years, he was employed by the New York Barge Office. On May 8, 1892, De Castro died in his home, which was located at 244 West 22nd Street. His funeral was held at the 18th Street Methodist Church in New York City and he was buried at Fairmount Cemetery (Section 2, Lot 300, Grave 2) in Newark, New Jersey."New York Times"; May 10, 1892; Obituary; page 5

In popular culture

In Netflix's television series

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in Season 2 Episode 8, outgoing President Garrett Walker's White House Chief of Staff, Linda Vasquez, presented De Castro's Medal of Honor to Vice President Frank Underwood as a farewell gift because Frank used to paint Civil War Era toy soldiers as a hobby.

Awards and decorations

Joseph H. De Castro's awards and decorations include the following: File:ArmyMoH 1862-95X.jpg, Medal of Honor
(Army version) File:Cwm.png, Army Civil War
Campaign Medal

Notes

References

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:De Castro, Joseph H. 1844 births 1892 deaths United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Military personnel from Boston Union Army soldiers American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor Hispanic and Latino American people People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War