Colonel Louis Gonzaga Mendez Jr. (July 14, 1915 – September 19, 2001) was a highly decorated

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 ...

officer of the 82nd Airborne Division who in June 1944, as commander of the 3rd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, parachuted behind enemy lines into

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

and was awarded a

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

for leading an attack that captured the French town of Prétot-Sainte-Suzanne, in the

Manche Manche (, ) is a coastal French département in Normandy, on the English Channel, which is known as ''La Manche'', literally "the sleeve", in French. It had a population of 495,045 in 2019.

Early years

Louis Gonzaga Mendez, a Mexican American, Spanish and Navajo Indian, was born in

Trinidad, Colorado Trinidad is the home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Las Animas County, Colorado, United States. The population was 8,329 as of the 2020 census. Trinidad lies north of Raton, New Mexico, and s ...

, on July 14, 1915. He graduated top of his class in high school. After serving in the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

(CC), Mendez was appointed by Governor Bob Carr to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. He graduated from West Point in the Class of 1940, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army. Mendez earned his Parachutist Badge after attending the Army's United States Army Airborne School.

World War II

The United States entered

in December 1941, after which Mendez was eventually assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division. He rose to become commander of the 3rd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment. On June 5–6, 1944, the paratroopers of the 82nd's three parachute infantry regiments and reinforced

glider infantry Glider infantry (also referred to as airlanding infantry esp. in British usage) was a type of airborne infantry in which soldiers and their equipment were inserted into enemy-controlled territory via military glider. Initially developed in the l ...

regiment, who were stationed in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, boarded hundreds of transport planes and gliders and began the largest airborne assault in history. They were among the first soldiers to fight in Normandy, France. According to an article by Richard Pearson in the ''Washington Post'', Mendez and his men were dropped behind

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

lines with the mission to "disrupt enemy communications, seize vital crossroads, destroy enemy supplies and kill enemy troops to aid the seaborne D-Day assaults on the Normandy beaches". Mendez and his men proceeded to capture the town of "Prétot Ste Suzanne". Mendez was awarded the

, second only to 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 ...

. After the fighting in Normandy, Mendez continued to lead his battalion, which took part in Operation Market Garden, in September 1944. A combined US-British operation, according to the Arlington Cemetery website, it "sought to secure strategic river crossings behind German lines in the

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

". Although, elements of the operation proved unsuccessful, the 82nd Airborne Division was able to capture its objectives.Colonel Mendez
Arlington Cemetery. Retrieved August 19, 2007 The Germans began a counter-offensive along the Western Front in December 1944, resulting in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

. Having been taken by surprise, Allied troops were initially pushed back from the front, before launching a counterattack two days later. This effort included Mendez and his battalion, "who advanced as infantrymen", halting General

Gerd von Rundstedt Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (12 December 1875 – 24 February 1953) was a German field marshal in the '' Heer'' (Army) of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition, Rundstedt entered th ...

's advance in the north.

Post-World War II

Mendez continued his academic education and military career after the war. He graduated from the

Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

and the

Industrial College of the Armed Forces The Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy (Eisenhower School), formerly known as the Industrial College of the Armed Forces (ICAF), is a part of the National Defense University. It was renamed on September 6, 20 ...

. He went on to earn a master's degree in

international relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such a ...

from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

and was an instructor at the Infantry School at Fort Benning,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. In 1950, he took up a post as a military attaché to

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, and in the 1960s served in the 1st Cavalry Division in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

as a regimental commander. Later, he undertook postings in the War Histories Division on the Army General Staff and as Secretary of the Organization of American States'

Inter-American Defense Board The Inter-American Defense Board (IADB) is an international committee of nationally appointed defense officials who develop collaborative approaches on common defense and security issues facing countries in North, Central, and South America. The ...

. Mendez retired from the military in 1970; his final post was at the Industrial College of Warfare in Washington, D.C.

Later years

As a civilian, Mendez joined the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

Education Department. According to Pearson, Mendez "was national director of the Right to Read Program, an assistant education commissioner and chief of the department's Vocational and Adult Education Branch" before retiring in 1985. During a ceremony held on March 31, 2001 in which one of Mendez's men, Francis Lamoureux, was awarded the

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

after 50 years, Lamoureux had this to say about his former commander: Colonel Mendez, who was married and had six sons and six daughters, died at home of a stroke on Wednesday, September 19, 2001, in Falls Church, Virginia. He was buried with full military honors one week later at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. Mendez was honored on June 6, 2002, for his gallantry leading his men against the enemy and liberating Prétot-Vicquemare when the people of the village renamed its main square "La Place du Colonel Mendez". In his book, '' A Bridge Too Far'', historian

Cornelius Ryan Cornelius Ryan (5 June 1920 – 23 November 1974) was an Irish-American journalist and author known mainly for writing popular military history. He was especially known for his histories of World War II events: '' The Longest Day: 6 June 1944 D- ...

highlighted Colonel Mendez's leadership style, recounting a speech he gave to the Allied pilots flying his battalion to the drop zone during Operation Market Garden. In October 2017, the Fairfax County School Board decided to rename J.E.B. Stuart High School as Justice High School, effective July 2018. The new name was intended to honor Colonel Mendez, along with

Thurgood Marshall Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme Court's first African-A ...

and

Barbara Rose Johns Barbara Rose Johns Powell (March 6, 1935 – September 28, 1991) was a leader in the American civil rights movement. On April 23, 1951, at the age of 16, Powell led a student strike for equal education at R.R. Moton High School in Farmville, ...

, each of whom had worked towards advancing justice.

Military decorations and awards

Distinguished Service Cross

Citation:

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Lieutenant Colonel (Infantry) Louis Gonzaga Mendez, Jr. (ASN: 0-23262), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving as Commanding Officer, 3d Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82d Airborne Division, in action against enemy forces during the period 6 June 1944 through 7 July 1944, in France. One instance of particular note was on 20 June 1944, near Pretot, France, when Lieutenant Colonel Mendez personally led an assault on the town of Pretot through a withering concentration of observed mortar, timed artillery and machine gun cross-fire. In their first attempt to win their objective, the two assault companies were pinned to the ground by a devastating artillery barrage and suffered heavy casualties. Appreciating the danger of delay, Lieutenant Colonel Mendez crawled to a position in front of his men, leaped to his feet and led the charge which drove the enemy out of the town. By his calm disregard for personal danger and his ability to act quickly and aggressively under fire, he turned imminent catastrophe into a victory. Lieutenant Colonel Mendez's courage, calmness, judgment and devotion to duty were directly responsible for the achievement of his battalion's objective, and exemplify the highest traditions of the military forces of the United States and reflect great credit upon himself, the 82d Airborne Division, and the United States Army.

Commendations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendez, Louis Gonzaga Jr. 1915 births 2001 deaths United States Army officers United States Army personnel of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Georgetown University alumni People from Denver People from Falls Church, Virginia American people of Mexican descent American people of Navajo descent American people of Spanish descent United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from Trinidad, Colorado Military personnel from Colorado