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When 3,000 Japanese soldiers charged up a dark Guadalcanal ridge, one Marine sergeant and 15 exhausted men held the line and saved Henderson Field. Sergeant John Basilone commanded two machine gun sections at Lunga Ridge, where overheating guns, dwindling ammo, and repeated banzai attacks turned the night into a brutal fight for survival.
This military history narration follows the Guadalcanal battle in detail, from the first mortar barrage to Basilone’s burned hands, ammunition runs, pistol fire, and close-quarters combat with a machete. It also follows the remarkable aftermath: the Medal of Honor, the war bonds tour, his refusal to stay safely at home, and his return to combat with the 5th Marine Division at Iwo Jima.
A gripping World War II story for listeners who enjoy Marine Corps history, battlefield storytelling, and narrated war documentaries. It is ideal for fans of WW2 stories, military history, historical narration, and long-form history listening.
SEO: Search for John Basilone, Guadalcanal, Henderson Field, Iwo Jima, Marine Corps history, WW2 stories, and military history narration. This story fits listeners looking for World War II battlefield accounts, historical storytelling, and documentary-style war history with strong search relevance.
This military history narration follows the Guadalcanal battle in detail, from the first mortar barrage to Basilone’s burned hands, ammunition runs, pistol fire, and close-quarters combat with a machete. It also follows the remarkable aftermath: the Medal of Honor, the war bonds tour, his refusal to stay safely at home, and his return to combat with the 5th Marine Division at Iwo Jima.
A gripping World War II story for listeners who enjoy Marine Corps history, battlefield storytelling, and narrated war documentaries. It is ideal for fans of WW2 stories, military history, historical narration, and long-form history listening.
SEO: Search for John Basilone, Guadalcanal, Henderson Field, Iwo Jima, Marine Corps history, WW2 stories, and military history narration. This story fits listeners looking for World War II battlefield accounts, historical storytelling, and documentary-style war history with strong search relevance.
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LearningTranscript
00:00October 24th, 1942, 22 minutes past 10 at night.
00:05Sergeant John Bassalone was lying flat behind a water-cooled Browning M1917 on Lunga Ridge,
00:11a muddy strip of jungle south of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal.
00:153,000 Japanese soldiers from the Sendai Division were already moving up the slope.
00:20He was 26, 14 months as a Marine, no medals, no combat record worth mentioning.
00:26The Sendai Regiment had orders to overrun Henderson Field before sunrise.
00:31Their artillery and mortar teams had already killed 11 Marines in Bassalone's battalion
00:36in the previous 72 hours. Bassalone commanded two machine gun sections, 16 men total,
00:42four Browning M1917 heavy machine guns. Each gun weighed 47 pounds without the tripod.
00:49Each gun could fire 450 rounds per minute. Each gun needed constant water cooling,
00:54or the barrel would warp and fail within 90 seconds of sustained fire.
00:58The math was simple and terrible. 3,000 Japanese soldiers attacking uphill through jungle darkness,
01:0516 exhausted Marines with malaria and dysentery, holding a narrow pass.
01:10The pass was the only route to Henderson Field from the south. If Bassalone's line broke,
01:15the Japanese would reach the airfield by dawn. If the Japanese took Henderson Field,
01:19American forces on Guadalcanal would lose their only source of air support and supplies. The entire
01:26Solomon Islands campaign would collapse. Henderson Field sat on the northern coast of Guadalcanal,
01:32a volcanic island covered in jungle and swamp. American forces had captured the partially built
01:37Japanese airfield on August 7, 1942. The Japanese wanted it back. They had been attacking the marine
01:44perimeter for 78 days straight. Wave attacks at night. Artillery bombardment during the day.
01:50Naval shelling from destroyers offshore. The Japanese called it Operation KA. The Americans called
01:56it Hell. By late October, the 1st Marine Division had lost 263 men killed and 646 wounded, defending
02:05Henderson Field. The division was supposed to have 19,000 Marines. Disease and combat had reduced it to
02:12fewer than 11,000 fit for duty. Most had malaria. All had dysentery. None had slept more than three
02:19hours in any 24-hour period for the past two months. Bassalone's sector was a ridgeline called Lunga Ridge,
02:26approximately 1,000 yards south of the airfield. The ridge was narrow, maybe 40 yards across at its
02:32widest point. Thick jungle on both sides. A small river called the Tenaru ran along the base of the ridge
02:39to the east. The Japanese would have to come up the ridge or through the river. Either way, they would
02:45be
02:45exposed to Bassalone's machine guns for at least 200 yards. The problem was numbers. Bassalone had 16
02:51men. The Japanese had 3,000. Bassalone had four machine guns. The Japanese had mortars, grenades, and
02:59artillery support from batteries two miles south. Bassalone had enough ammunition for maybe six hours of
03:05sustained fire. The Japanese had been stockpiling ammunition on Guadalcanal since May. Colonel Louis
03:11Puller commanded the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. Puller had told Bassalone the night before that
03:17reinforcements were not coming. The division had no reserves left. Every Marine on Guadalcanal was
03:23already in the line or in a field hospital. Puller had been clear. Hold the ridge or the campaign fails.
03:31Bassalone checked his guns one more time. Machine gun crews positioned along the ridge. Fields of fire
03:37overlapping. Ammunition belts stacked in metal cans. Water cans filled from the Tenaru River.
03:44Asbestos gloves for changing hot barrels. Extra barrels wrapped in canvas. What happened next on
03:50that ridge is something you need to hear. If this story matters to you, please take a second to hit
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04:00Now back to Bassalone. The Japanese mortar barrage started at 2230. Bassalone heard the distant thump of
04:07tubes firing. Then the whistle of shells arcing through the night. Then the explosions walking up
04:12the ridge toward his position. He had maybe 90 seconds before the infantry assault began. He had four
04:18machine guns and 15 marines who had not eaten hot food or slept in a dry position for three days.
04:24And he had a decision to make that would either save Henderson Field or lose the entire Solomon
04:29Islands campaign by dawn. The first mortar shells hit 30 yards short of Bassalone's position. The second
04:37salvo hit 20 yards short. The third salvo landed directly on the left flank machine gun emplacement.
04:43Private First Class Robert Powell and Private Anthony Malinowski were killed instantly. The gun was
04:50destroyed. Bassalone now had three machine guns and 14 men. The Japanese infantry came 40 seconds later.
04:57Not in a single wave. In multiple waves, spaced 90 seconds apart. Each wave consisted of approximately 200
05:04soldiers. They came screaming. Banzai charges straight up the ridge through the darkness. The first wave hit
05:10Bassalone's position at 2234. Bassalone had positioned his three remaining guns in a triangular pattern along
05:17the ridge line. Each gun covered a 60-degree arc. The arcs overlapped at 150 yards. Any Japanese soldier
05:25advancing up the ridge would be exposed to fire from at least two guns simultaneously. The theory was sound.
05:31The reality was chaos. The Browning M1917 fired .30 caliber ammunition from a cloth belt. Each belt held
05:39250 rounds. At 450 rounds per minute, each belt lasted approximately 33 seconds of continuous fire.
05:47Then the gunner had to reload. During that reload window, the Japanese advanced. Bassalone had calculated
05:53they could cover 20 yards during a reload. That meant the Japanese could close from 200 yards to zero
05:59in approximately three minutes if the Marines stopped firing. Bassalone could not let the guns stop firing.
06:05The first wave reached 180 yards before the machine guns opened fire. Bassalone had told his gunners to
06:12wait. Let them close. Make every round count. When the guns opened up, the effect was devastating.
06:18The converging fire from three heavy machine guns cut down the first wave in approximately 40 seconds.
06:24The Japanese infantry fell and rose. Bodies piled on top of bodies. The survivors retreated back down the ridge.
06:30The second wave came at 2237. Same tactic. Banzai charged straight up the ridge. This time the
06:38Japanese had learned. They came from two directions simultaneously. One group up the center of the ridge.
06:45Another group through the jungle on the right flank. Bassalone's guns engaged both groups. The center
06:50group was annihilated. The right flank group reached 70 yards before concentrated machine gun fire stopped them.
06:56The third wave came at 2241. This time the Japanese used grenades. They advanced in short rushes. Throw
07:04grenades. Advance during the explosions. Throw more grenades. Advance again. The tactic was effective.
07:11The right flank machine gun position took three grenades in rapid succession. Corporal Henry Hinson was
07:17wounded. The gun was damaged, but still operational. Bassalone now had two fully functional guns and one
07:24damaged gun. The fourth wave came at 2246. The Japanese had shifted tactics again. Instead of frontal
07:31charges, they were probing for weak points. Small groups of 10 to 15 soldiers moving through the jungle
07:37on both flanks. Testing the overlapping fields of fire. Looking for gaps. Bassalone spotted the tactic
07:44immediately. He grabbed a belt of ammunition and ran to the damaged right flank gun. He fired short bursts at
07:50the Japanese infiltrators. Killed six. Drove the rest back into the jungle. The fifth wave came at 2252.
07:58The largest wave yet. Approximately 300 soldiers. Frontal assault combined with flank attacks.
08:04The center machine gun gunner, Private First Class Nash Phillips, was firing continuously. His barrel was
08:11glowing red in the darkness. The water jacket around the barrel was boiling. Steam rising into the night air.
08:17Phillips kept firing. The barrel temperature was approaching critical failure point. Bassalone ran
08:23back to the center position. Told Phillips to change barrels. Phillips reached for his asbestos gloves.
08:28They were gone. Lost somewhere in the mud during the previous wave. The barrel needed to be changed
08:34immediately, or the gun would fail. Without that gun, the center of the line would collapse. Bassalone looked
08:40at the glowing barrel. Looked at the Japanese soldiers 70 yards away and closing. And made a decision that
08:47would burn the skin off his hands. Bassalone grabbed the barrel with his bare hands. The metal temperature
08:54was approximately 700 degrees Fahrenheit. The skin on his palms and fingers began burning immediately.
09:00He held on. Unscrewed the barrel lock. Pulled the glowing barrel free. Dropped it in the mud. Grabbed the
09:06replacement barrel. Installed it. Locked it down. The entire barrel change took 11 seconds. The skin
09:13on both hands was black and blistered. He could smell his own flesh burning. Phillips loaded a fresh
09:18belt and resumed firing. Bassalone wrapped his hands in torn strips of cloth from his uniform. The cloth stuck
09:25to the burned skin. He ignored it. The sixth wave was already forming at the base of the ridge. The
09:31Japanese
09:31had now committed approximately 1,000 soldiers to the assault. Bodies covered the slope. The narrow ridge
09:37was becoming impassable. Dead Japanese soldiers were stacked three and four deep in some places.
09:43The machine gun crews could not establish clear fields of fire. Bassalone realized the problem
09:48immediately. The corpses were becoming defensive positions for the next wave. Japanese soldiers were
09:53using the bodies as cover, advancing from corpse to corpse, getting closer. The sixth wave reached
09:5950 yards before the machine gun stopped them. Too close. Bassalone knew if the next wave reached 30 yards,
10:06hand grenades would finish the fight. He needed to clear the field of fire. He crawled out of his
10:10position. Crawled through the mud toward the pile of corpses. Reached the first body. Pushed it.
10:16Rolled it down the slope. Crawled to the next body. Pushed it. Rolled it. Japanese soldiers 200 yards
10:22down the ridge saw him. Opened fire. Bullets snapped through the air above his head. He kept pushing bodies.
10:28Cleared a 10-yard section. Crawled back to his position. The seventh wave came at 2308. 36 minutes
10:35since the assault began. Bassalone's ammunition supply was critically low. Each machine gun had
10:41started the night with 3,000 rounds. The center gun had fired approximately 1,800 rounds. The left flank gun
10:48had fired approximately 1,500 rounds. The right flank gun had fired approximately 1,200 rounds before being
10:54damaged. Total expenditure. Approximately 5,000 rounds in 36 minutes. Bassalone calculated they had
11:02enough ammunition for maybe 20 more minutes of sustained fire. The supply dump was 200 yards behind
11:07the ridge. Getting there meant crossing open ground under Japanese mortar fire. Coming back meant carrying
11:1390 pounds of ammunition belts across the same ground. No marine could make that run and survive. Bassalone
11:19grabbed eight ammunition belts. Slung them over his shoulders. Total weight approximately 90 pounds.
11:26Started running. Japanese soldiers spotted him immediately. Small arms fire from three directions.
11:32Mortar shells walking across the open ground. He ran in a zigzag pattern. Reached the supply dump.
11:38Grabbed more belts. Started back. A Japanese soldier appeared from the jungle 20 yards to his right.
11:43Raised his rifle. Bassalone dropped the ammunition belts. Drew his Colt 1911 pistol. Fired three times.
11:51The Japanese soldier went down. Bassalone picked up the ammunition belts. Kept running. Reached his position
11:5745 seconds later. Distributed the ammunition to the gun crews. The 8th wave came at 2316. The Japanese
12:05had changed tactics again. Instead of mass charges, they were sending continuous small groups. 10 soldiers
12:11every 90 seconds. The tactic prevented the machine guns from achieving devastating effect. Each group
12:17got a little closer before being stopped. Bassalone recognized the strategy. The Japanese were grinding
12:22down his position. Trading bodies for yards. Eventually, the mathematics would favor the attackers.
12:29Private First Class Phillips suddenly stopped firing. Bassalone looked over. Phillips was staring at his left
12:34hand. It was gone. Severed at the wrist by shrapnel from a Japanese grenade. Blood pulsing from the stump.
12:41Phillips looked at Bassalone. His face was white with shock. He tried to speak, but no words came out.
12:47He collapsed backward into the mud. Bassalone grabbed Phillips. Dragged him away from the gun.
12:53Applied a tourniquet using his belt. The bleeding slowed, but did not stop. Phillips needed a corpsman
12:58immediately, or he would bleed out in minutes. But there were no corpsmen available. Every medic on the ridge
13:04was already treating wounded marines from the previous waves. Bassalone had a decision to make. Save Phillips or man
13:11the gun. Bassalone pulled Phillips behind the gun position. Yelled for a rifleman to apply pressure
13:18to the tourniquet. Then crawled back to the machine gun. The center position could not fail. He took
13:24Phillips' place behind the gun. His burned hands screamed when he gripped the weapon. He ignored the
13:30pain. Loaded a fresh belt. Opened fire on the ninth wave coming up the ridge. The night became a rhythm
13:36of
13:36loading and firing and reloading. Japanese soldiers emerged from darkness at 150 yards. Machine gun fire
13:43cut them down at 100 yards. Survivors reached 70 yards. More machine gun fire. Bodies fell.
13:51The next wave formed. The pattern repeated. Bassalone lost track of time. Lost track of wave numbers.
13:58The only things that mattered were keeping the guns firing and keeping the ammunition flowing.
14:02At 2347, the right flank gun jammed. Corporal Hinson tried to clear it. Failed. The gun was finished.
14:11Bassalone now had two functional machine guns covering the entire ridge. The Japanese immediately
14:17recognized the weak point. The next wave concentrated on the right flank. Approximately 150 soldiers pushing
14:24through the jungle where the third gun had been. Bassalone grabbed the damaged gun. Worked on the jam in
14:29darkness. His burned hands made it nearly impossible to manipulate the small parts. He finally cleared the
14:35stoppage by feel. Loaded a belt. Swung the gun toward the right flank infiltrators. Opened fire. The
14:42converging fire from two guns stopped the attack. But barely. At midnight, the ammunition situation became
14:48critical. The center gun was down to 400 rounds. The left flank gun had 300 rounds. The damaged right
14:56flank gun that Bassalone was now manning had 200 rounds. Total remaining ammunition. Approximately 900
15:03rounds. At current expenditure rates, that was enough for maybe 12 minutes of sustained combat.
15:09Bassalone made the ammunition run again. This time he took two marines with him. Private Robert Garcia and
15:15Private Steven Evanson. They ran together. Reached the supply dump. Each man grabbed 90 pounds of ammunition.
15:21Started back. Japanese mortar fire had intensified. A shell landed 15 feet from Garcia. Shrapnel hit him in
15:29the legs. He went down. Bassalone and Evanson dragged him to cover. Evanson stayed with Garcia. Bassalone
15:35grabbed Garcia's ammunition load in addition to his own. 180 pounds total. Started running. He made it 30 yards
15:43before his legs gave out. Fell face first in the mud. The ammunition belts tangled around his body. He could
15:49hear
15:50Japanese soldiers shouting in the jungle. Could hear mortar shells impacting. Could hear machine gun fire
15:55from the ridge. His marines were still fighting. He pushed himself up. Started crawling. Dragging the
16:01ammunition. Made it another 20 yards before he could stand again. Ran the final 50 yards to his position.
16:08Distributed the ammunition. At 0015 on October 25th, the Japanese shifted tactics for the final time. No more waves.
16:16No more probes. A mass assault. Approximately 800 soldiers attacking simultaneously from three
16:23directions. The heaviest concentration came straight up the center of the ridge. The Japanese
16:28had committed everything. This was the breakthrough attempt. Bassalone's three machine guns opened fire
16:33simultaneously. The noise was deafening. Continuous thunder of .30 caliber rounds shredding the night.
16:40The muzzle flashes created a strobing effect. Japanese soldiers appeared and disappeared in the light.
16:45Bodies falling. More soldiers advancing over the bodies. The wave kept coming. The left flank gun ran
16:52out of ammunition at 0017. The gunner, Private Louis Martin, yelled for more belts. There were none.
16:59The supply dump was empty. Bassalone had carried the last ammunition back during his previous run.
17:05Martin drew his pistol. Started firing at Japanese soldiers 40 yards away. The center gun ran out of
17:10ammunition at 0019. Bassalone was down to one functioning machine gun with approximately 150
17:17rounds remaining. Japanese soldiers were now 35 yards from his position. Close enough that he could
17:23see their faces in the muzzle flashes. Close enough that their grenades were landing inside the marine
17:28perimeter. Bassalone fired the last belt. The gun went silent at 0021. Japanese soldiers, 25 yards away and
17:36closing. No ammunition. No reinforcements. And Dawn was still five hours away.
17:44Bassalone dropped the machine gun. Drew his Colt 1911 pistol. Seven rounds in the magazine. One in the
17:51chamber. Eight shots total. Japanese soldiers 15 yards away. He fired methodically. One shot per target.
17:59Eight Japanese soldiers went down. He ejected the empty magazine. Reloaded. Fired eight more rounds.
18:06Reloaded again. Private Martin was fighting with his pistol 20 feet to Bassalone's left. Corporal Hinson was
18:12throwing grenades from the right flank position. The remaining marines along the ridge had abandoned their
18:17machine guns and were fighting with whatever weapons they had. Rifles. Pistols. Grenades. Bayonets.
18:24The line had not broken, but it was bending. A Japanese soldier came over the edge of the
18:29fighting position directly in front of Bassalone. Too close for the pistol. Bassalone grabbed the machete
18:35strapped to his belt. Swung it in a horizontal arc. The blade caught the Japanese soldier in the neck.
18:40He went down. Another soldier appeared. Bassalone swung again. The machete was not a precision weapon.
18:47It was a chopping tool designed for cutting jungle vegetation. But at close range against unarmored
18:53targets, it was devastatingly effective. The fighting devolved into close combat along a 30-yard section
18:59of the ridge. Marines and Japanese soldiers grappling in the mud, stabbing with bayonets, shooting at
19:05point-blank range. The noise shifted from the continuous roar of machine guns to individual
19:11gunshots and screams. Bassalone moved along the line. Wherever the Japanese were breaking through,
19:17he appeared. Pistol in his right hand. Machete in his left. His burned hands left blood on both weapons.
19:23At 0034, the Japanese assault began to weaken. The initial momentum was gone. Bodies blocked the advance
19:30routes. Survivors were exhausted. The Japanese officers tried to rally their men for another push.
19:36Some soldiers responded. Most did not. The wave fragmented into small groups,
19:42fighting independently without coordination. Bassalone recognized the shift. The Japanese attack
19:47was failing. But his position was collapsing. Of the 16 marines who had started the night,
19:53only eight were still fighting. Phillips was unconscious from blood loss. Garcia had been evacuated.
19:59Six others were dead or too badly wounded to continue. The survivors were out of ammunition
20:05for the machine guns. Low on pistol ammunition. Down to grenades and bayonets. The Japanese made one
20:12final push at 0047. Approximately 60 soldiers. Not a coordinated assault. A desperate attempt by small
20:19groups to reach the marine positions before their attack completely fell apart. They came from two
20:25directions. Center and right flank. Bassalone positioned himself at the point where the two
20:30groups would converge. Fired his pistol until the magazine was empty. Switched to the machete. A
20:36Japanese soldier lunged at him with a bayonet. Bassalone sidestepped. Swung the machete. The soldier
20:42went down. The fighting lasted another four minutes. Then stopped. The Japanese pulled back down the ridge.
20:49disappeared into the jungle. The sudden silence was almost louder than the gunfire had been.
20:54Bassalone stood in his position. Breathing hard. His hands were bleeding through the cloth wrappings.
21:00His uniform was covered in mud and blood. He counted his remaining marines. Eight still standing. Not
21:06enough to hold the line if the Japanese came again. But the Japanese did not come again. The night slowly
21:12transitioned to early morning. No more mortar fire. No more wave attacks. At 0315, Colonel Puller arrived
21:19with reinforcements. Thirty marines from the regimental reserve. They established new positions along the
21:25ridge. Puller walked the line. Counted the bodies. Japanese dead covered the slope. Stacked in piles.
21:32Scattered in the jungle. Bodies as far down the ridge as he could see in the pre-dawn darkness.
21:37Puller found Bassalone sitting behind the center machine gun. His hands wrapped in bloody cloth.
21:43His face black with gunpowder residue. Puller asked how many Japanese soldiers Bassalone thought his
21:49section had killed. Bassalone said he did not know. Did not care. His marines were dead. The ones still
21:55alive needed medical attention. Puller told him the position had held. Henderson Field was secure. The
22:04960 Japanese soldiers were confirmed dead in front of Bassalone's position alone. Bassalone helped carry
22:11Phillips to an aid station. Then collapsed. Bassalone woke up 18 hours later in a field hospital tent.
22:20A Navy corpsman was treating his hands. The burns had become infected. The corpsman cleaned the wounds,
22:26applied sulfonylomide powder, wrapped both hands in gauze bandages.
22:30Told Bassalone he would likely lose some fingers if the infection spread. Bassalone asked about
22:36Phillips. The corpsman said Phillips had survived. Lost his hand, but survived. Bassalone asked about
22:42the rest of his section. The corpsman looked away. Said six of the original 16 were dead. Three more would
22:48probably die from their wounds. The battle for Henderson Field continued for another three months.
22:53The Japanese sent reinforcements, launched more attacks, lost more men. By early February 1943,
23:01the Japanese had evacuated Guadalcanal. American casualties for the entire campaign totaled 7,000
23:08killed and wounded. Japanese casualties exceeded 31,000. The tide in the Pacific had turned. Colonel
23:15Puller submitted a recommendation for Bassalone to receive the Medal of Honor on November 2, 1942. The
23:22citation detailed the action on October 24 and 25, moving machine guns under fire, running ammunition
23:28through enemy lines, fighting with pistol and machete when ammunition ran out, holding a critical
23:34position against overwhelming odds. The recommendation worked its way through the chain of command. Division
23:40headquarters approved it. Fleet headquarters approved it. The Secretary of the Navy approved it. President
23:46Franklin Roosevelt signed the citation on December 20, 1942. Bassalone received the medal on May 21, 1943,
23:55in Australia. Major General Alexander Vandegrift, commanding general of the 1st Marine Division,
24:00presented the decoration in front of the assembled division. Bassalone was promoted to gunnery sergeant.
24:06He was also informed he was being sent back to the United States for a war bonds publicity tour.
24:11Bassalone arrived in the United States on July 12, 1943. He was the first enlisted Marine to receive
24:18the Medal of Honor in World War II. The press coverage was immediate and extensive. Newsreels
24:24showed him receiving the medal. Life magazine ran a feature story. His hometown of Raritan, New Jersey,
24:30organized a parade on September 19, 1943. 30,000 people attended, more than twice the population of
24:37Raritan. The Treasury Department organized a national war bonds tour. Bassalone traveled to cities across
24:43the country, appeared at rallies, gave speeches, signed autographs, posed for photographs. The tour
24:50raised millions of dollars for the war effort. Bassalone hated every minute of it. He repeatedly requested
24:56reassignment to a combat unit. The Marine Corps repeatedly denied his requests. The publicity machine
25:02continued. Bassalone appeared in newsreels, was interviewed for radio programs, received marriage
25:08proposals from women he had never met, received offers from Hollywood studios. The Marine Corps wanted
25:14to keep him in the United States, make him a recruiter, use his celebrity status to boost enlistment numbers.
25:20They offered him a commission as a second lieutenant, offered him an instructor position at Quantico,
25:25offered him a desk job in Washington. Bassalone refused everything. He told Marine Corps headquarters he was a
25:31machine gunner, not an officer, not a recruiter, not a celebrity. He wanted to return to combat. The
25:38Corps told him he was more valuable alive in America than dead in the Pacific. Bassalone responded that he
25:44was a plain soldier and wanted to stay one, that he was not a museum piece, that he belonged back
25:49with his
25:49outfit. The Marine Corps finally relented in December 1943. Bassalone was assigned to Camp Pendleton,
25:56California. He would train Marines preparing for deployment to the Pacific. It was not combat,
26:01but it was closer to combat than a war bonds tour. He reported to Camp Pendleton on December 27, 1943.
26:09At Camp Pendleton, Bassalone met Sergeant Lena May Riggie. She was a Marine serving in the Marine Corps
26:15Women's Reserve. She worked as a field cook. They met at a social event on base in March 1944,
26:22started dating in April. By June, Bassalone had proposed. They married on July 10, 1944,
26:29at St. Mary's Star of the Sea Catholic Church in Oceanside, California. The honeymoon lasted five
26:35days. Then Bassalone received orders. He was deploying to the Pacific. The 5th Marine Division
26:41was preparing for an amphibious assault on a volcanic island halfway between Tokyo and Saipan,
26:47an island called Iwo Jima. The 5th Marine Division sailed from San Diego on December 27, 1944. Bassalone
26:57was assigned to C Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Marines. He was a machine gun section leader. His
27:04section consisted of eight Marines operating two Browning M1917 heavy machine guns, the same weapon he had used at
27:11the Battle Canal, the same weapon that had saved Henderson Field. The convoy stopped at Pearl Harbor
27:17for final preparations, then sailed west toward the volcano islands. Iwo Jima was eight square miles of
27:23volcanic rock and black sand beaches, two operational airfields, a third under construction. The island
27:30was defended by 21,000 Japanese soldiers under Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi. Kuribayashi had
27:37spent seven months fortifying the island, 11 miles of underground tunnels, 1,500 pillboxes and block
27:44houses, 650 concrete bunkers, all interlocking fields of fire, all designed for one purpose, kill as many
27:52Americans as possible. American intelligence estimated the island could be secured in five days.
27:58The Marines who had fought on Guadalcanal and Tarawa knew better. They had seen Japanese defensive
28:03positions before. Iwo Jima would not fall in five days, not in 10 days. The cost would be measured
28:10in thousands of casualties. Bassalone spent the voyage training his section, teaching them how to
28:16clear gun jams under fire, how to change barrels quickly, how to establish overlapping fields of fire,
28:22how to recognize the difference between covering fire and suppressing fire. The young Marines in his
28:28section called him Gunny, listened when he spoke. They knew his record, knew about Guadalcanal, knew
28:34he had turned down a commission and a safe job to come back. The pre-invasion bombardment began on
28:39February 16, 1945. Naval gunfire from battleships and cruisers, aerial bombardment from carrier aircraft,
28:48three days of continuous shelling, the heaviest pre-invasion bombardment in the Pacific War. American
28:54commanders believed nothing could survive that level of firepower. They were wrong. Kuribayashi had
29:00built his defenses deep underground. The bombardment destroyed surface structures, but left the
29:05underground positions intact. The assault began at 0900 on February 19, 1945. 30,000 Marines from the 3rd,
29:144th, and 5th Marine Divisions. The landing beaches were designated red, yellow, green, blue, and purple.
29:22Basalone's company was assigned to Red Beach 2 on the southeastern coast below Mount Suribachi. The plan
29:28called for the Marines to land, cross the beach, and push inland to the first airfield within two hours.
29:34The landing craft hit the beach at 0902. Basalone was in the 3rd wave. The beach was black volcanic sand,
29:41loose and deep. Marines sank ankle deep with every step. Landing craft could not retract from the beach.
29:47The sand was too soft. Vehicles bogged down immediately. Troops had to wade through the
29:52surf carrying full combat loads, 60 pounds of equipment per man. Machine gun crews carried even
29:59more. Japanese defensive fire began the moment the first Marines stepped onto the beach. Artillery from
30:05positions on Mount Suribayama. Mortar fire from bunkers inland. Machine gun fire from concealed pillboxes.
30:11The fire was disciplined and accurate. The Japanese had pre-registered every yard of beach. They waited
30:17until the beach was crowded with Marines and equipment, then opened fire. Basalone's section
30:23reached the beach at 0914. Japanese machine gun fire was coming from a reinforced concrete blockhouse
30:29200 yards inland. The blockhouse had firing ports covering the entire beach approach. Marines were pinned
30:35down. Unable to advance. Unable to retreat. Caught in the open on black sand with no cover.
30:42Basalone assessed the situation. The blockhouse had to be destroyed or the entire landing would stall.
30:48Naval gun fire could not hit it. The structure was too low and too well protected. Artillery could not
30:54reach it. The forward observers were pinned down on the beach. Air support could not see it through the
30:59smoke and dust. Someone had to assault the position on foot. Basalone grabbed Private First Class Charles
31:05Tatum and Corporal Ralph Cuccinetti, told them to provide covering fire, then started moving toward
31:11the blockhouse. He carried demolition charges and grenades. The beach between his position and the
31:17blockhouse was 200 yards of open ground under continuous machine gun fire.
31:24Basalone moved in short rushes. 10 yards. Dropped to the sand. Wait for Japanese fire to shift. Move
31:31again. Tatum and Cuccinetti fired their machine gun in controlled bursts, keeping the blockhouse firing
31:37ports suppressed. Basalone covered another 20 yards, then another. Japanese mortar fire began walking
31:43across the beach toward him. He kept moving. At 100 yards from the blockhouse, Basalone changed his
31:50approach angle. Instead of moving straight toward the firing ports, he moved toward the left flank,
31:55searching for a blind spot in the defensive fire. The blockhouse design had a weakness. The firing
32:01ports could cover the beach approach, but not the immediate area around the structure. If he could
32:06reach the walls, he would be in dead space. He covered the final 50 yards in a low crawl, dragging
32:12the
32:12demolition charges. Japanese machine gun fire from other positions stitched the sand around him. He reached the
32:18base of the blockhouse at 0947. Tatum and Cuccinetti were still providing covering fire from the beach.
32:25Other Marines had seen what Basalone was attempting. Started moving forward to support the assault.
32:30Basalone worked his way around the left side of the blockhouse. Found a ventilation port. Pulled the fuse
32:36igniter on a demolition charge. Four-second fuse. Shove the charge through the port. Moved away from the
32:42structure. The explosion came three seconds later, muffled but powerful. The blockhouse stopped firing.
32:48Basalone signaled Tatum and Cuccinetti forward. The three Marines pushed past the destroyed blockhouse.
32:54Other Marines followed. The beach assault was moving again. But the Japanese had more defensive
32:59positions. More bunkers. More machine guns. The advance slowed after 40 yards. A Marine tank
33:06was trapped in a minefield 150 yards inland. The tank had tried to push through to support the infantry
33:11advance. Hit a mine. Thrown a track. Now it was immobilized in the middle of the minefield,
33:17under heavy Japanese mortar and artillery fire. The tank crew was pinned inside. Unable to repair
33:23the track. Unable to abandon the vehicle. Basalone saw the situation. The tank carried a 75mm gun.
33:31If it could be moved back into action, it could suppress the Japanese bunkers blocking the advance.
33:36He moved toward the minefield. Started probing for mines with his knife. Found the edge of the minefield.
33:41Marked it with his helmet. Started clearing a path. The work was slow. Each mine had to be located,
33:48carefully uncovered, disarmed, or marked. Japanese mortar fire was continuous. Basalone
33:54worked methodically. Cleared a path 6 feet wide, 30 yards long. Reached the disabled tank. Signaled the
34:01tank commander. Pointed to the cleared path. The tank crew used their spare track sections to jury-rig or
34:07repair. Got the tank moving. Basalone guided the tank backward through the cleared path.
34:12Step by step. Checking for mines they might have missed. The tank reached the edge of the minefield
34:17at approximately 01015. Basalone turned to signal the infantry to advance behind the tank. A Japanese
34:24mortar shell landed 8 feet from his position. The explosion killed Basalone instantly. Also killed
34:304 marines near him. The tank continued moving. Reached safety. Turned its 75mm gun on the Japanese
34:36bunkers. The infantry advance resumed. Gunnery Sergeant John Basalone was 28 years old. He had
34:43been on Iwo Jima for 73 minutes. His body was recovered later that day. Buried temporarily on the island.
34:50In April 1948, his remains were transferred to Arlington National Cemetery. His widow, Lena May,
34:56never remarried. She died in June 1999, still wearing her wedding ring. For his actions on Iwo Jima,
35:03Basalone was awarded the Navy Cross. The citation noted he had single-handedly destroyed an enemy
35:08blockhouse and guided a marine tank to safety under intense fire. Combined with his Medal of Honor from
35:15Guadalcanal, John Basalone became the only enlisted marine in World War II to receive both decorations.
35:21For the last few years, I would like to thank you for your support.
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35:37Leave a comment below and let us know where you're watching from. These stories matter because men like John
35:43Basalone chose to stand when retreat was easier. Chose to fight when surrender was safer. Chose to return
35:49to combat when staying home was smarter. We remember him not because war is glorious, but because sacrifice
35:55is real.