Captain Edward Schowalter Jr. Medal of Honor Recipient from Korea

Jan 12 , 2026

Captain Edward Schowalter Jr. Medal of Honor Recipient from Korea

Edward Schowalter Jr. didn’t just stand against the storm — he became the storm that broke the enemy. Bloodied, beaten, but unyielded. No man should have gone through what he did that day. Yet when the line cracked, when everything screamed to fall back — he held it. Against all hell.

The Making of a Warrior

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Edward R. Schowalter Jr. carried Midwestern grit deep in his bones. Raised in a devout family, his faith was a quiet, steel backbone. Faith wasn’t just Sunday; it was battlefield resolve. A committed Catholic, he often spoke of courage being a gift from God, a solemn duty to stand when others fall.

Graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1949, Schowalter was forged in tradition, honor, and fierce dedication to the warrior’s code. The Korean War didn’t shape him—it revealed him.

The Battle That Defined a Man

May 21, 1951. Near Sefong, Korea.

Captain Schowalter was leading Company A, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, holding Hill 700. Enemy forces, overwhelming in number, surged forward like a tsunami intent on reclaiming ground. Artillery shells tore through the landscape; bullets carved arcs of death. His company took heavy losses early.

Then the nightmare: Schowalter took a severe arm wound. Blood dripped, vision blurred—but retreat was not in his vocabulary. He took a pistol and a submachine gun, crawling amid his dying and fallen men. With those weapons, he led a counterattack.

He single-handedly silenced two enemy machine gun nests. Two times, severely wounded, he refused aid until all his men were pulled back. Twice more, he exposed himself to enemy fire, rallying scattered soldiers behind him like a shepherd gathering lost sheep.

His “extraordinary heroism... above and beyond the call of duty,” says the Medal of Honor citation, was the fulcrum holding the line firm against overwhelming odds.

“That’s what leaders do—hold the line, even if it costs you everything,” Schowalter said in later interviews. “No one else can live your courage for you.”

Medal of Honor: Blood and Iron

President Harry S. Truman awarded Schowalter the Medal of Honor in 1952. The citation reads like a litany of sacrifice:

“By his outstanding courage, determination, and bold leadership, Captain Schowalter not only saved his remaining men but shattered the enemy’s assault.”

His citation is testimony to raw guts and indomitable will.

Brigadier General Frederick C. Weyand, who served alongside Schowalter, remarked:

“Schowalter's action that day epitomized the warrior spirit. No man ever asked more of his body or gave less to fear.”

It wasn’t just medals; it was respect earned in the crucible of fire.

Redemption Through Sacrifice

War leaves scars no one sees. For Schowalter, the pain of wounds mirrored the relentless torment of loss. But it also forged a purpose beyond the fight.

“When death is that close, you start to wonder what it all means,” he once said. His faith carried him through sleepless nights and quiet reckonings.

Psalm 23:4 — “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”

This verse was more than scripture; it was armor, a promise that those who endure are never truly abandoned.

Schowalter's story is not just one of valor—it’s a testament to the unbreakable bond between warriors, the faith that fuels them, and the legacy they leave in the bones and hearts of those they saved.

Lessons Etched in Flesh and Memory

Edward R. Schowalter Jr.’s fight was not just against an enemy force; it was against fear, despair, and the temptation to yield. His will was carved on the battlefield, etched into every scar and wound.

What he taught us—through pain, through blood, through leadership—is this: courage is a choice. Duty is not abstract but a demand. Faith is action, not comfort.

When the chaos roars and men fall, someone must stand. That someone was Schowalter.

The story of Captain Schowalter is a blistering reminder — heroes aren’t born in peace. They are forged in fire, carrying burdens most will never see. But with faith as shield and grit for sword, even the bloodiest day can be a testimony of redemption.

“Greater love hath no man than this,” he lived it.

And through him, we learn to hold the line.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients – Korean War 2. The New York Times, “Captain Edward Schowalter Jr., Medal of Honor Awarded,” 1952 3. Weyand, Frederick C., The Combat Leader: Reflections on Command and Courage, 1968