Henry Johnson WWI Harlem Hellfighter and Medal of Honor Recipient

Feb 21 , 2026

Henry Johnson WWI Harlem Hellfighter and Medal of Honor Recipient

Night shattered by shouts and gunfire.

Sergeant Henry Johnson, alone against shadows twisted by German steel and death.

A soldier, battered, bleeding—but unrelenting.

The Roots of a Soldier’s Code

Born in 1892 to a sharecropper family in Albany, Georgia, Henry Johnson grew under harsh skies and harder truths. He moved north to New York City and enlisted in the National Guard's 15th Infantry Regiment, a unit drenched in segregation but rich with heart and fire. This was the 369th Infantry, soon to carry the moniker Harlem Hellfighters.

Faith burned steady in Johnson’s soul. Baptized in the church of struggle and grit, his letters and later reports hint at a quiet strength shaped by scripture and prayer. Not just a fighter for country, but a man bent on honor—“Do your duty, no matter the cost.”

His moral code stood untouched amidst the chaos—self-sacrifice for brother and nation, even when society denied him dignity.

The Battle That Defined Him

May 15, 1918. The thick wilderness of the Argonne Forest, France.

Johnson was on sentry—a solitary post watching the moon’s pale glow through shattered trees. Suddenly, a German raiding party, armed and numerous, slammed into his line.

Outnumbered. Outgunned. Facing death, Johnson responded with ferocity.

Armed with only a rifle, bullets blazing, and a bolo knife forged in his own hands, he tore through the attackers. When wounded, he fought on—blood pouring, ribs broken, yet he stayed upright. Over hours that burned into dawn, he saved his comrade, Needham Roberts, pulling him from the jaws of death. Johnson threw grenades, bayoneted enemies, became a one-man barricade.

He became the steel in the heart of that hell.

When reinforcements arrived, the enemy had vanished, left broken. Johnson collapsed, a tempest tamed only by sheer will.

Recognition Long Overdue

The U.S. Army honored Johnson in 1919 with the Croix de Guerre, France’s highest valor award. But across the Atlantic, his heroism went largely unrecognized for decades, buried beneath the weight of segregation and racism.

Finally, nearly a century later, in 2015, President Barack Obama awarded Henry Johnson the Medal of Honor—posthumously—and his partner, Needham Roberts, the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross.

“Sergeant Henry Johnson fought like a warrior and died like a man whose spirit could not be broken.” — Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, 2015[1]

The citation reads:

“During an enemy raid, Sergeant Johnson fought off wave after wave, seriously wounded but undaunted, saving his comrade’s life.”

Johnson’s scars weren’t just flesh-deep; they were the burden of a country that had yet to honor its Black soldiers fairly. Yet he carried the battle with dignity—a soldier and a symbol.

Enduring Legacy: Courage Beyond Color

Henry Johnson’s story is one of grit wrenched from injustice. A man who faced both enemy rounds and the slow fire of racism.

His courage isn’t wrapped in quiet pride—it blazes as a beacon for those who suffer unseen battles still.

His fight teaches us that valor demands sacrifice without expectation. That faith, grit, and brotherhood endure amid fire and failure.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9

Johnson’s life reminds veterans and civilians alike that redemption is found not in medals alone, but in enduring beyond the wounds, and lifting those beside you through the darkest nights.

In the blood-soaked Argonne shadows, Sergeant Henry Johnson stood unbroken— an eternal warrior carved from sacrifice and faith.

Sources

[1] Department of Defense, “President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Sgt. Henry Johnson,” 2015 [2] National Archives, 369th Infantry Regiment Unit History, WWI [3] Through the Wire: The Unlikely Heroism of Henry Johnson by Richard Slotkin