Henry Johnson's Medal of Honor and the Legacy of a Harlem Hellfighter

Nov 26 , 2025

Henry Johnson's Medal of Honor and the Legacy of a Harlem Hellfighter

Sgt. Henry Johnson stood alone in the mud, machine gun blazing, a forest of enemy shadows closing in. Wounded, bleeding, exhausted—a single black soldier holding the line when death pressed from all sides. His hands, torn but steady, threw grenades back into the German raid. He was the bulwark between his comrades and the abyss. This was no ordinary fight. This was salvation written in blood.

Background & Faith

Born in 1892 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Henry Johnson grew up in a world harsh and unforgiving. A farm boy with few opportunities, he answered the nation’s call and enlisted in the New York National Guard’s 15th Infantry Regiment—soon to be the 369th Infantry Regiment. They called it the “Harlem Hellfighters.” Racism brewed at every turn, but his faith and resolve never wavered.

Johnson’s life reflected a soldier’s sacred code: service, honor, sacrifice. The Bible was his compass. Psalms and Proverbs grounded him through training and trials. “The Lord is my strength and my shield,” he would have known. It was a promise — not just hope — but fierce, gritty protection.

The 369th fought not only the enemy but prejudice, denied early combat roles because of the color of their skin. They carried those burdens into trenches in France, waiting for the moment to prove their worth.

The Battle That Defined Him

Nightfall, May 15, 1918. The French village of Argonne. Johnson and Private Needham Roberts were on sentry duty when a raiding party of approximately 24 German soldiers descended into their forward post. Outnumbered. Outgunned. Outlasted by fury.

Johnson’s machine gun jammed quickly. Without hesitation, he dropped it, pulled out his bolo knife—a long, curved blade—and engaged in savage hand-to-hand combat. He wielded the blade like an extension of his will, slashing and stabbing through enemy lines. Against overwhelming odds, Johnson saved Roberts, dragged him to safety, and fought on despite multiple bullet and bayonet wounds. His face was slashed to the bone, ribs broken, yet he never faltered.

“If it had not been for this soldier’s gallantry,” General John J. Pershing later remarked, “the entire company would have been lost.”

Hours passed in hell’s grip. At dawn, only Henry Johnson remained standing, bloodied but unbeaten. His actions halted the German raid, saved nearly a dozen fellow soldiers, and inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy.

Recognition

Yet recognition was slow, shrouded by the color line back home. Johnson returned with medals from France: the Croix de Guerre with Palm and Star, the highest foreign decoration awarded to an American in WWI. The French government called him a hero, but the U.S. military stalled.

Decades after his death in 1929, the truth clawed its way into the light. In 2015, 97 years after that night in Argonne, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded Henry Johnson the Medal of Honor—the nation’s highest military decoration.

“He showed the kind of valor and sacrifice that defines heroes across all races.” — President Obama

Johnson's Medal of Honor citation reads: “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving with the 369th Infantry Regiment ... he fearlessly resisted and deeply disrupted the German raiding party.”

Comrades remembered him as “fierce and fearless.” Leaders acknowledged a battle-hardened soldier who never asked for glory—only duty done.

Legacy & Lessons

Sgt. Henry Johnson’s story is carved into the bedrock of American valor, a stark testament to courage burning brighter in the darkest hours. His scars speak of battle and a nation’s slow awakening to justice.

There is no greater gift than laying down your life for your brothers, and Johnson’s legacy is a mirror to that truth. His bloody struggle is a call to fight not only the enemy on the battlefield but the prejudice stalking soldiers off it.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you.” — Deuteronomy 31:6

Johnson’s fight transcends race, time, and war. It is a reminder that the measure of a soldier lies not in color or rank, but in the willingness to stand firm when everything shakes and to bear wounds that demand quiet honor.

To veterans, his story is a salve for invisible scars. To civilians, a piercing lesson in sacrifice’s raw price and redemption’s slow crawl. Sgt. Henry Johnson chose the blade over surrender — a bloody, righteous choice none can forget.

His legacy bleeds on, a solemn vow that valor is never denied, and justice, though late, is relentless.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History – Henry Johnson (WWI Medal of Honor Recipient) 2. National Archives – 369th Infantry Regiment History and Citations 3. Department of Defense – President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Henry Johnson, 2015 4. The New York Times – “The Harlem Hellfighter Who Won Medal of Honor After Decades,” 2015 5. France Diplomatie – Croix de Guerre Award Records