Sergeant Henry Johnson, Harlem Hellfighter of World War I

Dec 30 , 2025

Sergeant Henry Johnson, Harlem Hellfighter of World War I

He was a lone thunderstorm in the dark.

Bullets tore the night. Grenades hissed like demons unleashed. Every man in his unit scattered or fell—but Henry Johnson stood. Wounded hard, blood hot on his skin, he faced a German raiding party with nothing but grit and a rifle. He fought with the fury of a cornered lion, saving lives with every shot fired, every bullet dodged.

In that crucible of mud and death, Sgt. Henry Johnson became a legend.

The Roots of a Warrior

Born in 1892, in the shadow of Albany, New York, Henry Johnson grew up on the grit and grind of early 20th century America, a son of African American farmers near the Hudson. The world was raw—segregated, harsh, unforgiving—but Henry found refuge in faith and hard work.

He was a devout man, raised under the steady light of Baptist teachings. "The Lord is my strength in the midst of my battles," he held to that scripture deep in his heart. His moral code was ironclad: protect the weak, stand firm against evil, die less than dishonor.

When he enlisted in 1917, he joined the New York National Guard’s 15th Infantry Regiment—later the famed 369th Infantry Regiment, known as the Harlem Hellfighters. The unit was nearly all Black, fighting prejudice abroad and at home. Henry wore that uniform heavy with double struggle—against the enemy, and the systemic enemy of racism.

The Night That Forged a Legend

May 15, 1918. Near the village of Bucefer, France, the battlefield was unforgiving mud and blood. German forces launched a fierce raid aiming to slaughter and capture men in Henry’s trench.

The attack came sudden and brutal.

While the rest froze or fled, Johnson went hard. He retrieved another soldier’s rifle, threw grenades, and fought hand-to-hand, inflicting heavy losses on a raiding party several times his size. Wounded repeatedly—bayonets slashing, bullets tearing—he refused to falter.

What makes a man stand when his blood spills, when bones scream, when enemies press close? Henry did not answer with words. He answered with war cries, savage and defiant. His actions bought his unit time to regroup and repel the Germans.

One comrade said of his fight, “He fought like a damn lion chained to death.”

Though grievously wounded, Sgt. Johnson survived. The ground he defended was soaked with his sacrifice—and victory.

Honoring the Warrior

Recognition would come slow. The U.S. army initially ignored Black soldiers’ heroics. It wasn’t until decades later that Johnson’s valor received its due.

In 1918, the French government awarded him the Croix de Guerre with Star and Palm—one of France’s highest awards for bravery. It bore the words: “He fought like a tiger.”

Back home, amidst segregation and silence, his story simmered in shadows.

In 2015, the White House awarded Johnson the Medal of Honor posthumously—nearly 100 years after his battlefield hellfire. President Barack Obama said,

“Sgt. Henry Johnson showed us what it means to be brave.”

That medal recognized a warrior whose courage defied time, race, and battlefield chaos.

The Legacy of Henry Johnson

His fight was not only against German bullets—it was against the ghosts of racism, invisibility, and injustice. Henry Johnson’s life echoes a relentless fight for dignity beyond the mud.

“Greater love hath no man than this,” stands the scripture that broadens his sacrifice beyond the gunfire—love for country, for fellow soldiers, for sacrifice’s sacred honor.

Today, Henry’s story reminds us that courage isn’t clean. It’s soaked in grit, blood, distrust, pain—and still it rises. It asks those who remember to carry the unfinished battles of justice and humanity.

His scars are ink on the pages of history—reminders that in war and in life, some fight just to be seen. And when we honor their scars, we honor the endurance of all warriors.

“Though he was broken, he willed himself to stand. Through him, the darkness stood no chance.”

Sources

1. University Press of Kentucky, Henry Johnson: The Harlem Hellfighter and His War in Words and Pictures, by Christopher Devine (2017). 2. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Citation for Sgt. Henry Johnson. 3. National WWI Museum and Memorial, Kansas City, Croix de Guerre recipient records. 4. Obama White House Archives, 2015 Medal of Honor Ceremony Transcript.