At the end of the first week in March, a regimental ceremony was held in a beautiful meadow overlooking the charming city of Nancy, France, which showed no signs of the war, unscathed by even a few shells. The trees were budding, and the French villagers had started to spade their gardens. The men were gloriously happy to watch the coming of spring. To them, the thawing and muddy fields drying in the warming winds would soon be ready to support armor.[1]

At the award ceremony, a record number of almost 250 awards were presented by Major General John W. “Iron Mike” O’Daniel, as well-deserved accolades began to pour in for what the 30th Regiment had accomplished.

Phil received his second Purple Heart and a second Bronze Star with a “V” device[2] from General O’Daniel, with Colonel McGarr standing beside him, beaming from ear to ear. General O’Daniel paid homage to Phil, saying, “To a helluva fighting man.” Then he smiled and leaned forward. “And I’ll soon find out if you can dance,” he whispered.

Phil had no idea what the general meant until he received a coveted and rare invitation to the Regimental Officers Dance in Nancy on March 9. Division Commander Major General O’Daniel and his staff, along with Regimental Commander Colonel Lionel McGarr and his battalion staff, would all be there.[3]

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General “Iron Mike” O’Daniel had this to say to the officers and men at the start of the ceremony:

In crossing the Fecht and Ill Rivers, the Colmar andRhine-Rhône canals, and in your attacks toward Colmar and Neuf-Brisach, culminating in the routing of the Germansand the capture of the area, you have participated in themost outstanding operation in the career of your division.

You drove on relentlessly day and night through the worstof weather. Your action not only enabled you to advance, but also made possible the advance of all other forces in the bridgehead and hastened the collapse and elimination of the German-held Colmar Pocket.

As your commander, I congratulate you on your outstanding performance and am proud of the honor of being in command of such a superb group of fighting men.[4]

During the last sixteen days of the Colmar battle, the 3rd Infantry Division liberated twenty-two towns.

General Charles de Gaulle’s[5] Provisional French Government recognized what the American soldiers had accomplished by awarding the entire 3rd Division the French Order of the Croix de Guerre with palm.[6]

President Roosevelt awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation to the 3rd Division, saying, in part, “In one of the hardest fought and bloodiest campaigns of the war, the 3rd Infantry Division annihilated three enemy divisions, partially destroyed three others, and captured over 4,000 prisoners.”[7]

The German Nineteenth Army recorded over 22,000 casualties and ceased to exist as an effective fighting force, as approximately 75 percent of its personnel were either killed or captured. The Wehrmacht’s last gamble was at an end.[8]

But all Phil could think about was the coming “fancy pants” dance on March 9.

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[1] Larimore, At First Light, 206.

[2] A “second Purple Heart” is also called a “Purple Heart with a single Oak Leaf Cluster” while a “second Bronze Star” is called a “Bronze Star with a single Oak Leaf Cluster.” A “V” device is awarded on certain decorations to distinguish an award for heroism or valor in combat instead of for meritorious service or achievement.

[3] Larimore, At First Light, 207-208.

[4] Ibid, 207.

[5] Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970) was a French army officer who led the Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and then chaired the Provisional Government of the French Republic from 1944–1946. In 1958, he came out of retirement and was elected President of France.

[6] The Croix de Guerre was a French military decoration to honor people or organizations who fought with the French against the Axis forces during World War II. The “palm” was issued to military units whose members performed heroic deeds in combat and was the highest-level Croix de Guerre that could be awarded. This was the unit’s second Croix de Guerre, the first coming from fighting in the Vosges.

[7] This was one of the few times in World War II that an entire division received the Presidential Unit Citation, which was normally awarded only to smaller units for especially outstanding actions.

[6] Larimore, Ibid, 206-208.

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