Medal of Honor: Ernest H. Dervishian - World War II - May 23, 1944

Name: Ernest H. Dervishian
Rank: Second Lieutenant (then Technical Sergeant)
Branch: U.S. Army
War: World War II
Unit: 34th Infantry Division
Date of Action: May 23, 1944
Location: Near Cisterna, Italy

Summary of Action

On 23 May 1944, Technical Sergeant Ernest H. Dervishian displayed extraordinary heroism during combat operations near Cisterna, Italy.

After an aggressive advance through enemy artillery and sniper fire, Dervishian and four members of his platoon found themselves isolated far ahead of their company.

Approaching a railroad embankment, the Americans spotted German troops concealed in dugouts.

Without hesitation, Dervishian ordered his men to cover him and advanced alone toward the enemy position.

Firing his carbine as he moved forward, he forced ten German soldiers to surrender.

His men then moved up and captured fifteen more enemy troops hiding nearby.

Continuing the advance, Dervishian spotted another group of Germans fleeing across a ridge.

While his men opened fire, wounding several of the enemy, Dervishian boldly sprinted forward alone and captured the entire group before the others could even reach him.

The battle intensified when the Americans attempted to advance into a large vineyard defended by concealed machine-gun positions.

Heavy fire pinned the soldiers down only yards from the enemy guns.

Feigning death while a German machine gun fired directly over him, Dervishian waited for a pause in the firing before suddenly charging the position with grenades and carbine fire.

He forced the four-man German gun crew to surrender.

Moments later, another hidden machine-gun position opened fire, killing one American and wounding another while German troops hurled grenades into the vineyard.

Ordering his men to withdraw, Dervishian instead seized the captured enemy machine gun and turned it against the Germans.

At the same time, he grabbed a machine pistol and fired into a nearby dugout while simultaneously engaging another enemy position.

The overwhelming aggression of his assault forced five Germans in the dugout and five more in the machine-gun nest to surrender.

Still pressing the attack alone, Dervishian advanced farther into the enemy-held area and discovered another machine-gun position beside a house.

Picking up an abandoned machine pistol, he sprayed the emplacement with fire and forced six more Germans to surrender.

By the end of the engagement, Dervishian had personally captured or helped capture dozens of enemy soldiers while repeatedly attacking fortified positions under direct fire.

His fearless combat leadership and relentless aggression became one of the most remarkable small-unit actions of the Italian Campaign.

Medal of Honor Citation

DERVISHIAN, ERNEST H.

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty on 23 May 1944, in the vicinity of Cisterna, Italy. 2d Lt. Dervishian (then Tech. Sgt.) and 4 members of his platoon found themselves far ahead of their company after an aggressive advance in the face of enemy artillery and sniper fire. Approaching a railroad embankment, they observed a force of German soldiers hiding in dugouts. 2d Lt. Dervishian, directing his men to cover him, boldly moved forward and firing his carbine forced 10 Germans to surrender. His men then advanced and captured 15 more Germans occupying adjacent dugouts. The prisoners were returned to the rear to be picked up by advancing units. From the railroad embankment, 2d Lt. Dervishian and his men then observed 9 Germans who were fleeing across a ridge. He and his men opened fire and 3 of the enemy were wounded. As his men were firing, 2d Lt. Dervishian, unnoticed, fearlessly dashed forward alone and captured all of the fleeing enemy before his companions joined him on the ridge. At this point 4 other men joined 2d Lt. Dervishian’s group. An attempt was made to send the 4 newly arrived men along the left flank of a large, dense vineyard that lay ahead, but murderous machinegun fire forced them back. Deploying his men, 2d Lt. Dervishian moved to the front of his group and led the advance into the vineyard. He and his men suddenly became pinned down by a machinegun firing at them at a distance of 15 yards. Feigning death while the hostile weapon blazed away at him, 2d Lt. Dervishian assaulted the position during a halt in the firing, using a hand grenade and carbine fire, and forced the 4 German crewmembers to surrender. The 4 men on the left flank were now ordered to enter the vineyard but encountered machinegun fire which killed 1 soldier and wounded another. At this moment the enemy intensified the fight by throwing potato-masher grenades at the valiant band of American soldiers within the vineyard. 2d Lt. Dervishian ordered his men to withdraw; but instead of following, jumped into the machinegun position he had just captured and opened fire with the enemy weapon in the direction of the second hostile machinegun nest. Observing movement in a dugout 2 or 3 yards to the rear, 2d Lt. Dervishian seized a machine pistol. Simultaneously blazing away at the entrance to the dugout to prevent its occupants from firing and firing his machinegun at the other German nest, he forced 5 Germans in each position to surrender. Determined to rid the area of all Germans, 2d Lt. Dervishian continued his advance alone. Noticing another machinegun position beside a house, he picked up an abandoned machine pistol and forced 6 more Germans to surrender by spraying their position with fire. Unable to locate additional targets in the vicinity, 2d Lt. Dervishian conducted these prisoners to the rear. The prodigious courage and combat skill exhibited by 2d Lt. Dervishian are exemplary of the finest traditions of the U.S. Armed Forces.