Medal of Honor: Michael J. Perkins , World War I, October 27, 1918
When his platoon was pinned down by a fortress spitting grenades and bullets, Pfc. Michael Perkins crawled alone through the mud—knife in hand—and stormed it himself.
October 27, 2025
Name: Michael J. Perkins
Rank: Private First Class
War: World War I
Date of Action: October 27, 1918
Unit: Company D, 101st Infantry Regiment, 26th “Yankee” Division
Born: Boston, Massachusetts
Entered Service At: Boston, Massachusetts
Summary of Action
In the dense woods of Belieu Bois, France, the 26th “Yankee” Division met fierce German resistance. A reinforced concrete pillbox spewed machine-gun fire and grenades into Pfc. Michael Perkins’ platoon, halting their advance and threatening to cut them down where they lay.
Refusing to wait for orders, Perkins crawled forward alone across open ground, using shell holes for cover as German grenades burst around him. When the pillbox door cracked open to hurl another grenade, Perkins seized his chance—he lobbed a grenade of his own straight into the opening. The explosion blew the door wide, and he charged in with only his trench knife.
Inside the smoky chaos, Perkins fought hand-to-hand, killing or wounding several of the defenders and capturing roughly twenty-five stunned German soldiers. By the time the fight was over, seven machine guns had gone silent—and his platoon could finally advance.
His fearless assault turned the tide of the engagement and embodied the raw determination of the American soldier in the final days of the Great War.
Medal of Honor Citation
PERKINS, MICHAEL J.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company D, 101st Infantry, 26th Division.
Place and date: At Belieu Bois, France, 27 October 1918.
Entered service at: Boston, Mass. Birth: Boston, Mass. G.O. No.: 34, W.D. 1919.
Citation: He, voluntarily and alone, crawled to a German “pill box” machinegun emplacement, from which grenades were being thrown at his platoon. Awaiting his opportunity, when the door was again opened and another grenade thrown, he threw a bomb inside, bursting the door open, and then, drawing his trench knife, rushed into the emplacement. In a hand-to-hand struggle he killed or wounded several of the occupants and captured about 25 prisoners, at the same time silencing 7 machineguns.
