Medal of Honor: William G. Fournier – World War II – Guadalcanal – January 1943
When ordered to fall back, he chose instead to stand fast where defeat would have followed retreat. In a jungle firefight on a brutal ridge, he turned a shattered gun position into a wall of sacrifice.
January 13, 2026
Name: William G. Fournier
Rank: Sergeant
Organization: U.S. Army
Unit: Company M, 35th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division
Place: Mount Austen, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
Entered Service At: Winterport, Maine
Born: Norwich, Connecticut
Summary of Action
On 10 January 1943, during the bitter fighting on Mount Austen, Guadalcanal, Sergeant William G. Fournier served as leader of a machine-gun section tasked with protecting advancing battalion elements against determined Japanese resistance.
His position came under fierce attack by a numerically superior enemy force. In the opening moments of the engagement, Sgt. Fournier’s gunner was killed, his assistant gunner wounded, and a neighboring machine-gun crew was put completely out of action. With his section shattered and enemy pressure mounting, Sgt. Fournier was ordered to withdraw from the exposed position.
He refused.
Instead, Sergeant Fournier rushed forward to the disabled machine gun. Joined by one other soldier, he physically lifted and steadied the weapon by its tripod to widen its field of fire. Standing fully exposed, the two men opened fire directly into the advancing Japanese, inflicting heavy casualties and halting the assault at a critical moment.
While maintaining this desperate defense, both Sergeant Fournier and the soldier beside him were killed at their post. Their refusal to abandon the position and their final stand under overwhelming odds proved decisive, enabling the battalion’s continued advance and contributing directly to the success of the attack on Mount Austen.
Medal of Honor Citation
