On November 25, 1950, during one of the toughest battles of the Korean
War, the US Eighth Army Ranger Company seized and held the strategically
important Hill 205 overlooking the Chongchon River. Separated by more
than a mile from the nearest friendly unit, fifty-one soldiers fought
several hundred Chinese attackers. Their commander, Lieutenant Ralph
Puckett, was wounded three times before he was evacuated. For his
actions, he received the country's second-highest award for courage on
the battlefield-the Distinguished Service Cross-and resumed active duty
later that year as a living legend.
In this inspiring autobiography, Colonel Ralph Puckett recounts his
extraordinary experiences on and off the battlefield. After he returned
from Korea, Puckett joined the newly established US Army Ranger
Department, serving as an instructor and tactical officer, and
commanding companies at Fort Benning and in the Ranger Mountain Camp in
north Georgia. He went on to lead companies in Vietnam, train cadets at
West Point, and organize the Escuela de Lancero leadership course in
Colombia. Puckett's story is critical reading for soldiers, leaders,
military historians, and others interested in the impact of conflict on
individual soldiers as well as the military as a whole.