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Medal of Honor Recipient

Walter Joseph Marm Jr.

U.S. Army · Vietnam War

MOH-RC-001977Source-based record

The award

Representative medal image: Army design with a neck ribbon. Not a portrait or a photograph of this recipient’s own medal.
Army Medal of HonorRecorded presentation: 1966

Portrait not yet available. Representative medal shown.

About this image

Representative form selected from the recorded presentation year (1966), not authenticated medal-object provenance.

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Medal of Honor

November 14, 1965

vicinity of Ia Drang Valley, Republic of Vietnam

Rank at action
Second Lieutenant
Service
U.S. Army
Conflict
Vietnam War
Unit or command
Company A, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)
Presentation date
December 19, 1966

The Citation

Sources ↓
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. As a platoon leader in the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), 1st Lt. Marm demonstrated indomitable courage during a combat operation. His company was moving through the valley to relieve a friendly unit surrounded by an enemy force of estimated regimental size. 1st Lt. Marm led his platoon through withering fire until they were finally forced to take cover. Realizing that his platoon could not hold very long, and seeing four enemy soldiers moving into his position, he moved quickly under heavy fire and annihilated all 4. Then, seeing that his platoon was receiving intense fire from a concealed machine gun, he deliberately exposed himself to draw its fire. Thus locating its position, he attempted to destroy it with an antitank weapon. Although he inflicted casualties, the weapon did not silence the enemy fire. Quickly, disregarding the intense fire directed on him and his platoon, he charged 30 meters across open ground, and hurled grenades into the enemy position, killing some of the 8 insurgents manning it. Although severely wounded, when his grenades were expended, armed with only a rifle, he continued the momentum of his assault on the position and killed the remainder. His selfless actions reduced the fire on his platoon, broke the enemy assault, and rallied his unit to continue toward the accomplishment of this mission. 1st Lt. Marm's gallantry on the battlefield and his extraordinary intrepidity at the risk of his life are in the highest traditions of the U.S. Army and reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country.

Sources & record notes

General Order comparison: pending. Current-profile review does not mean that the underlying original order has been examined.

  1. Walter Joseph Marm Jr. — current Society profile ↗Congressional Medal of Honor Society · Checked 2026-08-30

    current identity, service, action metadata, and citation comparison

Transcription, metadata & provenance notes
Award ID
MOH-AW-001987
Transcription status
Legacy full text · current reference profile matched
Last source check
2026-08-30
Recorded order reference (not verified against the original)
7
Later or highest recorded rank
Colonel
Entered service at
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Accredited to
Pittsburgh, PA
Archive transcription SHA-256
58f83c264bab031479cc1df76cfb70c41a46376adf999fc717aed9e228e3520f

Legacy transcription retained without substantive editing; rendered current reference profile variants documented in the Phase 10 evidence snapshot.

The profile's structured and explanatory rank renderings are retained separately: Second Lieutenant (presentation rank: First Lieutenant; highest rank: Colonel) The current profile records later or highest rank Colonel; it is stored separately from rank at time of action. The current source records Company A, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile); the inherited unit field Company A, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division remains preserved as a source variant. The current historical action-place wording replaces only the controlled canonical geocoder field; the complete inherited place remains preserved. The current authoritative profile classifies the action under Vietnam War; the inherited Not yet classified value remains preserved in the audit record.