Jake Allex

Jake Allex Mandusich

 

Jake Allex Mandusich, Medal of Honor recipient
Born July 13, 1887
Prizren, Kosovo Vilayet, Ottoman Empire
Died August 28, 1959 (aged 72)
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Place of burial Serbian Orthodox Monastery of Saint Sava cemetery Libertyville, Illinois
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Rank Sergeant
Unit Company H, 131st Infantry, 33rd Infantry Division
Battles/wars Chipilly Ridge, World War I
Awards Medal of Honor

Aleksa Mandušić (Serbian Cyrillic: Алекса Мандушић), or Jake Allex (July 13, 1887 – August 28, 1959), was a Serbian American soldier who received the Medal of Honor for his service in the U.S. Army during World War I.

Military service

Allex entered the US Army in Chicago, Illinois, and returned there following World War I, with the rank of Sergeant. While in the Army he served in Company H, 131st Infantry, 33rd Infantry Division. On August 9, 1918, near Chippilly Ridge, France, when finding all of their officers either wounded or killed and his platoon under heavy attack from the opposing German forces, Allex, a Corporal, took command. Leading his platoon forward toward the machine gun nest, his platoon was able to overwhelm the opposition. Allex alone killed five enemy soldiers, and when his bayonet broke, he used the butt of his rifle in close quarters combat, taking fifteen German prisoners. Little is known about his life following the First World War.

He died August 28, 1959 in a Veterans Administration hospital in Chicago.[1] He was buried in Serbian Orthodox Monastery of Saint Sava cemetery in Libertyville, Illinois.[2]

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Corporal, U.S. Army, Company H, 131st Infantry, 33d Division. Place and date: At Chippilly Ridge, France, August 9, 1918. Entered service at: Chicago, Ill. Born: July 13, 1887, Prizren, Kosovo. G.O. No.: 44, W.D., 1919.[3]

Citation:

At a critical point in the action, when all the officers with his platoon had become casualties, Corporal. Allex took command of the platoon and led it forward until the advance was stopped by fire from a machinegun nest. He then advanced alone for about 30 yards in the face of intense fire and attacked the nest. With his bayonet he killed 5 of the enemy, and when it was broken, used the butt of his rifle, capturing 15 prisoners.[3][4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Time magazine, Monday, September 07, 1959.
  2. ↑ "Jake Allex". Claim to Fame: Medal of Honor recipients. Find a Grave. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Medal of Honor Recipients, 1863-2013. I, 1863 - 1978. U.S. Government Printing Office. 14 February 1979. p. 432.(subscription required)
  4. ↑ "World War I Medal of Honor Recipients". history.army.mil. Retrieved 18 March 2015.