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Contact Info
Home Town Wilson
Last Address Colorado Springs, CO
Date of Passing Nov 28, 2015
Location of Interment Shrine of Remembrance Mausoleum - Colorado Springs, Colorado
Wall/Plot Coordinates Gate of Heaven
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
United States Army (Retired) Major, Henry “Duke” Boswell, 92, passed away in Colorado Springs on November 29, 2015. Duke was born on October 8, 1923 in Wilson, North Carolina to the late James and Della (McKeel) Boswell. Duke attended Coon High School and at the age of sixteen, joined the North Carolina National Guard and was assigned to Company M, 120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division. On September 16, 1940, he was called to active duty while still sixteen years of age and was assigned to Fort Jackson, South Carolina.
In June 1942, Corporal Boswell volunteered for parachute training and communications school and was transferred to Fort Benning, Georgia. He finished his training and was assigned to Company G, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment. In November 1942, the Regiment was transferred to Fort Bragg and assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division.
On July 10, 1943, Sergeant Boswell saw his first combat action when he jumped into Sicily. He again made a jump into Salerno, Italy in September 1943 and helped liberate Naples, Italy on October 1, 1943. On June 6, 1944, Sergeant Boswell jumped behind enemy lines into St. Mere Eglise, France just prior to the Normandy invasion. This was the first town in France to be liberated from the Germans. Sergeant Boswell made one more combat jump into Holland in September 1944. They returned to France and fought in the Battle of the Bulge until January 1945. His unit made the river assault crossing into Germany and fought until meeting the Russians in May 1945. At the start of the war, Staff Sergeant Boswell’s unit started with 146 men and by the end, there were 13 left who hadn’t been killed or wounded.
After World War II, he entered Officer Training School in January 1948 and was reassigned to Airborne Training Battalion at Fort Benning as a Second Lieutenant. He married Maxine Martin of Junction City, Kansas on December 22, 1948. In September 1950, 1st Lieutenant Boswell was assigned to the First Cavalry Division, Korea. During the Korean War, Lt. Boswell was seriously wounded by mortar fire and sustained injuries in both hands and legs. After being released from the hospital, Major Boswell had assignments in Georgia, Hawaii and finished his career at Fort Carson, Colorado.
Major Boswell earned a Bachelors Degree in Education from the University of Omaha and a Masters Degree in Education from Northern Colorado. He served as a teacher for sixth graders for the next 20 years and received the Crystal Apple Award recognizing him as the Outstanding Teacher of the Year by School District 11. Major Boswell has been speaking with middle school and high school students, civic groups and ROTC Detachments for the last ten years sharing his amazing story.
In May 2009, Major Boswell was invited by the French Government to attend a D-Day 65th anniversary ceremony at Normandy Beach. Before the ceremony, the French President recognized him with a medal for the service and sacrifices he made during D-Day and the liberation of France. The medal he received is the “National Order of the Legion of Honour,” the highest decoration in France.
Major Boswell’s decorations and badges include: the Bronze Star with one oak leaf cluster, Purple Heart, WW II Victory Medal, Master Parachute Badge with four Combat Jump Stars, Combat Infantry Badge with Star, European Campaign Ribbon with six Campaign Stars and One Invasion Arrowhead, Korean Service Ribbon with two Campaign Stars along with several other badges.
Major Boswell is survived by his sons: Ralph (Rosalee) and Jamie; grandchildren: Bethelyn Stanley and Mark Boswell; six great grandchildren: Joshua, Sam and Lalla-Rose Stanley and Webb, Behr and Ruby Boswell. He is also survived by his brother, James; one nephew, one niece and numerous friends. He is preceded in death by his beloved wife, Maxine.
WWII - European Theater of Operations/Ardennes Alsace Campaign (1944-45)/Battle of the Bulge
From Month/Year
December / 1944
To Month/Year
January / 1945
Description The Battle of the Bulge (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945) was a major German offensive campaign launched through the densely forested Ardennes region of Wallonia in Belgium, France and Luxembourg on the Western Front toward the end of World War II in Europe. Hitler planned the offensive with the primary goal to recapture the important harbour of Antwerp. The surprise attack caught the Allied forces completely off guard. United States forces bore the brunt of the attack and incurred the highest casualties for any operation during the war. The battle also severely depleted Germany's war-making resources.
The battle was known by different names. The Germans referred to it as Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein ("Operation Watch on the Rhine"), while the French named it the Bataille des Ardennes ("Battle of the Ardennes"). The Allies called it the Ardennes Counteroffensive. The phrase "Battle of the Bulge" was coined by contemporary press to describe the way the Allied front line bulged inward on wartime news maps and became the best known name for the battle.
The German offensive was supported by several subordinate operations known as Unternehmen Bodenplatte, Greif, and Währung. As well as stopping Allied transport over the channel to the harbor of Antwerp, Germany also hoped these operations would split the British and American Allied line in half, and then proceed to encircle and destroy four Allied armies, forcing the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis Powers' favor. Once that was accomplished, Hitler could fully concentrate on the eastern theatre of war.
The offensive was planned by the German forces with the utmost secrecy, minimizing radio traffic and moving troops and equipment under cover of darkness. Despite their efforts to keep it secret, the Third U.S. Army's intelligence staff predicted a major German offensive, and Ultra indicated that a "substantial and offensive" operation was expected or "in the wind", although a precise date or point of attack could not be given. Aircraft movement from the Russian Front and transport of forces by rail, both to the Ardennes, was noticed but not acted upon, according to a report later written by Peter Calvocoressi and F. L. Lucas at the codebreaking centre Bletchley Park.
Near-complete surprise was achieved by a combination of Allied overconfidence, preoccupation with Allied offensive plans, and poor aerial reconnaissance. The Germans attacked a weakly defended section of the Allied line, taking advantage of heavily overcast weather conditions, which grounded the Allies' overwhelmingly superior air forces. Fierce resistance on the northern shoulder of the offensive around Elsenborn Ridge and in the south around Bastogne blocked German access to key roads to the northwest and west that they counted on for success; columns that were supposed to advance along parallel routes found themselves on the same roads. This and terrain that favored the defenders threw the German advance behind schedule and allowed the Allies to reinforce the thinly placed troops. Improved weather conditions permitted air attacks on German forces and supply lines, which sealed the failure of the offensive. In the wake of the defeat, many experienced German units were left severely depleted of men and equipment, as survivors retreated to the defenses of the Siegfried Line.
About 610,000 American forces were involved in the battle,[2] and 89,000 were casualties, including 19,000 killed. It was the largest and bloodiest battle fought by the United States in World War II.
