Top 10: The toughest soldiers

10. Jack G. Hanson

  • Office: US soldier
  • Occasion: korean war
  • Year: 1951

Attacked by North Koreans, a group of infantry was forced to retreat. Jack and four other soldiers took cover from the retreat, but they were all wounded and he was left alone. Two hours later, the Americans attacked again. They found Jack dead, with an unloaded pistol full of blood on the handle, the machine gun also without ammunition and 22 dead enemies around him. Some had been hit with rifle butts.

9. James H. Howard

  • Office: US General
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1944

During an air battle over German territory, James found himself in the air, alone, amid somewhere between 30 and 40 German planes. Instead of retreating his Mustang, he was summoned to attack. In 30 minutes, he shot down six planes and only received one bullet in the wing. He only returned to base, safe and sound, when he ran out of fuel.

8. Yogendra Singh Yadav

  • Office: indian soldier
  • Occasion: war against pakistan
  • Year: 1999

To facilitate an attack against three bunkers, Yogendra climbed an ice-covered mountain. As he climbed, he was hit three times by gunfire, but he did not retreat. With a grenade, he destroyed the first bunker. In the second, already out of ammunition, he killed four enemies with his hands. The third bunker surrendered. He won the highest Indian military award, given only to servicemen who do something deemed impossible.

7. Audie Murphy

  • Office: US soldier
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1944

In 1945, in France, he was one of 19 survivors out of a troop of 128. The madman took over the only M-10 tank they had – on fire – to attack 12 German tanks. An hour later, the ammunition ran out and Audie emerged victorious from the M-10, minutes before the vehicle exploded. He won all the honors of the time and became a famous actor in films that replicated his exploits.

6. Dominic McCarthy

  • Office: australian soldier
  • Occasion: 1st world war
  • Year: 1917

During a battle in northern France, he formed a group to attack a German trench that prevented the advance of the Allied troops. Dominic arrived before the others at the first enemy machine gun nest, killed everyone there and moved on, with a rifle and some grenades. By the end of the action, he had covered 500 m of trenches, killed 22 Germans and captured 50. Only then did he retreat.

5. Jack Churchill

  • Office: british captain
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1942

It said that “an officer who goes into battle without his sword is not properly dressed” and did not walk without his, which is larger and heavier than ceremonial swords. Armed with his blade, Jack infiltrated a German commando at dawn and killed 42 of them. Arrested on that and another occasion, he escaped both times – on the second, he walked 240 km until he was rescued.

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4. Robert Cain

  • Office: british major
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1944

During the battle of Arnhem in the Netherlands, tank fire hit his hideout, and he was partially blinded. As if that were not enough, the officer was left alone with the death of the soldier who was his partner. Robert was hidden for three days, circling among German tanks. He destroyed at least six and lost almost all of his hearing from the noise caused by the explosions of his anti-tank gun.

3. Thomas Alfred Jones

  • Office: british soldier
  • Occasion: 1st world war
  • Year: 1916

During the Battle of the Somme in France, he abandoned the position when his commander was distracted, ran 180 m until he found an enemy sniper, killed him and began hunting entrenched German soldiers. He killed dozens and disarmed 102 Germans. It was only in the absence of any more enemies in sight that he returned to his foxhole.

2. Lachhiman Garung

  • Office: british soldier
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1943

Upon being surrounded by 200 Japanese, who threw three grenades into his hiding place, Lachhiman picked up two and threw them back. The third detonated in his hand, tearing off his fingers and leaving the right part of his body raw. Alone, he stuck a knife in the ground and promised that no enemy would pass from there. He was positioned in a blind spot and, with his left arm, fired for four hours. He killed 31 enemies before being rescued.

1. Simo Hayha

  • Office: finnish farmer
  • Occasion: 2nd World War
  • Year: 1939

In 1937, he spent the year doing mandatory military service. His duty over, he returned to his farm and stayed there until 1939, when the Soviet Union invaded Finland. Simo then donned a white suit to camouflage himself in the snow, positioned himself with his rifle over a tree, by the side of a road, and began shooting at every Russian he could find. At the end of 100 days, he had killed 705 invaders, including Russian long-range snipers specifically deployed to hunt him. He became a legend among his enemies, who called him the “white death”.

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