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A number of Hispanics served in senior leadership positions, the highest ranking being Marine Corps Lieutenant-General Pedro Del Valle. The exact number of Hispanics serving in the US military is unknown as, at the time, Hispanics were not tabulated separately, but were generally included in the general white population census count.
Before the United States entered World War II, Hispanic Americans were already fighting on European soil in the Spanish Civil War.The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted coup d'état by parts of the army, led by the Nationalist General Francisco Franco, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic.
Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps, such as Private France Silva who during the Boxer Rebellion became the first Marine of the thirteen Marines of Latin American descent to be awarded the Medal of Honor, [1] and Private First Class Guy Gabaldon who is credited with capturing over 1,000 enemy soldiers and civilians during World War II, [2] have distinguished themselves in combat.
United States Army Center of Military History. June 8, 2009. Archived from the original on September 15, 2007 "Hispanic American Medal of Honor recipients USA". Contributions of American Hispanics/Latinos Heritage and Ancestry to the United States of America. Hispanic America USA. Archived from the original on June 27, 2006
The United States opposed the fascist regimes that were gaining ground around the world, but it was not until 1941 that the U.S. entered into the war. In reaction to the December 7 attack on Pearl Harbor, the American public overwhelmingly supported military involvement and Congress declared war on Japan on December 8, 1941. [2]
Three Hispanics were awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration for heroism awarded by the United States. Hispanic women also participated, such was the case of Loreta Janeta Velazquez, a Cuban woman who disguised as a male, fought and spied for the Confederacy.
Brigadier general Maritza Sáenz Ryan [note 1] (born c. 1960) is a former United States Army officer, and head of the Department of Law at the United States Military Academy. She was the first woman and first Hispanic (Puerto Rican and Spanish heritage) West Point graduate to serve as an academic department head.
Joseph H. De Castro (November 14, 1844 – May 8, 1892) was the first Hispanic American to be awarded the United States's highest military decoration for valor in combat—the Medal of Honor—for having distinguished himself during Pickett's Charge in the Battle of Gettysburg of the American Civil War.