Charles P . Hall Charles Philip Hall ( December 12 , 1886 - January 26 , 1953 ) was an American General most notable for being the commander of the U . S . Army ' s XI Corps during World War II and the principal commander during the Battle of Bataan to liberate the Philippines from Japanese forces . Early career and World War I . Hall was born in Sardis , Mississippi and attended the University of Mississippi from 1905 to 1907 . He then entered the U . S . Military Academy at West Point and was commissioned in 1911 as a second lieutenant of infantry . He served with the 20th Infantry Regiment until 1914 , when he became an instructor in mathematics at West Point . In August 1917 , he transferred to the 23rd Infantry Regiment , and then went to France for World War I . In March 1918 , he became the adjutant of the 3rd Infantry Brigade , 2nd Infantry Division . He served at Verdun , Chateau Thierry , at Soissons in the Marne Offensive , in the St . Mihiel sector , and at Champagne in the Aisne Offensive . Hall received the Army Distinguished Service Cross , second to the Medal of Honor , for extraordinary heroism in action at Vierzy , France on July 18 , 1918 . His citation read : " At a critical time in the battle , when information was difficult to obtain , Lieutenant Colonel Hall , Brigade Adjutant , volunteered to report on the fighting in Vierzy , which was then in the hands of the enemy . Accompanying a group of French tanks , he entered the town under intense fire ; and , during the advance , went forward through machine - gun fire and carried to safety a wounded man . He assisted materially in maintaining organization among the troops and established a first aid station at which many wounded were cared for , returning later to Brigade Headquarters with valuable information . " In addition , Hall was awarded three silver star medals for gallantry . He also received the French Croix de Guerre for bravery on October 4 , 1918 , as well as the Legion of Honor . Between the wars . After service with the Army of Occupation until August 1919 , Hall returned to the United States with the 2nd Division , remaining as brigade and then division adjutant until 1922 . He served on the Infantry Board from 1922 to 1923 , and was then a student at the Infantry School . From 1924 to 1925 , he attended the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth , where he was a distinguished graduate . He then served as an instructor at the Infantry School until 1929 , when he entered the Army War College . After graduation from the Army War College in 1930 , he spent two years in the Philippines . He then returned to Fort Benning as an instructor at the Infantry School from 1932 to 1937 . From 1937 to 1940 , he was Director of Ground Arms , Air Corps Tactical School , Maxwell Field , Alabama . In 1940 , he took command of the 11th Infantry Regiment . World War II to retirement . In 1941 - 42 , he served with the 3rd Infantry Division as assistant division commander and briefly as division commanding general . He then commanded the 93rd Infantry Division from May to October 1942 . In October 1942 , he took command of the XI Corps . He led the corps in combat in New Guinea and on Morotai . The corps then fought at Leyte and on Luzon in the Philippine Campaign , most notably in the Battle of Bataan . In September 1945 , the corps landed at Yokohama for the initial occupation of Japan . Hall relinquished command of the corps on March 15 , 1946 . From March 1946 to December 1948 , he served as the Director of Organization and Training on the War Department General Staff ( from 1947 the Department of the Army ) . He retired on December 31 , 1948 and was placed on the retired list as a lieutenant general on January 1 , 1949 . He died on January 26 , 1953 in San Antonio , Texas , and was buried in the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery . Decorations . Lt . general Hall ' s decorations were :