Virgil R . Miller Colonel Virgil Rasmuss Miller ( November 11 , 1900 – August 5 , 1968 ) was a United States Army officer who served as Regimental Commander of the 442d Regimental Combat Team ( RCT ) , a unit which was composed of " Nisei " ( second generation Americans of Japanese descent ) , during World War II . He led the 442nd in its rescue of the Lost Texas Battalion of the 36th Infantry Division , in the forests of the Vosges Mountains in northeastern France . Early years . Virgil Miller was born in San German , Puerto Rico , which is located on the western coast of the island . In 1915 , his family moved to San Juan , the capital city of the island , when his father Dr . Paul Gerard Miller , was appointed Commissioner of Education , a position which the senior Miller held until 1921 . Miller and his siblings received their secondary education at El Caribe High School in San Juan . During World War I , he served in the Puerto Rico Home Guard , a local militia . In 1920 , he received an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point from Arthur Yager ( 1858 – 1941 ) , who served as Governor of Puerto Rico from 1913 to 1921 . Military career . Miller graduated from the U . S . Military Academy and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the infantry in 1924 . He married Ann McGoughran the following year and in 1926 returned to Puerto Rico where he served with Puerto Rico ' s 65th Infantry Regiment at Camp Las Casas . In 1940 , he was transferred to Hawaii , where he served with the 21st Infantry Brigade and later with the 24th Infantry Division stationed on the island of Oahu at Schofield Barracks . World War II . On December 7 , 1941 , the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and the United States entered the war . In June 1943 , Miller was named Executive Officer of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team . The team included the 442d Infantry Regiment , the 522d Field Artillery Battalion , the 232d Combat Engineer Company , the 206th Army Ground Forces Band and the 100th Infantry Battalion from Hawaii ' s National Guard . The unit was mostly composed of Nisei , second generation Americans of Japanese ancestry who were drafted into service . Some of these men had family members who were still interned in Japanese American internment camps . Among the campaigns in which Miller participated as either Executive Officer or Regimental Commander of the 442nd RCT were the Rome - Amo , North Apennines and Po Valley Campaigns . The Battle of Bruyeres ( Rescue of the Lost Battalion ) . On October 1944 , the 1st Battalion , 141st Infantry of the 36th Division , made a push down a long heavily - wooded ridge that extended southeast and dominated the valley of Bruyeres , France from Biffontaine to La Houssiere . The 1st had overextended itself behind enemy lines and had been cut off by strong enemy forces . The 442nd , under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Miller , was ordered into the line of combat in an effort to relieve pressure on the 1st Battalion . On October 26 , the 442nd launched its attack and at times had to engage in hand - to - hand combat at a terrible cost of men and material . The 442nd Combat Team was badly battered and without reinforcements , however they were committed to their mission of reaching the 1st Battalion , 141st Infantry of the 36th Division which became known as the " Lost Battalion " . Finally , on October 30 , after five days of combat , the Combat Team made contact and rescued the men of the " Lost Battalion " . The 442nd , according to its commander , Lt . Col . Miller , had lost approximately three times more men ( over 800 casualties ) than the 211 that were eventually saved . Because of intense German attacks , there was little time to celebrate the rescue together . The 442nd were ordered to pursue the Germans and the " Lost Battalion " men were given a hot meal and put on the lines again . 442nd Regimental Commander Colonel Charles W . Pence , was replaced by Lt . Col . Miller who was promoted to Colonel . On January 5 , 1945 , Miller was named Commanding Officer of Puerto Rico ' s 65th Infantry Regiment , but he declined the assignment on January 17 because he preferred to continue with the 442nd Combat Team . The Po Valley Campaign . In April 1945 , the 442nd RCT came to the aid of the 92nd Infantry Division and spearheaded a diversionary assault on the western sector of the Gothic Line on the Peninsula Base Section Staging Area at Pisa , Italy . Field Marshal Albert Kesselring had directed the construction of fortifications , drilled out of solid rock and reinforced with concrete , in the rugged mountains of the Apennines . The German stronghold , contained machine gun nests which produced deadly interlocking fire upon the Allied forces . On April 5 , 1945 , Col Miller , and 3rd Battalion Commander , LtCol Alfred A . Pursall planned a pincers attack at dawn with the surprise element of an all - night climb of a mountain face in the dark with full fighting gear , to get in position for an assault . At the dawn of April 6 , Miller ' s men proceeded on their advance , however the explosions of land mine s alerted the Germans and a fierce battle followed . The Gothic Line was cracked after a full day of fighting and by the end of the day , the last ridge link , Mount Cerreta , finally fell . Miller then led the 442nd in the capture of Mt . Fologorito , Massa , a German Naval Base at La Spezia ( where they captured a submarine ) and Turin . Col . Miller relinquished his command of the 442nd on June 1945 . Among the many decorations which Miller ' s 442nd Regimental Combat Team and its members earned were : 21 Medals of Honor , 52 Distinguished Service Crosses ( including 19 Distinguished Service Crosses which were upgraded to Medals of Honor in June 2000 ) , 1 Distinguished Service Medal , 560 Silver Star s ( plus 28 Oak Leaf Cluster s for a second award ) and 7 Presidential Unit Citations ( 5 earned in one month ) . It is believed by many that the 442nd is the most decorated unit in U . S . military history . At a memorial service held on May 6 , 1945 for the men of the 442nd RCT , Col . Miller was quoted as saying : " The sacrifice made by our comrades was great . We must not fail them in the fight that continues , in the fight that will be with us even when peace comes . Your task will be the harder and more arduous one , for it will extend over a longer time . " Later years . Miller served in Italy until 1947 and then served as an Infantry advisor in Turkey . He was a Professor of Military Science and Tactics at Pennsylvania State College , Lehigh University and the University of Michigan . Miller retired from the military in 1954 and as a civilian became a Research Associate at MIT , a position which he held until his retirement in 1963 . Colonel Miller died on August 5 , 1968 in Ann Arbor , Michigan . He was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery . The Honor Guard carried the 442nd Regimental Colors which was sent by the 442nd Regiment from Schofield Barracks , Hawaii with the assistance of Senator Daniel K . Inouye . Miller was survived by his widow Ann , two sons William and Richard and his daughter Julia . Awards and decorations . Among Miller ' s military awards and decorations are the following : Badges : Further reading .