Lloyd L . Burke Lloyd Leslie Burke ( September 29 , 1924 - June 1 , 1999 ) was a soldier in the United States Army during the Korean War . He received the Medal of Honor for his actions on October 28 , 1951 . He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery Arlington , Virginia . His grave can be located in section 7A , grave 155 , map Grid U - 23 . 5 . Military career . In 1943 , Burke was eighteen years old when he dropped out of Henderson State College now Henderson State University in Arkansas . He joined the United States Army and served two years during World War II with combat engineers in Italy . After being discharged , he joined the ROTC when he returned to Henderson State College . In 1950 , he graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate . After accepting his commission , he was dispatched to Korea five months later . At the time , he was the leader of Company G , 2nd Battalion , 5th Cavalry Regiment . When Chinese forces crossed the Yalu River , Burke managed to lead his platoon to safety . As a result of his action , he was awarded the Silver Star , Distinguished Service Cross , and two Purple Heart s . Hill 200 . Burke ' s tour of duty was almost over in October 1951 . At the time , Burke was found at the rear of his regiment . He had a plane ticket in his pocket and was eager to see his wife and infant son . Two miles away , Burke ' s company was attempting to cross the Yokkok - chon River . The company was hindered by a large and well - entrenched Chinese force on Hill 200 . The battle enraged for days as the 2nd Battalion ' s attacks were constantly being repelled . At first , Lieutenant Burke kept up with the reports . Eventually , he no longer tolerated what was going on and decided to enter the front lines . As he himself stated , " I couldn ' t see leaving my guys up there without trying to do something . " When Burke was at the base of Hill 200 , he was shocked to witness his company ' s strength mitigated to thirty - five traumatized survivors . Burke described the condition of his company clearly : " These men were completely beat . They lay huddled in foxholes , unable to move . They all had the thousand - yard stare of men who ' d seen too much fighting , too much death . " Burke dragged up a 57 mm recoilless rifle and shot three rounds at the closest enemy bunker . The bunker itself was a wooden - fronted structure covering a cave , which was dug into the overall hillside . The Chinese attacked American troops by hurling a plethora of grenades from their trenches . Burke aimed his M1 rifle at the trench line and shot at every Chinese soldier that rose to throw a grenade . Unfortunately , the grenades were still being thrown . After having used an eight - round clip , Burke decided to take more drastic measures . As he recalled , " I considered myself a pretty fair shot , but this was getting ridiculous . I had to do something . " After laying down his rifle , Burke took a grenade and ran approximately thirty yards to the Chinese trench line . He avoided enemy fire by hurling himself at the base of a dirt berm that was two feet high . When the Chinese momentarily stopped firing , Burke jumped into one of the trenches with a pistol in one hand and a grenade in the other . He shot five or six Chinese soldiers in the forehead . Burke also fired at two Chinese soldiers from further down the trench . Afterwards , he threw his grenade in their direction , jumped out of the trench , and placed himself against the dirt berm . The Chinese were aware of Burke ' s location and began throwing grenades at his position . Most of the grenades thrown rolled down the hill and harmlessly exploded . Some of the grenades , however , did explode nearby Burke ' s position . Burke himself managed to catch three grenades and tossed them back at the Chinese . At the same time , troops from Burke ' s company threw grenades . However , some of the grenades did not reach their Chinese targets and they exploded in close proximity to Burke ' s position . Burke abandoned the dirt berm by crawling off to the side where he found cover in a gully . The gully itself ended further up Hill 200 at a Korean burial mound . After having edged his way up the hill , Burke peeked over the top of the burial mound . He witnessed the main Chinese trench , which was approximately away from his position . The trench was covered in enfilade , was curved around the hill and contained a myriad of Chinese troops . Surprisingly , the Chinese were in a state of ease as some of the soldiers talked , sat , and laughed while other units were throwing grenades and firing mortars . Burke went down the gully to Company G ' s position and told Sergeant Arthur Foster , the senior NCO , " Get ' em ready to attack when I give you the signal ! " Burke then dragged the last functioning Browning model 1919 machine gun along with three cans of ammunition back up the hill . On top of the burial mound , he set up his tripod , mounted his machine gun , set the screw to free traverse , and prepared his 250 - round ammunition box . He began firing at the nearest part of the Chinese trench were the mortars were located . After Burke shot at all of the Chinese mortar squads , he then fired upon a machine gun emplacement . Afterwards , Burke fired up and down the trench with the Chinese too shocked to react . Eventually , the Chinese fled down the trench in a panic . Burke continued to fire until his Browning was jammed . While he attempted to clear his weapon , an enemy started throwing grenades at his position . Burke not only ignored the enemy unit , but he also ignored the grenade fragments that tore open the back of his hand . Eventually , Burke was able to clear his weapon and kill the Chinese grenadier . Meanwhile , Sergeant Foster was leading a small group to Burke ' s location and was summoned by Burke to provide extra firepower . Burke and company were convinced that they were under siege from a full - sized force instead of a few adamant skirmishers . As the Chinese retreated , Burke wrapped his field jacket around the Browning ' s hot barrel sleeve and tore the 31 - pound weapon off its tripod . He then wrapped the ammunition belt around his body , walked towards the trench , and fired upon retreating units . Naturally , Sergeant Foster and his men followed Burke . When Burke depleted his Browning ammunition , he utilized his . 45 automatic and grenades in order to clear out bunkers . At Hill 200 , Burke managed to kill over one - hundred men , decimate two mortar emplacements , and three machine - gun nests . For his actions , he was awarded the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony on April 11 , 1952 . Vietnam . Burke also served during the Vietnam War until a helicopter he was flying was shot down . This , in turn , forced him to return to the United States and undergo hospitalization for a long period of time . Overall , he spent thirty - five years in the US Armed Forces , served as the Army ' s liaison officer to the United States Congress , and retired with the rank of full colonel in 1978 . Awards and decorations . Lieutenant Burke ' s awards include : Medal of Honor citation . Rank and organization : First Lieutenant , U . S . Army Company G , 5th Cavalry Regiment , 1st Cavalry Division Place and date : Near Chong - dong , Korea , October 28 , 1951 Entered service at : Stuttgart , Arkansas Born : September 29 , 1924 , Tichnor , Arkansas G . O . No . : 43 . Citation : 1st Lt . Burke , distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and outstanding courage above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy . Intense enemy fire had pinned down leading elements of his company committed to secure commanding ground when 1st Lt . Burke left the command post to rally and urge the men to follow him toward 3 bunkers impeding the advance . Dashing to an exposed vantage point he threw several grenades at the bunkers , then , returning for an Ml rifle and adapter , he made a lone assault , wiping out the position and killing the crew . Closing on the center bunker he lobbed grenades through the opening and , with his pistol , killed 3 of its occupants attempting to surround him . Ordering his men forward he charged the third emplacement , catching several grenades in midair and hurling them back at the enemy . Inspired by his display of valor his men stormed forward , overran the hostile position , but were again pinned down by increased fire . Securing a light machine gun and 3 boxes of ammunition , 1st Lt . Burke dashed through the impact area to an open knoll , set up his gun and poured a crippling fire into the ranks of the enemy , killing approximately 75 . Although wounded , he ordered more ammunition , reloading and destroying 2 mortar emplacements and a machine gun position with his accurate fire . Cradling the weapon in his arms he then led his men forward , killing some 25 more of the retreating enemy and securing the objective . 1st Lt . Burke ' s heroic action and daring exploits inspired his small force of 35 troops . His unflinching courage and outstanding leadership reflect the highest credit upon himself , the infantry , and the U . S . Army .