serviceyears branch death_date allegiance birth_date laterwork commands death_place placeofburial_label battles placeofburial rank image name caption birth_place awards article_title birth_name
1923 -- 1948 united states marine corps 5 august 1988 united states of america 1912 20 february 1903 u.s. representative , maryland -lrb- 1951 -- 1959 -rrb- marine defense regiment at wake island baltimore , maryland place of burial banana island wars world war ii * battle of wake arlington national cemetery brigadier general james patrick sinnott devereux.jpg james devereux james p.s. devereux cabana , cuba navy cross james devereux
 james patrick sinnott devereux
james devereux

james patrick sinnott devereux -lrb- february 20 , 1903 -- august 5 , 1988 -rrb- was a united states marine corps general , navy cross recipient , and republican congressman .
he was the commanding officer of the 1st defense battalion during the defense of wake island in december 1941 .
he was captured on wake island as a prisoner of war , along with his men , after a 15-day battle with the japanese .
after his release in september 1945 , he concluded his military career in 1948 and represented the second congressional district of the state of maryland in the united states house of representatives for four terms from 1951 -- 1959 .
he was an unsuccessful candidate for election as governor of maryland in 1958 .
