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James Megellas
| Lt Col James Maggie Megellas (deceased) Commander of H Company, 3rd Battalion, 504th PIR, 'Maggie' Megellas was the most decorated officer in the 82nd Airborne Division. After serving in Italy, where he was twice wounded, Megellas fought in Normandy before taking part in Operation Market Garden where he led his company in the crossing of the River Waal near Nijmegen. For bravery he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest gallantry award. He fought with great distinction in the Battle of the Bulge, and on 28th January, whilst advancing into the town of Herresbach, his company succeeded in killing and capturing a large number of Germans. He single handedly destroyed a German tank with grenades before they seized the town, without losing a man. He was nominated for the Medal of Honor, but the account was never included in the official report. He died on 2nd April 2020. |
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| Text for the above items : |
Act of Valor by Simon Smith. After single-handedly destroying a German Mark V Panther tank that had pinned down his unit, First Lieutenant James Maggie Megellas leads his platoon from the 3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne towards the Belgian town of Herresbach, 28 January 1945, as the Battle of the Bulge draws to its conclusion. Minutes before, despite being vastly outnumbered in heavy snow and freezing conditions, the platoon had overwhelmed and completely defeated a large force of German infantry in a ferocious frontal assault, without losing a single man. Simon Smith's dramatic image picks up the story as, with the Panther rendered harmless, Megellas readies his men for their final advance into Herresbach. |
Liberation - Sainte Mere Eglise by Richard Taylor. For nearly four years, the swastika had flown belligerently over the small town of Sainte Mere Eglise in Normandy. Suddenly, shortly after midnight on the night of 5/6th June 1944, parachutists from the 82nd Airborne Division began landing in and around the town. By 04.30, after a tough fire fight, troopers from the 505th PIR had raised another flag over the town - the Stars and Stripes - and Sainte Mere Eglise had become the first town in Normandy to be liberated by the Allies on D-Day. Sherman tanks landing on nearby Utah beach with the US VII Corps were soon passing through the newly liberated town on the way to the front. |
Day Drop - Stick 21 by Robert Taylor. At 23.45 on the night of 5 June 1944, the 101st Airborne's most legendary unit of combat paratroopers - the notorious 'Filthy Thirteen' - jumped into France near the village of Sainte Mere Eglise, in the final hours before the D-Day landings. They were the Screaming Eagles' most notorious unit, a small bunch of raw, tough, ruthless young men. Hard drinking and savage fighting - and that was only in training - with scant regard for authority. And if the reputation of this unique bunch of renegades within the ranks of the 101st was formidable, for the Germans it became one of sheer terror. Officially they were the First Demolition Squadron, HQ Company, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne. Unofficially they were the 'Filthy Thirteen'. Superbly crafted in his unique blend of pencil and paint on tinted paper, Robert Taylor's classic new Master Drawing captures the moment on the night of 5 June 1944 when the 101st Airborne's legendary squad of elite paratroopers jump into battle in the vital hours before the D-Day landings commence. The pilots of the 440th Troop Carrier Group struggle to keep their Dakotas level as deadly flak pummels the formation. |
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