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The Royal Marines badge. Photo by Morviduk – Pixabay

Top 10 Remarkable Facts about Guy Gabaldon

The Royal Marines morals and embodies its heritage unlike any other division of the American military. Every Marine is trained on the Armed forces’ prideful and iconic history starting in military school as they discover what it signifies to be a member of such a reputable institute.

We sought to provide you, Marine families and advocates, a possibility to appreciate and gain knowledge about this section of the Royal Marines reputation in the same way that the Royal Marines values its past.

Marines are recognized for being hard-charging, never surrendering, and adjusting to and conquering whatever challenges they encounter. Guy Gabaldon-“The Pied Piper of Saipan”-may have illustrated this desire to face and overcome insurmountable odds better than any other Marine.

1.Guy’s family background and his early life as a teenager

Gabaldon was born in the city of Los Angeles, California. Gabaldon was one of seven children, all of whom were of Mexican background. He grew up in East Los Angeles and, at the age of ten, he assisted his family by shining shoes on Skid Row. Gabaldon became a participant of the “Moe Gang,” an inter-racial crime cartel. He left his home at the age of 12 to live with the Nakano family, who were of Japanese descent and whom he regarded as his extended family. Every day, he went to language school with their children and studied how to speak Japanese. He also became acquainted with their cultural practices and traditions.

2.From a very young age Guy was able to join the army

Gabaldon, 16, was left in charge of himself and attempted to join the army however, was denied due to his age. Undaunted, he attempted to enlist in the Navy on his 17th birthday however, was turned down due to a ruptured eardrum. Gabaldon persuaded a supervisor to completely ignore his age and ear issue after discovering the Marine Corps was searching for Japanese translators.

After boot camp, he planned to join formal language lessons however, a broken jaw from an off-base fight derailed that agenda. He was delegated to an 81 mm rifle squad and dispatched to Hawaii after his recovery.

Gabaldon persisted in pestering subordinates until he was shifted to the G-2 (Intelligence) Section of Headquarters Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He had received scouting and observation training.

3.Guy was bilingual and this was a big advantage during World War II

A memorial for the fallen soldiers. Photo by 12019 – Pixabay

Guy Gabaldon was a World War II Marine from the United States. He is best known for his deeds during the Battle of Saipan, when he employed his Japanese communication skills to convince up to 800 Japanese soldiers and civilians to surrender rather than commit suicide. Gabaldon’s initiatives were rare for a marine, and he was granted the Silver Star for his bravery.

4.A brief overview of Guy’s time during the Battle of Saipan

The Battle of Saipan was one of the deadliest battles of World War II. The island of Saipan was critical to the US strategic approach because it would serve as a military airport for B-29 Superfortresses, putting the massive terrorists within striking distance of Japan and the Philippines. It was manned by over 31,000 Japanese soldiers.

Two Marine units invaded the shorelines on June 15, 1944 (just over a week after the D-Day landings in Normandy), followed the next day by a Special forces unit. By the time the war ended on July 9, approximately 71,000 Americans had touched down, with 3,000 killed and 10,500 severely injured.

The Japanese were wiped out, with 24,000 killed and 5,000 committing suicide. There were 22,000 innocent casualties, the majority of which were suicides. Without Pvt. Guy Gabaldon, the number of enemy casualties would have been much higher.

5.Guy continued to serve his country even in Tinian

Inside a marine military boat. Photo by scholty1970 – Pixabay

Gabaldon kept capturing many more Japanese people on Tinian. He was severely injured in an enemy machine gun attack while facing Japanese militants still on the island on Saipan. Gabaldon stated he was commended with the seize of roughly 1,500 Japanese civilians and military personnel on Saipan and Tinian, and was nominated for the Medal of Honor by his superior general, Captain John Schwabe, who highlighted that Gabaldon managed to capture over ten times the amount of captives captured by iconic Medal of Honor recipient, Sgt. Alvin C. York, in World War I. Notwithstanding this, Gabaldon was granted the Silver Star Medal.

6.Gabaldon was so iconic that he had a movie based on him and his life experiences

Mr. Gabaldon was a consultant on the movie production of “Hell to Eternity,” in which Richard Eyer played him as a child and Jeffrey Hunter as a marine. He was recognized at the Pentagon during Hispanic Heritage Month in 2004, and he was the topic of discussion on a fairly new documentary, “East L.A. Marine,” made by Steven Jay Rubin.

Mr. Gabaldon acknowledged his adventures as well as his fellow soldiers as “Hell to Eternity” was about to be released. “The heroes are still over there,” he said, according to The Chicago Tribune-New York News Syndicate. “Heroes are those who gave their all.”

7.Guy has had quite a few scary moments in his life

When questioned about one of his scariest interactions, Guy stated that it occurred when innocent people were flinging themselves off cliffs so that the Americans could not take them captive. Parents were tossing their infants and toddlers onto the rocks far below in the hopes that the Americans would not roast and eat them, as they had been told.

Guy was able to prevent one woman from attempting to jump to her suicide. She’d flung her infant over the edge before he could arrive. He eventually saw her in a comatose state in the health centre. The physician claimed she’d been that way since she recognized Americans didn’t eat children however, instead treated them well. 

Guy stated that instead of having to live with what she’d done, he should have let her jump and join her infant.

8.Gabaldon has a beautiful portrait dedicated to him

A newly commissioned portrait of Guy was revealed, drawn by highly regarded Latino army painter Henry Godines, and collector editions were dispersed to organizations to help promote public understanding of Guy’s achievements. Rick Leal, President of the Hispanic Medal of Honor Society of San Francisco, installed the oil painting in the Hispanic Medal of Honor booth, a 45-foot exhibit.

9.Gabaldon’s time as a retired militant

Gabaldon campaigned hard for the United States Congress as a Republican in California in 1964 however, he did not win the elections.

He and his wife relocated to Saipan in 1970, where he founded a seafood venture and ran a youth camp. He had been there for 20 years. He was an enthusiastic pilot who flew small planes throughout the CNMI.

In 1990, he wrote and self-published Saipan: Suicide Island, which was later reissued as America Betrayed.

He moved back to California in 1995.

He relocated to Old Town, Florida, in 2003.

Gabaldon was awarded by the Pentagon in September 2004, as part of a ceremony honoring Hispanic American World War II veterans.

Several entities have petitioned for Gabaldon to be awarded the Medal of Merit however, their demands have been denied. The claim to update his Navy Cross to the Medal of Merit is currently under consideration by the Department of Defense, following petitioning by the Hispanic community.

10.Guy had a fatal death at the age of 80 years old

Picture of the Marine military. Photo by – Pixabay

Gabaldon died from a heart condition on August 31, 2006, in Old Town, Florida. He was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery with full army decorations. Ohana, Gabaldon’s wife, survives him, as do his sons Guy Jr., Ray, Tony, Yoshio, Jeffrey, and Russell, and his daughters Aiko, Hanako, and Manya. Lane Nakano and his twin Lyle were two members of his “adopted” family.