The Man Who Kept the Secrets

The son of a Medal of Honor recipient always suspected that something was wrong with the official story about his father’s service in World War II. And the son was right to be suspicious. His father’s sacrifice 80 years ago was even more significant than initially reported.

The Medal of Honor that U.S. Navy Capt. John Cromwell posthumously received in the 1940s carried a citation that certainly described remarkable courage and dedication:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commander of a submarine coordinated attack group with flag in the U.S.S. Sculpin, during the 9th war patrol of that vessel in enemy-controlled waters off Truk Island, 19 November 1943. Undertaking this patrol prior to the launching of our first large-scale offensive in the Pacific, Capt. Cromwell, alone of the entire Task Group, possessed secret intelligence information of our submarine strategy and tactics, scheduled Fleet movements, and specific attack plans. Constantly vigilant and precise in carrying out his secret orders, he moved his undersea flotilla inexorably forward despite savage opposition and established a line of submarines to southeastward of the main Japanese stronghold at Truk. Cool and undaunted as the submarine, rocked and battered by Japanese depth charges, sustained terrific battle damage and sank to an excessive depth, he authorized the Sculpin to surface and engage the enemy in a gunfight, thereby providing an opportunity for the crew to abandon ship. Determined to sacrifice himself rather than risk capture and subsequent danger of revealing plans under Japanese torture or use of drugs, he stoically remained aboard the mortally wounded vessel as she plunged to her death.

Cromwell allowed his crew to escape and then accepted a death sentence—and surely it was no pleasant death—rather than risk the chance that he might surrender useful intelligence to the enemy.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-man-who-kept-the-secrets-f4b6ec9a?mod=djemalertNEWS