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Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964), known also by his rank, Sergeant York, was one of the most decorated soldiers of the United States Army in World War I.〔Ron Owens, ''Medal of Honor: Historical Facts and Figures'' (Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing, 2004), 97–8, (available online ), accessed September 21, 2010. Five Marines earned the Medal of Honor twice for World War I service, while Lt. Samuel Parker is generally recognized as the most decorated serviceman of that conflict.〕 He received the Medal of Honor for leading an attack on a German machine gun nest, taking 32 machine guns, killing 20 German soldiers, and capturing 132 others. This action occurred during the United States-led portion of the broader Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France masterminded by French Marshal Ferdinand Foch to breach the Hindenburg line and make the opposing German forces surrender. ==Background== Alvin Cullum York was born in a two room log cabin near Pall Mall, Tennessee.〔(Legends and Traditions of the Great War: Sergeant Alvin York ) by Dr. Michael Birdwell, Ph.D.〕 He was the third of eleven children born to William Uriah York (15 May 1863 – 17 November 1911) and Mary Elizabeth (Brooks) York (1866-1943). William Uriah York was born in Jamestown, Tennessee, to Uriah York and Eliza Jane Livingston, both travelers from Buncombe County, North Carolina.〔 Mary Elizabeth York was born in Pall Mall to William Brooks and Nancy Pile, and was the great-granddaughter of Conrad "Coonrod" Pile, an English settler who settled Pall Mall. William York and Mary Brooks married on December 25, 1881, and had eleven children. The York children were, in order: Henry Singleton, Joseph Marion, Alvin Cullum, Samuel John, Albert, Hattie, George Alexander, James Preston, Lillian Mae, Robert Daniel, and Lucy Erma.〔Laughter & Lawter Genealogy: (Gladys Williams, "Alvin C. York" ), accessed September 20, 2010 〕 The York family is of mainly English ancestry, with Scots-Irish ancestry as well.〔Sergeant York and His People By Sam Kinkade Cowan page 85〕〔(York Indian Heritage ) at ancestry.com〕 The York family resided in the Indian Creek area of Fentress County.〔 The family was impoverished, with William York working as a blacksmith to supplement the family income. The men of the York family harvested their own food, while the mother made all the family clothing.〔 The York sons attended school for only nine months〔 and withdrew from education because William York wanted his sons to help him work the family farm and hunt small game to feed the family.〔 When William York died in November 1911, his son Alvin helped his mother in raising his younger siblings.〔 Alvin was the oldest sibling still residing in the county, since his two older brothers had married and relocated. To supplement the family income, York first worked in Harriman, Tennessee,〔 first in railroad construction and then as a logger. By all accounts, he was a very skilled worker who was devoted to the welfare of his family. York was also a violent alcoholic prone to fighting in saloons and accumulated several arrests within the area.〔 His mother, a member of a pacifist Protestant denomination, tried to persuade York to change his ways. Despite his history of drinking and fighting, York attended church regularly and often led the hymn singing. A revival meeting at the end of 1914 led him to a conversion experience on January 1, 1915. His congregation was the Church of Christ in Christian Union, a Protestant denomination that shunned secular politics and disputes between Christian denominations.〔Lee, 1985, 9–13〕 This church had no specific doctrine of pacificism but had been formed in reaction to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South's support for slavery, including armed conflict during the American Civil War, and opposed all forms of violence.〔Lee, 1985, 15–6〕 In a lecture later in life, he reported his reaction to the outbreak of World War I: "I was worried clean through. I didn't want to go and kill. I believed in my Bible."〔Capozzola, 2008, p. 67〕 On June 5, 1917, at the age of 29, Alvin York registered for the draft as all men between 21 and 31 years of age were required to do on that day. When he registered for the draft, he answered the question "Do you claim exemption from draft (specify grounds)?" by writing "Yes. Don't Want To Fight."〔Capozzola, 2008, p. 68, includes a photograph of York's Registration Card from the National Archives〕 When his initial claim for conscientious objector status was denied, he appealed.〔"Claim of Appeal for Conscientious Objector Status by Alvin Cullum York"〕 In World War I, conscientious objector status did not exempt one from military duty. Such individuals could still be drafted and were given assignments that did not conflict with their anti-war principles. In November 1917, while York's application was considered, he was drafted and began his army service at Camp Gordon in Georgia.〔Capozzola, 2008, pp. 67–9〕 From the day he registered for the draft until he returned from the war on May 29, 1919, York kept a diary of his activities. In his diary, York wrote that he refused to sign documents provided by his pastor seeking a discharge from the Army on religious grounds and refused to sign similar documents provided by his mother asserting a claim of exemption as the sole support of his mother and siblings. He also disclaimed ever having been a conscientious objector.〔Sergeant York Patriotic Foundation: ("Sgt. Alvin C. York's Diary: November 17, 1917" ), accessed September 21, 2010〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Alvin C. York」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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