A Beacon of Light: CH (CPT) Emil J. Kapaun

Welcome to the Medal of Honor podcast, brought to you in partnership with the National Medal of Honor Museum. I’m Ken Harbaugh. In each episode, we’ll learn about a different service member who has distinguished him or herself through an act of valor.

Emil J. Kapaun was born on April 20th, 1916 on a farm near Pilsen, Kansas. He attended Pilsen High School for two years, and then boarding school and a college called Conception Seminary where he began studying in preparation for the priesthood. After graduation, he attended Kenrick Seminary, and was ordained a Catholic priest in 1940 at the age of 24.

A few years into his priesthood, Father Kapaun was assigned by his bishop to serve as the auxiliary chaplain at an airbase just north of Pilsen. The assignment only lasted 18 months, but it had a profound effect on Kapaun. After the experience, he felt he was called to “spend himself for God”. He made several requests to his bishop to allow him to enter the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps, and his request was eventually granted. Kapaun joined on July 12th, 1944 at the age of 28.

Chaplain Kapaun was sent overseas, serving in Burma and India at the tail end of World War II. He moved from unit to unit, leading prayer and passing words of encouragement. During battle, it was his job to provide emergency care to the wounded, and give last rites to dying soldiers. Chaplains aren’t issued a weapon, and they aren’t allowed to engage in combat, meaning Kapaun put himself in serious danger when he traversed the battlefield.

Kapaun was promoted to Captain before leaving India. When he was released from service, he used the G.I. bill to attend The Catholic University of America. He graduated in early 1948 with a Masters in Education at the age of 31.

Father Kapaun’s desire to serve didn’t fade after returning home. After graduating, he requested to go back on active duty, saying that his priestly duty was with the men of the Armed Services. This was initially denied, but he asked again six months later, and his Bishop granted his request.

Kapaun was sent to Japan to assist the post-WWII peacekeeping forces, and was assigned to the First Cavalry division. When North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950, he and the rest of the 8th Cavalry Regiment were a part of the first American troops sent to assist the south.

During his service in Korea, Kapaun became known for being a fearless soldier. Despite the danger, he said mass on the battlefield, prayed with his comrades in foxholes, buried the bodies of both allies and enemies alike, and risked his life to administer sacraments to the dying. He had numerous close calls, including when a sniper shot the pipe he was smoking right out of his mouth. On August 2nd, 1950, Kapaun even navigated intense enemy machine gun fire in order to rescue a wounded comrade, for which he was awarded the Bronze Star.

On November 1st, 1950, Kapaun and his unit were protecting the town of Unsan when they were attacked by members of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army. China had recently intervened in the war on North Korea’s behalf, and Kapaun’s unit was the first to encounter them. As the battle ensued, Kapaun calmly moved from foxhole to foxhole under enemy fire. He provided reassurance to his allies, administered medical aid to the wounded, and helped pull approximately 30 injured men out of no man’s land. Kapaun’s allies initially repelled the attack, but with greater numbers, their enemies began to surround them. It was only a matter of time before the PVA blocked off all escape routes, so by midnight, the order was given to retreat. Kapaun however, chose to stay behind, knowing that it could lead to his capture, or death. As the enemy advanced, and hand to hand combat grew nearer, Kapaun continued to help the men who were injured and stuck in no man’s land. He eventually noticed an injured Chinese officer among the American wounded, and convinced him to negotiate the American’s safe surrender. As a result, most of the men were spared from being killed in action, or executed.

Afterwards, as they were about to leave the area and head towards a prison camp, Kapaun saw one wounded American about to be executed anyway. He jumped in, shoving the enemy soldier out of the way, picking up his comrade, and carrying him away. The Chinese soldier was too stunned to do anything, so Kapaun walked off without any consequence.

Kapaun carried that wounded soldier for miles as he and the rest of the POWs traveled to a prison camp. Their journey was brutal. Dubbed a “Death March” by one American soldier, many of the prisoners were wounded or frostbitten, and they were given little food or water. Any prisoner who lagged behind was shot and killed. Kapaun did his best to motivate his comrades. He encouraged fellow prisoners to follow his lead and carry anyone who couldn’t walk on their own, saving lives in the process. One prisoner said “I don’t know the name of that valley, but we called it the Kapaun Valley because that is where Father Kapaun instilled in us a will to live.”

Conditions at the camp weren’t any better. Prisoners endured inhumane punishments, enemy indoctrination, temperatures as low as -28 degrees fahrenheit, and were not properly fed. Kapaun again took it upon himself to do everything he could for his fellow prisoners. He woke up early to gather wood for fires, using those fires to melt snow into clean drinking water. Using skills he developed back home on the farm, he fashioned containers out of old iron sheeting to hold water & wash clothes. He aided the sick, picking lice, washing clothes, and bathing those too ill to do so themselves. He made makeshift coffee in the morning. He sneaked around at night to say prayers with all the men. He even slipped out of the camp to steal food for the starving. One prisoner said “He was the best food thief we had. He always used to say a prayer to St Dismas before he went out scrounging. Once, he came back with a sack of potatoes. How he got it I’ll never know - it must have weighed 100 pounds.”

Kapaun’s efforts & reputation were noticed by the guards. They wanted to kill him, but that risked starting a rebellion, so instead they tried to threaten him. Kapaun however was never intimidated. Ignoring warnings from the guards, he continued providing spiritual and physical aid. Even as he grew ill and suffered from malnourishment, he led a sunrise service on Easter morning. They sang hymns that echoed across the valley and prisoners up and down the valley joined in. The guards quickly arrived at the service, but fearing resistance, they allowed the service to continue.

Following Easter, Kapaun collapsed as a result of a blood clot in his leg. He recovered rather quickly thanks to the help of American doctors in the camp, but he then grew sick with pneumonia. Again he was treated by his fellow prisoners, and as he recovered, his condition was discovered by the Chinese. Seeing their opportunity, they wanted to transfer him to their hospital. The prisoners knew this was a ploy. Those who were moved to the hospital didn’t actually receive any food or medical treatment, so it became known as the ‘Death House’. Plus, it was filthy and unheated. Going there was a death sentence, and everyone knew it.

Kapaun’s fellow prisoners attempted to protect him, initially pushing away the guards sent to transfer him. The guards then called in troops with bayonets in order to threaten the prisoners. Before a fight could break out, Kapaun spoke up. He told his allies to stop resisting and not to “fight them on my behalf”. He then turned to a crying friend and said “Don’t cry. I’m going where I’ve always wanted to go. And when I get there, I’ll be saying a prayer for all of you.”Kapaun was taken to the Death House, and he passed away on March 23rd, 1951.

He was originally awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his courage at the Battle of Unsan, and for saving a fellow American from execution. For decades, Kapaun’s comrades called for his medal to be upgraded, but those calls went unanswered. In 1993, the Pope declared Kapaun a servant of God, taking the first step to potentially declare him a Saint. The Catholic Church has since been reviewing his life in order to continue that process.

Then on April 11th, 2013, over 60 years after the Battle of Unsan, Father Emil J. Kapaun’s award was finally upgraded to the Medal of Honor. He is one of five Chaplains to have received the award since the Civil War.

The Medal of Honor podcast is a production of Evergreen Podcasts.

Nathan Corson is our executive producer and mixing engineer, Declan Rohrs is our associate producer, scriptwriter, and recording engineer, and I’m Ken Harbaugh.

We are proud to support the National Medal of Honor Museum. To learn more, and to support their mission, go to mohmuseum.org. Thanks for listening.