Navy Cmdr. George Fleming Davis worked his way up the ranks to become one of the youngest destroyer commanders in U.S. history. During World War II, his leadership and fearlessness during a Japanese kamikaze raid kept his ship from being destroyed, even though it cost him his life. For that sacrifice, Davis earned a posthumous Medal of Honor.
Davis was born on March 23, 1911, in the Philippine capital of Manila, where his father, John, worked as a civilian master shipfitter at Naval Base Subic Bay. After a few years, the family moved to Hawaii so his father could continue his work at Pearl Harbor.
Davis was privately educated at Punahou School before graduating from McKinley High School in Honolulu. In 1930, he received an appointment to attend the Naval Academy, where he excelled in several sports. Davis graduated in May 1934 and commissioned into the Navy, serving his first tour of duty on the heavy cruiser USS Tuscaloosa as an aircraft gunnery observer.
By mid-1941, Davis had worked his way up to the rank of lieutenant and was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was sunk by the Japanese during the Pearl Harbor attacks on Dec. 7, 1941.
Davis survived the attack and was transferred to duty on the light cruiser USS Honolulu. During his tenure on that ship, he took part in operations on the Aleutian Islands before being involved in hard-fought battles in Guadalcanal, the Central Solomon Islands and the campaign to recover Guam.
By the time Davis left the USS Honolulu in mid-1944, he’d been promoted to commander. He spent a few months training in advanced surface warfare techniques before being put in command of the destroyer USS Walke in late November 1944. At 32, he was one of the youngest destroyer commanders in U.S. naval history.
At some point, Davis married a woman named Shelagh, and they had two boys, George Rupert and Patrick, who lived in Berkeley, California, during the war.
In mid-December 1944, Davis returned to the Philippines as the USS Walke was stationed off Manila’s shores. By early January, the destroyer got underway for Lingayen Gulf as part of the invasion of Luzon, joining several U.S. minesweepers to provide cover fire and antiaircraft defense.
On Jan. 6, 1945, the Walke was operating without gun support from other surface ships when four Japanese suicide planes were spotted flying low overland, on a clear mission to attack. Preparing for an onslaught, Davis took his position on the bridge’s exposed wing and directed the ship to open fire on the lead plane, which crashed into the water. The ship’s guns then hit the second aircraft as it passed closely over the bridge, plunging it into the sea off the portside.
Davis stayed steadfast in his position even as the third aircraft quickly dove toward the ship, crashing into the after end of the bridge. The collision seriously wounded the commander and drenched him in gasoline as flames erupted. But Davis continued to direct the steering of the ship. According to his Medal of Honor citation, Davis “rallied his command to heroic efforts; he exhorted his officers and men to save the ship and, still on his feet, saw the barrage from his guns destroy the fourth suicide bomber.”
Davis refused to accept medical attention below deck until the fires were under control and the 350 members of his crew were counted as safe. Sadly, Davis died hours later. According to a 1945 San Francisco Examiner article, the Walke’s surgeon said that the commander might have survived his burns had he not “overtaxed himself in saving the ship.”
Davis’s fearlessness and valor inspired the men around him to complete their vital mission. His bravery and self-sacrifice earned him the nation’s highest honor for valor. Davis’s widow received the Medal of Honor on his behalf on Nov. 16, 1945, during a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Davis was buried at sea in the Philippines, not far from the place where he was born. His name is listed on the Manila American Cemetery’s Wall of the Missing.
The USS Davis, a destroyer commissioned in 1957, was named in his honor and served with distinction during the Vietnam War. In the Naval Academy room where Davis once resided, a bronze plaque bears his citation for all future sailors to see.
This article is part of a weekly series called “Medal of Honor Monday” in which we highlight one of the more than 3,500 Medal of Honor recipients who have received the U.S. military’s highest medal for valor.
