France has named Dr. Harry L. Messmore of Loyola University Health System a Knight of the Legion of Honor in recognition of his valor during World War II.

In December, 1944, Messmore was part of a combat team that captured several heavily armed German pillboxes in France.

Messmore, 87, lives in Indian Head Park. Although he has been blinded by macular degeneration and glaucoma, he continues to do research on blood thinning medications.

The Legion of Honor was created by Napoleon in 1802. In a letter to Messmore, French Ambassador to the United States Pierre Vimont said the award "is a sign of France's true and unforgettable gratitude and appreciation for your personal, precious contribution to the United States' decisive role in the liberation of our country during World War II."

Messmore was an Army artillery officer when he helped lead the attack on the pillboxes, which were part of Germany’s defenses of their submarine operation in the St. Nazaire river area. Messmore assigned ten men to each of two cannons. In the dead of night, Messmore's men dragged the cannons up a hill by hand and placed them in firing positions.

Also during the night, engineers cut through barbed wire to make paths for the infantry to attack the pillboxes at dawn. During the infantry attack, Messmore's guns and other artillery fired over the heads of infantry to block any enemy fire from the pillboxes.

The infantry captured the pillboxes without losing a single man. Fifty-four Germans occupying the pillboxes were captured. About 30 minutes after the successful attack on the pillboxes, German artillery fire from a distant location rained down on the Americans. Two men were killed, and much equipment was …More