Nicholas Minue (1905-1943) in US Army uniform.
The medal awarded to Ukrainian soldier Nicholas Minue (1905-1943) will be offered on August 8 at London auction house Baldwin’s.
The medal was posthumously awarded to Minue for an act of “courage, fearlessness and aggressiveness in the face of inevitable death” when fighting German forces in Tunisia – an act which cost him his life.
Minue's US Medal of Honor, estimated £250,000–300,000 at Baldwin's.
Minue emigrated to the US with his Ukrainian parents when he was six years old and enlisted in the army twice: in 1918 and again in 1927. In his second stint, he was promoted to sergeant but decided to demote himself to private so he could serve overseas in a combat unit: Company A of the 6th Armored Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Division. It was in this role that he was assigned to North Africa during the Second World War.
During an advance to the Tunisian city of Bizerte on 28 April 1943, his unit came under heavy machine gun fire. Undeterred, Minue affixed his bayonet and assaulted the enemy, killing around 10 machine gunners and riflemen. He continued to attack until he was mortally wounded.
The citation for Minue’s award read: “Pvt. Minue voluntarily, alone, and unhesitatingly, with complete disregard of his own welfare, charged the enemy entrenched position with fixed bayonet. Pvt. Minue assaulted the enemy under a withering machine-gun and rifle fire, killing approximately 10 enemy machine-gunners and riflemen. After completely destroying this position, Pvt. Minue continued forward, routing enemy riflemen from dugout positions until he was fatally wounded. The courage, fearlessness and aggressiveness displayed by Pvt. Minue in the face of inevitable death was unquestionably the factor that gave his company the offensive spirit that was necessary for advancing and driving the enemy from the entire sector."
He was and still is the only Ukrainian-born recipient of a US Medal of Honor. The item is expected to sell for £250,000–300,000. Baldwin’s Auctions is working with charity United 24 to help fund humanitarian efforts.
Minue’s grave lies in the North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial in Carthage, Tunisia.
