Captain Richard E
Carberry, Chaplin
POW WWII Bataan
Richard Carberry was "the fighting priest" of Bataan who never fired a shot. He valiantly served the men in his care, and is credited with helping many survive the Battles of Corregidor & Bataan, as well as the Bataan Death March and the horrors of the Davao POW Camp. Father Richard was also key in the only successful group escape from a Japanese POW camp. He was awarded a Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, two Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart. Richard was born in Guthrie County, Iowa, and after the rigors of farm life, went on to Columbia College in Dubuque, where he starred as a halfback. Carberry had a calling to become a priest, and was assigned to a parish in Multnomah, Oregon. Before WWII began, he joined the Army and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, stationed in the Philippines. The war then came to him, with the Japanese attacking Pearl Harbor and then the Philippines. Father Richard and others were trapped on the island of Corregidor and were then marched inland 100 miles in what became known as the Bataan Death March. Around 70,000 members of the US Armed Forces and Filipino citizens made the march. 18,000 died on the trip. Father Richard ministered to many, gave mass, and offered last rites.
After a year on Davao, four Americans prepared an escape and believed Father Richard would be key in the attempt. The leader of the escape plan; Army Air Force Major Sam Grashio, said Carberry was perfect "a courageous... personable man... who was young, strong and athletic." Father Richard agreed to the escape plan and gave very important information on villages and the countryside. Grashio added, "Having a priest within this Catholic country could prove a great attribute." However, on the day of the escape, Father Richard opted out. He believed his duty was to stay with the sick and dying and administer aid. Eventually, after suffering through nearly two more years in Japanese prison camps, he would survive the bombing of the POW transport Oryoku Maru by U.S. planes, only to die in late January 1, 1945 while en route to Japan aboard another Hell Ship, the Brazil Maru, from malaria and complications from a chest wound. Father Richard was buried in the South China Sea.
Regarding Richard's actions in the Battle of Bataan, Major General Richard Wainwright stated in his citation: "His fearless action in traversing the entire length of a convoy which was under intense enemy fire, Captain Carberry showed utter disregard for his own safety and gave aid to the wounded and raised the morale and efficiency of the entire command." Years later an old letter written while imprisoned somehow made its way to his sister Rozella back in Iowa. It said "I look forward to seeing you again and all the family... and the green rolling hills of Guthrie County..."
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