A Guide to the Roy P. Benavidez Papers

Biographical Note

Roy P. Benavidez was born on August 5, 1935 in Lindenau near Cuero, Texas. He enlisted in the United States Army in June 1955 and served in Germany, Korea, Vietnam, and the United States.

On May 2, 1968, in an area west of Loc Ninh, Republic of Vietnam, Staff Sergeant Benavidez was monitoring a twelve-man Special Forces Reconnaissance Team, as part of the Detachment B-56, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces. The team came under heavy enemy gunfire and requested emergency extraction. Staff Sergeant Benavidez volunteered to return to the area and assisted with extracting the troops. Under considerable automatic weapon and grenade fire, and severely wounded in the head, legs, abdomen, and back, Benavidez redirected the troops, retrieved classified documents from the dead team leader, and helped load the dead and the wounded on a helicopter that minutes later crashed due to the pilot becoming mortally wounded. Despite his life-threatening injuries, Benavidez secured the safety of the soldiers and began calling in aircraft for another extraction attempt, which was finally successful. Because of Benavidez’s feats of valor and bravery beyond the call of duty, the lives of at least eight men were saved. On July 24, 1968 Benavidez was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for valor, the Army’s second highest honor. Upon learning that his Commander had twice recommended him unsuccessfully for the Congressional Medal of Honor, Master Sergeant Roy Benavidez and his supporters supplied the Department of the Army with additional eye-witness testimonies of his actions on May 2, 1968 and with the support of other military personnel and elected officials, Master Sergeant Roy Benavidez was finally awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor on February 24, 1981 by President Ronald Reagan.

During and after his career in the military, Benavidez was active in veteran issues. After receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor, Benavidez was in great demand as a speaker to schools, military and civic groups. He was honored throughout the country and received letters from students, service personnel, and citizens throughout the world. He was the subject of numerous articles and his life and experiences were chronicled in three books. Medal of Honor Recipient, Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez died on November 29, 1998 at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas at the age of 63.

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Scope and Contents

The Roy P. Benavidez Papers contain correspondence, photographs, topical files, military documents, honors and awards, writings, printed material, LP albums, and memorabilia documenting his career in the United States Army and his receipt of the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service in the Vietnam War. The bulk of the collection contains documentation regarding his interest in veterans’ affairs and career as a public speaker after receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor and includes programs from public appearances and dedications, awards, articles about Benavidez, fan mail, and other tributes. Of particular interest is the documentation and correspondence on behalf of Benavidez from elected officials, military service personnel, and citizens in support of his being awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

The arrangement closely reflects the filing system and manner in which Benavidez categorized and filed documents. The Correspondence and Subject Files listed by state contain letters of support from citizens of that state, as well as arrangements for public appearances in that state.

Forms part of the Institute for Studies in American Military History.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

The Benavidez (Roy P.) Papers, 1943-2007, The Institute for Studies in American Military History, Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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