Battling Bastards of Bataan
The picture above is of
the Camp O'Donnell Memorial Monument. The memorial was built by the
organization known as "The Battling Bastards of Bataan" to honor
those American men who died at Camp
O'Donnell, while
prisoners of the Japanese. The Cement Cross is a replica of the original cement
cross built by the POWs.
The monument is
located in the Capas National Shrine, in Capas, Tarlac, Philippines,
adjacent to the memorial for the Philippine Army dead. Camp O'Donnell
was the first prison camp for the men who survived the "Death March".
The picture was taken by James Litton.
The "Cross"
was built as a memorial to the thousands who died in that camp. It is as much a
part of Bataan as the participants in that
battle. The inscription on the base of the "Cross" reads "Omnia Pro Patria": All For Country. On the wall behind
the "Cross" are inscribed the names of the men who died at Camp O'Donnell.
The original
"Cement Cross" is now on display in the National Prisoner of War
Museum, at the Andersonville National Historic Site, Andersonville, GA.
It was brought to this country by Bataan
survivors.
This page is dedicated
to the brave warriors who served in the battle fields of Bataan, Philippines,
during World War II. We wish to provide all who enter this page with an
accurate account of the American and Filipino heroisms in Bataan,
the conditions endured during the "Death March" and their subsequent
imprisonment in various prison camps. "Our purpose as an organization is
quite simple. We wish to perpetuate the story of Bataan
and to leave to our descendants the truth as we knew it. We wish to correct the
myths and outright lies concerning the events of Bataan
in 1941-1942. We want to provide information on the Battle
for Bataan and it's subsequent fall on April
9, 1942. This organization serves as a reminder that the precepts of courage,
devotion to duty and sacrifice displayed by the men and women of Bataan, both Filipino and American, have not and will not
become outmoded. Our motto simply states: 'Keep the faith in our country: as
exhibited by those men and women who fought in defense of Bataan,
Philippine in 1942. Freedom is not free.'
Tillman J. Rutledge
The Defense of
Bataan
The Death
March, Camp O’Donnell
and
other POW Camps
Work Details
The Present
“I am not
bitter about my past, but I am bitter about
my present
and how my present is treating my past.”
Maj.
Richard M. Gordon
“Thus Spoke
Tillman Rutledge”
The Liberation
of Manila
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