James Riley Stone (2 August 1908 – 24 November 2005) was a Canadian soldier and military commander. He served in WWII and the Korean War and was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

and the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

with two bars. Stone was best known for leading the 2nd Battalion

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI, generally referred to as the Patricias) is one of the three Regular Force infantry regiments of the Canadian Army of the Canadian Armed Forces. Formed in 1914, it is named for Princess Patrici ...

in a famous last stand at the

Battle of Kapyong The Battle of Kapyong (; 22–27 April 1951), also known as the Battle of Jiaping (), was fought during the Korean War between United Nations Command (UN) forces—primarily Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand—and the 118th and 60th Divisio ...

in the Korean conflict.

Early years

Stone was born in

Winterbourne, Gloucestershire Winterbourne is a large village and civil parish in the South Gloucestershire district, in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, England, lying just beyond the North Fringe of Bristol, north fringe of Bristol.OS Explorer Map, Bristol and Ba ...

. He migrated to Canada to work in the forestry, mining and cattle ranching industries.

WWII

He enlisted in the

Loyal Edmonton Regiment The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry), or L Edmn R, is a Primary Reserve infantry unit of the Canadian Armed Forces based in Edmonton, Alberta. The Loyal Edmonton Regiment is part of 3rd Canadian D ...

in 1939 and fought in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, rising from the rank of private to lieutenant colonel. Major Stone won the

at the

Battle of Ortona The Battle of Ortona (20–28 December 1943) was fought between two battalions of elite German ( paratroops) from the German 1st Parachute Division under Richard Heidrich, and assaulting Canadian troops from the 1st Canadian Infantry Divisi ...

in Italy in 1943, when he single-handedly assaulted a German anti-tank gun which was blocking his company's advance and silenced it with a grenade. As his regiment's commanding officer, he won the

at the Battle of San Fortunato in Italy in 1944, where his actions hauling heavy guns up a steep mountain caused the German

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (; ) was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains du ...

to withdraw from a strategic position. Stone was awarded a bar to his DSO in the Netherlands for actions against well-entrenched German forces in March 1945. After returning to British Columbia during the post-war years, he commanded the

Rocky Mountain Rangers The Rocky Mountain Rangers is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army, one of only four infantry regiments in British Columbia, and the only infantry unit that recruits in Northern BC and much of the Interior. The regimental hea ...

, a unit of the

Canadian Army Reserve The Primary Reserve of the Canadian Armed Forces () is the first and largest of the four sub-components of the Canadian Armed Forces reserves, followed by the Supplementary Reserve, the Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service (f ...

Korean War

During the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, he commanded the 2nd Battalion,

. He led the 700 men of this battalion in a famous last stand defending the strategic Hill 677 against the fierce assault by forces of two divisions, consisting of about 20,000 soldiers, of the Chinese

People's Volunteer Army The People's Volunteer Army (PVA), officially the Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV), was the armed expeditionary forces China in the Korean War, deployed by the History of the People's Republic of China (1949–1976), People's Republic of Chi ...

during the

in April 1951. The UN position on Hill 677 prevented the enemy from breaking through to Seoul and potentially surrounding the US forces in Korea, which were at that time in full general retreat across the Korean front. Supporting units of the Australian Army and the US artillery had fled the battlefield, mostly without orders, leaving the 2 PPCLI encircled and depleted of ammunition. Stone ordered his men, "No retreat, no surrender", and eventually called in supporting artillery fire from 4.5 miles distant to be targeted upon the 2 PPCLI positions to devastate the mass Chinese attacks. He would receive a second bar to his DSO for his leadership in this crucial battle together with other actions in 1951. During

Operation Commando Operation Commando was an offensive undertaken by United Nations Command (UN) forces during the Korean War between 3–12 October 1951. The US I Corps (including four U.S. Divisions, the 1st Commonwealth Division and the Republic of Korea Arm ...

on 12 October 1951, Stone and 2 PPCLI repelled a large attacking force of the Chinese Army, establishing the final UN positions north of Seoul for the remainder of the Korean War. In early 1952, Stone and 2 PPCLI were retrained as an elite special operations unit and parachute strike force, and Stone passed his parachute training. In December 2016, the

Government of South Korea The government of South Korea () is the national government of the Republic of Korea, created by the Constitution of South Korea as the executive, legislative and judicial authority of the republic. The president acts as the head of state and ...

Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPVA; ) is a ministry under the Government of South Korea which manages affairs relating to veterans. It was established in August 1961 as the Veterans Affairs Agency. List of ministers Timeline ...

designated Stone posthumously as an official Korean War Hero. The citation stated that the 2 PPCLI battalion had "achieved a milestone victory when they won the Battle of Gapyeong (Kapyong) against formidable attacks from Chinese troops" and that "with their victory in the Battle of Gapyeong (Kapyong), Stone and his soldiers are remembered as the Legends of Gapyeong to this day."

Post war

After the war, while serving in Ottawa as the

provost marshal Provost marshal is a title given to a person in charge of a group of Military Police (MP). The title originated with an older term for MPs, '' provosts'', from the Old French (Modern French ). While a provost marshal is now usually a senior c ...

in command of the

Canadian Provost Corps The Canadian Provost Corps (C Pro C) was the military police corps of the Canadian Army. The Canadian Provost Corps was authorized on 15 June 1940. The Canadian Provost Corps was amalgamated with the police forces of the Royal Canadian Navy and ...

, he founded the Military Police Fund for Blind Children. He was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1994.

Honours and awards

References

External links

Commanding officer talks about Canada’s first battles in KoreaThe legacy of Col. James Riley Stone
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, James Riley 1908 births 2005 deaths Military personnel from Gloucestershire People from Winterbourne, Gloucestershire Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry officers Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian military personnel of the Korean War Loyal Edmonton Regiment soldiers Rocky Mountain Rangers British emigrants to Canada Canadian colonels