Rodney Maxwell Davis (April 7, 1942 – September 6, 1967) was a non-commissioned officer in the United States Marine Corps who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism above and beyond the call of duty in 1967, during the Vietnam War. Davis joined the Marine Corps in 1961, and was ordered to the Republic of Vietnam in 1967. In September 1967, during a search and destroy exercise as part of Operation Swift, Davis's company was attacked by enemies. When Davis's platoon retreated into a trench, Davis ran up and down his company's line and encouraged the men to fight, returning fire at the same time. When an enemy grenade came close to several men, Davis jumped on the grenade, saving his men's lives. Biography Davis was born on April 7, 1942, in Macon, Georgia, to Gordon N. Davis and Ruth A. Davis. He attended elementary school and high school there and graduated from Peter G. Appling High School, May 29, 1961. Shortly after graduation, Davis enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in his hometown, August 31, 1961; then reported for recruit training with the First Recruit Training Battalion Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina. Upon completion of recruit training in December 1961, he was transferred to the Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and underwent Individual Combat Training with the Second Battalion, First Infantry Training Regiment, graduating the following February. Davis then joined Company K, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines, 2nd Marine Division, FMF, at Camp Lejeune and served as a rifleman until May 1964. While stationed at Camp Lejeune, he was promoted to private first class, April 1, 1962, and to lance corporal, January 1, 1964. As a lance corporal, Davis was ordered to London, England, for a three-year tour of duty as a Guard with the United States Marine Detachment, Naval Activities. He was promoted to corporal on January 1, 1966, and to sergeant on December 1, 1966. Ordered to the Republic of Vietnam in August 1967, Davis was assigned duty as a Platoon Guide with Company B, First Battalion, Fifth Marines, First Marine Division. On September 6, 1967, he was operating with his unit in the Quảng Nam Province on a search and clear mission during Operation Swift, when they were attacked by a large North Vietnamese force. Elements of the platoon were pinned down in a trench line by mortars, heavy