Edward Allen Carter Jr. (May 26, 1916 – January 30, 1963) was a United States Army sergeant first class who was wounded in action during World War II. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military decoration for valor, for his actions on March 23, 1945, near Speyer, Germany. Carter and six other black Americans who served in World War II were awarded the Medal of Honor on January 12, 1997. The seven recipients are the first and only black American soldiers to be awarded the Medal of Honor for World War II. Early years Carter was born in Los Angeles, California, in 1916. He was the son of missionary parents; an African American father and an East Indian mother. Carter grew up in India and then moved to Shanghai, China. He was fluent in 4 languages: English, Hindi, German and Mandarin. Military career China and Spain While in Shanghai in 1932, Carter ran away from home and joined the National Revolutionary Army fighting against the invading Japanese during the Shanghai Incident. After reaching the rank of Lieutenant, he had to leave when it was discovered that he lied about his age and he was actually 15 years old. He eventually made his way to Spain and joined the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, an American volunteer unit supporting the Spanish Republicans in their fight against the Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War. World War II Carter had entered the U.S. Army on September 26, 1941. As a result of his previous combat experience, he stood out among the other recruits. In less than a year, he had achieved the rank of staff sergeant. Carter was part of the 56th Armored Infantry Battalion of the 12th Armored Division. Provisional platoons of African-American troops were established in the wake of the Battle of the Bulge, which took place during the winter of 1944–1945. Black support and combat-support soldiers were allowed to volunteer for combat duty and were given brief training in small-unit tactics. Formed into provisional units, they were used to augment depleted divisions. Soldiers volunteering for this combat duty had to surrender their current rank. When the provisional companies were set up Carter volunteered and went from staff sergeant to private. On March 23, 1945, Carter, then a 28-year-old infantry staff sergeant, was riding on a tank when it was hit by a Panzerschreck. Dismounted, Carter led three