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Lieutenant Edouard Victor Michel
Izac,
US Navy
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Edouard Victor Michel Izac
(1891-1990) of San Diego, California, Born in Cresco,
Iowa, December 18, 1891. Served in the U.S. Navy
during World War I; U.S. Representative from
California, 1937-1947 (20th District 1937-1943, 23rd
District 1943-1947). Received the Medal of Honor for
actions as a German prisoner of war in 1918. Burial
location Arlington National Cemetery, Plot: Section 3
lot 4222-16 map grid U. |
CITATION:
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, U.S.
Navy. Place and date: Aboard German submarine U-90 as prisoner
of war, 21 May 1918. Entered service at: Illinois. Born: 18
December 1891, Cresco, Howard County, Iowa. Citation: When the
U.S.S. President Lincoln was attacked and sunk by the German
submarine U-90, on 21 May 1918, Lt. Izac was captured and held
as a prisoner on board the U-90 until the return of the
submarine to Germany, when he was confined in the prison camp.
During his stay on the U-90 he obtained information of the
movements of German submarines which was so important that he
determined to escape, with a view to making this information
available to the U.S. and Allied Naval authorities. In
attempting to carry out this plan, he jumped through the
window of a rapidly moving train at the imminent risk of
death, not only from the nature of the act itself but from the
fire of the armed German soldiers who were guarding him.
Having been recaptured and reconfined, Lt. Izac made a second
and successful attempt to escape, breaking his way through
barbed-wire fences and deliberately drawing the fire of the
armed guards in the hope of permitting others to escape during
the confusion. He made his way through the mountains of
southwestern Germany, having only raw vegetables for food, and
at the end, swam the River Rhine during the night in the
immediate vicinity of German sentries.
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Biography:
A United States Representative from California; born in
Cresco, Howard County, Iowa, December 18, 1891. He attended
the School of the Assumption, Cresco, Iowa, the high school at
South St. Paul, Minn., and Werntz Preparatory School,
Annapolis, Md.. He was graduated from the United States Naval
Academy at Annapolis, Md., in 1915; served in the United
States Navy as ensign, lieutenant (jg), and senior lieutenant
until forced to retire in 1921 on account of wounds received
while a prisoner of war in Germany; awarded Congressional
Medal of Honor, the Croce di Guerra of Italy, and the Cross of
Montenegro; located in San Diego, Calif., and engaged in
newspaper work and writing 1922-1928; unsuccessful candidate
for election in 1934 to the Seventy-fourth Congress; delegate
to the Democratic National Conventions in 1940 and 1944;
elected as a Democrat to the Seventy-fifth and to the four
succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1937-January 3, 1947);
unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1946 to the Eightieth
Congress; interested in lumbering; raised thoroughbred cattle
on a farm in Gordonsville, Va., before residing in Bethesda,
Md.; was a resident of Fairfax, Va., from 1988 until his death
there on January 18, 1990; interment in Arlington National
Cemetery.
When the U.S.S. President Lincoln was
attacked and sunk by the German submarine U-90, on May 21,
1918, Lt. Edouard V. M. Izac was second in command. German
submarines were ordered to bring back proof of their "kills,"
and the sub came up to the surface, demanding the Captain of
the ship. The US crew was afraid the Germans wanted to kill
him, so they hid him and Lt. Izac told them that he died when
the ship was hit. The Germans took Izac prisoner, as proof
they had sunk the ship. Izac kept his knowledge of reading and
speaking German from his captors, and during his stay on the
U-90 he obtained information of the battle plans and movements
of German submarines. This information would make a major
difference in how the Atlantic War would be fought. When the
submarine returned to Germany, he was turned over to the
German Army for transport to a prisoner of war camp. In
attempting to escape, he jumped through the window of a
rapidly moving train at the imminent risk of death, not only
from the nature of the act itself but from the fire of the
armed German soldiers who were guarding him. He was recaptured
and confined until he reached the POW Camp. Lt. Izac made a
second and successful escape attempt, breaking his way through
barbed-wire fences and deliberately drawing the fire of the
armed guards in the hope of permitting others to escape during
the confusion. Two other Allied officers also escaped. He made
his way through the mountains of southwestern Germany, having
only raw vegetables for food, and at the end, swam the Rhein
River to Switzerland during the night in the immediate
vicinity of German sentries. He walked into the American
Embassy at Bern, Switzerland, to deliver his strategic
information on 11 November 1918, the morning the war ended.
For his actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1922,
the only US Navy person to earn this medal in World War I. A
second grave site for Edouard Izac gives additional
information about his life and family.
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Survivors of the
USS President Lincoln aboard the Warrington
transferring to the Smith. |
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