World War II History

A powerful true account of one American infantry officer’s journey from civilian life to the front lines of World War II.

Before he ever fired a shot in combat, Douglas Wilde Curtis answered a call that would change the course of his life. At just twenty years old, nearly a year before Pearl Harbor, he declared his willingness to serve his country. What followed was a remarkable wartime journey from basic training and Officer Candidate School to marriage, overseas deployment, and the brutal front lines of the European Theater.

Call of Courage tells the true story of Captain Douglas W. Curtis, an infantry officer in the 10th Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division, serving under General George S. Patton’s Third Army. Through preserved letters, family records, military orders, citations, and excerpts from the official combat narrative of the 10th Infantry Regiment, this book follows Curtis from his earliest days as a private to his service in all five major European campaigns of World War II: Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes, Rhineland, and Central Europe.

More than a military history, this is an intimate portrait of courage, duty, love, faith, and endurance. Curtis’ own words reveal the loneliness of a young husband separated from his wife only weeks after their wedding, the exhaustion of relentless training, the uncertainty of waiting for combat, and the unvarnished reality of life at the front. His letters to his wife, Ann, and to his family carry the voice of a soldier who longed for home yet remained committed to the mission before him.

From the fields of Northern Ireland to the hedgerows of Normandy, from the Battle of the Bulge to the crossing of the Rhine, Curtis’ story captures both the personal and historical weight of the war. He led men under fire, endured wounds, returned to the front, and earned decorations including the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, Combat Infantry Badge, and foreign honors from France and Belgium.

Compiled and presented with care by his grandson, Andrew Carter Curtis, Call of Courage preserves the voice of a member of the Greatest Generation while placing his experience within the larger story of the soldiers who fought to liberate Europe. The book honors not only Captain Curtis, but also the men of the 10th Infantry Regiment and 5th Infantry Division who trained, fought, suffered, and sacrificed alongside him.

For readers of World War II history, military biography, family memoirs, and firsthand soldier accounts, this book offers a deeply personal look at war through the eyes of one frontline American officer—an ordinary man called to extraordinary courage.

1st Lt. Harry B. Colborn gave his life on February 8, 1945, fighting alongside my grandfather. He was in charge of B platoon in E Company (which was commanded by my grandfather) of the 10th Infantry Regiment during the Sauer River crossing under heavy enemy fire in adverse weather conditions. Lt. Colborn was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his selfless actions that day, and my grandfather survived because of him. In April 2026, my dad, uncle, and I made the trip to Luxembourg to honor Lt. Colborn. His picture is displayed on my mantle so that my family will never forget his ultimate sacrifice.