Virgilio N. Cordero, Jr.

Brigadier General Virgilio Norberto Cordero Jr. (June 6, 1893 – June 9, 1980) was a Puerto Rican soldier who served in the United States Army. Cordero authored two books about his experiences as a prisoner of war, and his participation in the Bataan Death March of World War II.

Early years Cordero was born in San Juan, the capital city of Puerto Rico when the island was still a Spanish colony. There he received his primary and secondary education. He moved to the United States and earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Penn State College of Engineering in 1917. That year he also graduated from the Army ROTC (Reserve Officers' Training Corps) program of that educational institution. He then entered the officers candidate school in Madison Barracks, New York and graduated with the rank of second lieutenant.

Military career Cordero enlisted in the United States Army after graduating from PSU. He served in World War I and by 1922, according to the Official Army register, he held the rank of captain of infantry.

On December 8, 1941, when Japanese planes attacked the U.S. military installations in the Philippines, Cordero, who by then held the rank of colonel, was the Battalion Commander of the 31st Infantry Regiment.

From July 1946 to November 1947, he served in the US military base in Caserta, Italy before returning to the United States. While in Italy, he was awarded a Silver Star Medal and the Legion of Merit for his actions in Bataan.

In 2020 Virgilio N. Cordero was Posthumously inducted to the Puerto Rico Veterans Hall of Fame.

Silver Star citation

Post-World War II Cordero continued to serve in the military retiring in 1953 after 36 years of service.

On June 9, 1980, Cordero died of lung ailment in the U.S. Naval Hospital at Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico. He was buried with full military honors in Section G, Plot 3 in the Puerto Rico National Cemetery located in the city of Bayamón, Puerto Rico.

Military decorations Among the military decorations which Cordero earned were the following:

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