I Will Hold: The Story of USMC Legend Clifton B. Cates, from Belleau Wood to Victory in the Great War

The incredible true story of Clifton B. “Lucky” Cates, whose service in World War I and beyond made him a legend in the annals of the Marine Corps.

Cates knew that he and his small band of marines were in a desperate spot. Before handing the note over to a runner, he added three words that would resound through Marine Corps history: I WILL HOLD.

From the moment he first joined the Marine Reserves of the American Expeditionary Force in World War I, Clifton B. Cates was determined to make his mark as a leader. Little did he know what he would truly accomplish in his legendary career.

Not as well-known as his contemporaries such as Alvin C. York, his fame would not come from a single act of heroism but from his consistent and courageous demeanor throughout the war and beyond.

In the bloody second half of 1918 with the 6th Marine Regiment, he was awarded the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Purple Heart, and the Silver Star; was recognized by the French government with the Legion of Honor and the Croix de Guerre; and earned the nickname “Lucky.”

I Will Hold is the inspiring, brutally vivid, and incredible true life story of a Marine Corps legend whose grit and unstoppable spirit on the battlefield matched his personal drive and sage wisdom off of it.

​Winner of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation 2017 Colonel Joseph Alexander Award for Biography

INCLUDES PHOTOS

• "With the Help of God and a Few Marines": The Battles of Chateau Thierry and Belleau Wood
• The Devil Dogs at Belleau Wood: U.S. Marines in World War I
• Their Backs against the Sea: The Battle of Saipan and the Largest Banzai Attack of World War II
• Never in Finer Company: The Men of the Great War's Lost Battalion
• Midnight in the Pacific: Guadalcanal--The World War II Battle That Turned the Tide of War
• Through the Wheat: The U.S. Marines in World War I
• The Frozen Chosen: The 1st Marine Division and the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir (General Military)
• I'm Staying with My Boys: The Heroic Life of Sgt. John Basilone, USMC
• Forty-Seven Days: How Pershing's Warriors Came of Age to Defeat the German Army in World War I
• Miracle at Belleau Wood: The Birth Of The Modern U.S. Marine Corps