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**Source Notes**
Research for this article drew on the following sources:
**Wikipedia, “Audie Murphy”** (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy) — Comprehensive overview with detailed citations; birth date discrepancy, family background, enlistment, campaigns, Holtzwihr action, awards list with dates, post-war life, film career, death.
**Wikipedia, “Military career of Audie Murphy”** (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_career_of_Audie_Murphy) — Detailed campaign chronology with specific dates and award dates; Company B strength at Holtzwihr (18 men); 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion identification; German 2nd Mountain Division; General Orders No. 65 citation reference; eyewitness account (“like standing on top of a time bomb”).
**HistoryNet, “Audie Murphy: One Man Stand at Holtzwihr”** (historynet.com) — Most detailed narrative source for the Holtzwihr action; Company B casualties January 23-24; M10 positioning and disabling; artillery coordination with Lt. Weispfenning; German advance details; Murphy’s post-action counterattack; tank destroyer explosion timing.
**National WWII Museum, “Audie Murphy Single-Handedly Stopped a German Attack”** (nationalww2museum.org) — Contextual account; .50-caliber machine gun use; more than an hour duration; leg wound; counterattack details.
**Ghosts of the Battlefield, “Medal of Honor: Audie L. Murphy”** (ghostsofthebattlefield.org) — Citation paraphrase and award details.
**The Collector, “Who Was Audie Murphy?”** (thecollector.com) — Post-war struggles, film career, veterans advocacy.
**We Are the Mighty, “Audie Murphy: American War Hero, Actor, Advocate”** (wearethemighty.com) — Post-war details, Placidyl dependency, death circumstances.
**Factual guardrails applied:** Birth year discrepancy noted (1925 actual; 1924 enlistment papers and headstone). January 26 action date distinguished from GO 65 dated August 9, 1945, and presentation June 2, 1945. Vehicle identified throughout as M10 tank destroyer, not an enemy tank. Casualty figures attributed to citation rather than presented as independently verified counts. Artillery coordination and company members credited alongside Murphy’s individual actions. “Most decorated” characterization attributed to General Patch’s ceremonial statement with appropriate qualification. Post-war mental health described through attributed accounts without diagnostic inference. Film dialogue not used as historical transcript. No claim of single-handed defeat of Germany.