The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to First Lieutenant (Corps of Engineers) Courtney P. Hollar, United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with the 48th Engineer Combat Battalion, II Corps, in action against the enemy in Italy. On the night of 6 January 1944, in an assault on Mount Porchio, Italy, First Lieutenant Hollar as second in command of an Engineer Company, distinguished himself by his personal valor and devotion to duty. He assembled and controlled both flank elements of his company it its advance up the hill in the face of enemy fire, continually disregarding his own safety. In the attack there was a German machine gun nest pinning all the men down to keep under cover. First Lieutenant Hollar developed a flank of men to set up a covering fire as he worked his way up to within 20 yards of the machine gun with fire all around him, from our own men firing at the machine gun to keep the Germans from getting too good a shot at him, also from the Germans, who were trying to get him. He hurled two hand grenades into the gun nest killing three Germans, and then charged the next to kill two more with a pistol. The company then advanced up the hill to take and hold it for the night. The Germans counter-attacked and drove our forces off the hill during which time the company commander was wounded. First Lieutenant Hollar immediately assumed command and directed the withdrawal of the company to another position, he, himself, maintained liaison with an infantry element on the hill, and with his company remained in the battle. When the order came to retake the hill, First Lieutenant Hollar was assigned the right flank sector. There were two machine gun nests and 10 snipers of Germans in this sector. With a cover fire from the bottom of the hill, his men advanced. On the way up, First Lieutenant Hollar was hit from a mortar shell, but still went on. In front of his men as they advanced as far as they could and not get in the fire of the German machine gun, he sent two flanking parties to come around the right of the guns, as he and two other men advanced towards the guns to knock them out. First Lieutenant Hollar took one nest himself as the other two men knocked out the other. He was so close when he hurled the grenades that some of the fragments hit him in the arm. He put out of action four more Germans and another machine gun. After doing this, he and the other two men fought their way to the top of the hill, while the other elements of the company kept a continuous fire over them to pin down the snipers on top. On their way up, First Lieutenant Hollar shot six snipers laying in and around the rocks, he took two prisoners, and then brought the remainder of his company up the hill to set up a defense position. The Germans tried to take the hill again at the sector First Lieutenant Hollar had, but his line was too strongly set for them to take it, so they withdrew. He and his men remained on the scene without relief for a further two days and two nights. When officially relieved, he was the last engineer office to leave the crest of Mount Porchio. His performance was in keeping with the highest tradition of the Corps of Engineers and of the military service.