In the spring of 1953, during the ferocious Battle of Outpost Vegas in the Korean War, a small Mongolian mare proved herself to be more than just an animal of burden. She made 51 trips in a single day, carrying over 9,000 pounds of ammunition up shell-pocked hills — and she did it under relentless enemy fire.

The Marines who fought there would later admit: without her, many of them would never have made it home.

What set her apart was not only her strength, but her spirit. She memorized the treacherous supply routes on her own, navigating them without a handler. She shielded Marines with her own body, was wounded twice, and still pressed forward. In camp, she was no different from her fellow Marines — sharing rations of scrambled eggs, bacon, even coffee, and sleeping in their tents. To them, she was not livestock. She was one of them. She was family.

The Marines named her Reckless, and she soon became legendary. In recognition of her valor, she was promoted to Sergeant, an honor no other horse in U.S. history has earned, and she received two Purple Hearts along with other military decorations.

When the war ended, Reckless was brought to the United States, where she lived out her days at Camp Pendleton in California. She died in 1968 at around 20 years old and was buried with full military honors — a farewell usually reserved for human heroes.

Today, statues of Sergeant Reckless stand across the country, including at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, a permanent reminder that bravery comes in many forms.

She was small, but her courage was immeasurable. A true Marine, remembered forever.