The accolades continue to pour in for an aging group of World War II soldiers.

Twenty-seven World War II Japa­nese-American soldiers will be decorated with France’s highest medal — the Legion of Honor — this month for their part in liberating France as members of the 100th Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

Pauline Carmona, consul general of France in San Francisco, will bestow the honors at a ceremony at 9 a.m. Jan. 23 at the Japa­nese Cultual Center.

Navy Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr., incoming Pacific forces commander and possible candidate for chief of naval operations, will be the keynote speaker. Harris, whose mother is Japa­nese, has said the nisei soldiers were his role models.

Harris is the highest-ranking Asian-American in the history of the Navy and the first to gain the rank of four-star admiral.

Also attending the ceremony will be Gov. David Ige, whose father was a member of the 100th Battalion, and U.S. Rep. Mark Takai.

The Oahu ceremony is one of three that will be held in Hawaii by the French government to honor the veterans who served in the Army unit composed mainly of Japa­nese-Americans. Other ceremonies will be held in Kona on Jan. 21, when five veterans will be recognized, and on Maui honoring 18 awardees Jan. 22.

Last year 67 Asian-Americans were approved for the Legion of Honor by the French government, said attorney Pat Lee, honorary French consul in Hono­lulu. Seven got their medals during a ceremony on the Arizona Battleship Memorial in July.

Since 2004, when 442nd veteran and Medal of Honor recipient Barney Hajiro was bestowed the rank of chevalier, or knight, 72 members of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the 100th Infantry Battalion have received the award.

The Legion of Honor was created in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte. The award is France’s highest civilian honor and consists of five classes.

In descending order of distinction, they are grand cross, grand officer, commander, officer and chevalier. The order is conferred upon men and women, either French citizens or foreigners, for outstanding achievements in military or civilian life.

Jack Seitoku Nakamura and Rikio Tsuda, both members of the 100th Battalion’s B Company, in October were part of an official delegation that traveled to France to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Vosges Mountain region by the nisei soldiers.

The two, along with Eddie Yama­saki, a member of C Company, visited battleground sites in Bruyeres and Biffontaine. In Bruyeres, Tsuda was given the honor of unveiling a photo and plaque renaming the town square after 100th Battalion soldier Tomosu Hira­hara, who was killed in October 1944 on the first day of the battle to liberate Bruyeres. Hira­­hara is buried in the French cemetery in Epi­nal.

The trip was Tsuda’s fourth pilgrimage to the tiny French village, and the 91-year-old veteran said he was impressed with how the French have expressed their appreciation.

For Nakamura, 91, it was his first visit since the war.

"I couldn’t recognize anything," he said.

The veteran tried in vain to find trees that he was forced to take cover behind during some of the intense shelling by German artillery.

"I remember everything being stark and bare," Naka­mura added. "This time everything was flourishing."

Nakamura said he is honored to be recognized by the French government.

"It’s not every day to be recognized like that."

American servicemen who fought in one of the four main campaigns of the liberation of France — Normandy, Provence, Ardennes or Northern France between D-Day, June 6, 1944, and May 8, 1945 — are eligible for the Legion of Honor.

France does not approve applications posthumously, Lee said. The screening process can take as long as a year.

Veterans or their family members can apply by writing to the Consulate General of France, 88 Kearny St. Suite 600, San Francisco, CA 94108.