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Apparently Mason’s curiosity was piqued when the subject of three war veterans came up last week, so he did his usual amazing due diligence, and came up with the criteria of those who could claim such a confusing but credible honor, considering all the variables. So without further ado…<\/p>\n
Mason<\/strong><\/p>\n The US has, since the turn of the Twentieth Century, been unable to stay out of a war for less than about 20 years (the largest gap is WWI to WWII, a period of 23 years) we have quite a few people that have served in three different wars. <\/p>\n The most common war vet trifecta of the 20th Century would be WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. Many men came into service during the Second World War, and with the Cold War keeping a large standing army, became career servicemen. Enlisting in 1944 at age 18, probably the latest enlistees to see combat or overseas service, a soldier would only have 24 years time in service and be 42 by the time of the Tet Offensive in \u201868. We\u2019ve explored some, such as Pascal Poolaw, who did just that. The US Army Infantry Museum has a list of more than 300 men who received three combat infantryman badges, which has only been possible for service during each of these three wars. There are certainly many more who served during all three. <\/p>\n Since Vietnam, there are some men who, due to gaps in service or time in the reserve components after Vietnam, can claim to have participated in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, and the War on Terror. Combat ended in 1972 in Vietnam, so a 19 year old soldier would have been 37 with nearly 20 years time in service when Saddam invaded Kuwait. By 2001 when 9\/11 happened, said soldier would be under 50. In my post-9\/11 service in the reserves I worked with more than a handful of Vietnam-era men. <\/p>\n Looking back to that large gap between World Wars One and Two, how many men would have been able to serve in both and then see followup service in Korea? That\u2019s the question posed to me in last week\u2019s article\u2019s comments. The gap from the end of WWI to the start of Korea is 32 years. That would mean that even those who lied about their age to enlist for the First World War would be around 50 by the time Korea kicked off. Certainly not out of the realm of possibility to have seen service in all three, but how many have? This can\u2019t be a comprehensive list, but I\u2019ll highlight a few men who did. <\/p>\n The most famous American figure to see service in all three would be General of the Army Douglas MacArthur. Starting his service in 1903, he was part of the occupation of Veracruz, Mexico in 1914. When WWI started, he was a field grade officer, eventually rising to the rank of brigadier general at just the age of 38 in 1918. During the war he received two Distinguished Service Crosses, seven Silver Stars, two wound chevrons, the French Croix de Guerre twice, and made a commander of the French L\u00e9gion d’honneur. <\/p>\n He continued to serve after the war, in posts all the way up to Chief of Staff of the Army. When WWII started, he was in the Philippines, which were invaded by the Japanese hours after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. MacArthur would rise to command all Allied ground and air forces in the Pacific Theater of the war and became military governor of Japan after their surrender. During the war he received the Medal of Honor, a third Distinguished Service Cross, and several other awards. <\/p>\n When North Korea invaded South Korea on 25 June, 1950, MacArthur was made supreme commander of all UN forces on the peninsula. His greatest victory came when he lead the audacious attack at the Battle of Inchon, a decisive victory for the UN forces. The next year, however, his ego and inability to keep his mouth shut about disagreements with President Truman led to his being fired. The old soldier then faded away, having served in combat in all three wars. <\/p>\n General Walton Walker began his Army career in 1912. He was also at Veracruz before seeing combat in WW1 on the western front. He received two Silver Stars during the war. During WWII he moved from the infantry to armor, serving under Patton. Commanding the 3rd Armored Division and then the IV Corps (which became the XX Corps) he landed at Normandy and was part of Patton\u2019s Third Army\u2019s dash across Europe. He ended the war a lieutenant general with a third Silver Star and the Distinguished Service Cross.<\/p>\n After the war, Walker was in command of the Eighth Army when North Korea invaded the South. His command was sent to South Korea where he was under orders to push the invaders back across the 38th Parallel. He received a second Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership during this time. He died in a Jeep crash in December, 1950 and was posthumously promoted to full general. <\/p>\n General Mark Clark was commissioned into the Army in 1917 and was with the American Expeditionary Force in Europe, where he was wounded in combat. As a major general, Clark served under Eisenhower in Europe during WWII. He went on to command the 5th Army, which fought up Italy. Clark received the Distinguished Service Cross. During the Korean War, Clark took charge of United Nations Command in 1952 and held the post until the armistice. He retired in 1954 and subsequently was president of The Citadel until 1965. He died in 1984 and was the last living American four star general from WWII. <\/p>\n General James Van Fleet was commissioned from the USMA class of 1915, the \u201cclass the stars fell on\u201d since that year produced more Army generals than any other in history (including Eisenhower and Bradley). During WWI he was a battalion commander as part of the AEF in France and received a Silver Star. He commanded the 8th Infantry Regiment (part of the 4th Infantry Division) during D-day, receiving the Distinguished Service Cross for it, and held higher commands later in the war. He received two more DSCs during the war, as well as two more Silver Stars. During the Korean War Van Fleet commanded the US Eighth Army. <\/p>\n On the Navy side, Admiral Arthur Struble was commissioned in 1915. He saw service aboard USS California (BB-44) during the First World War. In World War II he commanded the Seventh Fleet amphibious group during their invasion of Leyte. After the war he served as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations. When Korea erupted into war, he again led the Seventh Fleet, this time at their landings at Inchon and Wonson. He received the Army Distinguished Service Cross for his contributions to the fight. A vice admiral, he was promoted to full admiral at his retirement in 1956 in light of his war record. <\/p>\n Admiral Arthur Radford, an aviator, started his Navy career in 1916. He was aboard USS South Carolina (BB-26) escorting convoys during WWI. During World War II he was part of the vast Navy aviation expansion, coordinating training for thousands of new aviators. In 1943 he was sent to the Pacfic Theater of Operations where he remained for the rest of the war, participating in many of the major operations in the theater and receiving seven battle stars. During the Korean War he was in command of the Seventh Fleet when the war began, but was replaced by Admiral Struble days later. After the war he became Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President Eisenhower. Here he would help usher in the Cold War strategy of nuclear deterrence and an emphasis on air power. <\/p>\n Admiral C. Turner Joy graduated Annapolis in 1916, serving aboard USS Pennsylvania (BB-36) during WWI. The Second World War saw him command the heavy cruiser USS Louisville (CA-28) in the Aleutians and Pacific Theater. Later he commanded a cruiser division in the Pacific. When the Korean War started, he was placed in command of Naval Forces, Far East for the first two years of the war. He received the Army Distinguished Service Cross for his command of the Navy forces in support of the Army\u2019s war effort. He was then the senior UN delegate to the Korean armistice negotiations. He retired in 1954 and died in 1956 at age 61. <\/p>\n Marine Corps General Lemuel Shepard Jr was a young lieutenant with the 5th Marine Regiment assigned to the AEF in France. Fighting in the Aisne-Marne and Belleau Wood campaigns, he would receive the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross, and the Montenegrin Silver Medal for Bravery. He was wounded in combat three times, once through the neck by machine gun fire. He held a series of commands in the Pacific Theater during WWII. Shepard was in command of the Fleet Marine Force Pacific when the Korean War started. He led the amphibious assault at Inchon, receiving a Silver Star. He saw first hand the usefulness of the helicopter here and said they, over any other weapon, should be prioritized. After the Korean War Shepard served as Commandant of the Marine Corps, retiring in 1956. <\/p>\n There are also many who served through all three conflicts, but who didn\u2019t see active overseas service during one or more. For example; <\/p>\n General Matthew Ridgway was in for all three, but didn\u2019t make it to Europe during WWI. He was in plenty of shit for WWII and Korea though. He received the Distinguished Service Cross for the Invasion of Sicily, another one for D-Day, and two Silver Stars for action through the rest of Europe. After MacArthur\u2019s dismissal, Ridgway took over command of UN forces in Korea. <\/p>\n General of the Army Omar Bradley was in during WWI, WWII, and Korea, but didn\u2019t leave the US during the First World War and was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs during Korea. <\/p>\n General Clifton Cates (USMC) was a junior officer in WWI and served in the Aisne defensive and at Belleau Wood. He received the Navy Cross, two Distinguished Service Crosses, a Silver Star, the French Legion of Honor, and French Criox de Guerre with gilt star and two palms while there. During WWII he commanded the 4th Marine Division from the Marianas Campaign, through the Solomons, and onto Iwo Jima. He was Commandant of the Marine Corps during the Korean War. <\/p>\n Lieutenant General William Wallace (USMC) is a legendary Naval Aviator. He was commissioned in the summer of 1918 so didn\u2019t see overseas service in WWI. He commanded several Marine air groups in the Pacific during WWII at several key battles. He was Director of Marine Corps Aviation at the outbreak of the Korean War, and last served as commanding general, aviation, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific. So he would have been responsible for some of the Korean-tasked Marines, but his HQ was at El Toro in California. <\/p>\n General Alfred Noble (USMC) fought with the AEF in France, receiving the Navy Cross, Distinguished Service Cross, and two Silver Stars. He commanded Marines in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was in command of the Parris Island MCRD when the Korean War started. He was then commanding general of the Department of the Pacific in San Francisco for the rest of the war, retiring in 1956. <\/p>\n General Nathan Twining (USAF) served with the Oregon National Guard and achieved the rank of first sergeant, before securing appointment to West Point. He graduated 1 Nov, 1918, just 10 days before the armistice. Later transferring to the air service, commanding the Thirteenth Air Force in the Pacific and then the Fifteenth Air Force in the Mediterranean during World War II. After the war he took over as Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force during the Korean War. He was then Chief of Staff of the Air Force and later Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. <\/p>\n Also, there are four men who can lay a technical claim to being veterans of WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. None of them can claim to have seen active service during Vietnam and certainly not overseas, but they were on active duty during the Vietnam War (from 1961 onwards). These men are Douglas MacArthur, Dwight Eisenhower, Omar Bradley, and Chester Nimitz. <\/p>\n When Congress created the five star ranks of General of the Army and Fleet Admiral, these officers were to revert to their permanent rank six months after the conclusion of the war and only receive 75% pay once on the retired list. After WWII, Congress modified the law to make the five star ranks permanent and allowed for these officers to remain on full active duty with full pay and benefits for the rest of their lives. It is, in essence, a lifetime appointment. Eisenhower, who had to resign his commission as a General of the Army to run for president, had his commission and position as a five star restored after leaving office in 1961. <\/p>\n All five-star officers retired from active duty in that they no longer held a command billet or worked for the Army, Navy, or Air Force daily, but they all remained on the rolls as active duty officers until their death. Therefore, MacArthur (d. 1964), Nimitz (d. 1966), Eisenhower (d. 1969), and Bradley (d. 1981) all qualify for the National Defense Service Medal for active service during the Vietnam War. So while none of them are Vietnam veterans, they are \u201cVietnam-times\u201d veterans. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n Hand salute. Ready, Two!
\nThanks again, Mason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"