Heroic Purple Heart Awarded Admirals and Generals
In honor of Memorial Day 2023 and the celebration of the 240th anniversary of the Purple Heart medal, America's oldest military award still currently awarded:
Which of these admirals, generals or other flag-ranked officers, that were eligible for or received a United States Purple Heart medal, is your favorite American hero?
Vote in the American Purple Heart Medal companion poll here: Purple Heart Awarded Biopic Stars :
Discuss the topic here. Source: Wikipedia: Purple Heart
Which of these admirals, generals or other flag-ranked officers, that were eligible for or received a United States Purple Heart medal, is your favorite American hero?
Vote in the American Purple Heart Medal companion poll here: Purple Heart Awarded Biopic Stars :
Discuss the topic here. Source: Wikipedia: Purple Heart
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- Theodore Roosevelt Jr. was born on 13 September 1887 in Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York, USA. He was married to Eleanor Butler Alexander. He died on 12 July 1944 in Normandy, France.
- William Joseph Donovan was born January 1, 1883 in Buffalo, New York, USA. "Wild Bill" Donovan is best known for being the founding father of the CIA, serving as the head of its precursor, the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during the second World War. Donovan is the only person to have received all four of the United States' highest awards: the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Distinguished Service Medal, and the National Security Medal. He distinguished record includes service as an American soldier, a government lawyer, an intelligence officer and a well-traveled diplomat.
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Robert T. Frederick is known for The Devil's Brigade (1968).- George S. Patton III was a highly successful and highly controversial general who held Corps- and Army-level commands during World War II. Because of his great competence as a battlefield commander, Patton might have led the American troops during the invasion of Normandy; however, his impolitic ways and a degree of emotional instability (which manifested itself in the slapping of two soldiers suffering from shell-shock at an Army field hospital) put the kibosh on that. Patton was relieved of his command and put on ice for many months in order to recuperate. Instead, the command of the American forces on D-Day, went to his former deputy in North Africa, Omar N. Bradley.
Patton was known as "Blood & Guts" ("Our blood, his guts"), was a common gripe among his troops for his hard-driving discipline, which paid off in lower casualties and great success on the battlefield. With the exception of Douglas MacArthur, Patton ranks as the greatest general the United States put on the field during the Second World War. Patton achieved four-star rank for his battlefield exploits as one of the best commanders of mechanized forces on either side during the War. He succeeded Dwight D. Eisenhower as the Military Governor of the U.S. Occupation Zone in Germany, when Ike -- a five-star general -- was promoted to Army Chief of Staff.
On December 9, 1945, Patton became seriously injured after his automobile crashed with an American army truck at low speed. He began bleeding from a gash on his head, and complained that he was paralyzed and having trouble breathing. Taken to a hospital in Heidelberg, Patton was discovered to have a compression fracture and dislocation of the cervical third fourth vertebrae, resulting in a broken neck and cervical spinal cord injury that rendered him paralyzed from the neck down. He spent most of the next twelve days in spinal traction to decrease the pressure on his spine. He died at age 60 in his sleep of pulmonary edema and congestive heart failure.
On December 24, 1945, General George S. Patton was buried at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial alongside some wartime casualties of the Third Army, in accordance with his request to "be buried with his men". He was immortalized in the 1970 eponymous epic film, which won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor (George C. Scott). This was President Richard Nixon's favorite film. - Colin Luther Powell (April 5, 1937 - October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American Secretary of State. He served as the 15th United States national security advisor from 1987 to 1989 and as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1989 to 1993.
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The first pilot to break the sound barrier, born in Myra, West Virginia. He trained as a fighter pilot, flying over 60 missions in Europe. On March 5, 1944, Yeager was shot down over France, fought with the Maquis, escaped over the Pyrenees carrying a wounded airman. On 14 October 1947, Yeager flew the Bell X-1 rocket research aircraft past Mach 1, "thus breaking the sound barrier". This was the first step into space. In 1953, in the Bell X-1A, he flew at more then 2.5 times the speed of the sound. He later commanded the USAF. AeroSpace Research Pilot School, and the 4th TAC Fighter Bomber Wing. The subject of the book and film "The Right Stuff", General Yeager did all the flying in the movie The Right Stuff as well as played the bartender.- Douglas MacArthur (26 January 1880 - 5 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He was Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s, and he played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. MacArthur received the Medal of Honor for his service in the Philippines campaign. This made him along with his father Arthur MacArthur Jr. the first father and son to be awarded the medal. He was one of only five to rise to the rank of General of the Army in the U.S. Army, and the only one conferred the rank of field marshal in the Philippine Army.
- Lewis Puller was a United States Marine Corps officer who saw action in World War II as well as the Korean War. He got his nickname "chesty" because he had a barrel chest which he would stick out when he walked.
- Nixon's Chief of Staff, 1973-74. Finally urged Nixon to resign. NATO Commander from 1975 to 1979. Secretary of State for Ronald Reagan. Got himself in hot water after the assassination attempt against the President in March 1981 when he appeared in the Press Room in the White House and announced "As of now, I'm in charge here." Vice-President George Bush was on an airplane en-route from Texas at this time. Constitutionally, the next in line in the order of succession is the Vice-President, then the Speaker of the House, then the Senate Pro Tempore, THEN the Secretary of State. His tenure as Secretary of State ended in June 1982, after his unsuccessful attempts to broker a peace settlement between Britain and Argentina in the Falklands War.
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Wesley Clark was born on 23 December 1944 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is known for Real Time with Bill Maher (2003), Stars Earn Stripes (2012) and Ancient Empires (2023). He has been married to Gertrude Kingston since 24 June 1967. They have one child.- Lucian K. Truscott Jr. was born on 9 January 1895 in Chatfield, Navarro County, Texas, USA.
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Harold G. Moore was born on 13 February 1922 in Bardstown, Kentucky, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for We Were Soldiers (2002), Small Town Boy, Real American Hero (2011) and Inside the Vietnam War (2008). He was married to Julia Compton. He died on 10 February 2017 in Auburn, Alabama, USA.- Herbert Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. (August 22, 1934 - December 27, 2012) was a United States Army general. While serving as the commander of United States Central Command, he led all coalition forces in the Gulf War.
Born in Trenton, New Jersey, Schwarzkopf grew up in the United States and later in Iran. He was accepted by the United States Military Academy and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army in 1956. After a number of initial training programs, Schwarzkopf interrupted a stint as an academy teacher and served in the Vietnam War, first as an adviser to the South Vietnamese Army and then as a battalion commander. Schwarzkopf was highly decorated in Vietnam and was awarded three Silver Stars, two Purple Hearts, and the Legion of Merit. Rising through the ranks after the Vietnam war, he later commanded the 24th Mechanized Infantry Division and was one of the commanders of the invasion of Grenada in 1983.
Assuming command of United States Central Command in 1988, Schwarzkopf was called on to respond to the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 by the forces of Ba'atheist Iraq under Saddam Hussein. Initially tasked with defending Saudi Arabia from Iraqi aggression, Schwarzkopf's command eventually grew to an international force of over 750,000 troops. After diplomatic relations broke down, he planned and led Operation Desert Storm, an extended air campaign followed by a highly successful 100-hour ground offensive, which defeated the Iraqi Army and removed Iraqi troops from Kuwait in early 1991. Schwarzkopf was presented with military honors.
Schwarzkopf retired shortly after the end of the war and undertook a number of philanthropic ventures, only occasionally stepping into the political spotlight before his death from complications of pneumonia. A hard-driving military commander, easily angered, Schwarzkopf was considered an exceptional leader by many biographers and was noted for his abilities as a military diplomat and in dealing with the press. - Forrest Sherman was born on 30 October 1896 in Merrimack, New Hampshire, USA. He died on 22 July 1951 in Naples, Italy.
- James Van Fleet was born on 19 March 1892 in Coytesville, New Jersey, USA. He died on 23 September 1992 in Polk City, Florida, USA.
- Eric Shinseki is known for WARx2 (2014), West Wing Week (2010) and C-SPAN Warrior Family Symposium (2013).
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Jim Stockdale was born on 23 December 1923 in Abingdon, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for In Love and War (1987), The Hidden Jungle (1990) and Third Degree Burn (1989). He was married to Sybil Stockdale. He died on 5 July 2005 in Coronado, California, USA.- Earl Anderson was born on 24 June 1919 in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. He was married to Jane. He died on 12 November 2015 in Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
- Tommy Franks was born on 17 June 1945 in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, USA.
- Louis H. Wilson is known for Major Dad (1989).
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- Maxwell Taylor was born on 26 August 1901 in Keytesville, Missouri, USA. He was married to Lydia Happer. He died on 19 April 1987 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
- Andrew Goodpaster is an American Army General. He served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe from July 1, 1969, and Commander in Chief of the United States European Command from May 5, 1969, until his retirement December 17, 1974. As such, he was the commander of all NATO and United States military forces stationed in Europe and the surrounding regions.
General Goodpaster returned to service in June 1977 as the 51st Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, until he retired again in July 1981. - Hugh Shelton was born on 2 January 1942 in Tarboro, North Carolina, USA.
- Lieut. Gen. H.R. McMaster, U.S. Army, retired has served as a member of the Zoom Board of Directors since May 2020. Since September 2018, he has served at Stanford University as the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, the Susan and Bernard Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and as lecturer at the Graduate School of Business. He served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years until his retirement in June 2018. From February 2017 to April 2018, McMaster was the 26th Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. General McMaster holds a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point and a M.A. and Ph.D. in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- Mark W. Clark was born on 1 May 1896 in Madison Barracks, Jefferson County, New York, USA. He was married to Mary Lou Millard and Louise Maurine Doran. He died on 17 April 1984 in Charleston, South Carolina, USA.
- Raymond G. Davis was born on 13 January 1915 in Fitzgerald, Georgia, USA. He was married to Willa Davis. He died on 3 September 2003 in Conyers, Georgia, USA.
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James M. Gavin, grew up in Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, and ran away from home in his early teen years, never to return. He was commissioned into the Infantry after graduating from the US Military Academy in 1929. Promoted Brigadier General in 1943, he was one of the youngest generals in US Army history since George Armstrong Custer during the American Civil War. Serving in a variety of command and administrative posts after World War II, he become a strong opponent of nuclear war and thus the Eisenhower administration. His policies and concerns resulted in early retirement in 1957 as a lieutenant general. He took a position as Chairman and CEO with the consulting firm Arthur D. Little and Company, where he remained for 20 years, retiring in 1977. President John F. Kennedy selected him to be United States Ambassador to France in 1961, a post he served in until 1963, while officially on leave from Little. His autobiography, On To Berlin, was published in 1979. He died of Parkinson's disease in 1990.- Paul Warfield Tibbets Jr. was a career officer in the U.S. Army Air Corps and its successor the U.S. Air Force who rose to the rank of brigadier general. He is best known for commanding and piloting the B-29 Superfortress, Enola Gay when it dropped "Little Boy", the first atomic bomb used in warfare, on the Japanese city of Hiroshima during World War 2.Another Heroic Purple Heart Awarded Admiral or General Not Listed
Paul W. Tibbets Jr. (as the pictured example)