The FReeper Foxhole Profiles General Alexander Vandegrift - May 3rd, 2004

hqinet001.hqmc.usmc.mil ^

[SAMWolf]

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General Alexander Archer Vandegrift
(1887 - 1973)

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General Alexander Archer Vandegrift, World War II Medal of Honor recipient and 18th Commandant of the Marine Corps, was born on 13 March 1887 in Charlottesville, Virginia. He attended the University of Virginia and was commissioned in the Marine Corps as a second lieutenant on 22 January 1909.

First Lieutenant Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC
Portrait photograph. Though dated 5 April 1917, this image must have been taken in 1914-1916, as Vandegrift was promoted to Captain on 29 August of the latter year.

Following instruction at the Marine Officers' School, Port Royal, South Carolina, and a tour of duty at the Marine Barracks, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, he went to foreign shore duty in the Caribbean area. He participated in the bombardment, assault, and capture of Coyotepe in Nicaragua. He further participated in the engagement and occupation of Vera Cruz, Mexico.

In December 1914, following his promotion to first lieutenant, he attended the Advance Base Course at the Marine Barracks, Philadelphia. Upon completion of schooling, he sailed for Haiti with the 1st Brigade and participated in action against hostile Cacos bandits at LeTrou and Fort Capois.

In August 1916, he was promoted to captain and became a member of the Haitian Constabulary at Port Au Prince, where he remained until detached to the United States in December 1918. He returned to Haiti again in July 1919 to serve with the Gendarmerie d'Haiti as an Inspector of Constabulary. He was promoted to major in June 1920.


Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC
Portrait photograph taken circa 1942.

Major Vandegrift returned to the U.S. in April 1923 and was assigned to the Marine Barracks, Quantico, Virginia. He completed the Field Officers' Course, Marine Corps Schools in May 1926. He then was transferred to the Marine Corps Base, San Diego, California, as Assistant Chief of Staff.

In February 1927, he sailed for China where he served as Operations and Training Officer of the 3d Marine Brigade with Headquarters at Tientsin. He was ordered to Washington, D.C., in September 1928 where he became Assistant Chief Coordinator, Bureau of the Budget.

Following duty in Washington, he joined the Marine Barracks, Quantico, where he became Assistant Chief of Staff, G-1 Section, Fleet Marine Force (FMF). During this assignment, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in June 1934.


Rear Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner, USN (left), and Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC
Working on the flag bridge of USS McCawley (AP-10), at the time of the Guadalcanal-Tulagi operation, circa July-August 1942.

Ordered to China in June 1935, LtCol Vandegrift served successively as Executive Officer and Commanding Officer of the Marine Detachment at the American Embassy in Peiping. Promoted to colonel in September 1936, Col Vandegrift reported to Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC), Washington, D.C. in June 1937, where he became Military Secretary to the Major General Commandant. In March 1940, he was appointed Assistant to the Major General Commandant, and the following month was promoted to brigadier general.

Brigadier General Vandegrift was detached to the 1st Marine Division in November 1941, shortly before the outbreak of World War II. He was promoted to major general in March 1942 and sailed for the South Pacific Area that May as commanding general of the first Marine division to ever leave the shores of the United States. On 7 August 1942, in the Solomon Islands, he led ashore the 1st Marine Division in the first large-scale offensive action against the Japanese. For outstanding service as Commanding General of the 1st Marine Division during the attack on Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Gavutu in the Solomon Islands, he was awarded the Navy Cross and for the subsequent occupation and defense from 7 August to 9 December 1942, was awarded the Medal of Honor.


Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC,
Commanding General, First Marine Division
At his field desk in the Division command tent on Guadalcanal, circa August-December 1942.

In July 1943, he assumed command of the I Marine Amphibious Corps and commanded this organization in the landing at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, Northern Solomon Islands, on 1 November 1943. Upon establishing the initial beachhead, he relinquished command and returned to Washington, D.C. as Commandant-designate.

On 1 January 1944, as a lieutenant general, he was sworn in as the 18th Commandant of the Marine Corps. On 4 April 1945, he was appointed general, with date of rank from 21 March 1945, the first Marine officer on active duty to attain four-star rank.



For outstanding service as Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1 January 1944 to 30 June 1946, Gen Vandergrift was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal. He left active service on 31 December 1947 and was placed on the retired list 1 April 1949.

General Vandegrift died 8 May 1973 at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, after a long illness. He was 86. His interment was 10 May 1973 at Arlington National Cemetery.

General Vandegrift held an honorary degree of Doctor of Military Science from Pennsylvania Military College, and honorary degrees of Doctor of Law from Harvard, Colgate, Brown, Columbia, and Maryland Universities and John Marshall College.



In addition to the Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, and Distinguished Service Medal, his decorations and medals included:

• the Presidential Unit Citiation with one bronze star, Solomon Island, 1942;
• Navy Unit Commendation with one bronze star, Solomon Islands, 1943, and Okinawa, 1945;
• Expeditionary Medal with three bronze stars, Cuba, 1912, Nicaragua, 1912, Haiti, 1915-24, Cina, 1927-28;
• Nicaraguan Campaign Medal, Nicaragua, 1912;
• Mexican Service Medal, Mexico, 1914;
• Haitian Campaign Medal with one star, Haiti, 1915 and 1919-20;
• Victory Medal with West Indies Clasp and one star, Haiti, 1918;
• Yangtze Service Medal, Shanghai, 1927;
• American Defense Service Medal, 1939-1941;
• Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four bronze stars;
• Solomon Islands, 1942-43;
• American Campaign Medal;
• World War II Victory Medal.

He had received the following foreign decorations:

• Haitian Distinguished Service Medal, Haiti, 1919-20;
• Medaille Militaire with one silver star, Haiti, 1920-21;
• Honorary Knight Commander, Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire;
• Companion (Honorary) of the Military Division of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, British Solomon Islands, 1942;
• Cruz de Aviacion de Primera Clase, Peruvian Government, 1944;
• Abdon Calderon of the 1st Class, Equador, 1944;
• Knights Grand Cross in the Order of the Orange-Nassau with Swords, Netherlands, 1945;
• Order of Pao-Tine (Precious Tripod) with Special Clasp, China, 1947;
• Legion of Honor (Grand Officer), france.

[SAMWolf]

A distinguished military analyst once noted that if title were awarded in America as they are in England, the commanding general of Marine Corps forces at Guadalcanal would be known simply as "Vandegrift of Guadalcanal." But America does not bestow aristocratic title, and besides, such a formality would not be in keeping with the soft-spoken, modest demeanor of Alexander A. Vandegrift.

The man destined to lead the 1st Marine Division in America's first ground offensive operation of World War II was born in 1887 in Charlottesville, Virginia, where he grew up fascinated by his grandfather's stories of life in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. It was axiomatic that young Alexander would settle on a military career. Commissioned a Marine lieutenant in 1909, Vandegrift received an early baptism of fire in 1912 during the bombardment, assault, and capture of Coyotepe in Nicaragua. Two years later he participated in the capture and occupation of Vera Cruz. Vandegrift would spend the greater part of the next decade in Haiti, where he fought Caco bandits, and served as a inspector of constabulary with the Gendarmerie d'Haiti. It was in Haiti that he met and was befriended by Marine Colonel Smedley D. Butler, who called him "Sunny Jim." The lessons of these formative years fighting an elusive enemy in a hostile jungle environment were not lost upon the young Marine officer.


Lieutenant General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC,
Commandant of the Marine Corps, 1944-1947
Portrait photograph, taken circa 1944.

He spent the next 18 years in various posts and stations in the United States, along with two tours of China duty at Peiping and Tientsin. Prior to Pearl Harbor, Vandegrift was appointed assistant to the Major General Commandant, and in April 1940 received the single star of a brigadier general. He was detached to the 1st Marine Division in November 1941, and in May 1942 sailed for the South Pacific as commanding general of the first Marine division ever to leave the United States. On 7 August 1942, after exhorting his Marines with the reminder that "God favors the bold and strong of heart," he led the 1st Marine Division ashore in the Solomons Islands in the first large-scale offensive action against the Japanese.


US Coast Guard Gives Japs the Old One – Two
Painted from an eye witness account of a US Coast Guardsman returned from Guadacanal, it depicts the Coast Guard unloading a convoy under Japanese bombing and strafing.

His triumph at Guadalcanal earned General Vandegrift the Medal of Honor, the Navy Cross, and the praise of a grateful nation. In July 1943 he took command of I Marine Amphibious Corps and planned the landing at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, Northern Solomons, on 1 November 1943. He then was recalled to Washington, to become the Eighteenth Commandant of the Marine Corps.


Admiral William F. Halsey, USN (left),
Commander South Pacific Force
Confers with Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC, Commanding General, First Marine Division, at South Pacific Force headquarters, Noumea, New Caledonia, in January 1943.

On 1 January 1944, as a lieutenant general, Vandegrift was sworn in as Commandant. On 4 April 1945 he was promoted to general, and thus became the first Marine officer on active duty to attain four-star rank.

In the final stages of the war, General Vandegrift directed an elite force approaching half-a-million men and women, with its own aviation force. Comparing his Marines with the Japanese, he noted that the Japanese soldier "was trained to go to a place, stay there, fight and die. We train our men to go to a place, fight to win, and to live. I can assure you, it is a better theory."

After the war, Vandegrift fought another battle, this time in the halls of Congress, with the stakes being the survival of the Marine Corps. His counter-testimony during Congressional hearings of the spring of 1946 was instrumental in defeating initial attempts to merge or "unify" the U.S. Armed Forces. Although his term as Commandant ended on 31 December 1947, General Vandegrift would live to see passage of Public Law 416, which preserved the Corps and its historic mission. His official retirement date of 1 April 1949 ended just over 40 years of service.


Givin’ ‘Em Hell at Guadacanal
Marines and Soldiers on Guadacanal Island in the Solomons use a Jeep mounted gun to down Japanese planes.

General Vandegrift outlived both his wife Mildred and their only son, Colonel Alexander A. Vandegrift, Jr., who fought in World War II and Korea. He spent most of his final years in Delray, Florida. He died on 8 May 1973.

-- Robert V. Aquilina

[SAMWolf]

General Vandegrift and His 1st Marine Division Staff

Whenever a work about the Guadalcanal operation is published, one of the pictures always included is that of Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, 1st Marine Division commanding general, and his staff officers and commanders, who posed for the photograph on 11 August 1942, just four days after the assault landings on the island. Besides General Vandegrift, there are 40 Marines and one naval officer in this picture, and each one deserves a pages of his own in Marine Corps history.



Among the Marines, 23 were promoted to general officer rank and three became Commandants of the Marine Corps: General Vandegrift and Colonels Cates and Pate. The naval officer, division surgeon Commander Warwick T. Brown, MC, USN, also made flag officer rank while on active duty and was promoted to vice admiral upon retirement.

Four of the officers in the picture served in three wars. Lieutenant Colonels Gerald C. Thomas, division operations officer, and Randolph McC. Pate, division logistics officer, served in both World Wars I and II, and each commanded the 1st Marine Division in Korea. Colonel William J. Whaling similarly served in World Wars I and II, and was General Thomas' assistant division commander in Korea. Major Henry W. Buse, Jr., assistant operations officer, served in World War II, Korea, and the Vietnam War. Others served in two wars--World Wars I and II, or World War II and Korea. Represented in the photograph is a total of nearly 700 years of cumulative experience on active Marine Corps service.


Navy and Marine Corps leaders
At a conference on Guam, 11 August 1944.
They are (from left to right):
Major General Roy S. Geiger, USMC, who commanded ground forces during the recapture of Guam the month before;
Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, USN, Commander, Fifth Fleet;
Lieutenant General Holland M. Smith, USMC, who commanded ground forces during the Marianas operation;
Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN, Commander-in-Chief Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas;
and Lieutenant General Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC, Commandant of the Marine Corps.
Photographed by TSgt. James N. Carroll, USMC.

Three key members of the division--the Assistant Division Commander, Brigadier General William H. Rupertus; the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-1, Colonel Robert C. Kilmartin, Jr.; and the commanding officer of the 1st Raider Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Merritt A. Edson--were not in this picture for a good reason. They were on Tulagi, where Rupertus headed the Tulagi Command Group with Kilmartin as his chief of staff, and Edson commanded the combat troops. Also notably absent from this photograph was the commander of the 7th Marines, Colonel James C. Webb, who had not joined the division from Samoa, where the regiment had been sent before the division deployed overseas.

In his memoir, Once a Marine, General Vandegrift explained why this photograph was taken. The division's morale was affected by the fact that Vice Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher was forced to withdraw his fleet from the area--with many of his ships not yet fully unloaded and holding more than half of the division's supplies still needed ashore. Adding to the Marines' uneasiness at seeing their naval support disappear below the horizon, was the fact that they had been under almost constant enemy air attacks beginning shortly after their landing on Guadalcanal. In an effort to counter the adverse influence on morale of the day and night air attacks, Vandegrift began making tours of the division perimeter every morning to talk to as many of his Marines as possible, and to keep a personal eye on the command. As he noted:


MajGen Alexander A. Vandegrift, CG, 1st Marine Division, confers with his staff on board the transport USS McCawley (APA-4) enroute to Guadalcanal. From left: Gen Vandegrift; LtCol Gerald C. Thomas, operations officer; LtCol Randolph McC. Pate, logistics officer; LtCol Frank G. Goettge, intelligence officer; and Col William Capers James, chief of staff.

By August 11, the full impact of the vanished transports was permeating the command, so again I called a conference of my staff and command officers ... I ended the conference by posing with this fine group of officers, a morale device that worked because they thought if I went to the trouble of having the picture taken then I obviously planned to enjoy it in future years.

Recently, General Merill B. "Bill" Twining, on Guadalcanal a lieutenant colonel and assistant D-3, recalled the circumstances of the photograph and philosophized about the men who appeared in it: The group is lined up on the slope of the coral ridge which provided a degree of protection from naval gunfire coming from the north and was therefore selected as division CP ...

There was no vital reason for the conclave. I think V[andegrift] just wanted to see who was in his outfit. Do you realize these people had never been together before? Some came from as far away as Iceland...



V[andegrift] mainly introduced himself, gave a brief pep talk ... I have often been asked how we could afford to congregate all this talent in the face of the enemy. We didn't believe we (at the moment) faced any threat from the Japanese. The defense area was small and every responsible commander could reach his CP in 5 minutes and after all there were a lot of good people along those lines. Most of the fresh-caught second lieutenants were battalion commanders two years later. We believed in each other and trusted.

--Benis M. Frank

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The Guadalcanal Patch

The 1st Division shoulder patch originally was authorized for wear by members of units who were organic or attached to he division in its four landings in the Pacific War. It was the first unit patch to be authorized for wear in World War II and specifically commemorated the division's sacrifices and victory in the battle for Guadalcanal.



As recalled by General Merrill B. Twining, a lieutenant colonel and the division's operations officer on Guadalcanal, for a short time before the 1st left Guadalcanal for Australia, there had been some discussion by the senior staff about uniforming the troops. It appeared that the Marines might have to wear Army uniforms, which meant that they would lose their identity and Twining came up with the idea for a division patch. A number of different designs were devised by both Lieutenant Colonel Twining and Captain Donald L. Dickson, adjutant of the 5th Marines, who had been an artist in civilian life. The one which Twining prepared on the flight out of Guadalcanal was approved by Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift, the division commander.



General Twining further recalled that he drew a diamond in his notebook and "in the middle of the diamond I doodled a numeral one ... [and] I sketched in the word 'Guadalcanal' down its length ... I got to thinking the whole operation had been under the Southern Cross, so I drew that in, too ... About an hour later I took the drawing up to the front of the aircraft to General Vandegrift. He said, 'Yes, that's it!' and wrote his initials, A.A.V., on the bottom of the notebook page."


Henderson Field, Guadalcanal

After he arrived in Brisbane, Australia, Colonel Twining bought a child's watercolor set and, while confined to his hotel room by a bout of malaria, drew a bunch of diamonds on a big sheet, coloring each one differently. He then took samples to General Vandegrift, who chose one which was colored a shade of blue that he liked. Then Twining took the sketch to the Australian Knitting Mills to have it reproduced, pledging the credit of the post exchange funds to pay for the patches' manufacture. Within a week or two the patches began to roll off the knitting machines, and Colonel Twining was there to approve them. General Twining further recalled: "after they came off the machine, I picked up a sheet of them. They looked very good, and when they were cut, I picked up one of the patches. It was one of the first off the machine.



The division's post exchanges began selling the patches almost immediately and they proved to be popular, with Marines buying extras to give away as souvenirs to Australian friends or to send home to families. Before long, newly established Marine divisions, as well as the raider and parachute units, and as the aircraft wings, sea-going Marines, Fleet Marine Force Pacific units, and others, were authorized to have their own distinctive patch, a total of 33, following the lead of the 1st Marine Division. Marines returning to the United States for duty or on leave from a unit having a distinctive shoulder insignia were authorized to wear that insignia until they were assigned to another unit having a shoulder patch of its own. For many 1st Marine Division men joining another unit and having to relinquish the wearing of the 1st Division patch, this rankled.



Shortly after the end of the war, Colonel Twining went to now-Marine Commandant General Vandegrift saying that he "no longer thought Marines should wear anything on their uniforms to distinguish them from other Marines. He agreed and the patches came off for good."

-- Benis M. Frank

Additional Sources:

www.history.navy.mil
www.gnt.net/~jrube
www.arlingtoncemetery.net
www.palmbeachmcl.org
www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC
www.vandegrift.navy.mil
navysite.de
www.interet-general.info
www.homeofheroes.com
www.willysjeep.com
hsgm.free.fr
www.seacoastmarines.com

[SAMWolf]

Medal of Honor citation
of
Major General Alexander Archer Vandegrift


Four Marines who received Medals of Honor at Guadalcanal - Vandegrift, Edson, Paige and Basilone.

"For outstanding and heroic accomplishment above and beyond the call of duty as Commanding Officer of the FIRST Marine Division in operations against enemy Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands during the period, 7 August to 9 December 1942. With the adverse factors of weather, terrain and disease making his task a difficult and hazardous undertaking, and with his command eventually including sea, land and air forces of Army, Navy and Marine Corps, Major General Vandegrift achieved marked success in commanding the initial landings of the United States forces in the Solomon Islands and in their subsequent occupation. His tenacity, courage and resourcefulness prevailed against a strong, determined and experienced enemy, and the gallant fighting spirit of the men under his inspiring leadership enabled them to withstand aerial, land and sea bombardment, to surmount all obstacles and leave a disorganized and ravaged enemy. This dangerous but vital mission, accomplished at the constant risk of his life, resulted in securing a valuable base for further operations of our forces against the enemy, and its successful completion reflects great credit upon Major General Vandegrift, his command and the United States Naval Service."

-- "Medal of Honor, 1861-1949, The Navy", page 271

[SAMWolf]

Veteran s for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

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Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

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Tribute to a Generation - The memorial will be dedicated on Saturday, May 29, 2004.

Thanks to CholeraJoe for providing this link.

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Iraq Homecoming Tips

~ Thanks to our Veterans still serving, at home and abroad. ~ Freepmail to Ragtime Cowgirl | 2/09/04 | FRiend in the USAF

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PDN members and fans. We hope you will consider this simple act of patriotism worth passing on or taking up as a project in your own back yard. In summary:

Who They Are: Operation: Stitches Of Love was started by the Mothers of two United States Marines stationed in Iraq.

What They Are Doing: We are gathering 12.5"x12.5" quilt squares from across the country and assembling the largest quilt ever produced. When completed we will take the quilt from state to state and gather even more squares.

Why They Are Doing This: We are building this quilt to rally support for the Coalition Forces in Iraq and to show the service members that they are not forgotten. We want the world to know Nothing will ever break the stitches that bind us together as a country.

Ideas to start a local project:

Obtain enough Red, White and Blue material (cloth) for a 12.5 x 12.5 quilt square.
If you have someone in your family that sews, make it a weekend project and invite neighbors to join you.

Consider this tribute as a project for your civic group, scouts, church or townhall group.

Locate an elementary school with an after school program in your neighborhood or locate an after school program in your neighborhood not attached to a school and ask if you could volunteer one or two afternoons and create some squares with the kids.

Invite some VFW posts to share your project in honor of their post.

Send us webmaster@patriotwatch.com</ a> for digital photos of in progress and finished project for various websites, OIFII.com and the media.

PDN is making this appeal in support of Operation: Stitches Of Love
Media Contact: Deborah Johns (916) 716-2749
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Your friends at PDN

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[snippy_about_it]

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Good Monday Morning Everyone.


If you would like added to our ping list let us know.

[SAMWolf]

Good night Snippy.

[snippy_about_it]

Good night Sam. I've got to quit staying up so late. :-)

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Snippy.

[Iris7]

The photo has Archer Vandegrift (Boy, could he wear the pisscutter! That hat should never have been taken out of service), Merritt "Red Mike" Edson (a great man, creator of the modern American Rifle Association), Platoon Sargent Mitchell Paige, and Sargent John "Manila Joe" Basilone.

Those were men.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Freeper Foxhole.

[The Mayor]

Jonathan again caused David to vow, because . . . he loved him as he loved his own soul. —1 Samuel 20:17

A true friend helps you keep going when you feel like giving up.

[GailA]

Good morning ...we're BACK! Had a good time, rainy, cool, but had some good weather and good food. DK fished some, but they weren't biting. Rocky (pup) and I went on some long walks.

[Professional Engineer]

Good morning ladies. Flag-o-gram.

From the homepage of the 59th Signal BN, Fort Rischardson, Alaska.
http://www.usarpac.army.mil/516thSigBde/battalions.htm

Minor conservative icon Barry AuH2O. His MARS callsign AFC6?? is partially visible.

Click logo

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Aeronaut.

[SAMWolf]

(Boy, could he wear the pisscutter! That hat should never have been taken out of service)

We had another name for it in the Army. ;-) But I agree, it should have stayed in service. I really, really hate the Beret as a "general" issue cap.

[SAMWolf]

Morning E.G.C. We've been having a string of nice days here.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Mayor.

[SAMWolf]

Welcome Home!! All that water there and no fish?? :-(

The rain was a bummer but be thankful for the cool. When we were there it was hot and real humid. Get a chance to see Forts Henry and Donaldson?

[SAMWolf]

Morning PE.

I was able to make one MARS call about half way through my first tour in Vietnam. My youngest sister was the only one home though but it was so great to hear anyone back home. It was around 2am local time for me when the call went through. Of course, no one believed my sisiter that I had called until they got my letter telling them I had called. I went through some guy in Alaska. God Bless those MARS operators.