Benjamin H. Vandervoort

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Benjamin Hayes "Vandy" Vandervoort (* 3. March 1917 in Gasport , New York ; † 22. November 1990 in Hilton Head Iceland , South Carolina ) was an American military that the zenith of his military career the rank of Lieutenant Colonel ( Lt. Col. ) held and fought in various theaters of war in World War II . He has been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross twice.

Life

Benjamin Vandervoort was born on March 3, 1917 in Gasport, New York. After first serving as a lieutenant ( lieutenant ) in the infantry , he joined the newly formed paratroopers in the summer of 1940 . He was assigned to the 505th Paratrooper Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division when it was established.

Vandervoort was S 3 by James M. Gavin , when the regiment in landed Sicily . He later became company commander in the same regiment . After he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on June 2, 1944, he took part in Operation Overlord and Operation Market Garden as a battalion commander. General Matthew B. Ridgway described him as follows: "[...] one of the bravest and toughest battle commanders I ever knew" (German: "[...] one of the bravest and most determined battle commanders that I have ever known have. " ). In Goronne a hurt him shrapnel to the eye; therefore he could not take part in the advance of the division into Germany. In 1946 Vandervoort left military service.

After leaving the army, Vandervoort worked, among other things, for the CIA and started a family. He and his wife Nedra had two children; a son and a daughter. Vandervoort is played by actor John Wayne in the feature film The Longest Day .

Benjamin Vandervoort died in a nursing home on November 22, 1990 at the age of 73 after falling over a staircase.

literature

  • Michel de Trez: Col. Ben Vandervoort "Vandy" 0-22715 (Way We Were) . D-Day Publishing, 2004, ISBN 2-9600176-7-6

Web links

swell

  1. ^ Obituary in the New York Times ; Retrieved July 26, 2011
  2. ↑ "Author's Official Web Site": The Way We Were - Col. Ben Vandervoort ( Memento of the original from September 13, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; Retrieved April 4, 2006  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.d-day-publishing.be
  3. ^ Forum to the US Army: Colonel Benjamin H. Vandervoort ; Retrieved April 4, 2006
personal data
SURNAME Vandervoort, Benjamin H.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Vandervoort, Benjamin Hayes; Vandervoort, Vandy
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Lieutenant Colonel
DATE OF BIRTH March 3, 1917
PLACE OF BIRTH Gasport , New York
DATE OF DEATH November 22, 1990
Place of death Hilton Head Island , South Carolina