Clifton B. Cates

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General Clifton B. Cates

Clifton Bledsoe Cates (born August 31, 1893 in Tiptonville , Tennessee , † June 4, 1970 in Annapolis , Maryland ) was an American general in the United States Marine Corps . During the Pacific War , he commanded the 4th U.S. Marine Division in the battles for Tinian and Iwojima . From 1948 to 1951 he was the 19th Commandant of the Marine Corps . Cates was also one of the few US officers who commanded a platoon , company , battalion , regiment, and division during combat or war .

Military career

Early years

Clifton Cates was born in Tiptonville, Tennessee , United States and came to the Missouri Military Academy after primary school , from which he graduated with honors. He then went to the University of Tennessee which he graduated in 1916 as a Bachelor of Laws . He joined the US Marine Corps and was retired as a Second Lieutenant in the Reserve.

First World War

On June 13, 1917, Cates was appointed to active duty and assigned to the 6th Marine Regiment in Port Royal , South Carolina . In January of the following year, his platoon was relocated to France . The young lieutenant fought during the First World War with his division at Bouresches , Belleau Wood and Soissons , as well as in the Battle of St. Mihiel and during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive . During the deployment in France, after leading a platoon, he was also used as commander of a company and a battalion. He was wounded several times and barely survived German gas attacks . In addition to being promoted to captain , he was awarded the Navy Cross , the Purple Heart and the Silver Star . The French government honored Cates with the Cross of the Legion of Honor and the Croix de guerre .

Interwar period

After serving in the occupation army of Germany, he returned to the United States in September 1919, where he became military advisor to US President Woodrow Wilson . Subsequently, Cates served as aide-de-camp of the then Commandant George Barnett . In October 1920 he moved to the staff of the Pacific Command in San Francisco , California . From June 1923 to April 1925 he was commandant of the naval detachment aboard the battleship USS California (BB-44). He was then transferred to the 4th Marine Regiment in San Diego , California, which later became known as the China Marines . After a brief interlude in the recruiting offices in Spokane , Washington and Omaha , Nebraska , Cates was from March 1928 to May 1929 a member of the American Battle Monuments Commission , based in Washington, DC He then followed the 4th Regiment to Shanghai , which he the next belonged for three years.

This was followed by studies at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces which he finished in June 1933 and another at the Marine Corps Schools in Quantico , Virginia . In 1935 he returned to the capital, as he was assigned to the "Strategic Planning Section" of the Operations and Training Department at the Marine Corps Headquarters. In August 1937 he became battalion commander of the 6th Marine Infantry Regiment stationed in Shanghai before he returned to the 4th Regiment a year later. He later taught at the US Army War College before being appointed director of the Navy Officers Basic School at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in June 1940 . At the time of the devastating Japanese attack on Pear Harbor and the ensuing entry into the war, Cates was already a Colonel .

Second World War

In May 1942 Cates became the commander of the 1st US Marine Regiment , which was subordinate to the 1st US Marine Division, commanded by General Alexander A. Vandegrift . The following summer and autumn his unit fought fiercely for the Solomon Islands -Insel Guadalcanal . Because of the combat experience gained, Cates became the commandant of the Marine Corps Schools based in Quantico . The now Major General received his last troop command in June 1944, when he took over command of the 4th US Marine Division from General Harry Schmidt . His division fought on Tinian from July 1944 and on Iwojima from February 1945 .

post war period

In December 1945 he was returned to the United States and served as President of the Equipment Bureau at Quantico for the next six months. He then acted as the commanding officer of the local Marine Barracks .

On January 1, 1948, he followed General Vandegrift as Commandant of the Marine Corps and was therefore promoted to General. Cates held this office for four years. Prior to the June 30, 1954 on retirement went, he was again director of the Marine Corps Schools .

Clifton Bledsoe Cates died after a long illness on June 4, 1970 in Annapolis Naval Hospital , Maryland . He was buried with full military honors on June 8th in Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC.

Awards

Selection of decorations, sorted based on the Order of Precedence of the Military Awards:

In 1998 a plaque was unveiled in the museum of his hometown in memory of the city's great son.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Cates, Clifton B.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Cates, Clifton Bledsoe (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American general in the United States Marine Corps
DATE OF BIRTH August 31, 1893
PLACE OF BIRTH Tiptonville , Tennessee , USA
DATE OF DEATH 4th June 1970
Place of death Annapolis (Maryland) , Maryland , USA