John W. Vessey Junior
John William Vessey Jr. (born June 29, 1922 in Minneapolis , Minnesota - † August 18, 2016 in Saint Paul , Minnesota) was an American general in the US Army and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff .
biography
After attending Roosevelt High School , he began his military service in the Minnesota National Guard in 1939 . In 1941 he joined the US Army, which he was a member of until 1985.
During World War II he served in the 34th Infantry Division and fought in North Africa and Italy.
During his military career, he studied military science at the University of Maryland , where he earned a Bachelor of Science (BS Military Science) in 1963 . He completed a postgraduate course in business administration at George Washington University in 1965 with a Master of Science (MS Business Administration) .
In 1970 he was promoted to Commanding General of the Support Command in Thailand and in this capacity was promoted to Brigadier General in April 1971 . He then became in 1972 chief of the Military Assistance and Advisory Group ( Military Assistance Advisory Group ) in Laos and in 1973 director of surgery at the office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for operations and planning in the Ministry of Defense of the United States (Director of Operations, Office Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans) .
After his promotion to major general in August 1974, he became commander of the 4th U.S. Infantry Division .
In the following year, on September 1, 1975, he became lieutenant general and deputy chief of staff of the US Army for operations and planning.
He was then promoted to general on November 1, 1976 and was commander of the 8th US Army from 1976 to 1978 and as such also commander in chief of the US armed forces in South Korea and the United Nations troops stationed there . He then became Commander-in-Chief of the United Forces of South Korea and the United States in South Korea in 1978.
Between 1979 and 1982 he was Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army ( Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army ) .
Most recently, he was appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on June 18, 1982 , and held that position until his retirement on September 30, 1985.
John W. Vessey Jr., who also serves on the Council on Foreign Relations and the advisory board of the George C. Marshall - Foundation was awarded the 1992 Presidential Medal of Freedom , in addition to the peer Golden Congressional Medal of Honor one of the two highest civilian awards in the United States .
Awards
Selection of decorations, sorted based on the Order of Precedence of the Military Awards
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Distinguished Service Cross
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Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2 ×) -
Army Distinguished Service Medal (3 ×) -
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
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Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
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Legion of Merit (2 ×) -
Bronze Star (2 ×) -
Purple heart
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Air Medal (4 ×) -
Army Commendation Medal
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Presidential Medal of Freedom (1992)
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Individual evidence
- ^ Former chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. John Vessey dies at 94 . AP article at FOXNews , August 19, 2016, accessed August 20, 2016.
Web links
- John W. Vessey Jr. in the nndb (English)
Collins | Shark slip | Hull | Bolte | Palmer | Lemnitzer | Decker | Eddleman | Hamlett | Abrams | Haines | Palmer | Haig | Weyand | Kerwin | Kroesen | Vessey | Wickham | Thurman | Brown | RisCassi | Sullivan | Reimer | Peay | Tilelli | Griffith | Crouch | Shinseki | Keane | Casey | Cody | Chiarelli | Austin | Campbell | Allyn | McConville | Martin
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Vessey, John W. Junior |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | John William Vessey Jr. (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American general in the United States Army |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 29, 1922 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Minneapolis , Minnesota |
| DATE OF DEATH | 18th August 2016 |
| Place of death | at Saint Paul , Minnesota |