William C. Lee
General William "Bill" Carey Lee (born March 12, 1895 in Dunn , North Carolina , † June 25, 1948 ibid) was an American major general in World War II .
Life
Lee graduated from North Carolina State College in 1917 as a lieutenant in the Army Reserve Officers Corps .
William Lee served in France during World War I and was promoted to general when the United States entered the war in December 1941. Lee was an advocate of airborne operations . Although this idea was not popular in US high command, it was endorsed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt . Lee organized the Army's first parachute company. He was also appointed first director of the new paratrooper school at Fort Benning .
In August 1942, Lee became the first in command of the newly formed 101st Airborne Division at Camp Claiborne . He began his ministry with the motto: “ The 101st has no history, but a rendez-vous with fate. “General Lee planned the parachute jumps during the Normandy landing in June 1944. However, a few months before the company began, he suffered a heart attack and was transferred back to America. He was replaced by Maxwell Taylor as head of the division. To honor the founder of their unit, the US paratroopers shouted his name before jumping over France.
Lee retired from active service that year and died in his hometown in 1948. An airborne museum and the local post office were named after him.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Lee, William C. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Lee, William Carey (full name); Lee, Bill Carey (nickname); Lee, Carey (nickname) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American Major General of the Airborne Forces |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 12, 1895 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Thin |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 25, 1948 |
| Place of death | Thin |