Manton S. Eddy
Manton S. Eddy | |
---|---|
Battles/wars | World War I World War II |
Awards | Distinguished Service Cross Army Distinguished Service Medal (2) Silver Star Legion of Merit (2) Bronze Star (2) |
Lieutenant General Manton Sprague Eddy (May 16, 1892 – April 10, 1962) was a senior United States Army officer who served in both World War I and World War II. During the latter conflict he served with distinction, commanding the 9th Infantry Division and later the XII Corps in the campaign in Western Europe, playing a large part in the Battle of the Bulge in late December 1944.
Early life and military career
Eddy graduated from
Between the wars
Promoted to the wartime rank of major, Eddy served in Allied-occupied Germany until 1919 when he returned to the United States. Relegated to the rank of captain in the Regular Army in 1920, Eddy married Mamie Peabody Buttolph in 1921. During the period between the wars, he was a member of the Infantry Board and was a student, later an instructor, at both the United States Army Infantry School and the United States Army Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He also served as Professor of Military Science and Tactics at Riverdale Military Academy.[3] While at the Infantry School, he met George C. Marshall, the future Army Chief of Staff, who was impressed with Eddy.[2][4]
By 1940, Eddy was an
World War II
In March 1942, three months after the
After training in the United States for several months Eddy led the division overseas, landing in French North Africa on November 8, 1942 as part of Operation Torch. The 9th Division fought in the subsequent Allied campaign in North Africa, and played a large role in the Battle of Kasserine Pass in February 1943. The campaign came to an end in May 1943, with the surrender of almost 250,000 Axis soldiers.
Eddy later led the 9th Division in Operation Husky, codename for the Allied invasion of Sicily, in August 1943.[3] In November the 9th Division was sent to England in preparation for the Allied invasion of Northern France, scheduled for the spring of 1944.
Eddy led the 9th Division in the early stages of Operation Overlord, codename for the Battle of Normandy, landing on Utah Beach four days after the D-Day landings of June 6, 1944. For his role in the capture of the French port of Cherbourg,[10] which much impressed his superiors, Eddy was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.[11] In the opinion of General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Eddy had outperformed all the other American divisional commanders in Normandy, and he had slated Eddy to take over the next available corps.[2]
In August he became Commanding General of
Postwar
In the postwar period, Eddy served again at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, this time as Commandant of the United States Army Command and General Staff College, from January 1948 to July 1950. He was president of a review board that made a thorough examination of officer education and established the progressive branch, staff, and senior service levels of officer schooling. As commander of the Seventh Army, he presided over its transformation from an army of occupation to one of deterrence. Eddy retired from the army with the rank of lieutenant general.[14][15]
Eddy died in Columbus, Georgia on April 10, 1962, at the age of 69.[15] Eddy is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.[16][17]
Awards and decorations
- Distinguished Service Cross
- Army Distinguished Service Medal (2)
- Silver Star
- Legion of Merit (2)
- Bronze Star (2)
- Air Medal
- Purple Heart
- Honorary Companion of the Order of the Bath(United Kingdom)
- Legion of Honour (France)
- Croix de Guerre (France)
- Order of the Patriotic War (Soviet Union)
- Medal "For Courage" (Soviet Union)
- Commander of the Order of Leopold (Belgium)
Bibliography
- Phillips, Henri Gerard (2000). The Making of a Professional: Manton S. Eddy, USA. ISBN 978-0313311833.
- "Manton Sprague Eddy" in Dictionary of American Biography, Supplement 7: 19611965. American Council of Learned Societies, 1981
- Taaffe, Stephen R. (2013). Marshall and His Generals: U.S. Army Commanders in World War II. Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas. OCLC 840162019.
- ISBN 0132036215.
References
- ^ "Manton Eddy".
- ^ a b c d Taaffe 2013, p. 199.
- ^ a b Collins & Chandler 1994, p. 194.
- ^ Phillips 2000, p. 55.
- ^ Phillips 2000, pp. 72–74.
- ^ "Biography of Lieutenant-General Manton Sprague Eddy (1892 – 1962), USA".
- ^ Phillips 2000, p. 75.
- ^ "Biography of Lieutenant-General Manton Sprague Eddy (1892 – 1962), USA".
- ^ Phillips 2000, p. 103.
- ^ Taaffe 2013, p. 185.
- ^ Collins & Chandler 1994, p. 193.
- ^ Taaffe 2013, p. 294.
- ^ Phillips 2000, p. 92.
- ^ Taaffe 2013, p. 334.
- ^ a b Collins & Chandler 1994, p. 195.
- ^ Official US Army Biography: General Eddy Archived 2007-05-20 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Burial Detail: Eddy, Manton S – ANC Explorer