Earle Gilmore Wheeler (January 13, 1908 – December 18, 1975), nicknamed Bus, was a
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
general
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
who served as the
chief of Staff of the United States Army
The chief of staff of the Army (CSA) is a statutory position in the United States Army held by a general officer. As the highest-ranking officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, the chief is the principal military advisor and a ...
from 1962 to 1964 and then as the sixth
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: app ...
(1964–1970), holding the latter position during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
.
Early life and education
Earle Gilmore Wheeler was born in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
on January 13, 1908 to Dock Stone and Ida Gilmore. He was later adopted by Ida's second husband. Wheeler began his military career in 1924, at the age of 16, as a
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
in Company E, 121st Engineers,
District of Columbia National Guard
The District of Columbia National Guard is the branch of the United States National Guard based in the District of Columbia. It comprises both the District of Columbia Army National Guard, D.C. Army National Guard and the District of Columbia A ...
. He was promoted to
sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
in 1926, then, in 1928, was
honorably discharged
A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...
in order to enroll at the
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...
. He graduated from the Academy in 1932 and was commissioned into the
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
. After graduation he married Frances "Betty" Rogers Howell, whom he met at a society party in 1930. He served in the
29th Infantry Regiment from 1932 to 1936, then attended Infantry School in 1937. He served with the
15th Infantry Regiment, from 1937 to 1940, stationed in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
from 1937 to 1938.
Career
From 1940 to 1941, Wheeler was a mathematics instructor at West Point. Rising from battalion commander to more senior roles, he trained the newly activated
36th and
99th Infantry Divisions from 1941 to 1944, then went to Europe in November 1944 as chief of staff of the newly formed
63rd Infantry Division.
Wheeler served in senior staff positions in a variety of specialties, including supply, intelligence, planning, and armor.
In late 1945, Wheeler returned to the U.S. as an artillery instructor at
Fort Sill
Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (136.8 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost .
The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark ...
, then returned to Germany from 1947 to 1949 as a staff officer of the
United States Constabulary
The United States Constabulary was a United States Army military gendarmerie force. From 1946 to 1952, in the aftermath of World War II, it acted as an occupation and security force in the U.S. Occupation Zone of West Germany and Austria.
Reaso ...
(formerly VI Corps), occupying Germany. He attended the
National War College
The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active.
History
The National War Colle ...
in 1950. He then returned to Europe as a staff officer in
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
, in a series of roles. In 1951–52 he commanded the
351st Infantry Regiment, which controlled the
Free Territory of Trieste
The Free Territory of Trieste was an independent territory in Southern Europe between northern Italy and Yugoslavia, facing the north part of the Adriatic Sea, under direct responsibility of the United Nations Security Council in the aftermath ...
, a front-line position of the Cold War.
In 1955, Wheeler joined the General Staff at
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...
. In 1958 he took command of the
2nd Armored Division. In 1959, he took command of
III Corps. He became
Director of the Joint Staff
The director of the Joint Staff (DJS) is a three-star officer who assists the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a cabinet of senior military officers within the United States Armed Forces who advise the secretary of defense and the president on military ...
in 1960. In 1962 he was briefly Deputy Commander of U.S. Forces in Europe before being named
Chief of Staff of the United States Army
The chief of staff of the Army (CSA) is a statutory position in the United States Army held by a general officer. As the highest-ranking officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, the chief is the principal military advisor and a ...
later that year.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
![Wheeler and Johnson at Hawaii Conference](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Wheeler_and_Johnson_at_Hawaii_Conference.jpg)
President
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
appointed Wheeler
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: app ...
in July 1964 to succeed General
Maxwell Taylor
Maxwell Davenport Taylor (August 26, 1901 – April 19, 1987) was a senior United States Army officer and diplomat of the mid-20th century. He served with distinction in World War II, most notably as commander of the 101st Airborne Division, ni ...
. Wheeler's tenure as the nation's top military officer spanned the height of America's involvement in the Vietnam War.
Wheeler's accession to the top job in the U.S. military, over the heads of officers with more combat experience, drew some criticism. Then Air Force Chief of Staff, General
Curtis LeMay
Curtis Emerson LeMay (November 15, 1906 – October 1, 1990) was an American Air Force general who implemented a controversial strategic bombing campaign in the Pacific theater of World War II. He later served as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air ...
, called him "Polly Parrot" and said he was awarded a medal for "fighting the Battle of Fort Benning", an army post in Georgia where Wheeler served during much of World War II.
Wheeler oversaw and supported the expanding U.S. military role in the Vietnam War in the mid-1960s, consistently backing the field commander's requests for additional troops and operating authority. He often urged President Johnson to strike harder at
North Vietnam
North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; vi, Việt Nam Dân chủ Cộng hòa), was a socialist state supported by the Soviet Union (USSR) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Southeast Asia that existed f ...
and to expand aerial
bombing campaigns. Wheeler was concerned with minimizing costs to U.S. ground troops. At the same time, he preferred what he saw as a realistic assessment of the capabilities of the
South Vietnamese military. This earned him a reputation as a "hawk."
Wheeler, with General
William C. Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland (March 26, 1914 – July 18, 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from ...
, the field commander, and President Johnson, pushed to raise additional American forces after the February 1968
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. It was launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the forces o ...
. American media at the time widely reported the Tet Offensive as
Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
victory. This followed a widely noted news report in 1967 that cited an unnamed American general (later identified as General
Frederick C. Weyand) who called the situation in Vietnam a "stalemate." It was a view with which Wheeler agreed in more confidential circles. However, Wheeler was concerned that the American buildup in Vietnam depleted U.S. military capabilities in other parts of the world. He called for 205,000 additional ground troops, to be gained by mobilizing reserves, but intended these remain in the US as an active reserve. The president decided this was not easily accomplished. Together with the Tet Offensive and shifts in American public opinion, this abortive effort contributed to President Johnson's ultimate decision to de-escalate the war.
After the election of President
Richard M. Nixon, Wheeler oversaw the implementation of the "
Vietnamization
Vietnamization was a policy of the Richard Nixon administration to end U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War through a program to "expand, equip, and train South Vietnamese forces and assign to them an ever-increasing combat role, at the same ti ...
" program, whereby South Vietnamese forces assumed increasing responsibility for the war as American forces were withdrawn.
Wheeler retired from the U.S. Army in July 1970. Wheeler was the longest-serving Chairman of the Joint Chiefs to date, serving six years. Upon his retirement, he was awarded the
Defense Distinguished Service Medal
The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...
and was the first recipient of that decoration.
Death
Wheeler died in
Frederick, Maryland
Frederick is a city in and the county seat of Frederick County, Maryland. It is part of the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area. Frederick has long been an important crossroads, located at the intersection of a major north–south Native ...
after a heart attack on 18 December 1975.
Dates of rank
* postwar reduction
Decorations and medals
References
External links
ANC Explorer*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, Earle
United States Army Chiefs of Staff
United States Military Academy alumni
Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army)
Recipients of the Legion of Merit
Recipients of the Legion of Honour
Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France)
United States Army personnel of World War II
Burials at Arlington National Cemetery
1908 births
1975 deaths
United States Army Infantry Branch personnel
United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel
Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War
American adoptees
Recipients of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal