Elbridge Gerry Chapman Jr. (November 20, 1895 – July 6, 1954) was a senior

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

who served in both

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. During the latter he commanded the 13th Airborne Division, but saw no action.

Early life and education

Chapman attended the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...

, where he played college football and was captain of the 1916 Colorado Silver and Gold football team.

Military career

Chapman entered the

in 1917, due to the

American entry into World War I American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

and was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the Infantry Branch. He served with distinction on the Western Front in France as a company commander with the 5th Machine Gun Battalion (attached to the 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division) and was awarded the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

and the Silver Star Citation for valor. During the interwar period he remained in the army and by the time the United States entered

in December 1941 he was an enthusiastic supporter of the army's rapidly growing airborne forces, commanding the 88th Glider Infantry Battalion, later becoming the Assistant Division Commander of the 13th Airborne Division, later commanding the division in North-West Europe but never commanded it in action. He retired from the army in 1946, after almost thirty years of service, and died in

San Bruno, California San Bruno ( Spanish for " St. Bruno") is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, incorporated in 1914. The population was 43,908 at the 2020 United States Census. The city is between South San Francisco and Millbrae, adjacent to S ...

, in July 1954, aged 58.

In media

Chapman was portrayed in the television miniseries '' Band of Brothers'' by David Andrews.

References

External links

Generals of World War II
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Elbridge 1895 births 1954 deaths United States Army Infantry Branch personnel Colorado Buffaloes football players Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army generals of World War II United States Army generals Players of American football from Denver Military personnel from Colorado