Franklin Milton Davis Jr. (July 19, 1918 – May 4, 1981) was an author and

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in the

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 ...

Early life and education

General Davis was born in

Malden, Massachusetts Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 66,263 people. History Malden, a hilly woodland area north of the Mystic River, was settled by Puritans in 1640 on la ...

and raised in

Waltham, Massachusetts Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, th ...

. He earned a A.B. in Economics/English from

Massachusetts State College The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...

in 1940. Davis was commissioned as a second lieutenant of cavalry through the Army ROTC program on June 10, 1940. He reported for active duty with the

3rd U.S. Cavalry The 3rd Cavalry Regiment, formerly 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment ("Brave Rifles") is a regiment of the United States Army currently stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. The regiment has a history in the United States Army that dates back to 19 May 1 ...

at Fort Myer, Virginia on July 5, 1940. Davis transferred to the Regular Army on February 20, 1942 and graduated from the

Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in January 1944. He later graduated from the Armed Forces Staff College in January 1958 and the Army War College in June 1960. Davis received an M.A. degree in International Affairs from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

in 1963.

Military

Davis had military participation in both

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 opposin ...

and 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 ...

. Between wars, he commanded the 82nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Armored Division in Europe from July 1951 to June 1952. Davis served as a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

during the Vietnam War and commanded the

199th Light Infantry Brigade The 199th Infantry Brigade (Light) is a unit of the United States Army which served in the Army Reserve from 1921 to 1940, in the active army from 1966 to 1970 (serving in the Vietnam War), briefly in 1991–1992 at Fort Lewis, and from 2007 as a ...

from May 1968 to July 1969. Davis' brigade operated in the Long Binh and Duc Hoa regions of Vietnam. While in Vietnam, Davis was wounded in action (WIA). Davis received a temporary promotion to major general on June 1, 1970 which was made permanent on April 5, 1971. He was a commandant of the U.S. Army War College from 1971 to 1974, when he retired from active duty. Davis's principal awards and decorations included two

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

s, the Distinguished Flying Cross, two awards of the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

, the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

and the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

with V for Valor. His wartime service included three major campaigns in World War II in Europe, and four in the war in Vietnam.

Transcendental Meditation

Davis was a practitioner of

Transcendental Meditation Transcendental Meditation (TM) is a form of silent mantra meditation advocated by the Transcendental Meditation movement. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi created the technique in India in the mid-1950s. Advocates of TM claim that the technique promotes a ...

and advocated its use to reduce the stress of soldiers. He was also a founding member of the Board of Trustees at Maharishi International University (MIU) (now called

Maharishi University of Management Maharishi International University (MIU), formerly Maharishi University of Management, is a private university in Fairfield, Iowa. It was founded in 1973 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and features a "consciousness-based education" system that includes ...

). At MIU, General Davis was also an International Resource Faculty member for the United States in Military Science.

Writing

In 1950, Davis wrote for a contest that was designed to "stimulate creative writing among ilitarypersonnel during their off-duty time."Omaha World Herald, April 28, 1950. ''Three Majors Winners in Army Story Contest''.
/ref> He was among three winners of the Army-wide writing contest. One of the prizes for the honor was to be published in ''

Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...

'' magazine. Davis wrote books of fiction and historical nonfiction. Two of his early books were published with his military rank attached to his name: "Col. Franklin M. Davis Jr.": * ''Kiss the Tiger'', (A Quinn Leland Espionage Thriller) Pyramid Books, 1961 * ''The U.S. Army Engineers—Fighting Elite'', Franklin Watts, 1967 Davis' books published without rank are: * The Naked and the Lost, Lion, 1954. Subject is the Korean War, 1950–1953 * ''Spearhead'', Permabook, 1957. Subject 3rd Armored Division (Spearhead) during World War II. * ''A Medal For Frankie'', Pocket Books,''Springfield Union'', July 24, 1960, p. 56. ''Pocket Books''.
/ref> 1959. 35 cents. * ''Break Through'', 1961 * ''Bamboo Camp #10'', 1962 * ''Secret Hong Kong'' (A Quinn Leland Espionage Thriller), 1962 * ''Combat! The Counterattack'', (Illustrated by Arnie Kohn), 1964 * ''Come As a Conqueror'', (The United States Army's Occupation of Germany 1945–1949. Nonfiction), 1967 * ''Across the Rhine'' (Time Life, World War II Collector's Edition), 1980

Personal

Davis married Erma Stuart Alvord (September 17, 1918 – August 28, 2003) at

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

, Georgia on July 18, 1942. They had two sons and three grandchildren. Their eldest son, First Lieutenant Stephen Winfield Davis (November 6, 1943 – August 18, 1967), was killed in action in Vietnam. General Davis had arrived in Vietnam for the first time only two weeks before and accompanied the body back to the United States for burial. Davis and his wife lived in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

. He died from cancer at the

Walter Reed Army Medical Center The Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC)known as Walter Reed General Hospital (WRGH) until 1951was the U.S. Army's flagship medical center from 1909 to 2011. Located on in the District of Columbia, it served more than 150,000 active and ret ...

in Washington, D.C. at age 62. After his death, his wife moved to

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

to be closer to their younger son and his family. Davis is buried alongside his wife and eldest son at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Early life and education

Military

Transcendental Meditation

Writing

Personal

References

See also