Gerald Carthrae Thomas (October 29, 1894 – April 7, 1984) was a

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

who served as Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps. He retired from the Marine Corps in 1956 with more than 38 years of distinguished service which included duty on four continents, spanning two World Wars, Haiti and the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. During World War I, he fought in major offensives, including the

Battle of Belleau Wood The Battle of Belleau Wood (1–26 June 1918) occurred during the German spring offensive in World War I, near the Marne River in France. The battle was fought between the U.S. 2nd (under the command of Major General Omar Bundy) and 3rd Divisi ...

, and was awarded the Silver Star and 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, ...

Biography

Gerald Carthrae Thomas was born on October 29, 1894, in

Slater, Missouri Slater is a city in Saline County, Missouri, Saline County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,856 at the 2010 census. History Slater was laid out in 1889. A post office called Slater has been in operation since 1878. The community has ...

. Thomas was attending

Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockford ...

at the start of

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 ...

. When the U.S. entered the war and a call was made for men, Gerald, then a sophomore,Sausoman, "Legendary Marine: General Gerald C. Thomas". enlisted for military service. He was awarded a degree of

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor ...

by his alma mater on February 10, 1954.

Marine Corps service

Gerald enlisted in the Marine Corps on May 28, 1917. He completed boot camp at

Parris Island Parris is both a given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Parris Afton Bonds, American novelist * Parris Campbell (born 1997), American football player * Parris Duffus (born 1970), retired American ice hockey go ...

then joined the 1st Battalion 6th Marines.

World War I

Sailing for France in September 1917, Thomas saw action with the

6th Marines The 6th Marine Regiment (also referred to as "6th Marines") is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. The regiment falls under the command of the 2nd Marine Division of th ...

at Verdun, Belleau Wood,

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital o ...

, and in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive (Champagne). He was promoted to sergeant and served as an intelligence sergeant. During the battle in Belleau Wood, he led a squad of Marines and received the Silver Star for bravery. At Soisson, his company sustained heavy losses and he became the acting platoon leader. In September 1918, he was commissioned a second lieutenant. During his World War I service, in addition to the award of the Silver Star for valor, he was awarded the

for wounds received in battle, and as a member of the 6th Marine Regiment, he became entitled to wear the French Fourragere. After participating in the occupation of Germany, he returned to the United States in July 1919.

Haiti

In November 1919, he joined the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade in Haiti, taking part in action against Haitian bandit forces until May 1921. During this time, he participated in the Battle of Port-au-Prince (1920) where he successfully

ambush An ambush is a long-established military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind mo ...

ed a column of Caco rebels. In August 1921, he was assigned to the Marine barracks at Quantico, where he remained for the next two years. During that time he was detached for several months of duty with the guard company at the

Disarmament Conference The Conference on Disarmament (CD) is a multilateral disarmament forum established by the international community to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements based at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. The Conference meets annually i ...

in Washington. He also completed the Company Officers Course at the Marine Corps Schools.

1920s-1930s

From November 1923 to October 1925, Thomas commanded the Marine Detachment aboard the . He was then stationed for two years at the Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina, and for a year at

Camp Holabird Fort Holabird was a United States Army post in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, active from 1918 to 1973. History Fort Holabird was located in the southeast corner of Baltimore and northwest of the suburban developments of Dundalk, Maryland, in s ...

, Maryland, where he completed a course in the Army Motor Transport School. In December 1928, after serving as Officer-in-Charge of Land Transportation at the Marine Barracks,

Parris Island, South Carolina Parris Island is a district of the city of Port Royal, South Carolina on an island of the same name. It became part of the city with the annexation of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on October 11, 2002. For statistical purposes, th ...

, he joined the 1st Brigade Marines in Haiti, and became aide to the commanding general. He returned to the United States in June 1931, entering the Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, the following September. Graduating in June 1932, Thomas was made an instructor in

the Basic School The Basic School (TBS) is where all newly commissioned and appointed (for warrant officers) United States Marine Corps officers are taught the basics of being an "Officer of Marines". The Basic School is located at Camp Barrett, Quantico, Vi ...

at the

Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the ci ...

. He remained there until August 1934, when he was ordered back to Quantico as a student in the Senior Course. After completing that course, he was ordered to China in July 1935, for duty with the Marine Detachment at the American Embassy in Peiping. He returned to the United States two years later to attend 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 ...

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., and the oldest perma ...

, Kansas, and after graduating in June 1938, he joined the staff of the Marine Corps Schools at Quantico.

World War II

In May 1941, Thomas was transferred to Cairo, Egypt, as a naval observer, but he was recalled to Quantico two months later to become assistant operations officer of the

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). It is th ...

. Named Operations Officer of the division in March 1942, he sailed for the South Pacific in that capacity two months later. He was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal for his efforts in the assault and capture of Guadalcanal and

Tulagi Tulagi, less commonly known as Tulaghi, is a small island——in Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Ngella Sule. The town of the same name on the island (pop. 1,750) was the capital of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate from 1 ...

. He was appointed chief of staff of the division in September 1942, at Guadalcanal, and in July 1943, he became chief of staff of the 1st Marine Amphibious Corps, where he was awarded the Legion of Merit with Combat "V" in the Treasury-Bougainville operation. After participating in the Empress Augusta Bay operation at Bougainville, he returned to

Marine Corps Headquarters Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) is a headquarters staff within the Department of the Navy which includes the offices of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and various staff functions. The function, ...

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, ...

, where he was made director of Plans and Policies in January 1944 and awarded a second Legion of Merit for outstanding service from January 1944 to November 1946.

Korean War

In July 1947, Thomas was named

Commanding General The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitud ...

Fleet Marine Force The United States Fleet Marine Forces (FMF) are combined general- and special-purpose forces within the United States Department of the Navy that perform offensive amphibious or expeditionary warfare and defensive maritime employment. The Flee ...

, Western Pacific. After that unit was disbanded in March 1949, he became chief of staff of the Marine Corps Equipment Board at Quantico, later serving there as commanding general of the Landing Force Development Center. He took command of the 1st Marine Division during the

in April 1951, where he earned the Army Distinguished Service Cross and Army Distinguished Service Medal. He served in that capacity until January 1952, when he was relieved by Major general John T. Selden and returned to the United States. The following month he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and designated by President Truman as assistant commandant of the Marine Corps. He served in that billet until June 1954, and the following month became commandant of the Marine Corps Schools, Quantico.

Retirement, death

He retired from the Marine Corps and was promoted to the rank of

on January 1, 1956. From 1957 to 1958, he was the first director of the National Security Council (NSC) Net Evaluation Subcommittee (NESC); succeeded by Thomas Hickey.National Security Archive (Internet), 22 July 2014 General Thomas died on April 7, 1984, at his home in

He is buried in

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 ...

Biography

Marine Corps service

World War I

Haiti

1920s-1930s

World War II

Korean War

Retirement, death

Awards and decorations

See also

Notes

References

Further reading