Robert Laurence Schweitzer (6 September 1928 – 16 September 2000) was a lieutenant general in the United States Army who served as Chairman of the

Inter-American Defense Board The Inter-American Defense Board (IADB) is an international committee of nationally appointed defense officials who develop collaborative approaches on common defense and security issues facing countries in North, Central, and South America. The ...

from 1982 to 1987. He 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) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

for his actions while serving as

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in Vietnam in 1966.

Early life and education

Born in Chicago, Schweitzer graduated from St. Ignatius High School in 1946. He enlisted in the Army in 1950 and graduated from Officer Candidate School in 1953. Schweitzer later completed a B.A. degree in civil government at the University of Maryland in 1962. Schweitzer also earned an M.S. degree in military arts and science from the Army Command and General Staff College and an M.A. degree in international relations from Georgetown University. He attended the Army War College and received an M.S. degree in counseling from

Shippensburg State College Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (Ship or SU) is a public university in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, it later became the first teachers college in Pennsylvania. ...

Military career

As an enlisted soldier, Schweitzer served during the Korean War but was not sent overseas. From 1 July 1952 to 27 October 1957, he was assigned to the Illinois Army National Guard before rejoining the Regular Army. During the Vietnam War, Schweitzer was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions on 11 December 1966 during the defense of the village of Tam Da. Serving as an aerial observer for the 1st Infantry Division, he killed two Viet Cong insurgents near a concealed tunnel entrance. His pilot landed their helicopter and Schweitzer investigated the tunnel by himself, disabling four

booby trap A booby trap is a device or setup that is intended to kill, harm or surprise a human or another animal. It is triggered by the presence or actions of the victim and sometimes has some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. The trap m ...

s, killing two more insurgents, capturing a fifth one and recovering intelligence materials. During his six combat tours in Vietnam, he also received three Silver Star Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross, four

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 ...

s, seven Purple Hearts, and 21 Air Medals. Schweitzer served as deputy commander of the

11th Armored Cavalry Regiment The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment ("Blackhorse Regiment") is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. Although termed an armored cavalry regiment, it is being re-organized as a multi ...

in Vietnam and later served as commanding officer of the regiment in Europe. As a major general, he served on the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a na ...

staff. At the beginning of the

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

administration, he became the NSC's defense group director, the council's top military officer. However, in October 1981, he was relieved of that post following a speech he gave that was "at some degree of variance" with President Reagan's views. In the speech, he spoke of "drift toward war" with the Soviet Union, something that Reagan and other administration officials said they did not believe. After leaving the NSC, he returned to the Pentagon. His other military honors include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. Th ...

, two

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

s, 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 ...

and the Soldier's Medal.

Personal

Schweitzer was the son of Anthony J. Schweitzer (1890–1961) and Helen McCarthy Schweitzer (1892–1985). He had two sisters, Mary Nolan (nee Schweitzer) and Ruth Schweitzer. Schweitzer married Nancy Jean Nolan (4 January 1930 – 4 April 2021) on 3 August 1950. The couple had five sons and one daughter, but the marriage ended in divorce. Schweitzer remarried with Marie Silvia "Marisa" Schweitzer (31 December 1931 – 30 July 2016) circa 1982 and the couple lived in Springfield, Virginia. After his death from cancer at

Walter Reed Army Hospital 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 reti ...

, he was buried at Arlington National Cemetery on 22 September 2000. His second wife was interred with him on 15 November 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schweitzer, Robert Laurence 1928 births 2000 deaths Military personnel from Chicago St. Ignatius College Prep alumni University System of Maryland alumni Recipients of the Soldier's Medal United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Georgetown University alumni Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal People from Springfield, Virginia Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C. Burials at Arlington National Cemetery