Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Walter Leo Weible (June 2, 1896 − February 19, 1980) 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 ...

officer 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 opposin ...

Early life

Weible was born on June 2, 1896, in Waterbury, Connecticut. He graduated from

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. It has a satellite campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The school was ...

in 1917 with a degree in engineering.

World War I

Weible enlisted for

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 the Army Coast Artillery on December 17, 1917. He served on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

until June 25, 1918, when he received his commission as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the Coast Artillery.

Post-World War I

Weible served throughout the United States in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1927, he graduated from the Coast Artillery School. In 1928, Weible graduated from the Engineer Officer Advanced Course. Weible graduated from the Chemical Warfare Officer Course in 1928, afterwards carrying out an assignment at Fort Winfield Scott, where he remained until 1930. In 1930, Weible was transferred to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, and in 1931 he was assigned to Fort MacArthur, where he stayed until 1933. Weible then attended the

Command & General Staff College 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 ...

, graduating in 1935. In 1938, Weible graduated from the Army War College, and in 1939 he graduated from the Army Industrial College.

World War II

From 1942 to 1943, Weible was Deputy Director of Military Training for the

Army Service Forces The Army Service Forces was one of the three autonomous components of the United States Army during World War II, the others being the Army Air Forces and Army Ground Forces, created on 9 March 1942. By dividing the Army into three large comman ...

. In 1943, he was appointed as Director, receiving promotion to

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 ...

, and serving until 1945.

Post-World War II

General Weible served during the occupation of Japan as commander of Headquarters and Service Group, the logistical and administrative unit of the Far East Command.

Korean War

In 1950, Weible was appointed commander of the Japan Logistical Command (JLC), based in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

. The JLC was responsible for supporting fighting units in

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

by pre-ordering supplies and equipment from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and then maintaining stockpiles in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

for rapid transport into the combat theater.

Post-Korean War

Weible was named Deputy Commander of the 5th United States Army in 1953 and was promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. Later in 1953, Weible was named the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations & Administration. In 1956, a reorganization of the roles and responsibilities of the Army staff resulted in Weible's appointment as Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, where he remained until his 1957 retirement.

McCarthy hearings controversy

During the McCarthy hearings of 1954 and 1955, Senator McCarthy objected to the Army's decision to promote dentist

Irving Peress Irving Peress (July 31, 1917 – November 13, 2014) was an American dentist and military officer who became a primary target for investigation of alleged communist leanings during the 1954 Army-McCarthy hearings. Early life Peress was born in th ...

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on the grounds that he was a security risk. Peress subsequently received an honorable discharge, despite McCarthy's call for a court-martial. General Weible later testified that he was responsible for approving the honorable discharge for Peress, determining that McCarthy's request was not sufficient reason to deny it. Weible also testified that he might have made a different determination if information about Peress later revealed by McCarthy had been known to him at the time.

Awards and decorations

General Weible's decorations included multiple awards of the

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 ...

, including two for

, 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

Bronze Star 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 ...

Civilian career

Weible had served as president of the Association of the United States Army in the mid 1950s, while it was still an unofficial organization. After retiring from the Army Weible was employed as AUSA's Executive Vice President.

Retirement and death

In retirement General Weible lived in Montgomery County, Maryland. He died in

Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in ...

on February 19, 1980. He was buried 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 ...

, Section 11 Lot 233-1.

Other

In 1955 Weible received an honorary doctor of laws degree from

. The Walter L. Weible Papers are stored at the U.S. Army's Military History Institute.World Catalogue web page, Walter L. Weible Papers
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References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weible, Walter Leo 1896 births 1980 deaths United States Army generals United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army personnel of the Korean War Pratt Institute alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit People from Waterbury, Connecticut People from Rockville, Maryland Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy alumni United States Army generals of World War II United States Army Coast Artillery Corps personnel