John William Middendorf II (born September 22, 1924) is a former Republican

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 ...

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and

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

Education and military service

John William Middendorf II received a Bachelor of Naval Science (BNS) degree from

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

in 1945. In

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 ...

, he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from 1944 to 1946 as engineer officer and navigator aboard USS ''LCS(L)'' ''53''. He was discharged from the Navy in 1946. He earned a BA degree from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

in 1947, where he was a member of the

Hasty Pudding Theatricals The Hasty Pudding Theatricals, known informally simply as The Pudding, is a theatrical student society at Harvard University, known for its burlesque crossdressing musicals. The Hasty Pudding is the oldest theatrical organization in the United Sta ...

and the Owl Club. He also graduated from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

's Graduate School of Business Administration, receiving an MBA degree in 1954.

Early career

He became an investment banker and in 1963 in partnership with Austen Colgate formed his own company, Middendorf, Colgate and Company (with a seat on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

). An early member of

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for presiden ...

presidential campaign President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

, he served as treasurer of that campaign, and continued to have the same duties with the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

from 1965–1969.

Government service

Shortly after taking office in 1969, President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

appointed Middendorf as

United States Ambassador to the Netherlands The United States diplomatic mission to the Netherlands consists of the embassy located in The Hague and a consular office located in Amsterdam. In 1782, John Adams was appointed America's first Minister Plenipotentiary to Holland. According t ...

. Middendorf served in this position until June 1973. After returning to the U.S., he became Under Secretary of the Navy; not long after, Secretary

John Warner John William Warner III (February 18, 1927 – May 25, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1972 to 1974 and as a five-term Republican U.S. Senator from Virginia from 1979 to 200 ...

moved on to become head of the

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Commission, and Middendorf was told he could expect promotion to Secretary. However, when his nomination seemed to be stalled, he discovered that Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger had a candidate of his own (information that Schlesinger had not shared with Middendorf). Whereupon, Middendorf paid a personal call on many of the senators he had worked with while he was Treasurer of the Republican Party—and soon enough he had been nominated and confirmed as Secretary of the Navy, serving until the end of the administration of President

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

. As he would later write, "Life is relationships. Politics is compromise." During his tenure and again using his legislative contacts, Middendorf helped increase the Navy budget by 60 percent while the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force budgets remained relatively flat. Programs he championed included the

Ohio-class submarine The ''Ohio'' class of nuclear-powered submarines includes the United States Navy's 14 ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) and its four cruise missile submarines (SSGNs). Each displacing 18,750 tons submerged, the ''Ohio''-class boats are the ...

and the companion

Trident missile The Trident missile is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) equipped with multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRV). Originally developed by Lockheed Missiles and Space Corporation, the missile is armed with thermonucl ...

, the

Aegis The aegis ( ; grc, αἰγίς ''aigís''), as stated in the ''Iliad'', is a device carried by Athena and Zeus, variously interpreted as an animal skin or a shield and sometimes featuring the head of a Gorgon. There may be a connection with a d ...

surface-launched missile system (which became the Navy's longest-running construction program; the 100th Aegis-equipped ship was delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2009 and systems are now in service with five allied navies). He also championed the

F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twinjet, twin-engine, supersonic aircraft, supersonic, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, ...

carrier-based fighter attack aircraft—which Middendorf arranged to have dubbed "Hornet," as a tribute to his Revolutionary War ancestor merchant-shipping Captain William Stone, who donated two ships to the fledgling Navy which were then renamed "Wasp" and "Hornet." Those names survived many years and many ships, but as the fleet began to shrink and as ship-naming became more political—i.e., breaking the old rules and naming ships after living politicians—there weren't enough new candidates for traditional names. Incoming President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

invited Middendorf to stay on as Secretary of the Navy; however, as Middendorf noted in his 2011 memoir ''Potomac Fever'', he told the President-elect "that it was the best job in government and therefore an insecure post for a Republican in a Democrat administration." During the

Carter presidency Jimmy Carter's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 39th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Jimmy Carter, his inauguration on January 20, 1977, and ended on January 20, 1981. A History of the Democr ...

, Middendorf was back in the private sector, as President and Chief Executive Officer of Financial General Bankshares (which he re-organized and renamed First American Bank). Next, he headed the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

transition team (1980) for incoming President

Ronald 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 ...

and was then named Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the

Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS; es, Organización de los Estados Americanos, pt, Organização dos Estados Americanos, french: Organisation des États américains; ''OEA'') is an international organization that was founded on 30 April ...

(OAS), with the rank of Ambassador. He served in the post until 1984, when he accepted appointment as U. S. Representative to the European Community (known today as the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

) serving until 1987.

Other pursuits and interests

In 2006, Middendorf published a book describing his work with the

Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for president ...

campaign. ''Glorious Disaster: Barry Goldwater's Presidential Campaign and the Origins of the Conservative Movement'' details how Goldwater's campaign became the foundation of the modern

Conservative movement Conservative movement may refer to: *Conservatism in the United States, in politics *Conservatism, a political philosophy *Conservative Judaism Conservative Judaism, known as Masorti Judaism outside North America, is a Jewish religious moveme ...

. In 2011, he published his autobiography, ''Potomac Fever.'' He is a prolific composer of symphonies (including the ''Holland Symphony,'' presented to Queen

Juliana of the Netherlands Juliana (; Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina; 30 April 1909 – 20 March 2004) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 until her abdication in 1980. Juliana was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Sh ...

on the 25th anniversary of her ascension to the throne) and 100 marches for ships of the U.S. Navy. Ambassador Middendorf is a member of the board of directors of the

International Republican Institute The International Republican Institute (IRI) is an American nonprofit organization. Most of its board is drawn from the Republican Party. It is committed to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide by helping political parties to become more iss ...

. He is a member of the board of trustees for the Heritage Foundation, an influential

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, ...

based public policy research institute.Heritage Foundation Board of Trustees, heritage.org
He is also a member of the Rhode Island Society of the

Sons of the Revolution Sons of the Revolution is a hereditary society which was founded in 1876 and educates the public about the American Revolution. The General Society Sons of the Revolution headquarters is a Pennsylvania non-profit corporation located at Willia ...

and the

Naval Order of the United States The Naval Order of the United States was established in 1890 as a hereditary organization in the United States for members of the American sea services. Its primary mission is to encourage research and writing on naval and maritime subjects and pr ...

. Middendorf studied

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

production with Dutch-born expert

Joep Nicolas Joep Nicolas (Josephus Antonius Hubertus Franciscus Nicolas, October 6, 1897 – July 25, 1972) was a Dutch-born French ecclesiastical artist specializing in stained glass and sculpture. He was also a muralist, book illustrator, cartoonist, costume ...

. He is on the board of the

New York Studio School The New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture at 8 West 8th Street, in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York State is an art school formed in 1963 by a group of students and their teacher, Mercedes Matter, all of ...

of Drawing, Painting and Sculpture.

Honors and awards

Decorations and medals from the United States Government

Superior Honor Award The Superior Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or individ ...

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

, 1974 * Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, 1975; bronze palm (second award), 1976 *

Navy Distinguished Public Service Award The Navy Distinguished Public Service Award, established in 1951, is an award presented by the U.S. Secretary of the Navy to civilians for specific courageous or heroic acts or exceptionally outstanding service of substantial and long-term benef ...

, 1976 *

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had perfo ...

* Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

s * World War II Victory Medal *

Navy Occupation Medal The Navy Occupation Service Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was "Awarded to commemorate the services of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel in the occupation of certain territories of the enemies of the U.S. durin ...

with "ASIA" clasp * China Service Medal

Foreign orders, decorations and medals

* Grand Officer of

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

, The Netherlands, 1985 * Order of the Arab Republic of Egypt – Rank A (highest foreign decoration) by President

Sadat Sadat ( ar, سادات) is a suffix, which is given to families believed to be descendants of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. In Iran, after the revolution, it is mandatory to mention "Seyed" or "Sadat" in the names of or whose descent from Muham ...

* Grand Officer of the Order of Naval Merit – Republic of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, 1974 * Naval Distinguished Service Medal, Brazil, 1976

Other awards

Middendorf has received the "Edwin Franko Goldman Award" from the American Bandmasters Association and is a member of the American Society of Composers and Performers (ASCAP). Other honors include: * Hudson River Museum Honoree, Hudson River Museum, 2009 * Maritime Security Lifetime Excellence Award, 2002 *

Arleigh Burke Arleigh Albert Burke (October 19, 1901 – January 1, 1996) was an admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during the Eisenhower and Kenne ...

Award – Navy League of the United States, 1998 *

Ludwig von Mises Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (; 29 September 1881 – 10 October 1973) was an Austrian School economist, historian, logician, and Sociology, sociologist. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the societal contributions of classical liberali ...

Free Market Award – 1985 * Distinguished Service Award,

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

Band * Gold Medal, The Netherlands Society of the Sons of American Revolution * Medal of Honor, Midwest National Band and Orchestra Association * Alumnus of the Year,

Graduate School of Business * Association of Harvard Clubs of American Award (Music) (Keogh Award) * NYU Eugene Keogh Award for Distinguished Public Service (1989) * American Friends of Turkey Leadership Award, 1989 * Presidential Physical Fitness Award, 1990 * Distinguished Patriot Award, SAR of State of New York, 1975 * Award of Merit, Art League of Virginia (Portrait of Del), 1996 *

U.S. Olympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee and the National Paralympic Committee for the United States. It was founded in 1895 as the United States Olympic Committee, and is headquartered in Col ...

Gold Shield Award * Gold Medal,

Holland Society of New York The Holland Society of New York was founded in New York City in 1885 to collect information respecting the settlement and history of New Netherland. Its main objective is to find and preserve documentation about the inhabitants' lives and times s ...

, 1996 * American Bandmasters Association Edwin Franko Goldman Award * American Music Award, Harvard Clubs

Honorary degrees

Troy State University Troy University is a public university in Troy, Alabama. It was founded in 1887 as Troy State Normal School within the Alabama State University System, and is now the flagship university of the Troy University System. Troy University is accredi ...

– Doctor of Law * School of the Ozarks – Doctor of Letters * American Christian College – Doctor of Letters *

Francisco Marroquin University Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

– Doctor of Social Sciences

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

American paintings & historical prints from the Middendorf collection
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF) *
Lars Larson Interview - Is the next Cold War on the horizon?
(2020)
The Daily Signal Book Review - "Great Nightfall Provides Extraordinary Overview of Military Challenges Facing America"
(2020) {{DEFAULTSORT:Middendorf, J. William 1924 births Living people The Heritage Foundation Harvard College alumni International Republican Institute United States Secretaries of the Navy College of the Holy Cross alumni New York University Stern School of Business alumni Hasty Pudding alumni Permanent Representatives of the United States to the Organization of American States Politicians from Baltimore Military personnel from Baltimore United States Under Secretaries of the Navy Maryland Republicans Recipients of the Order of Naval Merit (Brazil) Rhode Island Republicans New Right (United States) Ford administration personnel Nixon administration personnel United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers 20th-century American diplomats