George Patrick Welch

George Patrick Welch was a historian and writer whose works include ''Britannia: The Roman Conquest '' and '' Occupation of Britain''. He was born in 1900 in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

and was educated at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

from which he graduated in 1923. For fifteen years thereafter he was active in investment banking, retiring in 1938 to write. In the next few years, he published many short stories and articles, plus a historical novel, ''Final Hosting''. Then came

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

and the Army. As a soldier, Colonel Welch served through

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 for some ten years after in various posts in the United States, the Africa-Middle East Theatre, and Japan. During 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 ...

, he commanded an artillery battalion at the Inchon landing, the assault on Seoul, and the march to the Yalu River. He also served as General Matthew Ridgway's Information Officer. He made headlines in ''Time'' magazine in 1952 because of his involvement in exposing information leaks between American and Russian journalists. Some war correspondents, said Welch, had been abusing their rights at Panmunjom by "fraternization and trafficking with the enemy." He said they were guilty of "excessive social consorting, including drinking of alcoholic beverages, with Communist 'journalists.'" Retired as a full

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in 1956, he held 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 ...

with two oak leaf clusters, the Korean Campaign Medal with four stars, and the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

. Besides his two books, he also wrote a play, "Assignment in Judea", a fact-based fictional account of the trial and crucifixion of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

from the Romans' and

Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of J ...

's perspectives. It premiered in Florida in 1964. He lived his final years in Colorado Springs, surrounded by his friends in the extensive military complexes headquartered there, including the Air Force Academy, Fort Carson, and NORAD. He died in 1973. 1900 births American non-fiction writers Writers from Boston 1973 deaths Recipients of the Air Medal Harvard University alumni 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers Historians from Massachusetts 20th-century American male writers {{US-historian-stub