Brigadier General Joseph Warren Stilwell Jr. (March 6, 1912 – July 25, 1966) was a United States Army general best known for his service in United States Army Special Forces and the United States Army Support Group in the Vietnam War.

Early life and education

Stilwell was born in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

, one of five children of General Joseph Stilwell. He attended West Point, graduating in the class of 1933. Stilwell later graduated from the

Army and Navy Staff College An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

in 1945 and the United States Army War College in 1951.

Military career

Stilwell served as a lieutenant with the

15th Infantry Regiment (United States) The 15th United States Infantry Regiment is a parent regiment in the United States Army. It has a lineage tracing back to the American Civil War, having participated in many battles. It is part of 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team and 3rd Infantr ...

in China in 1937. During a troop movement from

Chinwangtao Qinhuangdao (; ) is a port city on the coast of China in northern Hebei. It is administratively a prefecture-level city, about east of Beijing, on the Bohai Sea, the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea. Its population during the 2020 national ...

to Tientsin on July 29, 1937, Stilwell's unit came into contact with a battle between Chinese and Japanese forces. Major William F. Lee, First Lieutenant Stilwell and four of their men each received the Soldier's Medal for protecting the unit and its equipment from injury and damage. During World War II, Stilwell served in the

China Burma India Theater China Burma India Theater (CBI) was the United States military designation during World War II for the China and Southeast Asian or India–Burma (IBT) theaters. Operational command of Allied forces (including U.S. forces) in the CBI was officia ...

, earning his first 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 Air Medal. Stilwell served as commander of the

23rd Infantry Regiment The 23rd Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in the United States Army. A unit with the same name was formed on 26 June 1812 and saw action in 14 battles during the War of 1812. In 1815 it was consolidated with the 6th, 16th, 22nd, and ...

, 2nd Infantry Division in Korea from 1952 to 1953, earning his second award of the Legion of Merit and first award of the

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 ...

. Stilwell served as commander of United States Army Support Group, Vietnam (renamed United States Army Support Command, Vietnam from March 1, 1964) from August 26, 1962, until June 30, 1964.

Death

Stilwell was lost at sea on July 25, 1966, when flying a

C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

to Hawaii with longtime friend and pilot Hal Grimes of Air Ferry International. Harold Fossum was the navigator. The C-47 was to continue on to Thailand; however, Stilwell was only intending to travel as far as Hawaii to increase his instrument rating qualification. The Coast Guard, USAF and US Navy (including three destroyers and the ) searched an area of 105,000 square miles without finding any trace of the aircraft. A memorial to Brig. Gen. Stilwell was erected at the West Point Cemetery next to the gravesite of his parents.

Awards and decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stilwell, Joseph 1912 births 1966 deaths People from Syracuse, New York United States Military Academy alumni Recipients of the Soldier's Medal United States Army personnel of World War II Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Joint Forces Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni United States Army personnel of the Korean War United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in international waters