Charles Edwin Brown Jr. (December 31, 1911 – August 23, 1996) was a

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 Chief of Chaplains of the United States Army.

Biography

Brown graduated from high school in

Kiowa, Kansas Kiowa is a city in Barber County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 902. It is located 1 mile north of the Kansas / Oklahoma state border. History 19th century Kiowa was founded in 1872. It was nam ...

in 1930. In 1934, he graduated from

Southwestern College Southwestern College may refer to the following colleges in the United States: * Southwestern College (California) * Southwestern College (Kansas) * Southwestern College (New Mexico) *Southwestern College of Business and New England Technical Insti ...

and married Ava Currier. The following year, he was ordained by the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

Military career

During

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Brown served with the 3rd Infantry Division of the Fifth Army during the North African Campaign and the Italian Campaign. After the war, he was stationed at Fort Oglethorpe. Later, he attended the

United States Army Command and 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 ...

and became the first chaplain to attend the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offi ...

. Brown became Chief of Chaplains in 1962 after being promoted to major general from

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 ...

, bypassing the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed t ...

. He remained in the position until his retirement in 1967.

References

People from Kiowa, Kansas Chiefs of Chaplains of the United States Army American Methodist clergy United States Army personnel of World War II Southwestern College (Kansas) alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni 1911 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American clergy {{US-mil-bio-stub