John William Wessy Jr. ( English John William Vessey Jr .; June 29, 1922 , Minneapolis , Minnesota , USA - August 18, 2016 , North Oaks , Minnesota , USA ) - American military commander, retired U.S. Army General , chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States ( 1982-1985).
| John William Wessy Jr. | ||||||||||||||||||
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| John William Vessey Jr. | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of Birth | June 29, 1922 | |||||||||||||||||
| Place of Birth | Minneapolis , Minnesota , USA | |||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | August 18, 2016 ( 94) | |||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | North Oaks , Minnesota , USA | |||||||||||||||||
| Affiliation |  USA | |||||||||||||||||
| Type of army |  Ground troops | |||||||||||||||||
| Years of service | 1939-1985 | |||||||||||||||||
| Rank |  | |||||||||||||||||
| Commanded | Joint Chiefs of Staff The Joint Command of the Republic of Korea and the USA 8th US Army US Armed Forces in Korea 4th Infantry Division Laos Military Assistance Advisory Group | |||||||||||||||||
| Battles / wars | The Second World War Korean war War in vietnam | |||||||||||||||||
| Awards and prizes |
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Content
Biography
World War II and Post-War Time
After graduation, he entered the National Guard of the Minnesota Army. Then he became a motorcycle courier in the 59th field artillery brigade of the 34th infantry division. In February 1941, his unit was involved in training and mobilization in anticipation of US involvement in World War II .
Throughout the entire period of the war he served in the 34th Infantry Division. During the US offensive on Bizerte, he was at the most difficult site. Also in the rank of second lieutenant participated in the Anzio-Nettun operation .
After the war, much of his service to Wessy was in artillery units. In the 1950s he served in the 4th Infantry Division in Germany and in the 8th US Army in the Republic of Korea. During this period, he also studied at the College of Command and General Staff of the United States Army in Fort Leavenworth , Kansas.
In 1963, with the rank of lieutenant colonel, he was awarded a bachelor's degree in military sciences from the University of Maryland College. In 1965, he was awarded a master's degree in business administration from George Washington University . From 1963 to 1965, he commanded the 2nd battalion of the 73rd field artillery of the 3rd Panzer Division , then he studied at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces for a year.
Service in Vietnam and Germany
During the Vietnam War , he served as chief of staff of the 25th Infantry Division for a year. In March 1967, when he was acting as commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 77th Artillery, he was instructed to create a fire support base in Suoy Tre during Operation Junction City . Successfully organized the defense of the regiment base, despite the superior enemy forces. For this he was awarded the Cross “For Outstanding Merits”.
Then he was sent to West Germany, where he first served as commander of the 3rd Panzer Artillery Division (1967-1969), and then for a year as chief of staff of the division. In November 1967, he was awarded the rank of colonel and he was retrained at the Military Helicopter School. In December 1970, he returned to Southeast Asia to head the command of support for the US Army in Thailand . In January 1972 he was sent to Laos to coordinate all US military operations in this country.
1970s
Upon returning to the United States, he was appointed Chief of Operations at the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Planning of the US Department of Defense. In the new rank of Major General in August 1974, he took command of the 4th Infantry Division in Fort Carson, Colorado. In September 1975, he was appointed deputy chief of staff of the army for operational issues and planning with the rank of lieutenant general.
In 1976 he became a four-star general .
From 1976 to 1979 he served in the Republic of Korea as commander of the 8th US Army, commander of the US Armed Forces in Korea, and commander of the United Nations. In 1978, he was appointed the first commander in chief of the joint command of the armed republics of Korea and the United States. This period was marked by increased military tensions caused by the buildup of the military border presence on the part of the DPRK and the announcement by the President of the United States of America Jimmy Carter in 1977 of the decision to withdraw the US ground forces. The general mitigate the fears of South Korea and change the decision of the president. Following Carter’s visit to South Korea in 1979, plans to withdraw troops were suspended and then canceled. From July 1979 to June 1982, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff of the US Army .
1980s
In 1982-1985 served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and was the last veteran of World War II in this post. At this time, there was an unprecedented increase in defense spending in peacetime and the expansion of the US military presence around the world, designed to withstand the growing Soviet military power. Pershing-2 ballistic missiles and ground-based cruise missiles were deployed in Europe as a response to the deployment of Soviet SS-20 missiles. In southwest Asia, highly visible US military operations underscored the US commitment to protecting its vital interests in the region. In Central America, training and intelligence was organized to support action against the rebels.
In 1982 and 1983 He opposed the deployment of the US Marine Corps as part of a multinational peacekeeping force in Lebanon. This advice was not accepted, and in October 1983, a truck bomb exploded at the Marine Corps headquarters in Beirut, killing 241 US Marines. In February 1984, President Ronald Reagan withdrew the military contingent from Lebanon.
On behalf of Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, he led the US military invasion of Grenada .
It is considered one of the authors of the concept of militarization of space, which led to the publication by President Reagan of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) and the creation in September 1985 of the US Space Command .
After resigning, he was the special representative of Presidents Reagan, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton on the issue of the loss of American troops during the Vietnam War. For this activity in 1996 he was awarded the prestigious Sylvan Thayer Award, awarded by the US Military Academy .
Awards and titles
American:
- Cross "For Outstanding Merit"
- US Department of Defense Medal of Outstanding Service with Oak Leaves
- US Army Medal of Outstanding Service with Two Oak Leaves
- Outstanding Service Medal (US Navy)
- Outstanding Service Medal (US Air Force)
- Legion of Honor Order with Oak Leaves
- Bronze Star with Oak Leaves
- Premium Medal "4" Air Medal
- “Gratitude medal for service in the joint bodies of the Armed Forces”
- "Gratitude medal for service in the Ground Forces" V rank
- Purple Heart Medal
- Gratitude from the President
- Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Medal "For Impeccable Service"
- Defense of America Medal
- Campaign Medal
- Medal "For the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign" with silver and bronze stars of the campaign
- Medal of Victory in World War II
- Medal "For service in the occupying army"
- Medal "For the service of national defense" with oak leaves
- Vietnam Service Medal with Two Campaign Stars
Foreign:
- Cross "For Military Merit" (France)
- Order of Merit (South Korea)
- Cross “For courage” with a large palm leaf
- Vietnam Campaign Medal