James H. Polk | |
|---|---|
 General James Hilliard Polk | |
| Born | (1911-12-13)13 December 1911 Batangas, Philippines |
| Died | 18 February 1992(1992-02-18) (aged 80) El Paso, Texas, United States |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1933–1971 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands | United States Army Europe 4th Armored Division 3rd Mechanized Cavalry Group |
| Battles / wars | World War II Korean War |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star (2) Legion of Merit (3) Bronze Star Medal |
James Hilliard Polk (13 December 1911 – 18 February 1992) was aUnited States Army four-star general who served as Commander in Chief,United States Army Europe from 1967 to 1971. He was one of the last senior commanders in the army to have served in the horse cavalry.
Polk was born at Camp McGraw inBatangas in thePhilippines on 13 December 1911, to Colonel Harding Polk, and the former Esther Fleming.
Polk graduated from theUnited States Military Academy in 1933 and was commissioned in the cavalry. Prior to World War II, he served in two cavalry regiments and attended the basic and advanced courses at the cavalry school. In 1939 at the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden, he won first place in the Individual Military and Police Jumping event.[1]
At the outbreak of World War II, Polk was assigned to West Point as a tactical officer. In 1943, he attended a shortened general staff course at Fort Leavenworth, and after graduation joined the106th Cavalry Group atCamp Hood, Texas, as a squadron commander, and later as regimental executive officer. In Europe, the group fought in the hedgerows of Normandy and the breakout fromSaint-Lô.
In early September 1944, Polk assumed command of the3rd Mechanized Cavalry Group, then in combat nearMetz, France, and commanded it until the end of the war. During this time, the unit was known as "Task Force Polk", and spearheaded many advances by General Walton Walker'sXX Corps, part of General George S. Patton, Jr.'sThird United States Army.[1]
After brief occupation duty in Germany at the end of World War II, Polk returned to the United States and became Chief of Tactics at the Ground General School atFort Riley, Kansas, and later attended theArmed Forces Staff College. In 1948, he went to Tokyo in the G-2 (Intelligence) section of theUnited States Far East Command for the next three years.
During theKorean War, Polk was assigned as G-2 to General Ned Almond'sX Corps and later as G-2 to General James Van Fleet's 8th Army,[1] and participated in three campaigns. In August 1951, he returned stateside to attend theNational War College, and was later assigned as an instructor at theArmy War College. He was then made Chief of Staff of the3rd Armored Division atFort Knox, participating in their move to Germany. In July 1956, he was promoted to brigadier general and became assistant division commander.
Following an assignment as Assistant Chief of Staff for Plans and Operations, Land Forces Central Europe, at NATO Headquarters atFontainebleau under General Dr.Hans Speidel, Polk returned to the U.S. and became Director of the Policy Planning Staff in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs.
Upon promotion to major general, Polk took command of the4th Armored Division, followed by being theUnited States commandant in Berlin from 2 January 1963 to 31 August 1964, during a time of increased Cold War tensions. In this role, Polk showed John F. Kennedy theBerlin Wall atCheckpoint Charlie on the president's visit to West Berlin in June 1963.[2][1][3]
Polk became commander ofV Corps on 1 September 1964, and in 1966 returned to CONUS to become Assistant Chief of Staff for Force Development. He returned to Europe at the end of that year, first as Deputy Commander in Chief, United States Army Europe, and six months later was promoted to four-star general as Commander in Chief, United States Army Europe. He retired from active duty on 1 April 1971.
Polk's awards and decorations included theArmy Distinguished Service Medal, theSilver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster,[1] theLegion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, theBronze Star Medal, the FrenchCroix de Guerre, the FrenchLegion of Honor, theAmerican Campaign Medal, theAir Medal, and theKorean Presidential Unit Citation, theWorld War II Victory Medal, theEuropean-African-Middle Eastern Theater Medal.
Polk retired toEl Paso, Texas,[4] and served as Chairman of the Board of theU.S. Cavalry Association from 1978 to 1992,[5] and President ofArmy Emergency Relief from 1975 to 1984.[6]
He died on 18 February 1992, atWilliam Beaumont Army Medical Center inEl Paso, Texas after battling cancer and pneumonia. He was buried inArlington National Cemetery. Later his wife, Josephine Leavell Polk (1913–1999), was buried with him.[7]
His World War II letters were published in 2005 under the titleWorld War II Letters and Notes of Colonel James H. Polk, 1944–1945 (ISBN 1932762191). The 3d Cavalry Association has named its scholarship fund for the children of fallen 3ACR soldiers after him.[8]
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the United States Army
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Commanding General ofUnited States Army Europe June 1, 1967 to March 20, 1971 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
.png)
