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Lyman Lemnitzer | |
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.jpg) Official portrait, 1967 | |
| Born | (1899-08-29)29 August 1899 Honesdale, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | 12 November 1988(1988-11-12) (aged 89) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1920–1969 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands | Supreme Allied Commander Europe Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chief of Staff of the Army Eighth Army 7th Infantry Division 11th Airborne Division 34th Coast Artillery Brigade |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal (4) Navy Distinguished Service Medal Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Legion of Merit (2) |
| Other work | Rockefeller Commission |
Lyman Louis Lemnitzer (29 August 1899 – 12 November 1988) was aUnited States Armygeneral of theCold War. He notably served as the fourthchairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1960 to 1962 andSupreme Allied Commander Europe ofNATO from 1963 to 1969. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Lemnitzer was responsible for draftingOperation Northwoods, a proposed plan to create support for military action againstCuba, by orchestratingfalse flagterrorism acts in the United States.
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Lemnitzer was born on August 29, 1899, inHonesdale, Pennsylvania.[1] He graduated from Honesdale High School in 1917.
He then entered theUnited States Military Academy at West Point, from which he graduated in 1920 with a commission as a second lieutenant in theUnited States Army Coast Artillery Corps.[2]
Lemnitzer graduated from theCoast Artillery School in 1921, and then served atFort Adams in Rhode Island and in the Philippines. He was an instructor at West Point from 1926 to 1930.
Lemnitzer served again in the Philippines from 1934 to 1935, and graduated from theUnited States Army Command and General Staff College in 1936. He was an instructor at the Coast Artillery School, and graduated from theUnited States Army War College in 1940.
At the start of World War II Lemnitzer served with the 70th Coast Artillery Regiment and then the 38th Coast Artillery Brigade. In May 1941, Lemnitzer, then a colonel, was assigned to the War Plans Division of the Army staff, and then to the staff of the Army Ground Forces.
Lemnitzer was promoted tobrigadier general in June 1942 and commanded the 34th Coast Artillery Brigade. He was subsequently assigned to GeneralDwight D. Eisenhower's staff, where he helped plan the invasions ofNorth Africa andSicily and was promoted tomajor general in November 1944. Lemnitzer was one of the senior officers sent to negotiate theItalian fascist surrender during the secretOperation Sunrise and the German surrender in 1945.
Following the end of World War II, Lemnitzer was assigned to the Strategic Survey Committee of theJoint Chiefs of Staff and was later named deputy commandant of theNational War College. In 1950, at the age of 51, Lemnitzer tookparachute training and was placed in command of the11th Airborne Division. He was assigned toKorea in command of the7th Infantry Division in November 1951 and was promoted tolieutenant general in August 1952.
Lemnitzer was promoted to the rank of general and named commander-in-chief ofFar East Command and of theEighth Army in March 1955. Stationed in Tokyo, Lemnitzer was the final military governor ofAllied-occupied Japan before the American military administration was officially abolished on July 1, 1957. Lemnitzer was appointedVice Chief of Staff of the Army in June 1957, thenChief of Staff of the Army in July 1959.
Lemnitzer was appointedChairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September 1960 allowing to remain on active duty despite having reached the mandatory retirement age of 60. As chairman, Lemnitzer was involved in theBay of Pigs crisis and the early years ofUnited States involvement in the Vietnam War. Lemnitzer was dismayed by Kennedy's refusal to approve strikes in Cuba during the invasion, describing it as "absolutely reprehensible, almost criminal".[4] He was also required to testify before theUnited States Senate Foreign Affairs Committee about his knowledge of the activities of Major GeneralEdwin Walker, who had been dismissed from the Army over alleged attempts to promote his political beliefs in the military.
As chairman, Lemnitzer approved the plans known asOperation Northwoods in 1962, a proposed plan to discredit theCastro regime and create support for military action againstCuba by orchestratingfalse flag acts ofterrorism and developing "a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington". Lemnitzer presented the plans to Secretary of DefenseRobert McNamara on 13 March 1962. It is unclear how McNamara reacted, but three days later PresidentJohn F. Kennedy told the general that there was no chance that the US would take military action against Cuba. Within a few months, after the refusal to endorse Operation Northwoods, Lemnitzer was denied another term as chairman.[5]
In November 1962, Lemnitzer was appointed as commander ofU.S. European Command and asNATO'sSupreme Allied Commander Europe, which was a positional demotion from being chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His time in command saw the Cyprus crisis of 1963–1964 and the withdrawal of NATO forces from France in 1966. Known somewhat for his eccentric personality, instead of carrying in place a regulationM1911semi-automatic pistol which was commonly used by general officers, General Lemnitzer preferred to carry along-barrelledM-16 Rifle as his personal firearm.[6][7] Lemnitzer is the only person to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs Staff and then serve in another U.S. military command after his term as chairman ended.[6][7]
Lemnitzer retired from the military in July 1969. His 14-year tenure as a four star general on active duty is the second longest at that rank in the history of the U.S. Army, after GeneralWilliam T. Sherman who held that rank from 1869 to 1884. He was the only person in history to serve as Army Chief of Staff, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and as Supreme Allied Commander for NATO.
General Lemnitzer is one of only five officers in the history of the United States Army to have actively served as a general during three major wars (World War II, Korea and Vietnam). The others wereWinfield Scott (War of 1812, Mexican War, Civil War),Douglas MacArthur (World War I, World War II and Korea),Maxwell D. Taylor (World War II, Korea, Vietnam) andLewis Hershey (World War II, Korea, Vietnam).
In 1975, PresidentGerald Ford appointed Lemnitzer to theCommission on CIA Activities within the United States, also known as the Rockefeller Commission, to investigate whether theCIA had committed acts that violated US laws, and allegations thatE. Howard Hunt andFrank Sturgis (ofWatergate fame) were involved in theassassination of John F. Kennedy.
Lemnitzer died atWalter Reed Army Medical Center on 12 November 1988, and is buried inArlington National Cemetery.[1] His wife, Katherine Tryon Lemnitzer (1901–1994), is buried with him.
Lemnitzer was awarded numerous military awards and decorations[8] including but not limited to:
 | Distinguished Rifleman |
 | Basic Parachutist Badge |
 | SACEUR badge |
  | Army Distinguished Service Medal with threeoak leaf clusters |
 | Navy Distinguished Service Medal |
 | Air Force Distinguished Service Medal |
 | Silver Star |
 | Legion of Merit Degree of Officer |
 | Legion of Merit Degree of Legionnaire |
.svg) | Presidential Medal of Freedom (Awarded by President Reagan, June 23, 1987) |
 | World War I Victory Medal |
 | American Defense Service Medal |
 | American Campaign Medal |
  | European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (with twocampaign stars) |
 | World War II Victory Medal |
 | Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp |
 | National Defense Service Medal with oak leaf cluster |
 | Korean Service Medal (with twoservice stars) |
Lemnitzer was aFreemason.[10] His portrait as Supreme Allied Commander Europe shows him wearing a masonic ring.
| Insignia | Rank | Component | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| No insignia | Cadet | United States Military Academy | 14 June 1918 |
 | Second Lieutenant | Regular Army | 2 July 1920 |
 | First Lieutenant | Regular Army | 9 June 1925 |
 | Captain | Regular Army | 1 August 1935 |
 | Major | Regular Army | 1 July 1940 |
 | Lieutenant Colonel | Army of the United States | 11 December 1941 |
 | Colonel | Army of the United States | 11 June 1942 |
 | Brigadier General | Army of the United States | 25 June 1942 |
| Lieutenant Colonel | Regular Army | 2 July 1943 |
 | Major General | Army of the United States | 7 May 1944 |
| Brigadier General | Regular Army | 24 January 1948 |
| Major General | Regular Army | 6 August 1951 |
 | Lieutenant General | Army of the United States | 1 August 1952 |
 | General | Army of the United States | 25 March 1955 |
| General | Retired List | 30 June 1969 |
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army 1957–1959 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chief of Staff of the United States Army 1959–1960 | |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff 1960–1962 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Supreme Allied Commander Europe (NATO) 1963–1969 | Succeeded by |
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