Oscar W. Koch | |
|---|---|
.png) Koch as assistant division commander of the 25th Infantry Division in 1954 | |
| Born | (1897-01-10)January 10, 1897 |
| Died | May 16, 1970(1970-05-16) (aged 73) Marion, Illinois, US |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| Service years | 1915–1954 |
| Rank |  Brigadier General |
| Unit | U. S. Army Cavalry Branch |
| Commands | Troop A,105th Cavalry Regiment Troop A,8th Cavalry Regiment Ground Forces Intelligence School 25th Infantry Division |
| Conflicts | Pancho Villa Expedition World War I World War II Korean War |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Merit (2) Bronze Star Medal (2) |
| Spouse | Nannie Caldwell (m. 1924-1970, his death) |
Oscar W. Koch (January 10, 1897 – May 16, 1970) was abrigadier general in theUnited States Army. He was most notable for his service asThird Army's Intelligence officer (G-2) under GeneralGeorge S. Patton inWorld War II.
A native ofMilwaukee, Wisconsin, Koch was raised and educated in Milwaukee and joined theWisconsin National Guard as aprivate in 1915. He served in thePancho Villa Expedition in 1916, and rose through the ranks to becomecorporal,sergeant, and regimentalsergeant major. When his unit was federalized forWorld War I as part of the32nd Division, Koch served inFrance and received his commission as asecond lieutenant ofField Artillery. He then served as an instructor at the Army's wartime artillery school inSaumur.
After the war, Koch returned to Milwaukee, where he was one of the re-organizers of his oldWisconsin National Guard unit, which he commanded as acaptain. He obtained a Regular Army commission as asecond lieutenant ofCavalry in 1920, was quickly promoted tofirst lieutenant, and was appointed to command a troop of the8th Cavalry Regiment. Koch slowly advanced through the ranks in the 1920s and 1930s, and developed a positive reputation as an instructor and academic, primarily as a member of the faculty at the Army's Cavalry School atFort Riley,Kansas.
DuringWorld War II, Koch joined the staff ofGeorge S. Patton's2nd Armored Division asIntelligence officer (G-2). Koch served under Patton in North Africa and Europe as Patton successively commandedI Armored Corps,II Corps,Seventh Army, andThird Army. During the war, Koch developed procedures and policies for gathering and analyzing intelligence and providing recommendations to commanders, many of which continued to be used after the war.
Following the war, Koch served as deputy commandant and commandant of the Army's first Intelligence school, and as director of intelligence for the Allied occupation of Austria. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1954, and served in theKorean War as assistant division commander and acting commander of the25th Infantry Division. He retired in September 1954. After retiring, Koch resided in his wife's hometown ofCarbondale, Illinois, where he was active in several civic and fraternal organizations. He also authored a brief memoir of his World War II service, which continues to be used as a guide for Military Intelligence professionals. Koch died inMarion, Illinois and was buried atArlington National Cemetery.
Oscar Koch was born inMilwaukee, Wisconsin on January 10, 1897, a son of Oscar Koch Jr. and Emma (Zimmerman) Koch.[1] He attended the public schools of Milwaukee and graduated fromNorth Division High School.[2] In high school, Koch playedcenter on thefootball team and was named to the 1913 all-city team.[2]
Koch began his military career in 1915 with Troop A, 1st Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment.[3] In 1916, the regiment was federalized during thePancho Villa Expedition, and Koch served on theMexico–United States border.[2] Enlisting as aprivate, Koch advanced tocorporal andsergeant, and was appointed regimentalsergeant major in 1917.[4]
DuringWorld War I, Koch's unit was activated as part of the32nd Division.[5] Koch was born Oscar Koch III, and his parents did not give him a middle name.[6] Because the Army habitually asked for a middle initial when Koch completed forms and signed documents, he chose "W" at random and said his middle name was William.[6] Afterwards he was known as Oscar W. Koch or O. W. Koch.[6]
During the division's organization and training atCamp MacArthur, Texas, Koch played on its football team.[5] While in France, he served with the 32nd Division's 2nd Battalion,120th Field Artillery Regiment.[5] In April 1918, he received his commission as asecond lieutenant ofField Artillery.[7] He was then assigned as an instructor at the U.S. Army artillery school established inSaumur.[7]
After the war, Koch returned to Milwaukee.[7] One of the organizers of the reconstituted National Guard's Troop A,105th Cavalry Regiment, Koch was appointed to command the troop as acaptain.[7] In 1920, Koch was commissioned in theregular army as afirst lieutenant ofCavalry, and was appointed to command Troop A,8th Cavalry Regiment.[8] He was a 1922 graduate of the Army's basic course for Cavalry officers,[9] after which he was assigned to the14th Cavalry Regiment atFort Des Moines, Iowa.[10][11] He completed the course forSignal Corps officers in 1925.[9] After graduation, he was again assigned to the 8th Cavalry Regiment atFort Bliss,Texas.[12]
In 1928, Koch was assigned as Signal Corps instructor for theKansas National Guard and posted toKansas City.[13] In 1931, Koch was named the Signal Corps instructor for theSouth Dakota National Guard and assigned toWatertown.[14] In 1932 he was assigned toSaint Paul, Minnesota as Signal instructor for theMinnesota National Guard.[15] In February 1932, he was again promoted tocaptain.[16]
Koch graduated fromFort Riley's advanced course for Cavalry officers in 1933[4] and remained at the school as an instructor.[17] While on the faculty, Koch was selected by the Army to attend courses inpedagogy at theUniversity of Michigan.[17] During his coursework, Koch completed a study on the history of military historical research.[17] His work was reviewed by a doctoral committee and accepted as adissertation, but Koch did not receive academic credit because he wasauditing courses, not attending as part of a degree program.[17] The Army published Koch's study, as it did a later Koch work oneducational psychology, which became required reading at theUnited States Military Academy.[17] Fluent inGerman, while at the Cavalry school, Koch translated several German military works into English, enabling the U.S. Army to study and make use of them.[7]
In 1940,George S. Patton was selected to command the2nd Armored Division; having known Koch since being assigned as the Cavalry School's director of instruction in 1937, Patton asked Koch to join his staff.[18][19] Koch agreed, and served as his Intelligence officer (G-2).[18] In 1941, Koch graduated from theUnited States Army Command and General Staff College.[16] When Patton assumed command ofI Armored Corps, Koch again served as his G-2.[7]
During theNorth African campaign, Koch served as chief of staff for one of Patton's subordinate task forces,Blackstone, which was commanded byErnest N. Harmon.[7] Subsequently, Koch served as Patton's G-2 as Patton commandedII Corps in North Africa,Seventh Army during theAllied invasion of Sicily, andThird Army during combat in France followingthe Normandy landing.[7]
In December 1944, Koch warned Patton that intelligence indicators pointed to an imminent large-scale German offensive againstFirst Army in theArdennes, to Third Army's north.[7] Though G-2s at other commands believed Germany incapable of a large scale offensive, Patton heeded Koch's warning and incorporated emergency measures for aiding First Army into his subsequent plans.[7] As a result, when Germany launched the offensive that became known as the Battle of the Bulge, Third Army was prepared to reorient from attacking on a west to east axis to advance north towards First Army and immediately enter combat.[7] Third Army's effort helped end the German offensive and left the Allies prepared to enter Germany in the spring of 1945.[7]
Koch remained in Germany after the end of the war. In 1946, he was appointed deputy commandant of the Army's new Ground Forces Intelligence School atFort Riley,Kansas.[20] In 1947, he was named commandant.[21] He completed his military education with graduation from theNational War College.[22] Koch next served as director of intelligence forGeoffrey Keyes during Keyes' appointment asAllied High Commissioner inAustria.[6] During this posting, Koch took part in transferring responsibility for intelligence gathering in Austria from the Army to theCentral Intelligence Agency.[23] Koch next served as deputy director of Training (Special) at the CIA, responsible for training of covert Agency personnel.[24] He held this position until February 1952 and was succeeded by Rolfe W. Kingsely.[24]
Koch was promoted tobrigadier general in January, 1954 and was assigned as assistant division commander of the25th Infantry Division during itsKorean War service.[25] After briefly acting as division commander in May 1954,[6][26] in June he was assigned to the Career Management Division in the Office of theU.S. Army Adjutant General.[27] Koch retired from military service in September, 1954.[27] After leaving the military, Koch was given cover employment with theUnited States Department of State.[1] In fact, he worked for theCentral Intelligence Agency, though in what capacity he worked during this tenure with the CIA is unknown because Koch did not discuss it with friends, relatives, or his biographer.[28]
In retirement, Koch settled inCarbondale, Illinois, his wife's hometown.[7] He became a noted civic activist, including serving on the board of directors of Carbondale'sRotary Club and the CarbondaleYMCA board of managers.[7] He also served on the city government's Citizens Advisory Council and was a trustee of Carbondale's First Christian Church, an affiliate of theDisciples of Christ.[7] In addition, he was active in severalMasonic organizations, theElks, and theJackson County Historical Society.[1] Koch also led unsuccessful efforts to have Carbondale's Woodlawn Cemetery declared a national shrine to commemorateJohn A. Logan's work to create a nationalMemorial Day holiday, which began in Carbondale in 1866.[29]
In his later years, Koch was treated for cancer.[6] He died at theVeterans Administration hospital inMarion, Illinois on May 16, 1970.[1] Koch was buried atArlington National Cemetery.[1]
In August 1924, Koch married Nannie Caldwell (1898–1995), whom he met while he was participating in a horse show at theIowa State Fair.[7][30] They remained married until his death, and had no children.[1]
Koch was inducted into theMilitary Intelligence Hall of Fame in 1993.[31] In addition, in 1993 theUnited States Army Intelligence Center named one of its buildings Koch Barracks.[31]
Koch received a1954 Guggenheim Fellowship, which he intended to use to author a work on the conduct of military intelligence activities.[7] Shortly before his death, he completed the book, which he coauthored with Robert G. Hays,G2: Intelligence for Patton.[6] Hays reissued this work in 1999, and it remains an important "how to" text for military intelligence professionals.[6] In 2013, Hays published a second work about his friendship with Koch,Patton's Oracle: Gen. Oscar Koch, As I Knew Him.[32]
| Insignia | Rank | Component | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Second lieutenant | National Army | January 10, 1918 |
| Second lieutenant | Regular Army | July 1, 1920 |
 | First lieutenant | National Army | July 1, 1920 |
 | Captain | National Army | December 4, 1919 |
| Captain | Regular Army | February 1, 1932 |
 | Major | Regular Army | August 15, 1939 |
 | Lieutenant colonel | Army of the United States | April 25, 1941 |
| Lieutenant colonel | Regular Army | December 18, 1941 |
 | Colonel | Army of the United States | January 7, 1943 |
| Brigadier general | Army of the United States | January 22, 1954 |
Koch's awards and decorations included:[7][31]
| International | |
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| People | |
