Existing comment:
Norman Schwarzkopf, 1934-2012
Born Trenton, New Jersey
Following in the footsteps of his father, Norman Schwarzkopf set his sights on a military career after graduating from West Point in 1956. A heroic incident during his second tour of duty in Vietnam in 1970 "firmly cemented his reputation as an officer who would risk his life for the soldiers under his command." Schwarzkopf, on hands and knees, courageously led a group of survivors from his battalion who were trapped on a minefield to safety. Yet Schwarzkopf did not come to national attention until the 1991 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. As commander-in-chief of U.S. forces in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, he masterfully planned the strategy and oversaw the preparations for a sustained air attack, followed by what would be a one‑hundred‑hour ground war and total rout of the Iraqi army.
Harry Benson, 1991 |