John Knight Waters (December 20, 1906 – January 9, 1989) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

four-star general who served as commander,

U.S. Army, Pacific The United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) designated by the Secretary of the Army (SECARMY); it may also serve as a Joint Task Force headquarters. It is the army component unit of the United States Indo- ...

from 1964 to 1966. He was also the son-in-law of General

George S. Patton George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, and the Third United States Army in France ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he was taken prisoner while fighting in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

in 1943, leading Patton to set up the controversial

Task Force Baum Task Force Baum, also known as the Hammelberg raid was a secret and controversial World War II task force set up by U.S. Army General George S. Patton and commanded by Capt. Abraham Baum in late March 1945. Baum was given the task of penetrati ...

to break him out.

Early career

Waters graduated from The Boys' Latin School in Baltimore in 1925 and then attended

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

in Maryland for two years before deciding he wanted a military career. He relocated to Illinois in order to obtain an appointment to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, from which he graduated in 1931 with a commission in the

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in ...

World War II

Waters was captured in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

at Dejebel Lassouda when

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

forces attacked

Sidi bou Zid Sidi Bouzid ( ar, سيدي بوزيد '), sometimes called ''Sidi Bou Zid'' or ''Sīdī Bū Zayd'', is a city in Tunisia and is the capital of Sidi Bouzid Governorate in the centre of the country. Following the suicide of Mohamed Bouazizi in ...

during

. Waters, who had married General

's daughter Beatrice in 1934, was one of many officers interned at

Hammelburg Hammelburg is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It sits in the district of Bad Kissingen, in Lower Franconia. It lies on the river Franconian Saale, 25 km west of Schweinfurt. Hammelburg is the oldest winegrowing town (''Weinstadt'') in Francon ...

. Patton claimed that he did not know that Waters was at

OFLAG XIII-B Oflag XIII-B was a German Army World War II prisoner-of-war camp for officers ('' Offizierslager''), originally in the Langwasser district of Nuremberg. In 1943 it was moved to a site south of the town of Hammelburg in Lower Franconia, Bavaria ...

and that he feared the Germans would execute the POWs rather than let them be liberated. According to some sources the Third Army had received intelligence that Waters was indeed at the camp, having recently been moved there from Oflag 64. The task force, known as

, reached the camp, which was 50 miles behind the front lines, on 27 March 1945 with some losses after running into several German units detraining in a marshalling area. It had been shadowed by a German observation plane while en route, and its intentions were anticipated. Lt.

Donald Prell Donald B. Prell (July 7, 1924 – July 28, 2020) was an American World War II veteran, venture capitalist and futurist who created ''Datamation'', the first magazine devoted solely to the computer hardware and software industry. Early life Prell ...

who was a POW with Waters at the camp, documented the events of that day, as did Father Paul. W. Cavanaugh, a U.S. Army Chaplain and fellow POW. Waters had been shot by a defending guard as he and a German officer were trying to contact the task force. Badly wounded, he was treated by a

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also * * * Old Serbian (disambiguation ...

doctor Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...

, Colonel Radovan Danic, the chief surgeon of the former Yugoslavian Army, who was also interned at the camp. The camp was liberated about a week to ten days later, but the only prisoners there were badly wounded and sick, the rest (including the remnants of Task Force Baum) having been moved farther east.

Later career

Waters returned to duty in 1946 and became commandant of cadets at West Point. In 1949 he became an hereditary member of the Maryland

Society of the Cincinnati The Society of the Cincinnati is a fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of military officers wh ...

. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1952 when he deployed to Korea as Chief of Staff for

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Ar ...

. His major command assignments include Commanding General for the 4th Armored Division and Commanding General for

V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army ...

, both in Europe, as well as Commanding General for the

Fifth United States Army Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash tha ...

, then headquartered in Chicago. Significant other assignments for Waters were as Chief of the American Military Assistance Staff in Yugoslavia from 1955 to 1957, and as Deputy Chief of Staff for Materiel Developments,

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

, Virginia. He also commanded the latter unit before taking command of

in Hawaii. He retired on August 31, 1966. Major awards for Waters include the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

for his actions leading fellow prisoners, the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. Th ...

, the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

, the

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. W ...

, the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

, and the

Korean Service Medal The Korean Service Medal (KSM) is a military award for service in the United States Armed Forces and was established November 8, 1950 by executive order of President Harry Truman. The Korean Service Medal is the primary US military award for s ...

. He died on January 9, 1989, at the

Walter Reed Army Medical Center The Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC)known as Walter Reed General Hospital (WRGH) until 1951was the U.S. Army's flagship medical center from 1909 to 2011. Located on in the District of Columbia, it served more than 150,000 active and ret ...

in Washington, due to heart failure.

Family

He married Beatrice Patton, daughter of General

, on June 27, 1934. The wedding took place at St. John's Church in

Beverly Farms Beverly Farms is a neighborhood comprising the eastern part of the city of Beverly, Massachusetts, in Massachusetts's North Shore region, about 20 miles north of Boston. Beverly Farms is an oceanfront community with a population of about 3,500, e ...

, Massachusetts, with a reception immediately afterward at the Patton home of Green Meadows, South Hamilton, Massachusetts. The couple had two sons, John Knight and George Patton. The marriage lasted until her death on October 24, 1952.

Dates of rank

Notes

External links

The Hammelburg RaidNorth County

Historic footage of liberation of OFLAG XIII-B prison camp in 1945, where Lt. Col. John K. Waters was held.
*

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Waters, John K. United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni Commandants of the Corps of Cadets of the United States Military Academy World War II prisoners of war held by Germany Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) American prisoners of war in World War II Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France) 1906 births 1989 deaths Military personnel from Baltimore Place of death missing Recipients of the Silver Star