General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

William Allen Knowlton (June 19, 1920 – August 10, 2008) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

four-star general, and a former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy. As a full general, he served as Commander, Allied Land Forces South East Europe, and as the United States Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Military career

In January 1943, after graduating from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

, Knowlton was commissioned in the cavalry. He reported for duty with the 7th Armored Division, and during World War II led an assault gun platoon in France, and later a reconnaissance troop in Germany, which linked up with the Russians, advancing from the east, in Ganzlin, northwest of Berlin. For this he was awarded the Silver Star. Following the war, he held various staff postings, and graduated from the

Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in 1955. Following graduation, he was assigned to his alma mater's Department of Social Sciences, becoming an associate professor. He next took command of a battalion of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, and then attended the

U.S. Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military officer ...

. Before taking command of a brigade at Fort Knox, he served as military attaché in

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

. Returning from Tunis, he was assigned to the Pentagon in the Office of the

United States Army Chief of Staff The chief of staff of the Army (CSA) is a statutory position in the United States Army held by a general officer. As the highest-ranking officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, the chief is the principal military advisor and a ...

and later the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He deployed to Vietnam for two tours of duty where he oversaw Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support (CORDS) for General

William Westmoreland William Childs Westmoreland (March 26, 1914 – July 18, 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from ...

, and served as assistant division commander for the 9th Infantry Division. After his time in Vietnam, he became Secretary of the Army General Staff, and on March 23, 1970 he became the 49th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy, an assignment he held for four years. In 1974, during his tenure, the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

reaffirmed West Point's right to enforce the Honor Code in response to two challenges from cadets. After his time as Superintendent, he was assigned as Chief of Staff of the

United States European Command The United States European Command (EUCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States military, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. Its area of focus covers and 51 countries and territories, including Europe, Russi ...

. Promoted to full General in 1976, he took command of Allied Land Forces South East Europe, and finished his career as the United States Representative on NATO's Military Committee.

Decorations

Knowlton's awards and decorations include the

Defense Distinguished Service Medal The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...

the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star with 2 oak leaf clusters, 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. Wh ...

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

with 9 oak leaf clusters, and the Distinguished Flying Cross. His foreign awards include the French

Legion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

and the Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern from Germany. *

Defense Distinguished Service Medal ribbon

Army Distinguished Service Medal * SilverStar

Silver Star with two oak leaf clusters * Distinguished Flying Cross ribbon

Distinguished Flying Cross * Bronze Star ribbon

with one silver oak leaf cluster and three bronze oak leaf clusters

Post military

In retirement, Knowlton served as a Senior Fellow at the

National Defense University The National Defense University (NDU) is an institution of higher education funded by the United States Department of Defense, intended to facilitate high-level education, training, and professional development of national security leaders. As ...

, lectured at the

Armed Forces Staff College The Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC), located in Norfolk, Virginia, was established as the Armed Forces Staff College in 1946 and incorporated into the National Defense University in August 1981. It educates and acculturates joint and multina ...

, served as an advisor for the Defense Nuclear Agency, and was a member of the Defense Intelligence Agency Science and Technology Advisory Board. Knowlton was also on the board of

Chubb Corporation Chubb Limited is an American company incorporated in Zürich, Switzerland. It is the parent company of Chubb, a global provider of insurance products covering property and casualty, accident and health, reinsurance, and life insurance and the la ...

, and was the 2004 Distinguished Graduate Award recipient from the Association of Graduates, the United States Military Academy alumni organization. A collection of Gen. Knowlton's military uniforms and awards is on display at the American Military Museum in Charleston, South Carolina. He died in 2008 as a result of

intracranial bleeding Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), also known as intracranial bleed, is bleeding within the skull. Subtypes are intracerebral bleeds ( intraventricular bleeds and intraparenchymal bleeds), subarachnoid bleeds, epidural bleeds, and subdural bleed ...

after a fall, along with Parkinson's disease. He was 88.

Personal life

Knowlton's daughter, Hollister "Holly" Knowlton, married future four-star general

David Petraeus David Howell Petraeus (; born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from September 6, 2011, until his resignation on November 9, 2012. Prior to ...

two months after Petraeus graduated from West Point. Knowlton was Superintendent at the time. Holly is a graduate of Dickinson College.

References

2004 DGA Award Recipient, General William A. Knowlton, West Point Association of Graduates Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Knowlton, William A. United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany United States Army personnel of World War II 1920 births St. Mark's School (Massachusetts) alumni 2008 deaths Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Superintendents of the United States Military Academy Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Burials at Arlington National Cemetery 20th-century American academics