Alan Goodrich Kirk (October 30, 1888 – October 15, 1963) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

who most notably served as the American senior naval commander during the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...

. After the war he embarked on a diplomatic career serving as US

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and the

Republic of China (Taiwan) Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

Biography

Kirk graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

in the class of 1909. His classmates included

Jesse B. Oldendorf Jesse Barrett "Oley" Oldendorf (16 February 1887 – 27 April 1974) was an admiral in the United States Navy, famous for defeating a Japanese force in the Battle of Leyte Gulf during World War II. He also served as commander of the American naval ...

, Olaf M. Hustveldt, and

Theodore S. Wilkinson Theodore Stark "Ping" Wilkinson (December 22, 1888 – February 21, 1946) was a vice admiral of the United States Navy during World War II. He also received the Medal of Honor for his actions in Veracruz, Mexico. Early life and career After ...

. Kirk served in the United States Navy during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

. During his wartime naval service, Kirk became the U.S. naval attaché in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

(1939 to 1941). He was Director of the

Office of Naval Intelligence The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the military intelligence agency of the United States Navy. Established in 1882 primarily to advance the Navy's modernization efforts, it is the oldest member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and serv ...

from March 1941 but, obstructed and opposed by Rear Admiral

Richmond Turner Admiral (United States), Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner (May 27, 1885 – February 12, 1961), commonly known as Kelly Turner, was an admiral of the United States Navy during the Second World War, where he commanded the Amphibious Force, Pacific ...

, he was unable to develop the office into an effective center along the lines of the British Royal Naval Operational Intelligence Centre (which he had seen while in London). Eventually, he requested a transfer to an Atlantic destroyer squadron. Kirk served as an amphibious commander in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

in 1942 and 1943 (the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies of World War II, Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis p ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

). In addition, he was the senior U.S. naval commander during the

of June 6, 1944 where he commanded the Western Naval Task Force embarked on the

heavy cruiser A heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in calibre, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval Treat ...

. He served as Commander U.S. Naval Forces in France during 1944 and 1945. He retired from the Navy as a full

in 1946. He was decorated with

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

by the

Provisional Government of the French Republic The Provisional Government of the French Republic (PGFR; , GPRF) was the provisional government of Free France between 3 June 1944 and 27 October 1946, following the liberation of continental France after Operations ''Overlord'' and ''Drago ...

for his

service.

After retirement from the United States Navy, Kirk embarked on a

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

ic career, and subsequently served in several United States

embassies A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually denotes a ...

abroad, beginning with the combined posting of U.S. Ambassador to Belgium/ U.S. Envoy to Luxembourg (resident in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

), 1946–49; as U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union, July 4, 1949, to October 6, 1951; and finally as United States Ambassador to the Republic of China (Taiwan), June 7, 1962, to January 16, 1963. He served as ambassador to the Soviet Union during the beginning of the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, and expressed concern that the conflict could escalate to

World War III World War III, also known as the Third World War, is a hypothetical future global conflict subsequent to World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). It is widely predicted that such a war would involve all of the great powers, ...

, comparing it to

proxy conflicts In political science, a proxy war is an armed conflict where at least one of the belligerents is directed or supported by an external third-party power. In the term ''proxy war'', a belligerent with external support is the ''proxy''; both bel ...

of the 1930s such as the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

and the

Soviet–Japanese border conflicts The Soviet–Japanese border conflicts were a series of minor and major conflicts fought between the Soviet Union (led by Stalin, Joseph Stalin), Mongolian People's Republic, Mongolia (led by Khorloogiin Choibalsan) and Empire of Japan, Japan ...

which he believed precipitated World War II. Admiral Kirk took his post as the second president of

American Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia The American Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia (ACLPR, AMCOMLIB), also known as the American Committee for Liberation from Bolshevism, was an American anti-communism, anti-communist organization founded in 1950 which worked for ...

, in February 1952. As a former U.S. ambassador to the

, he oversaw the recruitment of emigres in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, a group that would later form the core of

Radio Liberty Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...

's staff. Less than a year after taking office, Kirk was forced to resign due to poor health. Also in 1952, he served briefly as Director of the

Psychological Strategy Board The Psychological Strategy Board (PSB) was a committee of the United States executive formed to coordinate and plan for psychological operations. It was formed on April 4, 1951, during the Truman administration. The board was composed of the Un ...

, which planned for and coordinated government

psychological operations Psychological warfare (PSYWAR), or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations (PsyOp), has been known by many other names or terms, including Military Information Support Operations (MISO), Psy Ops, political warfare, "Hearts and Min ...

. In 1962 he was portrayed onscreen in the film ''The Longest Day'' by Australian actor

John Meillon John Meillon ( ; 1 May 1934 – 11 August 1989) was an Australian character actor known for dramatic as well as comedy roles. He portrayed Walter Reilly in the films '' Crocodile Dundee'' and '' Crocodile Dundee II''. He also voiced advertiseme ...

. Alan Goodrich Kirk died on October 15, 1963 in New York at the age of 74 and was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirk, Alan 1888 births 1963 deaths United States Navy admirals Ambassadors of the United States to Taiwan United States Navy personnel of World War I United States Navy World War II admirals Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Ambassadors of the United States to the Soviet Union 20th-century American diplomats Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Ambassadors of the United States to Belgium Directors of the Office of Naval Intelligence Military personnel from Philadelphia United States naval attachés

Biography

See also

References

Further reading

External links