Andre Cavaro Lucas (October 2, 1930 – July 23, 1970) was

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

while serving as the commanding officer, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry,

101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division (military), division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault military operation, operations. The 101st is designed to plan, coordinat ...

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, at Fire Support Base Ripcord in Thua Thien Province,

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

. He received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

for extraordinary heroism during the last 23 days of his life.

Early life and education

Lucas was born in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

His father William was a career Army officer who had fought in France 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 ...

. His mother Suzanne had been born in France and she sent him to her home town there to receive his secondary education. Lucas enlisted in the Army on June 30, 1948 and was assigned to the same company in the 26th Infantry Regiment that his father had commanded during the World War I. He received an at-large presidential appointment to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

, graduating with a B.S. degree in 1954. After receiving his Army commission, he attended the Infantry, Ranger and Airborne Schools. Lucas later graduated from the

Army 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 ...

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

in 1965 and ''L'École d'état-major'' (the French Staff Academy) in Paris in 1966.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, 2d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. place and date: Fire Support Base Ripcord, Republic of Vietnam, 1 to July 23, 1970. Entered service at: West Point, N.Y. Born: October 2, 1930, Washington D.C. Citation:

In memory

* LTC Lucas' name can be found on the

Vietnam Veterans Memorial The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, commonly called the Vietnam Memorial, is a U.S. national memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring service members of the U.S. armed forces who served in the Vietnam War. The site is dominated by two black granit ...

("The Wall") on Panel 08W – Row 046. * The Andre Lucas Elementary School in Ft. Campbell, Kentucky is named in honor of LTC Lucas. * A tribute to Lucas by his West Point classmate William E. Odom was published in TAPS, May/June 2005. Odom also dedicated his 1992 book ''On Internal War'' to Lucas.

Personal

Lucas was the son of William Edward Lucas Jr. and Suzanne Provost. His father received a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

in 1914. He was commissioned in 1916 and received three Silver Stars and two Purple Hearts for his World War I combat service. His parents were 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. ...

. Lucas married Madeleine Mae Miller, who was also fluent in French because of Swiss-French parentage. They had two sons. Lucas and his wife were interred at the

West Point Cemetery West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the grounds of the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, West Point, New York (state), New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for Continental Army s ...

Notes

References

* "Ripcord: Screaming Eagles Under Siege, Vietnam 1970" by Keith W. Nolan, Presidio Press, 2000, * "Hell On A Hill Top: America's Last Major Battle In Vietnam" by Major General Benjamin L. Harrison, iUniverse Press (available fro
FSB Ripcord Association
* * "Siege at Firebase Ripcord", War Stories with Oliver North, Fox News Productions, product # FOX25004600 (video/DVD)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lucas, Andre 1930 births 1970 deaths Military personnel from Washington, D.C. United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Rangers United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army colonels Vietnam War recipients of the Medal of Honor United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Burials at West Point Cemetery United States Army personnel killed in the Vietnam War