Campbell King (30 August 1871 – 16 October 1953) was an American infantry officer who served with the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary 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 the United Stat ...

. He was the commandant at

Fort Benning Fort Benning (named Fort Moore from 2023–2025) is a United States Army post in the Columbus, Georgia area. Located on Georgia's border with Alabama, Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve compone ...

and is known for modernizing its training programs and infrastructure.

Early years

Born to Alexander King and Mary Lee Evans King on 30 August 1871, Campbell King grew up in Flat Rock, North Carolina. He attended Charleston High School and the

College of Charleston The College of Charleston (CofC or Charleston) is a public university in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1770 and chartered in 1785, it is the oldest university in South Carolina, the 13th-oldest institution of higher lea ...

,''Who Was Who in American History'' - The Military (Chicago, IL: Marquis Who's Who, Inc., 1975) pp. 306 then was a student at

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

from 1889 to 1891. He enlisted in the cavalry as a private in 1897.Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. ''Generals in Khaki'' (Raleigh, NC: Pentland Press, 1998), pp. 215-216

Military career

After being promoted to corporal, King was commissioned as an infantry officer in 1898. Some time after his commission, King graduated with distinction from the Infantry and Cavalry School at

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 1905, and the Army Staff College the following year in 1906.Davis, Henry Blaine Jr.. ''Generals in Khaki'' (Raleigh, NC.: Pentland Press, 1998), pp. 215 In 1911, King graduated from the Army War College. During this time, King was stationed in American territories and on the Mexican border, but he also saw action in China during the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, was an anti-foreign, anti-imperialist, and anti-Christian uprising in North China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious F ...

First World War

Following the

American entry into World War I The United States entered into World War I on 6 April 1917, more than two and a half years after the war began in Europe. Apart from an Anglophile element urging early support for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, British and an a ...

, in April 1917, King was assigned to the 1st Division and was appointed the division's chief of staff in December 1917. On 1 October 1918, King was promoted to brigadier general and served as the Chief of Staff of the 7th Army Corps and later the 3rd Army Corps. As Chief of Staff of the 1st Division, King played a key role coordinating the division's various units in Cantigny and Saint Mihiel. King emerged from the war decorated with 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. ...

, the

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

, the Legion of Honor and the Order of the Crown. He was the second American to be awarded the French Croix de Guerre, the other being George B. Duncan. The citation for Kin's Army DSM reads:

Between the wars

In 1920, King graduated from the General Staff College and received an honorary M.A. from Harvard.Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. ''Generals in Khaki'' (Raleigh, NC: Pentland Press, 1998), pp. 216 In July 1924, King was permanently promoted to brigadier general, and in 1925 he was appointed Assistant Chief of Staff, position he would hold until 1929. In May 1929, King took command of the Infantry School at

, Georgia. Under his command, and with then-Lieutenant-Colonel

George C. Marshall George Catlett Marshall Jr. (31 December 1880 – 16 October 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army under presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. ...

as Assistant Commandant, King ushered in "halcyon days" by modernizing Fort Benning's training programs and infrastructure. He was promoted to major general in 1932 and retired the following year.Stelpflug, Peggy A., Hyatt, Richard. ''Home of the Infantry: The History of Fort Benning'', (Macon, GA.: Mercer University Press, 2007), pp. 93

Personal life and death

Campbell King married Harriet Laurens King in 1907. Together they had two children, Duncan and Barbara. After his retirement in 1933, Campbell returned to his hometown of Flat Rock, North Carolina, where he died on 16 October 1953.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Campbell 1871 births 1953 deaths United States Army Cavalry Branch personnel Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Italy) American military personnel of the Boxer Rebellion Military personnel from North Carolina Officers of the Legion of Honour American recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Army generals College of Charleston alumni United States Army generals of World War I People from Flat Rock, Henderson County, North Carolina United States Army Infantry Branch personnel 19th-century United States Army personnel