Darryl Anthony Williams (born June 22, 1961) is 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 ...

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.". O ...

who serves as the commanding general of

United States Army Europe and Africa United States Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) /Theater Army responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICO ...

since 28 June 2022 and commander of Allied Land Command since 4 August 2022. He previously served as the 60th

Superintendent of the United States Military Academy The Superintendent of the United States Military Academy is the academy's commanding officer. This position is roughly equivalent to the chancellor or president of an American civilian university. The officer appointed is, by tradition, a grad ...

, the first African-American to hold the position. He served as commander of Allied Land Command as a lieutenant general from 24 June 2016 to 29 June 2018.

Early life

Williams grew up in

Fairfax County Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is part of Northern Virginia and borders both the city of Alexandria and Arlington County and forms part of the suburban ring of Washington, ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

, and attended Mount Vernon High School playing center for the Majors 1979 state champion basketball team and a defensive end on the football team. Williams graduated in 1979.

Military career

Williams graduated from 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 ...

in December 1983 and was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

of Field Artillery. His first assignment was an executive officer and fire direction officer in

Schweinfurt Schweinfurt ( , ; ) is a city in the district of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the surrounding district (''Landkreis'') of Schweinfurt and a major industrial, cultural and educational hub. The urban a ...

, Germany, with the 3rd Infantry Division. Next, Williams was assigned to

XVIII Airborne Corps The XVIII Airborne Corps is a corps of the United States Army that has been in existence since 1942 and saw extensive service during World War II. The corps is designed for rapid deployment anywhere in the world and is referred to as "America ...

, deploying to Southwest Asia in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He was then assigned to West Point as a Tactical Officer. Later, Williams served in various command positions in Europe, including commander of United States Army Africa in Vicenza, Italy; deputy chief of staff G3/5/7 of the United States Army in Europe, Wiesbaden, Germany; and commanding general of the United States Army Warrior Transition Command and assistant surgeon general for Warrior Care and Transition. In 2014, Williams was tapped by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

to manage the United States' response to the

West African Ebola virus epidemic The 2013–2016 epidemic of Ebola virus disease, centered in Western Africa, was the most widespread outbreak of the disease in history. It caused major loss of life and socioeconomic disruption in the region, mainly in Guinea, Liberia an ...

. On 24 June 2016, Williams assumed command of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Allied Land Command in Turkey. Williams's military education includes the Field Artillery Officer Basic and Advanced Courses,

United States 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 ...

School of Advanced Military Studies The School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) is one of four United States Army schools that make up the United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This "enormously rigorous" graduate school compr ...

, and the United States Naval War College. He holds Masters’ degrees in Leadership Development, Military Art and Science, and National Security and Strategic Studies. In June 2022, Williams was nominated for promotion to general and appointment as

Commanding General, U.S. Army Europe and Africa The commanding general of United States Army Europe and Africa (CG USAREUR-AF) was formerly known as the commander-in-chief of United States Army Europe (CINCUSAREUR). Prior to 8 May 1945 the official title was Commander, European Theater of O ...

. He replaced Christopher G. Cavoli, who was to take command 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, Russ ...

, on 28 June 2022. He assumed command of Allied Land Command a second time from Lieutenant General Roger Cloutier on 4 August 2022.

Awards and decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Darryl A. 1961 births Living people Military personnel from Virginia Naval War College alumni People from Alexandria, Virginia Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Superintendents of the United States Military Academy United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni