Dwight Edward Aultman (February 2, 1872 – December 12, 1929) was an American army officer and brigadier general who served 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 ...

.Marquis Who's Who, Inc. ''Who Was Who in American History, the Military''. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1975. P. 21 ,

Early life

Aultman was born in

Allegheny, Pennsylvania Allegheny City was a municipality that existed in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1788 until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. It was located north across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh, with its southwest border formed by ...

. In 1894, he graduated number fourteen out a class of fifty-four from 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 ...

.Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. ''Generals in Khaki''. Raleigh, NC: Pentland Press, 1998. P. 15 ,

Career

Dwight Aultman as Lieutenant colonel After graduation, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Fourth Cavalry. During the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

, Aultman was a part of the

Battle of San Juan Hill The Battle of San Juan Hill (), also known as the Battle for the San Juan Heights, was a major battle of the Spanish–American War fought between an American force under the command of William Rufus Shafter and Joseph Wheeler against a Span ...

in 1898, as well as the

Siege of Santiago The siege of Santiago, also known as the siege of Santiago de Cuba, was the last major operation of the Spanish–American War on the island of Captaincy General of Cuba, Cuba. Santiago campaign The primary objective of the American Fifth Ar ...

in Cuba. From December 1898 to January 1899, he was aide to General Lloyd Wheaton and later General Joseph Warren Keifer. From 1901 to 1906, Aultman organized, commanded, and instructed the Cuban artillery. From 1907 to 1911, he was an instructor at the department of languages of the service schools, and from 1914–1915 he was on special mission to Germany. Aultman retired as an instructor and graduated from the Army War College in 1916. In 1917 he wrote a book entitled ''Military Strength and Resources of the United States''. From October 1917 to May 1918, Aultman commanded the Fifth Field Artillery Brigade, First Infantry Division. On April 18, 1918 he was promoted to brigadier general of the National Army and later commanded the 51st Field Artillery Brigade, 26th Division. He was appointed Chief of Artillery, Fifth Corps, in October 1918. On April 27, 1921, he was again promoted to brigadier general.

Awards

Aultman received 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. ...

from the United States, the citation for which reads: In addition, he also received 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 ...

as well as the

commander of the Legion of Honor 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 ...

from France. Aultman also received a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

for gallantry in action during the Santiago de Cuba Campaign, 22 June to 17 July 1898.

Death and legacy

Dwight Edward Aultman died at the age of fifty-seven on December 2, 1929. Aultman and his wife Alma are 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. ...

.Burial Detail: Aultman, Alma H
– ANC Explorer

References

Bibliography

* Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. ''Generals in Khaki''. Raleigh, NC: Pentland Press, 1998. , * Marquis Who's Who, Inc. ''Who Was Who in American History, the Military''. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1975. , {{DEFAULTSORT:Aultman, Dwight Edward 1872 births 1929 deaths 19th-century United States Army personnel United States Military Academy alumni United States Army generals of World War I Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from Pennsylvania United States Army generals American military personnel of the Spanish–American War Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) American recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Commanders of the Legion of Honour United States Army War College alumni United States Army Cavalry Branch personnel