George Samuel Blanchard (3 April 1920 – 3 May 2006) was a

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 ...

four-star general who served as Commander in Chief,

United States Army Europe 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 ...

/Commander, Central Army Group from 1975 to 1979.

Early life

Blanchard was born on 3 April 1920, 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 ...

, and graduated in 1938 from Eastern High School.Gen. George Blanchard; Served in Three Wars
/ref> After high school he attended

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

from 1938 to 1940, then enlisted in the National Guard, serving in the

Coast Artillery Coastal artillery is the branch of the armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications. From the Middle Ages until World War II, coastal artillery and naval artillery in the form of c ...

and rising to the rank of sergeant. He received a National Guard 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 ...

and graduated on D-Day, 6 June 1944.George S. Blanchard Distinguished Graduate Award
/ref> He was commissioned in the infantry, and was soon deployed to Europe, serving with the 70th and 78th Infantry Divisions.

Military career

After World War II, Blanchard served on the general staff of United States Forces, European Theater, and then returned to the US to earn a Master of Science degree in Public Administration from the

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs (Maxwell School) is the professional public policy school of Syracuse University, a private research university in Syracuse, New York. The school is organized in 11 academic departments and 1 ...

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

in 1949. Blanchard served in various positions during the 1950s, including as an assistant to the

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: appointment; gra ...

, General

Omar Bradley Omar Nelson Bradley (12 February 1893 – 8 April 1981) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the United States Army during and after World War II, rising to the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He wa ...

, a tactics instructor 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 as a military advisor in Taiwan from 1955 to 1957. After being promoted to colonel in 1959, Blanchard assumed command of the 2nd Airborne Battle Group, 503rd Infantry,

82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an Airborne forces, airborne infantry division (military), division of the United States Army specializing in Paratrooper, parachute assault operations into hostile areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops ...

, and subsequently served as the G-3 of I Corps in Korea. In 1966, he went to

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 ...

and served as Assistant Division Commander,

1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) 1st Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, 1st Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Regiment or 1st Cavalry Battalion may refer to: Armies * 1st Cavalry Army, Soviet Union Corps * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée) * I Cavalry Corps (German Empire) * 1st Cavalry ...

, and later served as Chief of Staff,

I Field Force, Vietnam I Field Force, Vietnam was a corps-level command of the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Activated on 15 March 1966, it was the successor to Task Force Alpha, a provisional corps command created 1 August 1965 (renamed Field Force Vietna ...

. After his time in Vietnam, he was assigned as Director of Special Warfare in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Military Operations; and Director of Plans, Programs and Budget for two major Army General Staff organizations, and he served as executive officer to two Secretaries of the Army. After his time at the Pentagon, Blanchard took command of the 82nd Airborne Division in 1970. He next returned to Europe to command the

VII Corps 7th Corps, Seventh Corps, or VII Corps may refer to: * VII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I * VII ...

, and subsequently

, as the army was transitioning to an all-volunteer force. He is credited with instituting the use of television to broadcast command information. He also instituted the Sergeant Morales competition in 1973, a program to designed to improve the morale and performance of the NCO corps. Blanchard was also known for his attempts to combat alcoholism in the army, which included banning discount drinks during happy hours in post clubs, prohibiting units from holding drinking contests, and opening the first alcoholism treatment center in Europe for officers and senior enlisted soldiers.

Decorations

Blanchard's awards and decorations included 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

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 ...

, the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious a ...

, the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

, Army Aviator Badge, and Airborne badge. His military education included the Infantry Officer Advanced Course, Basic Airborne Course,

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 ...

and the

Armed Forces Staff College The Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC), located in Norfolk, Virginia, was established as the Armed Forces Staff College in 1946 and incorporated into the National Defense University in August 1981. It educates and acculturates joint and multinat ...

. He retired in 1979.

Post-military

Blanchard retired to

McLean, Virginia McLean ( ) is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population of the community was 50,773 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is ...

, where he established General Analysis Inc., a defense consulting firm. He was also a member of the Atlantic Council Board, the

Army Science Board The Army Science Board (ASB) provides advice about army science to senior military leaders. The ASB is a Federal Advisory Committee organized under the Federal Advisory Committee Act. It is the United States Department of the Army senior scienti ...

, the

Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A m ...

and president of both the

Retired Officers Association The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) is a professional association of United States military officers. It is a nonprofit organization that advocates for a strong national defense, but is politically nonpartisan. The association ...

and the

United Service Organizations The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...

in the 1980s. In 1990, the Blanchards moved to North Carolina, and while there he helped organize a program where retirees tutor the illiterate. In 2001, the Association of Graduates, the United States Military Academy alumni organization, selected him as that year's recipient of the Distinguished Graduate Award. He and his wife returned to Virginia in 2002 to live at The Fairfax, a military retirement community in

Fort Belvoir Fort Belvoir ( ) is a United States Army installation and a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. It was developed on the site of the former Belvoir (plantation), Belvoir plantation, seat of the prominent Lord ...

. Blanchard died of pneumonia on 3 May 2006, at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital at the age of 86. At the time of his death he was survived by his wife Beth H. Blanchard, four daughters, eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanchard, George S. 1920 births 2006 deaths United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War United States Army aviators Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Order of Merit of Baden-Württemberg Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs alumni Aviators from Washington, D.C. Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Eastern High School (Washington, D.C.) alumni