James Eugene Chaney (March 16, 1885 – August 21, 1967) was a senior

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 ...

officer. He served in both

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 ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early life

Chaney was born in Chaneyville, Maryland. He studied at public schools in Dunkirk, Maryland, and for three years at Baltimore City College. He was then appointed to

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 ...

by Senator Louis E. McComas. Chaney entered the academy with his class on June 16, 1904. Alongside his studies Chaney engaged in extra-curricular activities. Chaney was a hop manager, played polo and worked up to the status of Cadet Captain. He graduated from the academy on February 14, 1908, and was appointed as a second lieutenant in the

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

Military career

Upon graduation, Chaney was assigned back to West Point to supervise the training of the new Fourth Class which entered the academy on March 2, 1908. In February 1910, Chaney served with his first regiment, the 9th infantry based at

Fort Sam Houston Fort Sam Houston is a United States Army, U.S. Army post in San Antonio, Texas. "Fort Sam Houston, TX • About Fort Sam Houston" (overview), US Army, 2007, webpageSH-Army. Known colloquially as "Fort Sam", it is named for the first president o ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. He was subsequently detached for service in Europe, Africa and Asia up to July 1910. Chaney re-joined his regiment at

Iloilo Iloilo ( ; ), officially the Province of Iloilo (; ; ; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital and largest city is Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas and politically independen ...

in the Philippines, serving there until June 1912. He then returned to West Point at an instructor in

modern language A modern language is any human language that is currently in use as a native language. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead clas ...

s up to July 1914. In September 1914 he was based at the

Presidio of San Francisco The Presidio of San Francisco (originally, El Presidio Real de San Francisco or The Royal Fortress of Saint Francis) is a park and former U.S. Army post on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, and is part ...

with the 30th infantry before being ordered to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

in December. Serving with the 25th infantry at

Schofield Barracks Schofield Barracks is a United States Army installation and census-designated place (CDP) located in Honolulu and in the Wahiawa District of the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Hawaii. Schofield Barracks lies adjacent to the town of Wahiawā, separated ...

until September 1917, he was then detailed to the Air Service and returned to the United States. Chaney was first stationed until November 1917 at Chanute Field,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. He then was then appointed

commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

of the School of Military Aeronautics in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

up until June 1918. He then moved on to be executive officer of the Operations Section at the Office of the Director of Military Aeronautics 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 ...

up until August 1918.

World War I

In August 1918 Chaney served in Europe at Air Service Headquarters Service of Supplies for a month before joining the Headquarters of the Chief of Air Service,

American Expeditionary Forces The American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) was a formation of the United States Armed Forces on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during World War I, composed mostly of units from the United States Army, U.S. Army. The AEF was establis ...

(AEF). There he served for a further month on the coordination staff. For the remainder of the year Chaney worked in the Office of the Chief of Air Service while also executive officer at the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff. He held these posts until February 1919.

Interwar years

As part of the

allied occupation of the Rhineland An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are call ...

, Chaney commanded the

Coblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman military post by Drusus . Its name originates from ...

aerodrome in Germany up to April 1919. From there he served in the Office of the Air Service Commander of the Third Army until June. Leaving the occupation force he took command of Air Service Production Centre at Romorantin in France to August. Then until October he was United States aviation officer for the Provisional District of Great Britain. From Britain Chaney went on to serve as an assistant military

air attaché An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, Italy. He served in this capacity from October 1919 until June 1924. After Rome Chaney returned to the United States with service at Langley Field,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

until October 1924. Attending the Command and General Staff 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 ...

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, Chaney graduated with honours in June 1926. His service continued as commandant (up to March 1928) of the Air Corps Primary Flying School at Brooks Field and the Air Corps Advanced Flying School,

Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-use airport, Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he ...

to June 1930. Chaney returned to Washington D.C. to attend the Army War College up to June 1931. Following graduation he was assigned to duty in the Office of the Chief of Air Corps in the city until January the following year. He attended the Disarmament Conference in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

, Switzerland. There he acted, until June 1932, as a technical advisor to General George S. Simonds. Following this he resumed his duties in Washington D.C. until April 1935. It was in this period in Washington that Chaney was appointed assistant chief of the Air Corps. Chaney led the

Randolph Field Randolph Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Bexar County, Texas, ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the United ...

Air Corps Training Center in Texas. He held this post from May 1935 until he completed his tour as assistant chief of Air Corps in July 1938. From Texas Chaney was posted as head of the Air Defence Command at Mitchel Field, New York in January 1940. Chaney was given further responsibility as commanding general of the Northeast Air District in October.

World War II

Chaney was promoted to major general in 1940. From October to November 1940 he returned to Europe as an observer of the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain () was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defended the United Kingdom (UK) against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany's air force ...

and Blitz on

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. May 1941 saw Chaney formally assigned to the United Kingdom. Based in London, he acted as Special Army Observer and Head of the Special Army Observers Group. Chaney headed the Army Observers Group from May 1941 to June 20, 1942. In addition to this role Chaney was theatre commander in Europe from January 8 to June 20, 1942. Towards the end of this period, the

European Theater of Operations, United States Army The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground Forc ...

was established on June 8, 1942. Chaney was subsequently replaced as theatre commander by Major General

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

. Returning to Mitchel Field in July 1942 Chaney was appointed commanding general of the

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern & Air Forces Space; 1 AF-AFNORTH & AFSPACE) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission i ...

. He led the Army Air Forces Basic Training Center at

Sheppard Field Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, Texas, Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the largest training base and most divers ...

, Texas from May 1942 to November 1944. He then moved to

Western Technical Training Command Western Technical Training Command was a command of the United States Army Air Forces. It was assigned to the Army Air Forces Training Command, and stationed at Denver, Colorado throughout its existence. It was inactivated on 15 October 1945. ...

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. Turning his attention to the

war in the Pacific The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

, Chaney was given command of Army forces for the

Battle of Iwo Jima The was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and United States Navy (USN) landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II. The American invasion, desi ...

from November 1944 until July 1945. As commander of

Iwo Jima is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands, which lie south of the Bonin Islands and together with them make up the Ogasawara Subprefecture, Ogasawara Archipelago. Together with the Izu Islands, they make up Japan's Nanpō Islands. Although sout ...

from March 1945, he commanded all United States Forces on the island. Assigned command as general of the Western Pacific Base Command in August 1945 Chaney had his headquarters on

Saipan Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...

. Then in October 1945, he was made a member (later president) of the

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

's Personnel Board in Washington, D.C. There he served until he retired on July 31, 1947, at his own request.

Personal life

Chaney married Miriam Clark on February 10, 1910. She was the daughter of Colone
Charles Hobart Clark
and the granddaughter of General René Edward De Russy, a former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point New York. Chaney died on August 21, 1967, and was 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. ...

in Arlington, Virginia. Miriam survived her husband by six weeks, dying after a long illness in 1967.

References

External links

* Portraits of James E. Chaney �
National Portrait Gallery
(UK) * Photograph of James E. Chaney Visiting Bradley Field �
Connecticut State Library
(US) {{DEFAULTSORT:Chaney, James E 1885 births 1967 deaths United States air attachés United States Military Academy faculty United States Army War College alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army personnel of World War I Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army Air Forces generals United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Air Forces generals of World War II Military personnel from Maryland