Marshall Sylvester Carter (September 16, 1909 – February 18, 1993) was a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

in the

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 ...

. From 1965 to 1969, he served as Director of the National Security Agency.

Life and career

Carter was born on September 16, 1909, at Fort Monroe, Virginia, the son of future brigadier general Clifton C. Carter. He graduated 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 ...

in 1931 and took an

M.S. A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine ...

degree from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

in 1936. Carter served as an aide to General George C. Marshall during Marshall's time as

Chief of Staff of the United States Army The chief of staff of the Army (CSA) is a statutory position in the United States Army held by a general officer. As the highest-ranking officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, the chief is the principal military advisor and a ...

, Secretary of State, and Secretary of Defense. Carter, then a

, served as Deputy Director of Central Intelligence from April 3, 1962, to April 28, 1965. From 1965 to 1969, he served as Director of the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is an intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the director of national intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collection, and proces ...

. While serving as Director of the NSA, Carter testified to a House Appropriations Committee about the 1967 USS ''Liberty'' incident. He stated that “It couldn’t be anything else but deliberate. There’s just no way you could have a series of circumstances that would justify it being an accident.” Upon retirement from the military, he served as President of the George C. Marshall Research Foundation until retiring from that position in 1985. Carter was inducted into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame. He was portrayed by Ed Lauter in the film '' Thirteen Days'' (2000), based on events occurring during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...

. Carter is buried in

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. ...

with his wife, Preot Nichols Carter (1912–1997). Carter died of liver cancer on February 18, 1993, in his home in Colorado Springs

Decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Marshall S. 1909 births 1993 deaths People from Hampton, Virginia Army Black Knights men's ice hockey players United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army generals Directors of the National Security Agency Deputy directors of the Central Intelligence Agency Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Military Academy alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit Commanders of the Order of Orange-Nassau