Richard J. Tallman (March 28, 1925 – July 9, 1972) was 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 ...

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed t ...

who was killed by North Vietnamese artillery fire in 1972 during the

Battle of An Lộc The Battle of An Lộc was a major battle of the Vietnam War that lasted for 66 days and culminated in a tactical victory for South Vietnam. The struggle for An Lộc in 1972 was an important battle of the war, as South Vietnamese forces halte ...

. He was the last U.S. Army general to die in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. He was on his third tour in South Vietnam.

Early life and education

He was born in

Honesdale Honesdale is a Local government in Pennsylvania#Borough, borough in and the county seat of Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough's population was 4,458 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Honesdale is loca ...

, Wayne County, Pennsylvania. Tallman married Evelyn Phillips in 1949. They had seven children. He graduated from

Honesdale High School Honesdale High School is a public, four-year, regional high school serving grades 9–12 in Honesdale, Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States, as a part of the Wayne Highlands School District. In the 2017–2018 school year, the School reporte ...

in 1943. After serving as an enlisted soldier in World War II he was admitted to

West Point 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 ...

where he graduated in 1949 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 ...

in the regular Army.

U.S. Army career

Shortly after high school graduation he was drafted into the Army and sent to the European theatre as an infantrymen. He fought in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

as a machine gunner within the 42nd Infantry Division. During World War II he earned a battlefield (reserve) commission from private first class to

2nd 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 ...

. 1st Lt Tallman saw action during the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

in 1951-2 with the 3rd Infantry Division. He served as a tactical officer and military history teacher and as assistant commandant of cadets at West Point.

Vietnam War

Tallman served as senior advisor to the ARVN 22nd Infantry Division in 1964. Then-Lieutenant Colonel Tallman commanded the 2nd Battalion,

501st Infantry Regiment The 501st Infantry Regiment, previously the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment and 501st Airborne Infantry Regiment, is an airborne forces regiment of the United States Army with a long history, having served in World War II and the Vietnam War ...

in 1967. On 18 June 1971, then-Colonel Tallman became commander of the 3rd Brigade of the

101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault operations. It can plan, coordinate, and execute multiple battalion-size air assault operat ...

. In January 1972 he was appointed as chief of staff of Third ilitaryRegional Assistance Command (TRAC) which was responsible for overseeing all U.S. military advisors throughout the 3rd Military Region. On 27 June he was appointed deputy commander of TRAC and was promoted to brigadier general on 28 June.

Death

On 9 July 1972, Tallman and his aides had just landed at An Lộc to observe

ARVN The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; french: Armée de la république du Viêt Nam) composed the ground forces of the South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in April 1975. It is estimated to have suffe ...

counter-offensive operations at the conclusion of the

when they were hit by North Vietnamese artillery fire, three of the group were killed instantly, while Tallman and two others were wounded. The wounded men were evacuated to the 3rd Field Hospital in

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

where Tallman died of his wounds. He was the last U.S. Army general to die in South Vietnam.

Memorials

The Brigadier General Richard J. Tallman Memorial Bridge in Honesdale is named in his honor.

References