Douglas MacArthur

Military Commander

1880 – 1964

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Who was Douglas MacArthur?

General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army who was Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the Philippines Campaign, which made him and his father Arthur MacArthur, Jr., the first father and son to be awarded the medal. He was one of only five men ever to rise to the rank of General of the Army in the U.S. Army, and the only man ever to become a field marshal in the Philippine Army.

Raised in a military family in the American Old West, MacArthur was valedictorian at the West Texas Military Academy, and First Captain at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated top of the class of 1903. During the 1914 United States occupation of Veracruz, he conducted a reconnaissance mission, for which he was nominated for the Medal of Honor. In 1917, he was promoted from major to colonel and became chief of staff of the 42nd Division. In the fighting on the Western Front during World War I, he rose to the rank of brigadier general, was again nominated for a Medal of Honor, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross twice and the Silver Star seven times.

Famous Quotes:

  • Last, but by no means least, courage-moral courage, the courage of one's convictions, the courage to see things through. The world ;is in a constant conspiracy against the brave. It's the age-old struggle-the roar of the crowd on one side and the voice of your ;conscience on the other.
  • Whether in chains or in laurels, liberty knows nothing but victories.
  • I see that old flagpole still stands. Have your troops hoist the colors to its peak, and let no enemy ever haul them down.
  • You are remembered for the rules you break.
  • Part of the American dream is to live long and die young. Only those Americans who are willing to die for their country are fit to live.
  • Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul.
  • No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.
  • In war there is no substitute for victory.
  • It must be of the spirit if we are to save the flesh.
  • The powers in charge keep us in a perpetual state of fear keep us in a continuous stampede of patriotic fervor with the cry of grave national emergency. Always there has been some terrible evil to gobble us up if we did not blindly rally behind it by furnishing the exorbitant sums demanded. Yet, in retrospect, these disasters seem never to have happened, seem never to have been quite real.

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Born
Jan 26, 1880
Little Rock
Also known as
  • General Douglas MacArthur
  • Gaijin Shogun
  • General Dougals MacArthur
  • General MacArthur
  • D'Artagnan of the A.E.F.
  • Beau Brummel of the Army
  • Napoleon of Luzon
  • American Caesar
  • Dougout Doug
  • Disraeli of the Chiefs of Staff
Parents
Siblings
Spouses
Children
Ethnicity
  • Scottish American
Nationality
  • United States of America
Profession
Education
  • United States Military Academy
  • TMI — The Episcopal School of Texas
Died
Apr 5, 1964
Washington, D.C.

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

Citation

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"Douglas MacArthur." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/douglas_macarthur>.

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