Table Of ContentGeneral William E. DePuy
American Warriors
Throughout the nation’s history, numerous men and women of all
ranks and branches of the United States military have served their
country with honor and distinction. During times of war and peace,
there are individuals whose exemplary achievements embody the
highest standards of the U.S. armed forces. The aim of the American
Warriors series is to examine the unique historical contributions of
these individuals, whose legacies serve as enduring examples for
soldiers and citizens alike. The series will promote a deeper and more
comprehensive understanding of the U.S. armed forces.
Series editor: Roger Cirillo
An AUSA Book
G
eneral
W e. D P
illiam e uy
Preparing the Army
for Modern War
Henry G. Gole
With a foreword by
Major General William A. Stofft,
U.S. Army (Ret.)
T U P K
he niversiTy ress of enTUcKy
Copyright © 2008 by The University Press of Kentucky
Scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth,
serving Bellarmine University, Berea College, Centre College of Kentucky,
Eastern Kentucky University, The Filson Historical Society, Georgetown
College, Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State University,
Morehead State University, Murray State University, Northern Kentucky
University, Transylvania University, University of Kentucky, University
of Louisville, and Western Kentucky University.
Gole, Henry G., 1933-
All rights reserved.
General William E. Depuy : preparing the Army for modern war / Henry G.
Gole ; with a foreword by William A. Stofft.
Editorial and Sales Offices: The University Press of Kentucky
p. cm. — (American warriors)
663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40508-4008
“An AUSA book.”
www.kentuckypress.com
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8131-2500-8 (hbk. : alk. paper)
Photos, unless otherwise stated, from the DePuy Family Collection
1. DePuy, William E. (William Eugene), 1919-1992 2. United States. Army—
Maps by Donna Gilbreath
Officers—Biography. 3. United States. Army—History—20th century.
4. Generals—United States—Biography. 5. Military education—United 12 11 10 09 08 5 4 3 2 1
States—History—20th century. 6. United States. Army Training and Doctrine
Command—History—20th century. I. Title. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
U53.D46G65 2008
355.0092--dc22 Gole, Henry G., 1933-
[B] 2008028002 General William E. Depuy : preparing the Army for modern war / Henry G.
Gole ; with a foreword by William A. Stofft.
p. cm. — (American warriors)
“An AUSA book.”
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8131-2500-8 (hbk. : alk. paper)
1. DePuy, William E. (William Eugene), 1919-1992 2. United States. Army—
Officers—Biography. 3. United States. Army—History—20th century.
4. Generals—United States—Biography. 5. Military education—United
States—History—20th century. 6. United States. Army Training and Doctrine
Command—History—20th century. I. Title.
U53.D46G65 2008
355.0092--dc22
[B] 2008028002
This book is printed on acid-free recycled paper meeting
the requirements of the American National Standard
for Permanence in Paper for Printed Library Materials.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Member of the Association of
American University Presses
To the professional American soldiers
whose loyalty and dedication carried them
through the bad times and enabled them
to fix our severely troubled post-Vietnam Army.
Contents
Foreword ix
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
1. Dakota Days 1
2. Apprentice to Journeyman 13
3. The 90th Division Goes to School 25
4. The 90th Breaks Out 41
5. Regular Army 67
6. CIA Detail 75
7. Armed Forces Staff College and a Second Battalion
Command 87
8. Clever Chaps: The View from the Chief’s Office 101
9. School in London; Command in Schweinfurt 115
10. Back to Washington 131
11. Vietnam 143
12. The Big Red One 167
13. SACSA, Tet, and Policy Review 199
14. To Fix a Broken Army 213
15. TRADOC Commander: The Army’s Road Back 237
16. Retirement, Illness, Taps 275
17. Legacy: An Army Ready to Fight the Next War 293
Notes 299
Selected Bibliography 329
Index 343
Illustrations follow page 142
Foreword
Everyone likes a good story. And this is a really good story, about
a young man from the Dakotas named Bill DePuy, who graduates
from South Dakota State College in 1941 with an ROTC commis-
sion, just in time for the “good war.”
Before the war ended, he had been an integral part of the trans-
formation of a U.S. Army fighting division—the 90th—from one of
the worst in the European Theater to perhaps its best. He trained
with the division for over two years and helped take it to England
and then Normandy as a young officer, where he watched it strug-
gle in the hedgerows and waste hundreds of its soldiers at the hands
of poor leaders. He then spent the rest of the 308 days the division
fought ensuring that his part of the team fought well and no sol-
dier was ever wasted. He started the war as a green lieutenant and
finished it as the division G-3 and a lieutenant colonel, having com-
manded a battalion and earned the Distinguished Service Cross and
three Silver Stars, all before his twenty-sixth birthday.
DePuy mastered his profession first at the “sharp end of the
spear,” where the killing and the dying takes place. He learned that
squads, platoons, and companies make war on enemy squads, pla-
toons, and companies. If an army can do that well, it stands a chance
of winning. If not—well, in the vernacular, “Don’t go there.” This
became his “first principle,” and he spent the rest of his life building
on that certain truth: war is about battle and knowing how to fight
means knowing how to wage war successfully.
A number of terrific leaders surfaced in the 90th Division, start-
ing with MG Ray McClain at the top. But DePuy made an immediate
and important contribution from the first day wherever he served in
the division. His experiences—especially in the first battles—seared
his soul and changed his life.
There would be no second-generation DePuy in the bank back
home in Brookings, South Dakota. Bill DePuy would be a soldier in
America’s Army until his last day. How lucky for the Army and the
country.
Description:From the late 1960s to the late 1970s, the United States Army was a demoralized institution in a country in the midst of a social revolution. The war in Vietnam had gone badly and public attitudes about it shifted from indifference, to acceptance, to protest. Army Chief of Staff General Creighton Ab
