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=== World War II ===
During [[World War II]], he served with the [[U.S. 4th Armored Division|4th Armored Division]], initially as regimental [[adjutant]] (June 1941-June 1942) then as a [[battalion]] commander (July 1942-March 1943), and [[regiment]] executive officer (March 1943-September 1943) with the [[37th Armored Regiment]]. A reorganization of the division created a new [[battalion]], the [[37th Tank Battalion]], which he commanded through March [[1945]] when he was promoted to command Combat Command B of the division. During this time he was promoted to the temporary ranks of major (March 1943) and lieutenant colonel (September 1943).
During much of this time his unit was at the spearhead of the 4th Armored Division and the Third Army, and he was consequently well known as an aggressive armor commander. By using his qualities as a leader and by consistently exploiting the relatively small advantages of speed and reliability of his vehicles he managed to defeat German forces who had the advantage of superior armor, superior guns and better trained troops.
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Following the war he served on the Army General Staff (1945-1946), as head of the department of tactics at the Armored School, [[Fort Knox]] (1946-1948), and graduated from the Command and General Staff College at [[Fort Leavenworth]] (1949). He was briefly promoted temporary colonel in 1945 but reverted to lieutenant colonel during WW II demobilization.
He commanded the [[63rd Tank Battalion]], part of the [[U.S._1st_Infantry_Division|1st Infantry Division]], in Europe (1949-1951). He was again promoted to colonel and commanded the [[2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment]] (1951-1952). These units were important assignments due to the [[Cold War]] concern for potential invasion of western Europe by the Soviet Union. He then attended and graduated from the [[US Army War College]] in 1953.
=== Korean Service ===
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He was promoted general in 1964 and appointed vice chief of staff of the Army (he was seriously considered as a candidate for chief of staff at that time). Due to concerns about the conduct of the Vietnam War, he was appointed as deputy to [[William Westmoreland|General William Westmoreland]], head of the [[Military Assistance Command in Vietnam]], in May [[1967]]. He succeeded Westmoreland as commander in June 1968. His tenure of command was not marked by the public optimism of his predecessors, who were prone to press conferences and public statements.
Following the election of [[Richard Nixon|President Richard Nixon]] he implemented the [[Nixon Doctrine]] referred to as [[Vietnamization]]. Vietnamization was designed to wind down the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, and have [[South Vietnam]] responsible for executing the war.
He was appointed [[Chief of Staff of the United States Army]] in June 1972 but was not confirmed by the Senate until October 1972 due to political repercussions involving disobedience by one of his subordinate commanders. He served in this position until his death in September 1974. During this time he began the transition to the all-volunteer Army.
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