Roderick Wetherill: Difference between revisions
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==Writings== |
==Writings== |
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Wetherill's official papers have been collected, which primarily concern [[field artillery]] issues, such as personnel and gunships versus field artillery.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Roderick_Wetherill_papers.html?id=k1HGZwEACAAJ Google books|author=Roderick Wetherill|title=The Roderick Wetherill papers|date=1970|accessdate=September 15, 2011}}</ref> He was the editor of the United States Army's monograph about the history of U.S. Field Artillery from 1972 to 1973.<ref name="Monograph" /> His written report to General [[Frederick C. Weyand]] on August 31, 1970, about the "Command of I Field Force in Vietnam" was used as a case study in "the development of close air support." |
Wetherill's official papers have been collected, which primarily concern [[field artillery]] issues, such as personnel and gunships versus field artillery.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Roderick_Wetherill_papers.html?id=k1HGZwEACAAJ Google books|author=Roderick Wetherill|title=The Roderick Wetherill papers|date=1970|accessdate=September 15, 2011}}</ref> He was the editor of the United States Army's monograph about the history of U.S. Field Artillery from 1972 to 1973.<ref name="Monograph" /> His written report to General [[Frederick C. Weyand]] on August 31, 1970, about the "Command of I Field Force in Vietnam" was used as a "case study" in "the development of close air support."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=_mIq1PP0nCEC&pg=PA482&lpg=PA482&dq=%22Roderick+Wetherill%22+-wikipedia&source=bl&ots=QLEUChshIy&sig=2EsI-ZAgZI3_VqPY40C5dU6Qz_k&hl=en&ei=5t10TtvUGcPC0AH51PG2DQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDAQ6AEwBDha#v=onepage&q=%22Roderick%20Wetherill%22%20-wikipedia&f=false Google ebooks|author=B. Franklin Cooling, editor, for the Office of Air Force History |title=Case studies in the development of close air support |publisher=DIANE Publishing|date=1990|accessdate=September 17, 2011}}</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 18:52, 17 September 2011
Roderick Wetherill, Sr. | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Rod |
| Born | January 19, 1918 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died | January 26, 1978 (aged 60) |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1940–73 |
| Rank |  Major General |
| Battles / wars | World War II Vietnam War |
Roderick "Rod" Wetherill, Sr. (b. January 19, 1918, d. June 26, 1978) was a notable officer of the United States Army from World War II through the Vietnam War.[1] The official Army history of the War in southeast Asia considers him to have been a "key ... commander in Vietnam".[2]
Education and early career
Wetherill graduated from West Point Military Academy in 1940,[1][3] as had his father and would his son.[4] While a young Lieutenant, he married Josephine Bolling, in March 1941, at a church in Waban, Massachusetts;[5] his bride was a daughter of Army officer Alexander R. Bolling, who later bacame a Lieutenant General and former Chief of Army Intelligence.[6]
He was working there at West Point after graduation, and residing in Highland Falls, New York, when his son Roderick Wetherill, Jr., was born on January 20, 1942.[4] His first son was born six weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the day after his own birthday.
He was promoted several times during and after World War II. In June 1953, then-Lieutenant Colonel Wetherill took part in a "retrograde movement" at Pukhan River, towards the end of the Korean War.[7] He was "division artillery advisor" at the battle of Pukhan River, and witnessed first-hand the horrible casualties; he said, "I could see by the gun flashes the arms legs and faces hanging all over the wire."[7] He also attempted to save some soldiers from being captured as prisoners of war by the Chinese "Red" Army.[7]
From about 1955 to 1957 was a Colonel stationed at the Headquarters, Continental Army Command.[8][9] From April 1963 through December 1964, he was chief of staff of the V Army in Germany, at the rank of Brigadier General.[10]
The Vietnam War
After a long military career, he rose to the rank of Major General.[2][11]
He was appointed the Senior Advisor, IV Corps, Delta Military Assistance Command on June 1, 1969,[2] and served until his retirement in May 1973.[12] He advised General Abrams in June 1969 to transfer certain units of the Vietnamese army out of Saigon to the Mekong delta area, in order for them to gain combat experience, but Wetherill's advice was ignored.[13] Just as he feared, the North Vietnamese army invaded the Mekong Delta in August 1969.[14][15] Wetherill was quoted extensively in a nationally syndicated UPI story about the offensive.[14][15] Specifically, he noted that this was not merely the Viet Cong being involved, but regular enemy troups being engaged for the first time in the area.[14][15] He famously said about those North Vietnam troop movements in the Mekong Delta:
I think they came down here to shore up a detriorating situation. It's an indication of Hanoi's growing concern with what's happening down here.
In September 1969, Walter Cronkite of CBS News reported that some civilian advisors had also advised withdrawing U.S. troups; he further quoted Wetherill as describing both the displaced persons there and the withdrawal of American troops.[17]
Fort Sill
Wetherill was sent stateside to Fort Sill, which he commanded from February 1970 through the end of May 1973.[18][19]
As a commanding officer of Fort Sill, and its artillery school during the early 1970s,[11][19][20] Wetherill was the named defendant in a famous conscientious objector case during the Vietnam War, Polsky v. Wetherill, 438 F.2d 132 (10th Cir. 1971).[21] The Tenth Circuit decided Polski on jurisdictional grounds, without getting into the merits of the case, while sitting en banc.[21] However, the Supreme Court vacated that judgment in Polsky v. Wetherill, 403 U.S. 916, 91 S.Ct. 2232, 29 L.Ed.2d 693 (1971), and remanded it back to the 10th Circuit for further consideration.[22] On remand, the 10th Circuit ruled in favor of the petitioner 's request for a writ of habeas corpus, and against Wetherill, in Polsky v. Wetherill, 455 F.2d 960 (10th Cir. 1972).[23] Polsky v. Wetherill was cited was precedent ("mandatory authority") in Miller v. United States Army, 458 F.2d 388 (10th Cir. 1972).[24]
He once sent an enlisted man to psychiatric evaluation, rather than trial, in Lozinski v. Wetherill, 21 USCMA 77, 44 CMR 131 (C.M.A. 1971).[25] In another case, Robertson v. Wetherill, 21 USCMA 77, 44 CMR 131 (C.M.A. 1971), he ordered an enlisted man who was charged with possession of marijuana to face a general, rather than special, court martial.[26]
At Fort Sill, Wetherill also organized the 1970 Field Artillery Systems Review, which aimed for a a major "Modernization of the Field Artillery System."[20]
He inspected at least two college ROTC units in 1971, including that of Henderson State University.[27]
Promotion dates
| Rank | Temporary | Permanent |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd Lieutenant | May 1940 | ? |
| 1st Lieutenant | 1941 | ? |
| Captain | ? | ? |
| Major | ? | ? |
| Lieutenant Colonel | c. 1953 | ? |
| Colonel | c. 1955 | ? |
| Brigadier General | April 1963 | ? |
| Major General | June 1969 | ? |
| Retired | May 31, 1973 |
Writings
Wetherill's official papers have been collected, which primarily concern field artillery issues, such as personnel and gunships versus field artillery.[28] He was the editor of the United States Army's monograph about the history of U.S. Field Artillery from 1972 to 1973.[12] His written report to General Frederick C. Weyand on August 31, 1970, about the "Command of I Field Force in Vietnam" was used as a "case study" in "the development of close air support."[29]
References
- ^ a b "Biographical stub at West Point alumni website". Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ a b c Richard W. Stewart (ed.). "KEY U.S. OFFICIALS AND COMMANDERS IN VIETNAM, Appendix to the History of Vietnam war". United States Army. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ "1940 West Point Yearbook". 1940. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ a b Greg Letterman. "Biography at West Point alumni website". Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ New York Times select archives (behind a paywall) "Margaret Bolling Wed to Officer; Bride in Church Ceremony at Waban, Mass., of Lieut. Roderick Wetherill". New York Times. March 9, 1941. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Michael R. Patterson. "GENERAL BOLLING DEAD; LED INTELLIGENCE; Figured in Army-McCarthy Hearings – In 2 Wars". Arlington Cemetary website. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ a b c Frederick Painton (June 17, 1953). Google newspapers website "Retreat Before 'Human Sea' Attack Described". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ eBooks website "Official register of the United States (Volume 1955). (page 19 of 111)". United States Bureau of the Census. 1955. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ eBooks website "Official register of the United States (Volume 1957). (page 21 of 135)". United States Bureau of the Census. 1957. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Charles E. Kirkpatrick (November 2001). US Army in Germany website "History of V Corps". United States Department of Defense, Army V Corps Public Affairs Office. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ a b "The filed Artilleryman" (PDF). October 1972. p. 5. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Text "publisher+United States Army" ignored (help) - ^ a b David E. Ott (2003). "U.S. Field Artillery in Vietnam". United States Army. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ Jeffrey J. Clarke (1988). "Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973". United States Government Printing Office. p. 381. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ a b c d UPI (August 25, 1969). The Journal-Tribune (Marysville, Ohio) http://www.newspaperarchive.com/SiteMap/FreePdfPreview.aspx?img=114387270. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ a b c d UPI (August 25, 1969). "Red Regiment Poses Threat to Delta Area". The Norwalk Hour. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
- ^ William Gerber (August 23, 1969). Google newspapers archives "Quotable Quotes". The Bulletin (Bend, Oregon). Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ "CBS Evening News for Wednesday, Sep 03, 1969". Vanderbilt University Televisions News Project. September 3, 1969. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|title=at position 21 (help) - ^ Docstoc.com "US Army Field Artillery Center and Fort Sill Annual (History)". 1999. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ a b Janice E. McKenney (2007). Google books "The organizational history of field artillery 1775-2003". Government Printing Office. p. 326. ISBN 9780160771156. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ a b "Field Artillery Magazine, Systems Review" (PDF). March 1971. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
- ^ a b "Polsky v. Wetherill". Justia. January 24, 1971. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ Polsky v. Wetherill, 403 U.S. 916, 91 S.Ct. 2232, 29 L.Ed.2d 693 (1971); see also Polsky v. Wetherill, 455 F.2d 960 (10th Cir. 1972).
- ^ "Polsky v. Wetherill". Justia. March 2, 1972. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ "Miller v. United States Army". vLex.com. 1972. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
- ^ Google Books "Lozinski v. Wetherill". LLMC. August 17, 1971. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Google Books "Robertson v. Wetherill". LLMC. November 12, 1971. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Henderson State University Library archives "Gen. Wetherill Will Visit Henderson, Ouachita Units". Daily Sifting Herald. February 7, 1972. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ Roderick Wetherill (1970). Google books "The Roderick Wetherill papers". Retrieved September 15, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ B. Franklin Cooling, editor, for the Office of Air Force History (1990). Google ebooks "Case studies in the development of close air support". DIANE Publishing. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help); Check|url=value (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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