FORTITtJD.BULLETIN OF THE MARINE CORPS HISTORICAL PROGRHISTORICAL BULLETIN VOLUME XXII WINTER 1992-1993 NUMBER s

STORIED MARINE AImLLERYMAN RECALLED IN FORT SILL DETACHMENT BUILDING NAMING.. . REUVING AFTER

2 WARS ThE VIETr1vI WAR'S BRUTAL 'BATFLE FOR HUE'. . . ON THE ROM) IN SO1vIAuA, MAmNE HISTORMNS,ARTISTS RECORD THE CORPS' HUMANITAIuM. MISSION. . FLIGHT LINES: ThOMAS-MORSE S.4 SCOUT TRAINER

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I 7J

S

FORTITtJD.BULLETIN OF THE MARINE CORPS HISTORICAL PROGRHISTORICAL BULLETIN VOLUME XXII WINTER 1992-1993 NUMBER

SiORIED MARINE ARTILLERYMAN RECALLED IN FORT SILL DETACHMENT BUILDING NAMING. . . REUVING AFTER

15 WARS ThE VIETNAM WAR'S BRUTAL 'BATFLE FOR HUE'. . . ON THE ROAD IN SOMAUA, MARINE HISIO1UANS,

ARTISTS RECORD THE CORPS' HUMANITARIAN MISSION. . . FLIGHT LINES: ThOMAS-MORSE S.4 SCOUT ThATNER

DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A: Approved for public release; distribution isunlimited.

PCN 10401220100

Marine Corps Historical CenterBuilding 58. Washington Navy Yard

901 M Street. SoutheastWashington, DC, 20374-5040

Telephone: (202) 433-3838, 433-3840, 433-3841

DIREC1DR

BGen Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret)Secretary to the Director Mrs. Patricia E. Morgan.

DEPUTY DIREC1DR

Cot Marsha!! B. Darling, USMC

HIS1DRICAL BRANCH

Head: LtCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC. Histories Section:Mr. Bents M. Frank, Chief Historian; Dr. Jack Shulimson;Mr. Charles R, Smith; LtCoi Kenneth W. Estes, USMC; CaptDavid A. Dawson. USMC. Oral Histoty Unit: Mr. RichardA. Long. Reference Section: Mr. Danny J. Crawford; Mr.Robert V. Aquilina: Mrs. Ann A. Ferrante; Miss Lena M. Kal-jot; Mrs. Regina Strother; Mrs. Shelia Gramblin. Archives:

Mr. FrederickJ. Graboske: Mr. J, Michael Miller, PersonalPapers; Mrs.Joyce C. Hudson; Cpl Joshua R. Ford, USMC,Official Papers.

MUSEUMS BRANCH

Head/Officer-in- Charge. Air. Ground Museum, Quantico:LtCol Carmen Dragotta, USMC. Operations Officer CaptChristopher L. French, USMC. Museums Section: Mr.

Charles A. Wood, Chief Curator, Mr. Kenneth L. Smith-Christmas, Matenal History; Mr. John G. Griffiths, Ord-nance; Mr. Joseph E. Payton; SSgt Mitch Garringer, USMC;Cpl David S. Crockett, USMC, Restoration; Mr. Michael E.Stain, Aeronautics; Mr. Ronald J, Perkins, Mr. Ronnie D.Alexander, Exhibits; Mrs. Nancy F King, Uniforms; Mrs.

Jennifer L. Castro, Registrar Mrs. Kathryn R. Trout, Pro-grams Assistant. Security: GySgtRobert L. Holloway, USMC;

Sgt Daryl L. Clark, USMC: Sgt Vincent L. Wright, USMC;Cpl Guillermo J. Serra, USMC; LCpI Kevin S. Anderson,USMC; LCpI Sean A. Brooks, USMC; LCpI Jose Rodriguez,USMC; LCpI Jeffrey J. Weins, USMC; LCpI Steven E.Winsky, USMC.

MARINE CORPS MUSEUM UNIT, WASHINGTON, D.C.

E,chibits: Mr. James A. Fairfax; Mr. Gordon Heim; Sgt AlbertRamos, USMC; Manne Corps Art Collection: Mr. John TDyer, Jr.

SUPPORT BRANCH

Head/Division Executive Officer LtCol Dale K. Johnson,USMC. Editing and Design Section: Mr. Robert E. Struder;Mr. William S. Hill; Mrs. Catherine A. Kerns. Libraty: Miss

Evelyn A. Englander. Administration: Capt Joe Wells, Jr.,USMC: 2dLt John T Simpson, USMC; SSgtJohn Hudson.USMC; Sgt Exkchart Rattanachai, USMC; CpI Michael L.Ashley, USMC; LCpI Amanda F. Bernard, USMC; LCpI An-thony R. Hicks, USMC. Security Unit SSgt Ricaido E. Hard-ing, USMC; Sgt Andre L. Owens III, USMC.

Mr. Robert E. StruderSenior Editor/Editor. Fortitudine

FORTIT[JD INEMotto of the United States Marine Corps in the 1812 era.

Historical Bulletin Volume XXII Winter 1991-1992 No. 3

This quarterly bulletin of the Marine Corps historical program is published for Marines, atthe rate of one copy for every nine on active duty, to provide education and training in theuses of military and Marine Corps history. Other interested readers may purchase single co-pies or one-year subscriptions (four issues) from the Superintendent of Documents. U.S.Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Memorandum from the Director: Fond Memories of 'Bigfoot' BrownBGen Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret) 3

Marine Facilities' Names Honor Corps' HeroesRobert V Aquilina 7

Histories Follow Marine Units in Iceland, the CaribbeanBenis M. Frank 8

Marines Mark 25th Anniversary of Pivotal Battle for HueD, Jack Shulimson 9

Somalia Task Force History-Keeping in Care of MarinesLtCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC .......................................... 12

Marine Historians Tracked Somalia Force from OutsetLtCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC ..................................,,,,,.,, 14

Marines' Efforts, People's Dramatic Plight Drew Combat Artists to SomaliaJohn T Dye J........................................................ 16

Gish Found Color Beautiful, People Lovely and GracefulCol Peter M. Gish, USMCR................................................ 17

Neary Sketch Wreathed by Small, Dusty Fingerprints ........................... 19

Marine Historian Inspects YugoslaviaCivilian Relief Operation's Zagreb Forward Headquarters .................... 20

Awards Citing Combat Prowess Are Presented to Persian Gulf MarinesAnn A. Ferrante ................................,,,,,,,,,.,,,,,,,,,.,. 20

Mentioned in Passing: Medals Expert Blakeney, SgtMaj Crawford DieBenis M. Frank 20

Commandant Opens Pentagon World War II ExhibitKenneth L. Smith-Christmas .......................................,,,,,,, 21

Flight Lines: Thomas-Morse S.4 'Scout'Michael E. Starn 22

W"orld Var II Chronology, 1941-1945: July — December 1943Robert V Aquilina ...................................................... 23

THE COVER

Marines of 2d Platoon, Bravo Company, 3d Assault Amphibian Battalion, were taking partin Operation Coronado in Bardera, Somalia, on 10 February when they were sketched inpencil and watercolor by Col Peter M. Gish, USMCR, a senior member of the Marine CorpsCombat Art Program. Col Gish and fellow artist LtCol DonnaJ. Neary, USMCR, were thefirst two combat artists to be dispatched to record the Marine presence in Somalia. In addi-tion to the art program, operations of the Combined joint Task Force Somalia were coveredby some innovative programs developed by military historians, with Marine historians ofMobilization Training Unit (History) DC-7 taking the lead. A number of articles, and someof the interesting artwork brought back from the humanitarian relief program in the EastAfrican nation, appears beginning on page 12. Another History and Museums Division pro-gram, Commemorative Naming, is highlighted by discussion of the dedication of WilburtS. 'Bigfoot' Brown Hall at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, by BGen Simmons, beginning on page 3.

Fortitudine is produced in the Editing and Design Section of the History and Museums Division. Thetext for Fortitudine is set in 10-point and 8-point Garamond typefaie. Headlines are in 18-point or24-point Garamond. The bulletin is printed on 70-pound, matte-toated paper by offset lithography.

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402.

2 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

HISTORYAND MUSEUMSDIVISION

Marine Corps Historical CenterBuilding 58. Washington Navy Yard

901 M Street. SoutheastWashington, D.C. 20374-5040

Telephone: (202) 433-3838, 433-3840, 433-3841

DIRECTOR

BGen Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret)

Secretary to the Director Mrs. Patricia E. Morgan.

DEPUTY DIRECTOR

Cot Marshall B. Darling. USMC

HISTORICAL BRANCH

Head: LrCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC. Histories Section:Mr. Benis M. Frank, Chief Historian; Dr. Jack Shulimson;Mr. Charles R. Smith: LtCol Kenneth W. Estes, USMC; CaptDavid A. Dawson, USMC. Oral History Unit: Mt. RichardA. Long. Reference Section: Mr. Danny J. Crawford: Mr.Robert V. Aquilina; Mrs. Ann A. Ferrante; Miss Lena M. Kal-jot; Mrs. Regina Strother; Mrs. Shelia Gramblin. Archives:Mr. Frederick J. Graboske; Mr. J. Michael Miller, PersonalPapers; Mrs. Joyce C. Hudson; Cpl Joshua R. Ford, USMC,Official Papers.

MUSEUMS BRANCH

Head/Offlcer.in.Charge. Air-Ground Museum, Quantico:LtCol Carmen Dragotta, USMC. Operations Officer CaptChristopher L. French, USMC. Museums Section: Mr.

Charles A. Wood, Chief Curator, Mr. Kenneth L. Smith.Christmas, Material History; Mr. John G. Griffiths, Ord-nance; Mr. Joseph E. Payton; SSgt Mitch Garringer. USMC;Cpl David S. Crockett, USMC, Restoration; Mr. Michael E.Starn, Aeronautics; Mr. Ronald J. Perkins, Mr. Ronnie D.Alexander, Exhibits; Mrs. Nancy F King. Uniforms; Mrs.

Jennifer L. Castro, Registrar; Mrs. Kathryn R. Trout, Pro-grams Assistant. Security: GySgt Robert L. Holloway, USMC;Sgt Daryl L. Clark, USMC; Sgt Vincent L. Wright, USMC;Cpl GuillermoJ. Serra, USMC; LCpI Kevin S. Anderson,USMC; LCpI Sean A. Brooks, USMC; LCplJose Rodriguez,USMC; LCpI Jeffrey J. Weins, USMC; LCpI Steven E.Winsky, USMC.

MARINE CORPS MUSEUM UNIT, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Exhibits: Mr. James A. Fairfax; Mr. Gordon Heim; Sgi AlbertRamos, USMC; Marine Corps Art Collection: Mr. John TDyer, Jr.

SUPPORT BRANCH

Head/Division Executive Officer LtCol Dale K. Johnson,USMC. Editing and Design Section: Mr. RobertE. Struder;Mr. William S. Hill; Mrs. Catherine A. Kerns. Library: MissEvelyn A. Englander. Administration: Capt Joe Wells, Jr.,USMC; 2dLt John T Simpson, USMC; SSgt John Hudson,USMC; Sgt Exkchari Rattanachat, USMC; Cpl Michael L.Ashley, USMC; LCpI Amanda F Bernard, USMC; LCpl An-thony R. Hicks, USMC. Security Unit SSgt Ricasdo E. Hard-ing, USMC; Sgt Andre L. Owens III, USMC.

Mr. Robert E. StruderSenior Editor/Editot Fortitudine

FORTIT[JD INEMotto of the United States Marine Corps in the 1812 era.

Historical Bulletin Volume XXII Winter 1991-1992 No. 3

This quarterly bulletin of the Marine Corps historical program iS published for Marines, atthe rate of one copy for every nine on active duty, to provide educatton and training in theuses of military and Marine Corps history. Other interested readers may purchase single co-pies or one-year subscriptions (four issues) from the Superintendent of Documents. U.S.Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402,

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Memorandum from the Director: Fond Memories of 'Bigfoot' BrownBGen Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret) 3

Marine Facilities' Names Honor Corps' HeroesRobert V Aquilina 7

Histories Follow Marine Units in Iceland, the CaribbeanBenis M. Frank 8

Marines Mark 25th Anniversary of Pivotal Battle for HueDr Jack Shulimson 9

Somalia Task Force History-Keeping in Care of MarinesLtCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC 12

Marine Historians Tracked Somalia Force from OutsetLtCol Thomas A. Richards, USMC 14

Marines' Efforts, People's Dramatic Plight Drew Combat Artists to SomaliaJohn T Dyer; Jr 16

Gish Found Color Beautiful, People Lovely and GracefulCol Peter M. Gish, USMCR 17

Neary Sketch Wreathed by Small, Dusty Fingerprints 19

Marine Historian Inspects YugoslaviaCivilian Relief Operation's Zagreb Forward Headquarters 20

Awards Citing Combat Prowess Are Presented to Persian Gulf MarinesAnn A. Ferrante 20

Mentioned in Passing: Medals Expert Blakeney, SgtMaj Crawford DieBenis M. Frank 20

Commandant Opens Pentagon World War II ExhibitKenneth L. Smith-Christmas 21

Flight Lines: Thomas-Morse S.4 'Scout'Michael F. Starn 22

World War II Chronology, 1941-1945: July — December 1943Robert V Aquilina 23

THE COVER

Marines of 2d Platoon, Bravo Company, 3d Assault Amphibian Battalion, were taking partin Operation Coronado in Bardera, Somalia, on 10 February when they were sketched inpencil and watercolor by Col Peter M. Gish, USMCR, a senior member of the Marine CorpsCombat Art Program. Col Gish and fellow artist LtCol DonnaJ. Neary, USMCR, were thefirst two combat artists to be dispatched to record the Marine presence in Somalia. In addi-tion to the art program, operations of the Combined joint Task Force Somalia were coveredby some innovative programs developed by military historians, with Marine historians ofMobilization Training Unit (History) DC-7 taking the lead. A number of articles, and someof the Interesting artwork brought back from the humanitarian relief program in the EastAfrican nation, appears beginning on page 12. Another History and Museums Division pro-gram, Commemorative Naming, is highlighted by discussion of the dedication of WilburtS. 'Bigfoot' Brown Hall at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, by BGen Simmons, beginning on page 3.

Fortitud,ne is produced in the Editing and Design Section of the History and Museums Division. Thetext for Fortitudine is set in 10-point and 8-point Garamond typeface. Headlines are in 18-point or24-point Garamond. The bulletin is printed on 70'pound, matte-coated paper by offset lithography.

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.20402.

2 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

HISTORYAND MUSEUMSDIVISION

Memorandum from the Director

Fond Memories of 'Bigfoot' BrownBGen Simmons

Q NE OF THE Commemorative Nam-ing Program actions this past year

was the naming of the Marine CorpsDetachment Headquarters at Fort Sill,Oklahoma, in honor of MajGen WilburtS. "Bigfoot" Brown. Marines have been go-ing to Fort Sill for gunnery instructionsince at least the First World War. GenBrown had been one of them; he had beenthere both as a student and as an instruc-tor. Artillerymen are a brotherhood oftheir own and the rapport between theArmy and the Marines at Fort Sill has al-ways been superb. All things considered,it was almost inevitable that the MarineCorps Detachment headquarters facility,a one-story building, be named for Big-foot Brown, but credit for pursuing thenaming action must go to the detachmentcommander, Col Philip E. Hughes.

The date of the dedication was set for27 August. Gen Brown's widow, Mrs. Mar-tha Stennis Brown, asked me to make thededicatory remarks and that pleased me

very much. Bigfoot Brown had been myregimental commander in Korea and atseveral other times we had served in thesame places and I admired him greatly.

MajGen Fred F. Marty, USA, the com-mander at Fort Sill, was a splendid hostand turned out a fine ceremony for the oc-casion. Fort Sill is a beautiful post in theSouthwestern style and filled with histo-ry. It had been a cool, wet summer. Every-thing was unexpectedly green and the daywas almost chilly. The post band was thereand so was the distinctive showpiece of FortSill ceremonies, the half-section of horse-drawn artillery.

W HEN MY TURN 10 speak came, Icould almost see my old regimen-

tal commander sitting there in the frontrow, legs crossed so that a large foot with alarge shoe could be seen moving up anddown impatiently. In my mind's eye, hewas wearing a loose set of green herring-bone utilities stained with the dust of the

Korean hills. His helmet, chin strap un-fastened, was worn at a jaunty angle so asto accommodate his ear to the handset of afield radio. Like most artillerymen he was abit deaf. As I stammered through my in-troductory remarks I could hear himsaying:

"Never mind the false humility, Sim-mons. Get to the point."

And the point was that we were thereto dedicate the headquarters building inthe name of one of the Marine Corps'finest and most beloved artillerymen.

After getting through the amenities Itold an artillery story that involved boththe Army and Marines, something that oc-curred on Okinawa near the end of the Se-cond World War. Col Brown was then thecommanding officer of the 11th Marines,the artillery regiment of the 1st Marine Di-vision. For those in the audience who werenot artillerymen, I explained that there isa technique that artillerymen like to useto demonstrate their virtuosity called a

Col Wi/burt S. Bigfoot" Brown, right, z congratulated upontaking command of the 1st Marines in Korea by outgoing com-mander Col Francis M. McAlister Following the 25 May 1951

picture-taking, Col Brown told battalion commanders that hehad asp iredfor years to the command of a Marine infantry regi-ment in combat and would issue his first order as such: Retreat."

p

Memorandum from the Director

Fond Memories of 'Bigfoot' BrownBGen Simmons

Q NE OF THE Commemorative Nam-ing Program actions this past year

was the naming of the Marine CorpsDetachment Headquarters at Fort Sill,Oklahoma, in honor of MajGen WilburtS. "Bigfoot" Brown. Marines have been go-ing to Fort Sill for gunnery instructionsince at least the First World War. GenBrown had been one of them; he had beenthere both as a student and as an instruc-tor. Artillerymen are a brotherhood oftheir own and the rapport between theArmy and the Marines at Fort Sill has al-ways been superb. All things considered,it was almost inevitable that the MarineCorps Detachment headquarters facility,a one-story building, be named for Big-foot Brown, but credit for pursuing thenaming action must go to the detachmentcommander, Col Philip E. Hughes.

The date of the dedication was set for27 August. Gen Brown's widow, Mrs. Mar-tha Stennis Brown, asked me to make thededicatory remarks and that pleased me

very much. Bigfoot Brown had been myregimental commander in Korea and atseveral other times we had served in thesame places and I admired him greatly.

MajGen Fred F. Marty, USA, the com-mander at Fort Sill, was a splendid hostand turned out a fine ceremony for the oc-casion. Fort Sill is a beautiful post in theSouthwestern style and filled with histo-ry. It had been a cool, wet summer. Every-thing was unexpectedly green and the daywas almost chilly. The post band was thereand so was the distinctive showpiece of FortSill ceremonies, the half-section of horse-drawn artillery.

W HEN MY TURN 10 speak came, Icould almost see my old regimen-

tal commander sitting there in the frontrow, legs crossed so that a large foot with alarge shoe could be seen moving up anddown impatiently. In my mind's eye, hewas wearing a loose set of green herring-bone utilities stained with the dust of the

Korean hills. His helmet, chin strap un-fastened, was worn at a jaunty angle so asto accommodate his ear to the handset of afield radio. Like most artillerymen he was abit deaf. As I stammered through my in-troductory remarks I could hear himsaying:

"Never mind the false humility, Sim-mons. Get to the point."

And the point was that we were thereto dedicate the headquarters building inthe name of one of the Marine Corps'finest and most beloved artillerymen.

After getting through the amenities Itold an artillery story that involved boththe Army and Marines, something that oc-curred on Okinawa near the end of the Se-cond World War. Col Brown was then thecommanding officer of the 11th Marines,the artillery regiment of the 1st Marine Di-vision. For those in the audience who werenot artillerymen, I explained that there isa technique that artillerymen like to useto demonstrate their virtuosity called a

Col Wilburt S. "Bigfoot" Brown, right, is congratulated upontaking command of the 1st Marines in Korea by outgoing com-mander Col Francis M. McAlister Following the 25 May 1951

picture-taking, Col Brown told battalion commanders that hehad asp iredfor years to the command of a Marine infantry regi-ment in combat and would issue his first order as such: "Retreat."

"TOT" or "time-on-target" It is a shoot soplanned that all shells impact at the sametime regardless of the caliber or range ofthe guns from which they come.

I repeated the story as Gen Brown toldit to us and as we taped it some 25 yearsago:

'' NE NIGHT, JUST when the battlewas nearly over," Gen Brown

recalled, "I asked the 96th Division abouta TOT on a town in the south of Okinawa.The 96th went at it with a happy heart,and they got support from the 77th Divi-sion artillery . . I got some help [too]from the 6th [Marine] Division and weused the Corps artillery of the III Phib-Corps and the Corps artillery of the XXIVCorps. So we ended up with a 22-battalionTOT.

"[A] time-on-target is always a prettything to watch . . The man that's shoot-ing says 'Time on target—90 seconds aftermy mark. Stand by. Mark.' Then everyonesings this chorus over their loudspeakers.Then, almost at once, the guns in the rearwith the longest flight go bo-o-om! Andthen the guns up a little closer speak, andthe other guns come in — boom — boom —

boom— boom. And then the lOSs and the75s come in—boom—boom—boom—boom—boom. And God Almighty, thisplace is coming down. We had 22 battal-ions in this shoot, but I hadn't told mydivision general or the Army general orany division general.

"If I had only been smart enough to dothat, the Army commander would havebeen down there to have his picture taken.I could have probably become the Com-mandant of the [Marine] Corps. But in-stead, everyone in the island was wakenedout of a sound sleep at 2230 when all thistremendous hassle started and theythought it was a Japanese counterattack.So instead of getting credit out of it, I

caught hell from all sides."That was typical of Bigfoot Brown: do-

ing the outrageous, endearing himself tohis troops, telling a great story, and catch-ing hell, if not from all sides, at least fromthe top.

He was a big man with craggy featuresand large hands and large feet. In appear-ance he always reminded me of a moreroughcut version of the actor Walter Pidg-eon. He also had an actor's voice, a rum-bling sort of voice that started deep in hischest, and he could use it well. It was in

Col Brown, second from left, receives theLegion of Merit from MayGen DeU"ittPeck at 1st Marine Division Headquarters,Tientsin. The award cited Brown 's serviceas 11th Marines commander on Okinawa.

Nicaragua that he received the nickname"Bigfoot" and here is how he rememberedthe circumstances:

'Well, I do have this great big foot. It'sa size 14F . . With all the patrols I wasdoing my shoes all wore out . . TheArmy was supposed to have some largesizes in Panama. So I asked the quarter-master to get me some of those."

T HIS WAS IN 192.7 and Lt Brown wasthen up in the mountains of north-

western Nicaragua at San Albino Minesnear Jicaro. The Marine Corps was ex-perimenting with aerial resupply. A tn-motor Fokker would take the supplies fromManagua to Ocotal and from Ocotal theremote hill stations would get emergencyresupply dropped from two-place biplaneVought Corsair fighter-bombers. However,in this case, the pilot of the Fokker decid-ed to make the drop himself.

As Gen Brown remembered it:"Here was this big package of shoes for

me . . . Nothing would suit [Sid] Wil-liamson then but that he should take

them up to the hill station and drop themhimself . . He stuck a note to me onit and it said, 'The Corsair couldn't get offthe ground with this load, so I had to riskmy life to bring this up to you. Regards,Sid.'"

The story got touched up a bit as timewent on and it emerged that the plane re-quired two trips to deliver the shoes. Thisversion of the story would send Gen Browninto a mock rage.

"It is a canard," he would say, "It is nottrue that two trips were made. That Fok-ker was perfectly capable of carrying bothshoes in one load."

I first saw Gen Brown in October 1945,after the war's end, and the place was theBritish Club at the end of Race CourseRoad in Tientsin. This imposing figure ofa colonel was on the dance floor sweep-ing along his partner in a most impressiveway. I guessed that he must be Col Brown,commander of the 11th Marines, andsomeone told me that, yes, I was right, thiswas the legendary Bigfoot Brown. I was notintroduced that afternoon. In 1945 Marinecolonels were not apt to have much to sayin a social way to Marine captains.

I N CHINA THAT following summersomething happened that came to be

known as the An Ping Incident. ColBrown had his regimental headquarters inthe old French arsenal outside of Tient-sin. One of his missions was to send a truckconvoy twice a week from Tientsin to Pek-ing. On the 29th ofJuly 1946, one of theseconvoys was attacked at a place called AnPing, about half-way between Tientsinand Peking. The second lieutenant com-manding the patrol and several other Ma-rines were killed. As soon as word of theambush reached Brown he sent a moto-rized column, including several pieces ofartillery, to the rescue.

Gen Brown later told me what followedin approximately these words:

"I was summoned to division head-quarters andI went modestly expecting tolearn that I had been recommended forthe Navy Cross. Instead, they handed methis letter of reprimand. I told [the Gener-al] that if my mission was to spread sweet-ness and light, then he should take awaymy howitzers and issue me baskets full ofrose petals."

As he remembered the outcome of theincident:

4 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

a

"TOT" or "time-on-target." It is a shoot soplanned that all shells impact at the sametime regardless of the caliber or range ofthe guns from which they come.

I repeated the story as Gen Brown toldit to us and as we taped it some 25 yearsago:' NE NIGHT, JUST when the battle

was nearly over," Gen Brownrecalled, "I asked the 96th Division abouta TOT on a town in the south of Okinawa.The 96th went at it with a happy heart,and they got support from the 77th Divi-sion artillery . . . . I got some help [too]from the 6th [Marine] Division and weused the Corps artillery of the III Phib-Corps and the Corps artillery of the XXIVCorps. So we ended up with a 22-battalionTOT....

"[A] time-on-target is always a prettything to watch. . . . The man that's shoot-ing says 'Time on target —90 seconds aftermy mark. Stand by. Mark.' Then everyonesings this chorus over their loudspeakers.Then, almost at once, the guns in the rearwith the longest flight go bo-o-om! Andthen the guns up a little closer speak, andthe other guns come in — boom — boom —

boom — boom. And then the lOSs and the75s come in—boom—boom—boom—boom—boom. And God Almighty, thisplace is coming down. We had 22 battal-ions in this shoot, but I hadn't told mydivision general or the Army general orany division general.

"If I had only been smart enough to dothat, the Army commander would havebeen down there to have his picture taken.I could have probably become the Com-mandant of the [Marine] Corps. But in-stead, everyone in the island was wakenedout of a sound sleep at 2230 when all thistremendous hassle started and theythought it was a Japanese counterattack.So instead of getting credit out of it, I

caught hell from all sides."That was typical of Bigfoot Brown: do-

ing the outrageous, endearing himself tohis troops, telling a great story, and catch-ing hell, if not from all sides, at least fromthe top.

He was a big man with craggy featuresand large hands and large feet. In appear-ance he always reminded me of a moreroughcut version of the actor Walter Pidg-eon. He also had an actor's voice, a rum-bling sort of voice that started deep in hischest, and he could use it well. It was in

Col Brown, second from left, receives theLegion of Merit from MayGen DeW/ittPeck at 1st Marine Division Headquarters,Tientszn. The award cited Brown serviceas 11th Marines commander on Okinawa.

Nicaragua that he received the nickname"Bigfoot" and here is how he rememberedthe circumstances:

"Well, I do have this great big foot. It'sa size 14F . . . . With all the patrols I wasdoing my shoes all wore out . . . . TheArmy was supposed to have some largesizes in Panama. So I asked the quarter-master to get me some of those."

T HIS WAS IN 192.7 and Lt Brown wasthen up in the mountains of north-

western Nicaragua at San Albino Minesnear Jicaro. The Marine Corps was ex-perimenting with aerial resupply. A tn-motor Fokker would take the supplies fromManagua to Ocotal and from Ocotal theremote hill stations would get emergencyresupply dropped from two-place biplaneVought Corsair fighter-bombers. However,in this case, the pilot of the Fokker decid-ed to make the drop himself.

As Gen Brown remembered it:"Here was this big package of shoes for

me . . . . Nothing would suit [Sid] Wil-liamson then but that he should take

them up to the hill station and drop themhimself. . . . He stuck a note to me onit and it said, 'The Corsair couldn't get offthe ground with this load, so I had to riskmy life to bring this up to you. Regards,Sid.'

The story got touched up a bit as timewent on and it emerged that the plane re-quired two trips to deliver the shoes. Thisversion of the story would send Gen Browninto a mock rage.

"It is a canard," he would say, "It is nottrue that two trips were made. That Fok-ker was perfectly capable of carrying bothshoes in one load."

I first saw Gen Brown in October 1945,after the war's end, and the place was theBritish Club at the end of Race CourseRoad in Tientsin. This imposing figure ofa colonel was on the dance floor sweep-ing along his partner in a most impressiveway. I guessed that he must be Col Brown,commander of the 11th Marines, andsomeone told me that, yes, I was right, thiswas the legendary Bigfoot Brown. I was notintroduced that afternoon. In 1945 Marinecolonels were not apt to have much to sayin a social way to Marine captains.

I N CHINA THAT following summersomething happened that came to be

known as the An Ping Incident. ColBrown had his regimental headquarters inthe old French arsenal outside of Tient-sin. One of his missions was to send a truckconvoy twice a week from Tientsin to Pek-ing. On the 29th ofJuly 1946, one of theseconvoys was attacked at a place called AnPing, about half-way between Tientsinand Peking. The second lieutenant com-manding the patrol and several other Ma-rines were killed. As soon as word of theambush reached Brown he sent a moto-rized column, including several pieces ofartillery, to the rescue.

Gen Brown later told me what followedin approximately these words:

"I was summoned to division head-quarters and I went modestly expecting tolearn that I had been recommended forthe Navy Cross. Instead, they handed methis letter of reprimand. I told [the Gener-all that if my mission was to spread sweet-ness and light, then he should take awaymy howitzers and issue me baskets full ofrose petals."

As he remembered the outcome of theincident:

4 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

"There was a tremendous outcry thatfollowed this, and it was alleged that theMarines had taken the offensive againstthe Commies. Of course, when one puts50 men against a battalion of a couple ofhundred, I mean even the 11th Marinesdoesn't start a fight under those circum-stances. The President of the United Statestook it up and when the smoke all clearedaway, I had a letter of admonition from[the Commanding General, MarineFbrces, China] and it was decided that Ihad better be getting out of China."

He reported in at Headquarters MarineCorps in Washington, and found thatHeadquarters, still upset over the fight atAn Ping, was pondering his next assign-ment. The Air University, then just form-ing at Montgomery, Alabama, had askedfor a Marine Corps instructor. It seemedto be an assignment in which Brown coulddo relatively little harm, so he was sentthere in November 1946.

H E TAUGHT amphibious tactics, in-cluding coordination of artillery

with naval gunfire and air support. He alsohad a prize lecture on the organization ofthe Navy. He would tell the class that,upon being assigned this latter subject, hehad been "amazed to hear that the Navyhad an organization."

He had "always thought that it was likethe Marine Corps." The Marines, he be-lieved, "stayed in a continual state of dis-organization so they could be ready foranything."

Behind the wit and clowning there wasa carefully prepared, finely tuned, cons-tantly revised lecture. In a serious mo-ment, he once told me that for every houron the platform, whatever the school, hewould spend 40 hours in preparation.

This is a man who enlisted in the Ma-rine Corps at Boston in the spring of 1918.Born in December 1900 and underage at17, he managed an adjustment to his birthcertificate to show his birth year as 1899vice 1900. After recruit training at ParrisIsland he went as a private to France,where he joined the 20th Company, 5thMarines, in time for the St. Mihiel andChampagne offensives. In the latter, dur-ing the attack against Blanc Mont, he waswounded on 4 October. That took him outof action for the remainder of the war.

In the summer of 1920 he was dis-charged, as a sergeant, from the MarineCorps to take an appointment to the Naval

Academy. His stay at Annapolis was nota complete success. During the summercruise in 1922 he had a problem with theshore patrol in Lisbon and again in Mar-tinique.

As he put it: ". . . the Academy authori-ties then decided to drop me from therolls for inaptitude, which was kind ofthem at that."

He left the Academy in September, re-enlisted in the Corps, and in 1925 wascommissioned a second lieutenant fromthe ranks. After finishing the Officers Bas-ic School, he was assigned to his old regi-ment, the 5th Marines, in time to helpguard the mails during an outbreak oftrain robberies. There were two tours inNicaragua and several engagementsagainst the Sandinistas, for one of whichhe received the Navy and Marine CorpsMedal.

He returned from Nicaragua in 1929,went to Sea School at San Diego, and wasassigned as the junior officer to the Ma-rine Detachment of the new aircraft car-rier, USS Saratoga. Barracks duty in MareIsland, California, and on Guam followed.

In 1935 he was assigned to the BaseDefense Weapons Course at Quantico andhis formal education as an artillery officerbegan. On graduation he was given com-mand of an artillery battery of the 1st Ma-rine Brigade.

Then in 1937 he was transferred to SanDiego and given command of a 155mmgun battery in the 2d Marine Brigade. The

155mm of the time was the "G.P.E," along-barreled French gun left over fromthe First World War: the "Grande Puis-sance Filloux" as he used to like to roll offhis tongue.

I N 1939, now a captain, he went onboard the USS Pennsylvania as the Ma-

rine Detachment commander. In thosedays of the old battlewagons, the Marinesmanned the secondary batteries of 5-inchguns.

In the summer of 1941, with the warclouds thickening, he returned to San Die-go as a major to take command of the 4thBattalion, 10th Marines, of the new 2dMarine Division.

In March 1942, after the war had begun,he went off to serve as executive officer ofthe 8th Defense Battalion, which was sentto defend Wallis Island, west of Samoa.

He was returned to the United Statesas a lieutenant colonel in November 1942with a persistent tropical skin disease. Thiscaused his hospitalization until February1943, when he was ordered to Fbrt Sill toattend the Advanced Artillery School. Af-ter completing the school he was detailedto the Troop Training Unit then formingat the Amphibious Base, Coronado,California. Serving as a team leader, hehelped train four Army divisions and twoMarine divisions in amphibious tactics andtechniques.

While at Camp White, Oregon, train-ing the 96th Infantry Division, he receivedhis promotion to colonel. He celebrated

Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993 5

At the Fort Sill dedication ceremonies, the General's widow, Mrs. Martha Stennis Brown,accepts roses and other remembrances from a soldier in vintage uniform. The postjoined in the honors by sending its ceremonial half section of horse-drawn artillery.

'I.-ye;

— f

- —

"There was a tremendous outcry thatfollowed this, and it was alleged that theMarines had taken the offensive againstthe Commies. Of course, when one puts50 men against a battalion of a couple ofhundred, I mean even the 11th Marinesdoesn't start a fight under those circum-stances. The President of the United Statestook it up and when the smoke all clearedaway, I had a letter of admonition from[the Commanding General, MarineForces, China] and it was decided that Ihad better be getting out of China."

He reported in at Headquarters MarineCorps in Washington, and found thatHeadquarters, still upset over the fight atAn Ping, was pondering his next assign-ment. The Air University, then just form-ing at Montgomery, Alabama, had askedfor a Marine Corps instructor. It seemedto be an assignment in which Brown coulddo relatively little harm, so he was sentthere in November 1946.

H E TAUGHT amphibious tactics, in-cluding coordination of artillery

with naval gunfire and air support. He alsohad a prize lecture on the organization ofthe Navy. He would tell the class that,upon being assigned this latter subject, hehad been "amazed to hear that the Navyhad an organization."

He had "always thought that it was likethe Marine Corps." The Marines, he be-lieved, "stayed in a continual state of dis-organization so they could be ready foranything."

Behind the wit and clowning there wasa carefully prepared, finely tuned, cons-tantly revised lecture. In a serious mo-ment, he once told me that for every houron the platform, whatever the school, hewould spend 40 hours in preparation.

This is a man who enlisted in the Ma-rine Corps at Boston in the spring of 1918.Born in December 1900 and underage at17, he managed an adjustment to his birthcertificate to show his birth year as 1899vice 1900. After recruit training at ParrisIsland he went as a private to France,where he joined the 20th Company, 5thMarines, in time for the St. Mihiel andChampagne offensives. In the latter, dur-ing the attack against Blanc Mont, he waswounded on 4 October. That took him outof action for the remainder of the war.

In the summer of 1920 he was dis-charged, as a sergeant, from the MarineCorps to take an appointment to the Naval

Academy. His stay at Annapolis was nota complete success. During the summercruise in 1922 he had a problem with theshore patrol in Lisbon and again in Mar-tinique.

As he put it: ". . . the Academy authori-ties then decided to drop me from therolls for inaptitude, which was kind ofthem at that."

He left the Academy in September, re-enlisted in the Corps, and in 1925 wascommissioned a second lieutenant fromthe ranks. After finishing the Officers Bas-ic School, he was assigned to his old regi-ment, the 5th Marines, in time to helpguard the mails during an outbreak oftrain robberies. There were two tours inNicaragua and several engagementsagainst the Sandinistas, for one of whichhe received the Navy and Marine CorpsMedal.

He returned from Nicaragua in 1929,went to Sea School at San Diego, and wasassigned as the junior officer to the Ma-rine Detachment of the new aircraft car-rier, USS Saratoga. Barracks duty in MareIsland, California, and on Guam followed.

In 1935 he was assigned to the BaseDefense Weapons Course at Quantico andhis formal education as an artillery officerbegan. On graduation he was given com-mand of an artillery battery of the 1st Ma-rine Brigade.

Then in 1937 he was transferred to SanDiego and given command of a 15 5mmgun battery in the 2d Marine Brigade. The

15 5mm of the time was the "G.P.F.," along-barreled French gun left over fromthe First World War: the "Grande Puis-sance Filloux" as he used to like to roll offhis tongue.

I N 1939, now a captain, he went onboard the USS Pennsylvania as the Ma-

rine Detachment commander. In thosedays of the old battlewagons, the Marinesmanned the secondary batteries of 5-inchguns.

In the summer of 1941, with the warclouds thickening, he returned to San Die-go as a major to take command of the 4thBattalion, 10th Marines, of the new 2dMarine Division.

In March 1942, after the war had begun,he went off to serve as executive officer ofthe 8th Defense Battalion, which was sentto defend Wallis Island, west of Samoa.

He was returned to the United Statesas a lieutenant colonel in November 1942with a persistent tropical skin disease. Thiscaused his hospitalization until February1943, when he was ordered to Fort Sill toattend the Advanced Artillery School. Af-ter completing the school he was detailedto the Troop Training Unit then formingat the Amphibious Base, Coronado,California. Serving as a team leader, hehelped train four Army divisions and twoMarine divisions in amphibious tactics andtechniques.

While at Camp White, Oregon, train-ing the 96th Infantry Division, he receivedhis promotion to colonel. He celebrated

Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993 5

At the Fort Sill dedication ceremonies, the General's widow, Mrs. Martha Stennis Brown,accepts roses and other remembrances from a soldier in vintage uniform. The postjoined in the honors by sending its ceremonial half section of horse-drawn artillery.

his promotion with a wetting-down partyheld in a bedroom of a hotel in nearbyMedford. He climbed up onto the bed,stooping to accommodate his height tothe ceiling, and demanded of the well-wishers crammed into the room that hebe treated with more respect by his subor-dinates, Marine and Army alike.

"Now that I am a colonel," he an-nounced, "No more of this 'Bigfoot' non-sense. From here on I expect to beaddressed in the British manner; that is,as Colonel Wilburt Scott-hyphen-Brownewith an 'e' on the end."

D ESPITE THIS DEMAND, the hyphenat-ed Scott-Browne with an "e" on the

end never caught on, and he continuedto be Bigfoot Brown.

In October 1944 he went to Guadal-canal to take command of the 15th Ma-rines, the artillery regiment of the 6thMarine Division, but found that the 15thMarines already had a commandingofficer. After a few days of impasse, he wassent to the 1st Marine Division in the near-by Russell Islands to take command of the11th Marines, in time, as said above, forthe Okinawa operation.

Despite the unannounced TOT onOkinawa and the An Ping Incident inChina, and a few more almost equallyscandalous episodes, he received a Legionof Merit with Combat "V" for outstand-ing service at Okinawa and a second suchaward for service in China. Possibly thiswas because he managed to fob off someof the blame for certain of his more out-landish escapades on his mythical identi-cal twin brother, Philbert Brown, whoseems to have spent most of his imaginary

service in the United States Air Force.While at the Air University at Maxwell

Field, Alabama, then-Col Brown met andmarried Martha Stennis of Mississippi. Thenewly married couple left Maxwell Fieldin 1949 for Camp Lejeune, North Caroli-na, where he took command of the 10thMarines, the artillery regiment of the 2dMarine Division.

He was so serving when he was sent toKorea in April 1951. His departure fromCamp Lejeune was somewhat abrupt. The10th Marines was providing drafts ofreplacements to the 11th Marines, then inthe fight in Korea. By regulation no Ma-rine under 18 years of age could go toKorea. While Col Brown was on Christ-mas leave, several 17-year-olds slippedthrough with a draft. The 17-year-oldsthought it was a fine idea, but their par-ents did not. The division commander was

determined that the battalion commanderconcerned be disciplined for the error. ColBrown, as regimental commander, wasequally determined that the battalioncommander not be disciplined. By the endof March the division commander was con-vinced that Brown was lacking in loyaltyand demanded his immediate relief.Brown's orders to Korea were delivered tohim on 31 March along with a bad fitnessreport. He rebutted the bad fitness reportwith a masterful statement that endedwith this sentence:

"If it is considered disloyal to a leader,for me to speak up against an action of his,which I believe to be unjust, then I willbe disloyal to any such leader, military orcivilian, until I die."

He arrived in Korea just as the com-manding officer of the 1st Marines, an in-fantry regiment, was wounded and he wasgiven command of that regiment as a tem-porary thing. Our casualties had beenhigh in that regiment and I, as a major,was briefly the acting commander of the3d Battalion. It was the time of theChinese spring offensive and the divisionson our right and left had given way.

T HE BArrALION COMMANDERS or their

operations officers were called back tothe regimental command post to meet thenew regimental commander and to get thenew operation order.

"Gentlemen," said Col Brown, "for 33years I have aspired to the command of aMarine infantry regiment in combat, andnow that I have that command, I will is-sue my first order: Retreat."

6 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

Marine historian BGen Edwin H. Simmons addresses the audience at the dedicationof W7ilburt S. "Bziloot" Brown Hall at Fort Sill. Gen Simmons drew on personalmemories of Gen Brown, as well as information found in Brown 'c oral history interview.

Fort Sill commander MajGen Fred F Marty, USA, left, accompanies Mrs. Brown toremove bunting from the sign at the post's new Marine Detachment Headquarters,Brown Hall, Gen Brown had been at Fort Sill as both student andinstructor of artillery.

BROWN HALL

t

his promotion with a wetting-down partyheld in a bedroom of a hotel in nearbyMedford. He climbed up onto the bed,stooping to accommodate his height tothe ceiling, and demanded of the well-wishers crammed into the room that hebe treated with more respect by his subor-dinates, Marine and Army alike.

"Now that I am a colonel," he an-nounced, "No more of this 'Bigfoot' non-sense. From here on I expect to beaddressed in the British manner; that is,as Colonel Wilburt Scott-hyphen-Brownewith an 'e' on the end."

D ESPITh ThIS DEMAND, the hyphenat-ed Scott-Browne with an "e" on the

end never caught on, and he continuedto be Bigfoot Brown.

In October 1944 he went to Guadal-canal to take command of the 15th Ma-rines, the artillery regiment of the 6thMarine Division, but found that the 15thMarines already had a commandingofficer. After a few days of impasse, he wassent to the 1st Marine Division in the near-by Russell Islands to take command of the11th Marines, in time, as said above, forthe Okinawa operation.

Despite the unannounced TOT onOkinawa and the An Ping Incident inChina, and a few more almost equallyscandalous episodes, he received a Legionof Merit with Combat "V" for outstand-ing service at Okinawa and a second suchaward for service in China. Possibly thiswas because he managed to fob off someof the blame for certain of his more out-landish escapades on his mythical identi-cal twin brother, Philbert Brown, whoseems to have spent most of his imaginary

service in the United States Air Force.While at the Air University at Maxwell

Field, Alabama, then-Col Brown met andmarried Martha Stennis of Mississippi. Thenewly married couple left Maxwell Fieldin 1949 for Camp Lejeune, North Caroli-na, where he took command of the 10thMarines, the artillery regiment of the 2dMarine Division.

He was so serving when he was sent toKorea in April 1951. His departure fromCamp Lejeune was somewhat abrupt. The10th Marines was providing drafts ofreplacements to the 11th Marines, then inthe fight in Korea. By regulation no Ma-rine under 18 years of age could go toKorea. While Col Brown was on Christ-mas leave, several 17-year-olds slippedthrough with a draft. The 17-year-oldsthought it was a fine idea, but their par-ents did not. The division commander was

determined that the battalion commanderconcerned be disciplined for the error. ColBrown, as regimental commander, wasequally determined that the battalioncommander not be disciplined. By the endof March the division commander was con-vinced that Brown was lacking in loyaltyand demanded his immediate relief.Brown's orders to Korea were delivered tohim on 31 March along with a bad fitnessreport. He rebutted the bad fitness reportwith a masterful statement that endedwith this sentence:

"If it is considered disloyal to a leader,for me to speak up against an action of his,which I believe to be unjust, then I willbe disloyal to any such leader, military orcivilian, until I die."

He arrived in Korea just as the com-manding officer of the 1st Marines, an in-fantry regiment, was wounded and he wasgiven command of that regiment as a tem-porary thing. Our casualties had beenhigh in that regiment and I, as a major,was briefly the acting commander of the3d Battalion. It was the time of theChinese spring offensive and the divisionson our right and left had given way.

T i-rn BArrALION COMMANDERS or their

operations officers were called back tothe regimental command post to meet thenew regimental commander and to get thenew operation order.

"Gentlemen," said Col Brown, "for 33years I have aspired to the command of aMarine infantry regiment in combat, andnow that I have that command, I will is-sue my first order: Retreat."

6 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

Marine historian BGen Edwin H. Simmons addresses the audience at the dedicationof W7ilburt £ "Bziloot" Brown Hall at Fort Sill. Gen Simmons drew on personalmemories of Gen Brown, as well as information found in Brown's oral history interview.

Fort Sill commander MajGen Fred F Marty, USA, left, accompanies Mrs. Brown toremove bunting from the sign at the post's new Marine Detachment Headquarters,Brown Hall. Gen Brown had been at Fort Sill as both student andinstructor of artillery.

Well, we did not exactly retreat. We re-stored the line and advanced up to theedge of the Punchbowl. For the twomonths that he commanded the 1st Ma-rines we were a particularly happy regi-ment. In July he was relieved by an infan-try colonel and given command of the Di-vision rear at Masan, a command he didnot particularly like or want and which puthim at some distance—literally andfiguratively—from the division com-mander with whom he was having hisdifferences. He was passed over for promo-tion to brigadier general, but did receivea well-deserved Silver Star for his leader-ship of the 1st Marines.

H E RETURNED 10 the States inNovember 1951 and was posted to

Camp Pendleton as intelligence officerand post inspector of the Marine CorpsBase. I was then at Camp Pendleton and Iremember fondly that Mrs. Brown crochet-ed a pair of bootees for my first-born child.

In May of 1952 he was transferred to thestaff of the Field Artillery School at FortSill. He was so serving when a promotionboard in, as he put it, a "fit of absent-mindedness," selected him for promotionto brigadier general. Shortly thereafter hemoved back to Camp Pendleton as Com-manding General, Force Troops, Fleet Ma-rine Force, Pacific.

Upon his retirement in 1953 he was ad-vanced to the grade of major general by

reason of his combat decorations, a won-derful old custom, abandoned some 30years ago for legal reasons.

A well-read and learned man, he hadnot bothered to pick up any degrees, noteven, if you would believe him, a highschool diploma. He now entered theUniversity of Alabama. He would soon tella highly unlikely story of seeking exemp-tion from compulsory ROTC on thegrounds that he was an overage, retiredMarine major general. I never quite be-lieved that story, but at breakfast beforethe Fort Sill dedication ceremony, Mrs.Brown presented me with his exemptioncard.

He zipped through the requirements

for a bachelor's degree and master's degreein history. He became a teaching memberof the faculty in 1957. He then went inpursuit of a Ph.D. This he achieved in1963. His doctoral dissertation treated theBritish invasion of Louisiana in 1814 as anamphibious operation. It is indisputablythe best and most analytic military histo-ry of that campaign, which we otherwiseremember chiefly for Andrew Jackson'sdefeat of Sir Edward Pakenham at NewOrleans.

G EN BROWN, now Dr. Brown, as amember of the history department

of the University of Alabama, was just asbeloved on the Tuscaloosa campus, andthe subject of just as many stories, as hehad been at Quantico, or Pendleton, orLejeune, or Maxwell Field, or at Fort Sill.

Regrettably, he did not have many yearsto enjoy this academic pasture. He died,after a long bout with emphysema, in De-cember 1968. His dissertation, slightly re-worked, was published posthumously in1969 by the University of Alabama underthe title The Amphibious Campaign forWest Florida and Lousiana, 1814-1815: ACritical Review of Strategy and Tactics atNew Orleans.

But any recollection of Bigfoot Brownshould not end on such a morbid note.At Fort Sill I told one more story, a per-sonal one. That morning in Korea, afterhe had given his retreat order to the 1stMarines, he kindly asked me to stay be-hind to have lunch with him—lunch be-ing taking a mess kit through the chowline and then sitting on opposite ends ofhis canvas cot.

As we talked, I thought he might

Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993 7

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMADEPARTMENT OF MILITARY SCIENCE & TACTICS

STUDENT No. 3 3 7 IS EXEMPT

FROM MILITARY TRAINING AT THIS UNIVERSITY.

- N. DY .E S S

WD, UsA,Aiijutant PM' &T

TO E PRESENTED AT EAq G STRATION

University of Alabama compulsory ROTC relented in the case of new student Brown.

Marine Facilities' Names Honor Corps' Heroes

by Robert V AquilinaAssistant Head, Reference Section

It is Marine Corps policy to name facilities in honor of those Marines (and othermembers of the Naval Service) who have served the Corps with distinction. TheMarine Corps Commemorative Naming Program was instituted to oversee thisresponsibility, and to ensure that names are selected in an equitable and just man-ner. The program is administered by the Reference Section of the History and Muse-ums Division, in accordance with guidelines promulgated in SECNAVINST 5030.2and MCO P5750.1G.

To date, approximately 650 facilities have been identified with commemorativenames, and more than 450 individuals have been honored (many names are usedat more than one facility). Marine commanders who have occasion to name propertycan submit names of candidates to the History and Museums Division (CodeHDH-2), or can request that the Division recommend suitable names for specificfacilities.

Since the inception of the Commemorative Naming Program, all naming ac-tions have required, and continue to receive, the personal approval of the Com-mandant of the Marine Corps.

Well, we did not exactly retreat. We re-stored the line and advanced up to theedge of the Punchbowl. For the twomonths that he commanded the 1st Ma-rines we were a particularly happy regi-ment. In July he was relieved by an infan-try colonel and given command of the Di-vision rear at Masan, a command he didnot particularly like or want and which puthim at some distance — literally andfiguratively—from the division com-mander with whom he was having hisdifferences. He was passed over for promo-tion to brigadier general, but did receivea well-deserved Silver Star for his leader-ship of the 1st Marines.

H E RETURNED 10 the States inNovember 1951 and was posted to

Camp Pendleton as intelligence officerand post inspector of the Marine CorpsBase. I was then at Camp Pendleton and Iremember fondly that Mrs. Brown crochet-ed a pair of bootees for my first-born child.

In May of 1952 he was transferred to thestaff of the Field Artillery School at FortSill. He was so serving when a promotionboard in, as he put it, a "fit of absent-mindedness," selected him for promotionto brigadier general. Shortly thereafter hemoved back to Camp Pendleton as Com-manding General, Force Troops, Fleet Ma-rine Force, Pacific.

Upon his retirement in 1953 he was ad-vanced to the grade of major general by

reason of his combat decorations, a won-derful old custom, abandoned some 30years ago for legal reasons.

A well-read and learned man, he hadnot bothered to pick up any degrees, noteven, if you would believe him, a highschool diploma. He now entered theUniversity of Alabama. He would soon tella highly unlikely story of seeking exemp-tion from compulsory ROTC on thegrounds that he was an overage, retiredMarine major general. I never quite be-lieved that story, but at breakfast beforethe Fort Sill dedication ceremony, Mrs.Brown presented me with his exemptioncard.

He zipped through the requirements

for a bachelor's degree and master's degreein history. He became a teaching memberof the faculty in 1957. He then went inpursuit of a Ph.D. This he achieved in1963. His doctoral dissertation treated theBritish invasion of Louisiana in 1814 as anamphibious operation. It is indisputablythe best and most analytic military histo-ry of that campaign, which we otherwiseremember chiefly for Andrew Jackson'sdefeat of Sir Edward Pakenham at NewOrleans.

G EN BROWN, now Dr. Brown, as amember of the history department

of the University of Alabama, was just asbeloved on the Tuscaloosa campus, andthe subject of just as many stories, as hehad been at Quantico, or Pendleton, orLejeune, or Maxwell Field, or at Fort Sill.

Regrettably, he did not have many yearsto enjoy this academic pasture. He died,after a long bout with emphysema, in De-cember 1968. His dissertation, slightly re-worked, was published posthumously in1969 by the University of Alabama underthe title The Amphibious Campaign forWest Florida and Lousiana, 1814-1815: ACritical Review of Strategy and Tactics atNew Orleans.

But any recollection of Bigfoot Brownshould not end on such a morbid note.At Fort Sill I told one more story, a per-sonal one. That morning in Korea, afterhe had given his retreat order to the 1stMarines, he kindly asked me to stay be-hind to have lunch with him — lunch be-ing taking a mess kit through the chowline and then sitting on opposite ends ofhis canvas cot.

As we talked, I thought he might

Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993 7

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMADEPARTMENT OF MILITARY SCIENCE & TACTICS

STUDENT No. 3 3 7 IS EXEMPTFROM MILITARY TRAINING AT THIS UNIVERSITY.

- W. DY .E S S TRY.WD, USA,

Aiijutant PM' &TTO E PRESENTED AT EA G STRATION.

University of Alabama compulsory ROTC relented in the case of new student Brown.

Marine Facilities' Names Honor Corps' Heroes

by Robert V AquilinaAssistant Head, Reference Section

It is Marine Corps policy to name facilities in honor of those Marines (and othermembers of the Naval Service) who have served the Corps with distinction. TheMarine Corps Commemorative Naming Program was instituted to oversee thisresponsibility, and to ensure that names are selected in an equitable and just man-ner. The program is administered by the Reference Section of the History and Muse-ums Division, in accordance with guidelines promulgated in SECNAVINST 5030.2and MCO P5750.1G.

To date, approximately 650 facilities have been identified with commemorativenames, and more than 450 individuals have been honored (many names are usedat more than one facility). Marine commanders who have occasion to name propertycan submit names of candidates to the History and Museums Division (CodeHDH-2), or can request that the Division recommend suitable names for specificfacilities.

Since the inception of the Commemorative Naming Program, all naming ac-tions have required, and continue to receive, the personal approval of the Com-mandant of the Marine Corps.

benefit as a newly arrived colonel fromsome of things I could tell him as a29-year-old major who had been with theregiment since the Inchon landing. I be-gan sketching in lightly some lessonslearned, when he interrupted me.

"You know, Simmons," he rumbled,"When I was a young lieutenant in

Nicaragua I came back to the companybase after one of those long patrols andthe company commander invited me tohave dinner. The company commanderfancied himself as a bridge player and af-ter dinner there was a game, the compa-ny exec and the machine gun officer

against the captain and me. You know, thecaptain was not a very good bridge playerand after he failed to make his bid, I said,'If you will permit me, sir, I will show youhow you could have made that bid.' Doyou know, Simmons, I was back on patrolthe next morning."

Suitably chastened, I went back to mybattalion. A few weeks later I was slightlywounded. Col Brown came to see me, toassure himself that I was not seriously hurt.

"A pitcher that goes to the well toooften," he said. "gets broken. You've beento the well often enough." He then wentto the division commander to get a set of

special orders to send me home.As I told that story to Mrs. Brown and

the audience at Fort Sill, I could still seemy regimental commander sitting there infront of me, just as I described earlier. Ashe was known to do in the course of anover-long critique of a field problem, hehad taken off his shoe and was massagingthat large size-14F foot. By so doing hewould shift the focus of attention from thespeaker to himself. In my imagination, Icould hear him saying:

"Simmons, you have talked longenough. Sit down."

And so I did. L111775L1

Histories Follow Marine Units in Iceland, the Caribbean

T WO NEW TITLES have been added tothe list of History and Museums Di-

vision publications. The first is an occa-sional paper, U.S. Marine CorpsOperations in the Dominican Republic,April-June 1965, by Maj Jack K. Ringler,USMC, and former Chief Historian HenryI. Shaw,Jr. This history originated in therequest of then-Commandant Gen Wal-lace M. Greene, Jr., that an account of thedeployment of Marines to the DominicanRepublic be compiled shortly after theevent, when the command diaries of theunits involved became available. Thesedocuments were on hand in the summerof 1965, when a chronology was preparedusing the diaries, message traffic, andother material, most all of which was still

by Benis M. FrankChief Historian

classified. The demands of historicalreporting and writing about Marine Corpsoperations in Vietnam caused the incom-plete narrative of this history to be putaside until 1969, when Mr. Shaw was avail-able to finish it.

T HE SECOND NEW publication is Out-post in the North Atlantic: Marines

in the Defense of Iceland, written by ColJames A. Donovan,Jr., USMC (Ret), who,as a second lieutenant, was a member ofthe 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, 1st MarineBrigade (Provisional) when it was deployedto Iceland in mid-1941 to join Britishforces to defend that country from apotential Nazi takeover. In Outpost in theNorth Atlantic, Col Donovan provides agood picture of life in a pre-World War IIMarine infantry battalion as it prepared forwar, and then deployment to an unknowndestination. He tells of the brigade's eight-month stay on Iceland under conditionsfor which the Marines were not fully pre-pared, either in dress or equipment. Hegives a good picture of the day-to-day con-ditions of the Marines on Iceland, howthey trained in an unfamiliar environ-ment, and how they were able to keepbusy in the long, dark days of winter.Perhaps the highlight of this deploymentwas the day that Prime Minister WinstonS. Churchill reviewed the Allied garrison.

As other pamphlets in the World WarII 50th anniversary commemorative series,Outpost in the North Atlantic: Marines inthe Defense of Iceland is available to Ma-

rines and historians by sending $1.50 forpostage and handling to the Marine CorpsHistorical Foundation, P.O. Box 240,Quantico, Virginia 22134. Veterans' or-ganizations can obtain limited numbersof copies by writing to the Director of Ma-rine Corps History and Museums, MarineCorps Historical Center, Washington NavyYard, Building 58, 901 M Street, SE.,Washington, D.C. 20374-5040. Other in-terested individuals should mail $3.75 tothe Superintendent of Documents, P.O.Box 371954, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania15250. A finite number of copies of US.Marine Corps Operations in the Domini-can Republic, April-June 1965 is availableto institutional addressees and can be ob-tained by writing to the Center at theabove address. L111775L11

8 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

U.S. MARINE CORPSOPERAI1ONS IN THE

DOMINICAN REPUBLICAPRIL -JUNE 1965

Major J.ck K. Ringlet. USM(and

Henry'. Sh.wJr

Oc.cauor.d Fke,

Infli DItAfliST% VS MMJP Citfl_._c,.. DC t•.

nn -

S

benefit as a newly arrived colonel fromsome of things I could tell him as a29-year-old major who had been with theregiment since the Inchon landing. I be-gan sketching in lightly some lessonslearned, when he interrupted me.

"You know, Simmons," he rumbled,"When I was a young lieutenant inNicaragua I came back to the companybase after one of those long patrols andthe company commander invited me tohave dinner. The company commanderfancied himself as a bridge player and af-ter dinner there was a game, the compa-ny exec and the machine gun officer

against the captain and me. You know, thecaptain was not a very good bridge playerand after he failed to make his bid, I said,'If you will permit me, sir, I will show youhow you could have made that bid.' Doyou know, Simmons, I was back on patrolthe next morning."

Suitably chastened, I went back to mybattalion. A few weeks later I was slightlywounded. Col Brown came to see me, toassure himself that I was not seriously hurt.

"A pitcher that goes to the well toooften," he said. "gets broken. You've beento the well often enough." He then wentto the division commander to get a set of

special orders to send me home.As I told that story to Mrs. Brown and

the audience at Fort Sill, I could still seemy regimental commander sitting there infront of me, just as I described earlier. Ashe was known to do in the course of anover-long critique of a field problem, hehad taken off his shoe and was massagingthat large size-14F foot. By so doing hewould shift the focus of attention from thespeaker to himself. In my imagination, Icould hear him saying:

"Simmons, you have talked longenough. Sit down."

And so I did. L111775L1

Histories Follow Marine Units in Iceland, the Caribbean

T WO NEW TITLES have been added tothe list of History and Museums Di-

vision publications. The first is an occa-sional paper, U.S. Marine CorpsOperations in the Dominican Republic,April-June 1965, by Maj Jack K. Ringler,USMC, and former Chief Historian HenryI. Shaw, Jr. This history originated in therequest of then-Commandant Gen Wal-lace M. Greene, Jr., that an account of thedeployment of Marines to the DominicanRepublic be compiled shortly after theevent, when the command diaries of theunits involved became available. Thesedocuments were on hand in the summerof 1965, when a chronology was preparedusing the diaries, message traffic, andother material, most all of which was still

by Benis M. FrankChief Historian

classified. The demands of historicalreporting and writing about Marine Corpsoperations in Vietnam caused the incom-plete narrative of this history to be putaside until 1969, when Mr. Shaw was avail-able to finish it.

T HE SECOND NEW publication is Out-post in the North Atlantic.' Marines

in the Defense of Iceland, written by ColJames A. Donovan,Jr., USMC (Ret), who,as a second lieutenant, was a member ofthe 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, 1st MarineBrigade (Provisional) when it was deployedto Iceland in mid-1941 to join Britishforces to defend that country from apotential Nazi takeover. In Outpost in theNorth Atlantic, Col Donovan provides agood picture of life in a pre-World War IIMarine infantry battalion as it prepared forwar, and then deployment to an unknowndestination. He tells of the brigade's eight-month stay on Iceland under conditionsfor which the Marines were not fully pre-pared, either in dress or equipment. Hegives a good picture of the day-to-day con-ditions of the Marines on Iceland, howthey trained in an unfamiliar environ-ment, and how they were able to keepbusy in the long, dark days of winter.Perhaps the highlight of this deploymentwas the day that Prime Minister WinstonS. Churchill reviewed the Allied garrison.

As other pamphlets in the World WarII 50th anniversary commemorative series,Outpost in the North Atlantic: Marines inthe Defense oflcelandis available to Ma-

rines and historians by sending $1.50 forpostage and handling to the Marine CorpsHistorical Foundation, P.O. Box 240,Quantico, Virginia 22134. Veterans' or-ganizations can obtain limited numbersof copies by writing to the Director of Ma-rine Corps History and Museums, MarineCorps Historical Center, Washington NavyYard, Building 58, 901 M Street, S.E.,Washington, D.C. 20374-5040. Other in-terested individuals should mail $3.75 tothe Superintendent of Documents, P.O.Box 371954, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania15250. A finite number of copies of US.Marine Corps Operations in the Domini-can Republic, April-June 1965 is availableto institutional addressees and can be ob-tained by writing to the Center at theabove address. L111775L11

8 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

Marines Mark 25th Anniversary of Pivotal Battle for Hue

T WENTY-FWE YEARS AGO this winter,U.S. Marines turned back the North

Vietnamese massive onslaught on the cityof Hue, the former Imperial capital ofVietnam.

On 30-31 January 1968, during theVietnamese lunar New Year, the Com-munists mounted a surprise offensivethroughout all of South Vietnam. Most ofthese attacks were by local Viet Congunits. There was one place, however, wherethe Communists committed first-lineNorth Vietnamese units and that was inthe one-month struggle for Hue. It is

probable that in the battle for Hue theNorth Vietnamese attempted to achieve,with some prospect of success, a decisivevictory that would result in the loss of thetwo northern provinces of South Vietnamto the Communists.

At the beginning of 1968, nearly threeyears after the commitment of largeAmerican combat forces, the U.S. MilitaryAssistance Command, Vietnam (MACV),under Army Gen William C. West-moreland, had intelligence of a massingof enemy divisions in the northern bord-er region, especially in the DemilitarizedZone (DMZ) dividing the two Vietnamsand in Laos near the isolated U.S. Marinebase at Khe Sanh. Westmoreland preparedto reinforce the III Marine AmphibiousForce (III MAF), under Marine LtGenRobert E. Cushman, in the five northernprovinces in South Vietnam.

III MAF in January 1968 numberedmore than 100,000 Marines, sailors, andsoldiers, including two Marine and oneArmy infantry divisions. In mid-January,Westmoreland rushed yet another Armydivision, the elite 1st Air Cavalry Division,north. Worried about the Marine defensesat Khe Sanh and lacking confidence in theability of the Marine commanders to con-trol the situation, Westmoreland plannedto establish a temporary northern forwardheadquarters under his deputy, Army GenCreighton Abrams. Before he could im-plement this plan, the enemy launched hisTet offensive — everywhere but at KheSanh.

by D Jack ShulimsonHead, History W/riting Unit

both of its colonial and its imperial past.It was, in effect, two cities. North of thePerfume River lay the Hue of the Em-perors with its ancient Citadel. South ofthe river was the modern city. The Cercle-Sportif with its veranda overlooking theriver evoked the former French colonial ad-ministration.

The South Vietnamese had dismissedany notion that the enemy had the "capa-bility" to launch a division-size attackagainst the city. Unknown to the allies, twoenemy regiments, the 6th and 4th NorthVietnamese Armies (NVA) were on themove. On 31 January, at 0223, a signalflare lit up the night sky above Hue. Afour-man North Vietnamese sapper teamopened the Western gate of the Citadelto the lead battalions of the 6th NVA. Bydaylight, most of the Citadel was in thehands of the NVA. At the Mang Ca 1stArmy of Vietnam (ARVN) Division com-pound, an ad hoc 200-man defensive forcemanaged to stave off the enemy assaults.

Across the river in southern Hue, muchthe same situation existed. The NVAmaintained a virtual siege of the MACV

advisory compound. While the 4th NVAattack in the new city lacked the cohesionand timing of those in the Citadel, theNVA had control of most of southern Hue.

The first U.S. Marines to bolster theSouth Vietnamese in the city were fromthe newly formed Task Force X-Ray, a newcommand under BGen Foster C. LaHue,at Phu Bai, about eight miles south ofHue. LaHue had barely enough time tobecome acquainted with his new sector,let alone the fast-developing Hue situa-tion. He later wrote: "Initial deploymentof forces was made with limited infor-mation."

W ITH THIS "limited information,"Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Ma-

rines received orders to relieve Hue.Although reinforced by four Marine tanks,the Marine company was caught in a mur-derous crossfire after crossing the An CuuBridge into the city. Among the casual-ties was the company commander.

The Marines reinforced the embattledcompany with the command group of the1st Battalion, 1st Marines (LtCol Marcus

A S THE FORMER imperial capital, Huewas for many Vietnamese the cultur-

al center of the country. It emitted a sense

Forrirudine, Winter 1992-1993 9

On 3 February 1968, aided by tanks in street fighting, Marines clear buildings at theUniversity of Hue. LtCol Cheatham established a command post at the university.

Marines Mark 25th Anniversary of Pivotal Battle for Hue

T WENTY-FWE YEARS AGO this winter,U.S. Marines turned back the North

Vietnamese massive onslaught on the cityof Hue, the former Imperial capital ofVietnam.

On 30-31 January 1968, during theVietnamese lunar New Year, the Com-munists mounted a surprise offensivethroughout all of South Vietnam. Most ofthese attacks were by local Viet Congunits. There was one place, however, wherethe Communists committed first-lineNorth Vietnamese units and that was inthe one-month struggle for Hue. It is

probable that in the battle for Hue theNorth Vietnamese attempted to achieve,with some prospect of success, a decisivevictory that would result in the loss of thetwo northern provinces of South Vietnamto the Communists.

At the beginning of 1968, nearly threeyears after the commitment of largeAmerican combat forces, the U.S. MilitaryAssistance Command, Vietnam (MACV),under Army Gen William C. West-moreland, had intelligence of a massingof enemy divisions in the northern bord-er region, especially in the DemilitarizedZone (DMZ) dividing the two Vietnamsand in Laos near the isolated U.S. Marinebase at Khe Sanh. Westmoreland preparedto reinforce the III Marine AmphibiousForce (III MAF), under Marine LtGenRobert E. Cushman, in the five northernprovinces in South Vietnam.

III MAP in January 1968 numberedmore than 100,000 Marines, sailors, andsoldiers, including two Marine and oneArmy infantry divisions. In mid-January,Westmoreland rushed yet another Armydivision, the elite 1st Air Cavalry Division,north. Worried about the Marine defensesat Khe Sanh and lacking confidence in theability of the Marine commanders to con-trol the situation, Westmoreland plannedto establish a temporary northern forwardheadquarters under his deputy, Army GenCreighton Abrams. Before he could im-plement this plan, the enemy launched hisTet offensive — everywhere but at KheSanh.

by Dr Jack ShulimsonHead, History W/riting Unit

both of its colonial and its imperial past.It was, in effect, two cities. North of thePerfume River lay the Hue of the Em-perors with its ancient Citadel. South ofthe river was the modern city. The Cercle-Sportif with its veranda overlooking theriver evoked the former French colonial ad-ministration.

The South Vietnamese had dismissedany notion that the enemy had the "capa-bility" to launch a division-size attackagainst the city. Unknown to the allies, twoenemy regiments, the 6th and 4th NorthVietnamese Armies (NVA) were on themove. On 31 January, at 0223, a signalflare lit up the night sky above Hue. Afour-man North Vietnamese sapper teamopened the Western gate of the Citadelto the lead battalions of the 6th NVA. Bydaylight, most of the Citadel was in thehands of the NVA. At the Mang Ca 1stArmy of Vietnam (ARVN) Division com-pound, an ad hoc 200-man defensive forcemanaged to stave off the enemy assaults.

Across the river in southern Hue, muchthe same situation existed. The NVAmaintained a virtual siege of the MACV

advisory compound. While the 4th NVAattack in the new city lacked the cohesionand timing of those in the Citadel, theNVA had control of most of southern Hue.

The first U.S. Marines to bolster theSouth Vietnamese in the city were fromthe newly formed Task Force X-Ray, a newcommand under BGen Foster C. LaHue,at Phu Bai, about eight miles south ofHue. LaHue had barely enough time tobecome acquainted with his new sector,let alone the fast-developing Hue situa-tion. He later wrote: "Initial deploymentof forces was made with limited infor-mation."

W ITH THIS "limited information,"Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Ma-

rines received orders to relieve Hue.Although reinforced by four Marine tanks,the Marine company was caught in a mur-derous crossfire after crossing the An CuuBridge into the city. Among the casual-ties was the company commander.

The Marines reinforced the embattledcompany with the command group of the1st Battalion, 1st Marines (LtCol Marcus

A S THE FORMER imperial capital, Huewas for many Vietnamese the cultur-

al center of the country. It emitted a sense

Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993 9

On 3 February 1968, aided by tanks in street fighting, Marines clear buildings at theUniversity of Hue. LtCol Cheatham established a command post at the university.

J. Gravel) and Company G, 2d Battalion,5th Marines. Gravel's relief columnreached Company A in the early after-noon. By this time, the enemy attackershad pulled back their forces. BGen LaHueremembered that reports came in that the1st ARVN Division was "in trouble" and"we were ordered to go across the river torelieve some of the pressure."

Leaving Company A behind to securethe MACV compound, LtCol Gravel tookCompany G and attempted to cross themain bridge over the Perfume River. Twoinfantry platoons successfully made theirway over, but then immediately came un.der machine gun fire. Gravel remem-bered, "we were no match for what wasgoing on . . . I decided to withdraw."

This was easier said than done. The ene-my was well dug-in and "firing from vir-tually every building." Company G lostnearly a third of its men, either woundedor killed, "going across that one bridgeand then getting back across that bridge."

T HE AMERICAN COMMAND still had lit-tle realization of the situation in Hue.

In Saigon, Gen Westmoreland cabledWashington, the "Enemy has approxi-mately three companies in the HueCitadel and Marines have sent a battalioninto the area to clear them out."

Gen LaHue soon realized the enemystrength in Hue was much greater than hehad originally estimated. Shortly afternoon, on 1 February, he called in Col Stan-ley S. Hughes of the 1st Marines and gavehim tactical control of the forces in thesouthern city. Hughes reinforced the twoMarine companies in Hue with CompanyF, 2d Battalion, 5th Marines.

In southern Hue, on 2 February, theMarines made some minor headway andCompany H, 2d Battalion, 5th Marinesreinforced the Marines in the city. TheNVA, however, continued to block any ad-vance to the west towards the Provinceheadquarters building.

At Phu Bai, Col Hughes prepared tobring his headquarters and that of the 2dBattalion, 5th Marines, under LtCol ErnestC. Cheatham, into Hue. On the morningof the 3d, Hughes established his com-mand post in the MACV compound andheld a hurried conference with his two bat-talion commanders. While LtColCheatham took control of his three com-panies already in the city, Gravel retainedcommand of his Company A.

Establishing his command post at theUniversity, LtCol Cheatham, like Gravelbefore him, made no headway against theenemy. The following morning, 4 Febru-ary, Col Hughes decided to place the 1stBattalion on LtCol Cheatham's exposedflank and continue the push against theenemy defensive positions.

On the morning of the 4th, CompanyB, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines joined LtColGravel's command. That night, however,North Vietnamese sappers blew the AnCuu bridge, effectively closing the landroute into the city. This left the Marinecommand only two alternatives to resup-ply the Hue forces—river traffic andhelicopters.

One of the immediate problems was theinadequacy of the Marine maps. As thecommander of Company G observed,"You have to raid the local Texaco stationto get your street map," which located theprincipal buildings and prominent touristattractions in Hue.

W ITH LITTLE ROOM to outflank theenemy, the battalion had to take

each block and each building "one at atime." According to Cheatham, "we hadto pick a point and attempt to break thatone strong point After a time,Cheatham and his officers noted that theenemy "defended on every other street

The battalion would move quicklyand then hit a defensive position.

On the morning of 5 February, bothMarine battalions resumed the attack ina southwesterly direction toward the cityhospital and provincial headquarters. Onthe right flank, Company H advancedalong the river front. The 1st Battalion, 1stMarines secured the left flank. LtCol Grav-el remembered, "The going was slow

We fought for two days over onebuilding."

Using tear gas, Company H, on the af-ternoon of 6 February, finally over-whelmed the NVA defenders in theprovincial headquarters. The capture ofthe provincial headquarters was more thansymbolic. The building apparently hadserved as the command post for the 4thNVA Regiment. Once the headquartersfell to the Marines much of the enemy or-ganized resistance in southern Hue col-lapsed. Gravel recalled "He [the NVA]seemed to lose his stomach for the fight.

once we started rolling . . . the mainforce sort of evaporated . . . and left some

local force—rinky dinks . . . When hisdefense crumbled, it crumbled."

B Y io FEBRUARY, despite some occa-sional resistance, the Marines were in

control south of the Perfume River. Withthe NVA still holding fast in the Citadel,Hue was now indeed two cities. NorthVietnamese sappers had blown the mainbridge across the river, literally dividingthe city in half.

In clearing the modern city, the Marinestook a heavy toll of the enemy, but at ahigh cost to themselves. The Americanshad accounted for more than 1,000 ene-my dead and took six prisoners. Marinecasualties included 38 dead and more than320 wounded. A Marine from 2d Battal-ion, 5th Marines remarked, "The stink—you had to load up so many wounded, theblood would dry on your hands. In two orthree days you would smell like deathitself."

While the Marines cleared the new city,a South Vietnamese offensive in theCitadel had faltered. By 8 February, BGenNgo Quang Truong, the 1st Division com-mander, had inside the Citadel four air-borne battalions and the 3d ARVNRegiment, which were able to hold theirown.

About 10 miles to the west of Hue, theU.S. Army's 3d Brigade, 1st Cavalry Divi-sion was having about as little luck as theARVN forces in the Citadel. Having runinto well entrenched enemy forces, the 3dBrigade did not have the wherewithal topush the NVA out. During this period, theNorth Vietnamese command maintainedits "own support area outside the westernwall [of the Citadel

I N THE INTERIM, the South VietnameseJoint General Staff sent reinforcements

from Saigon to Phu Bai, the lead elementsof a Vietnamese Marine Task Force. GenTruong proposed to have the South Viet-namese Marines replace the battered Viet-namese airborne battalions in the Citadel.Although one company entered theCitadel on the 10th, the Vietnamese Ma-rine commander refused to insert anymore troops until the rest of his commandarrived from Saigon.

Gen Truong also asked for a U.S. Ma-rine battalion. On 11-12 February, the 1stBattalion, 5th Marines, under Maj RobertH. Thompson, entered the Citadel to takeover the southeastern sector. As did the

10 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993

J. Gravel) and Company G, 2d Battalion,5th Marines. Gravel's relief columnreached Company A in the early after-noon. By this time, the enemy attackershad pulled back their forces. BGen LaHueremembered that reports came in that the1st ARVN Division was "in trouble" and"we were ordered to go across the river torelieve some of the pressure."

Leaving Company A behind to securethe MACV compound, LtCol Gravel tookCompany G and attempted to cross themain bridge over the Perfume River. Twoinfantry platoons successfully made theirway over, but then immediately came un-der machine gun fire. Gravel remem-bered, "we were no match for what wasgoing on . . . I decided to withdraw."

This was easier said than done. The ene-my was well dug-in and "firing from vir-tually every building." Company G lostnearly a third of its men, either woundedor killed, "going across that one bridgeand then getting back across that bridge."

T E AMERICAN COMMAND still had lit-tle realization of the situation in Hue.

In Saigon, Gen Westmoreland cabledWashington, the "Enemy has approxi-mately three companies in the HueCitadel and Marines have sent a battalioninto the area to clear them out."

Gen LaHue soon realized the enemystrength in Hue was much greater than hehad originally estimated. Shortly afternoon, on 1 February, he called in Col Stan-ley S. Hughes of the 1st Marines and gavehim tactical control of the forces in thesouthern city. Hughes reinforced the twoMarine companies in Hue with CompanyF, 2d Battalion, 5th Marines.

In southern Hue, on 2 February, theMarines made some minor headway andCompany H, 2d Battalion, 5th Marinesreinforced the Marines in the city. TheNVA, however, continued to block any ad-vance to the west towards the Provinceheadquarters building.

At Phu Bai, Col Hughes prepared tobring his headquarters and that of the 2dBattalion, 5th Marines, under LtCol ErnestC. Cheatham, into Hue. On the morningof the 3d, Hughes established his com-mand post in the MACV compound andheld a hurried conference with his two bat-talion commanders. While LtColCheatham took control of his three com-panies already in the city, Gravel retainedcommand of his Company A.

Establishing his command post at theUniversity, LtCol Cheatham, like Gravelbefore him, made no headway against theenemy. The following morning, 4 Febru-ary, Col Hughes decided to place the 1stBattalion on LtCol Cheatham's exposedflank and continue the push against theenemy defensive positions.

On the morning of the 4th, CompanyB, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines joined LtColGravel's command. That night, however,North Vietnamese sappers blew the AnCuu bridge, effectively closing the landroute into the city. This left the Marinecommand only two alternatives to resup-ply the Hue forces—river traffic andhelicopters.

One of the immediate problems was theinadequacy of the Marine maps. As thecommander of Company G observed,"You have to raid the local Texaco stationto get your street map," which located theprincipal buildings and prominent touristattractions in Hue.

W ITH LITTLE ROOM to outflank theenemy, the battalion had to take

each block and each building "one at atime." According to Cheatham, "we hadto pick a point and attempt to break thatone strong point After a time,Cheatham and his officers noted that theenemy "defended on every other street

The battalion would move quicklyand then hit a defensive position.

On the morning of 5 February, bothMarine battalions resumed the attack ina southwesterly direction toward the cityhospital and provincial headquarters. Onthe right flank, Company H advancedalong the river front. The 1st Battalion, 1stMarines secured the left flank. LtCol Grav-el remembered, "The going was slow

We fought for two days over onebuilding."

Using tear gas, Company H, on the af-ternoon of 6 February, finally over-whelmed the NVA defenders in theprovincial headquarters. The capture ofthe provincial headquarters was more thansymbolic. The building apparently hadserved as the command post for the 4thNVA Regiment. Once the headquartersfell to the Marines much of the enemy or-ganized resistance in southern Hue col-lapsed. Gravel recalled "He [the NVA]seemed to lose his stomach for the fight.

once we started rolling. . . the mainforce sort of evaporated . . . and left some

local force—rinky dinks . . . . When hisdefense crumbled, it crumbled."

B Y io FEBRUARY, despite some occa-sional resistance, the Marines were in

control south of the Perfume River. Withthe NVA still holding fast in the Citadel,Hue was now indeed two cities. NorthVietnamese sappers had blown the mainbridge across the river, literally dividingthe city in half.

In clearing the modern city, the Marinestook a heavy toll of the enemy, but at ahigh cost to themselves. The Americanshad accounted for more than 1,000 ene-my dead and took six prisoners. Marinecasualties included 38 dead and more than320 wounded. A Marine from 2d Battal-ion, 5th Marines remarked, "The stink—you had to load up so many wounded, theblood would dry on your hands. In two orthree days you would smell like deathitself."

While the Marines cleared the new city,a South Vietnamese offensive in theCitadel had faltered. By 8 February, BGenNgo Quang Truong, the 1st Division com-mander, had inside the Citadel four air-borne battalions and the 3d ARVNRegiment, which were able to hold theirown.

About 10 miles to the west of Hue, theU.S. Army's 3d Brigade, 1st Cavalry Divi-sion was having about as little luck as theARVN forces in the Citadel. Having runinto well entrenched enemy forces, the 3dBrigade did not have the wherewithal topush the NVA out. During this period, theNorth Vietnamese command maintainedits "own support area outside the westernwall [of the Citadel

IN THE INTERIM, the South VietnameseJoint General Staff sent reinforcements

from Saigon to Phu Bai, the lead elementsof a Vietnamese Marine Task Force. GenTruong proposed to have the South Viet-namese Marines replace the battered Viet-namese airborne battalions in the Citadel.Although one company entered theCitadel on the 10th, the Vietnamese Ma-rine commander refused to insert anymore troops until the rest of his commandarrived from Saigon.

Gen Truong also asked for a U.S. Ma-rine battalion. On 11-12 February, the 1stBattalion, 5th Marines, under Maj RobertH. Thompson, entered the Citadel to takeover the southeastern sector. As did the

10 Fortitudine, Winter 1992-1993