William D. Leahy

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William Leahy, circa 1945
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William Leahy, circa 1945

William Daniel Leahy (May 6, 1875 – July 20, 1959) was an American naval officer and the first such officer ever to hold the rank of Fleet Admiral and the first ever to hold five-star rank in the U.S. armed forces.

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[edit] Early life

Leahy was born in Hampton, Iowa before moving to Ashland, Wisconsin. His education included the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, from which he graduated in 1897. Midshipman Leahy was assigned to USS Oregon, then in the Pacific. He was in that battleship when she made her famous dash around Cape Horn in the spring of 1898 to participate in the Battle of Santiago on July 3 during the Spanish-American War.

Having completed the two years of sea duty -- then required by law -- he was commissioned Ensign on July 1, 1899. At that time, he was on the Asiatic Station, where, during the Philippine Insurrection and the Boxer Rebellion in China, he served on the USS Castine, the USS Glacier and commanded the gunboat USS Mariveles. He returned to the United States in 1902, and for the next five years did duty onboard the USS Tacoma and the USS Boston which were stationed in Panama during the early period of construction of the canal.

His first shore cruise was at the Naval Academy. Beginning in 1907, he served as instructor in the Department of Physics and Chemistry for two years. He went to sea in 1909 and served as navigator of the armored cruiser California in the Pacific Fleet. During the American Occupation of Nicaragua in 1912, he was Chief of Staff to the Commander Naval Forces there.

During the First World War Leahy was captain of the dispatch boat used by future U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy. The two men became close friends for the rest of their lives.

Late in 1912, he came ashore in Washington as Assistant Director of Gunnery Exercises and Engineering Competitions. In 1913, he was assigned to the Bureau of Navigation as a detail officer where he served until 1915. At that time, he took command of the dispatch gunboat USS Dolphin, and established a very close friendship with, the then Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin D. Roosevelt who cruised with him on the ship. He was in that assignment in early 1917 in West Indian waters and had additional duty as Senior Aide on the Staff of Commander Squadron Three of the Patrol Force Atlantic Fleet.

He served for almost a year as the Executive Officer of USS Nevada and in April 1918 went to command the USS Princess Matotika, formerly Princess Alice, transporting troops to France.

After a short cruise in that command, he came ashore in 1918 and served for three years as director of Gunnery Exercises and Engineering Competition in the Navy Department, and as senior member of the Fire Control Board.

In 1921, he went to sea in command of USS St. Louis, flagship of the Naval Detachment in Turkish waters during the war between Turkey and Greece. At the end of that war, he was given command of Mine Squadron One, and in 1922 further additional duty as commander, Control Force.

He returned to the U.S., and from 1923 to 1926, he served as Director of Officer Personnel in the Bureau of Navigation, and then had one year in command of the battleship USS New Mexico.

In 1927, he reached flag rank and became Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance. After almost four years, he went to sea in 1931 as Commander Destroyers Scouting Force.

His son, Willaim H. Leahy graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1927 and was engaged in pre-WW II naval intelligence operations.
The aspect of the Pearl Harbor disaster which is really surprising is that so many people failed to do either the obvious or the sensible things. Washington Star, 1 September 1945

In 1933, he came ashore in Washington as Chief of the Bureau of Navigation for two years, when he went to sea as a vice admiral, and Commander Battleships Battle Force. In 1936, he hoisted his four-star flag in USS California and Commander in Chief Battle Force.

He was appointed Chief of Naval Operations, took the oath of office in January 1937 to serve until August 1939 when he was placed on the retired list. On that occasion, President Roosevelt said "Bill, if we have a war, you're going to be right back here helping me run it."

Before retiring as CNO, Leahy joined his wife Louise Harrington Leahy when she sponsored the USS Cimarron (AO-22) commissioning on March 20, 1939.

[edit] Retirement and recall

From September 1939 until November 1940, Leahy served as Governor of Puerto Rico. After the surrender of France, Leahy was appointed American Ambassador to Vichy France, the regime ruling over the south of France and the French overseas empire. Leahy's goal was to persuade the Vichy government to rejoin the war against Hitler, but he was entirely unsuccessful. He was recalled in May 1942.

Pres. Roosevelt and Admiral Leahy meeting with King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia, onboard the USS Quincy
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Pres. Roosevelt and Admiral Leahy meeting with King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia, onboard the USS Quincy

After the United States entered World War II, President Roosevelt decided he needed a senior military officer as personal adviser and point of contact with his three service chiefs, Admiral Ernest King of the Navy, General George Marshall of the Army and General Henry Arnold of the Army Air Forces. The service chiefs resisted this move until Marshall suggested that only Leahy would be accepted in this post. On July 6, 1942, Leahy was appointed Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Army and Navy, the President of the United States.

He was effectively the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a position he held during most of World War II. However, his actual title was Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy. The first person to formally be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was Leahy's successor, General of the Army Omar Bradley.

Leahy was appointed the first US Fleet Admiral on December 15, 1944. He was critical of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that in his eyes were "of no material assistance in our war against Japan". His feeling was that "in being the first to use it, we had adopted an ethical standard common to the barbarians of the Dark Ages. I was not taught to make war in that fashion, and wars cannot be won by destroying women and children."

Leahy resigned in March 1949 and the following year published his war memoirs, I Was There. Fleet Admiral Leahy died at Bethesda Naval Hospital on July 20, 1959.

Leahy's name resurfaced in early April 2004 when it was discussed in the media whether or not National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice should testify in front of a congressional panel investigating the September 11, 2001 attacks. This resulted from a photo of Leahy testifying in 1945 to a congressional panel investigating the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, thus demonstrating a precedent for Rice's testimony.

Preceded by:
William H. Standley		 United States Chief of Naval Operations
1937-1939		 Succeeded by:
Harold R. Stark
Preceded by:
José E. Colón		 Governor of Puerto Rico
1939-1940		 Succeeded by:
José Miguel Gallardo
Preceded by:
William C. Bullitt		 United States Ambassador to France
1941–1942		 Succeeded by:
Jefferson Caffery (in 1944)
Preceded by:
None		 Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief
1942–1949		 Succeeded by:
Omar Bradley
(Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff)

[edit] Quotes

  • "This is the biggest fool thing we have ever done. The bomb will never go off, and I speak as an expert in explosives." said to president Harry S. Truman, after Vannevar Bush explained how the atomic bomb worked.

[edit] Dates of rank

  • Graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy - Class of 1897, 15th of 47
  • Ensign - 01 July 1899
  • Lieutenant (junior grade) - 01 July 1902
  • Lieutenant - 31 Dec. 1903
  • Lieutenant Commander - 15 Sept. 1909
  • Commander - 29 Aug. 1916
  • Captain - 01 July 1918
  • Rear Admiral - 14 Oct. 1927
  • Vice Admiral - 13 July 1935
  • Admiral - 02 Jan. 1937
  • Fleet Admiral - 15 Dec. 1944

[edit] Decorations and awards

[edit] External links

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