Nickname(s) Beet Name Alexander Bolling | Years of service 1917–55 Allegiance United States | |
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Born August 28, 1895Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ( 1895-08-28 ) Commands held 84th Infantry DivisionThird Army Battles/wars World War IWorld War IIOperation OverlordBattle of The Bulge Awards Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Distinguished Service Medal, Purple Heart Battles and wars | ||
Alexander Russell Bolling was a general in the United States Army during World War II and the Cold War.
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Early career
He was a student at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis from 1915 to 1916, but he left the USNA and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He was sent to France during World War I, where he earned a battlefield commission. After World War I, he was sent to Fort Bliss, Texas where he chased Mexican Bandit Pancho Villa along with fellow Lieutenants Dwight Eisenhower, George S. Patton, and Douglas MacArthur. He was promoted to the rank of Captain, which he held for 12 years.
World War I
While in command of a company of the 4th Infantry, 3rd Division, in the Boise-des-Nesles, on the night of July 14, 1918, Second Lieutenant Bolling earned the Distinguished Service Cross by "continually exposing himself to heavy gas and shell fire by going from one platoon to another."
World War II
Bolling commanded the 84th Infantry Division in the European Theater of Operations during World War II. After the war, Bolling was promoted to Lieutenant General in 1952 and assumed command of the Third U.S. Army.
Personal
Bolling's awards included the Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Service Medal with Cluster, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart.
Upon his retirement in 1955, he made his home in Satellite Beach, Florida. Lieutenant General Bolling died on June 4, 1964, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
Bolling was the father of Major General Alexander R. "Bud" Bolling, Jr., the father-in-law of Major General Roderick Wetherill, and grandfather of Lieutenant Colonel Roderick Wetherill, Jr.