William B. Caldwell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William B. Caldwell IV
Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1976–present
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands held	B Company, 1st Battalion, 46th Infantry, 1st Armored Division 4th Battalion, 27th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division (Light) 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (Light) 82nd Airborne Division U.S. Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Battles/wars	Operation Iraqi Freedom Operation Restore Hope/Restore Democracy Operation Desert Shield/Storm Operation Just Cause
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit Bronze Star

Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell IV is the current Commanding General, U.S. Army Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and oversees the Command and General Staff College and seventeen other schools, centers and training programs^[1]. He replaced General David H. Petraeus who was subsequently confirmed as the current Multi-National Force - Iraq Commanding General. Lieutenant General previouly served until June 2007 served as chief spokesman and Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Effects for the Multi-National Force - Iraq.^[2]

[edit] Early years

Originally from Columbus, Georgia, Caldwell's family moved frequently because his father was in the military. During Caldwell's early childhood, his father was stationed at the United States Military Academy. Growing up there gave him a chance to interact with West Point cadets, who helped teach some youth sports teams, which deeply influenced him:

"I found that I just really had a great respect and admiration for the cadets at the academy. I thought, 'Boy, I'd love to do something like that one day.' Then with time, I thought I'd like to serve in the armed forces, and so that led me to apply for the military academy.^[3] "

[edit] Army career

[edit] Education and academia

Caldwell attended Hargrave Military Academy^[4], a military high school in Chatham Virginia. From there, he was accepted to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. After graduation from West Point in 1976^[5], Caldwell served in posts throughout the country and overseas. He continued his education with a master's degree in systems technology from the U. S. Naval Post Graduate School and then a master of military art and science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

[edit] Military operations

Caldwell learned early on that the military required him to be flexible and ready for new challenges. One month prior to leaving his battalion command position in the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii, for example, his commanding general sent him to Haiti to work as his political-military liaison in the U.S. Embassy during Operation Uphold Democracy in the mid-1990s.

Caldwell took his communications, intelligence and operations cells and worked in the embassy for six months. "I gave up command, formed this organization and took off to go work in an American embassy, which I'd never done in my life", he recalled. "In fact, I'm not even sure I'd ever been in an American embassy overseas in my life. I literally started from scratch."

After his tour in Haiti, Caldwell went on to study at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. He commanded the 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, at Fort Drum, New York. He worked in the Office of the Director for Strategic Plans and Policy on the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon, and later served as the executive assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

[edit] Global War on Terrorism

Caldwell's duties once again tested his readiness and flexibility after the terrorist attack on Sept. 11, 2001. During this time, Caldwell was serving as deputy director for operations, U.S. Pacific Command, in Hawaii. The command's focus shifted from regional war plans to the global war on terrorism.

The headquarters changed to a 24-7 operations center, Caldwell said. "So, instead of having a cell of about six or eight people that worked 24-7, we now had a cell of about 50 people that worked 24-7.^[6]"

MG Caldwell runs with his soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division on Fort Bragg in 2005.

The operation required reserve component personnel to play a crucial role, the general noted. "They were indispensable in the execution of our operations in the Pacific, absolutely indispensable", he said. "They brought a wealth of knowledge that a lot of our folks who had just come in for the first time in the command did not have. So they proved their weight in gold."

In July 2002, Caldwell was assigned as senior military assistant to the deputy secretary of defense. In this position he served his boss during the preparation, execution, and follow on for Operation Iraqi Freedom and other aspects of the global war on terrorism.

From May 2004 until June 2006, Caldwell served as the Commanding General of the 82nd Airborne Division. As the division commander, Caldwell oversaw countless deployments by the units under his command to both Afghanistan and Iraq.

[edit] Hurricane Katrina

Maj. Gen. Caldwell speaks to sailors and relief workers at the Medical Center of Louisiana Charity Hospital in downtown New Orleans.

The 82nd Airborne's 3rd Brigade and Division Artillery along with supporting units deployed to support search-and-rescue and security operations in New Orleans, Louisiana after the city was flooded by Hurricane Katrina in September 2005. In all, 3,600 paratroopers commanded by Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV, operated out of New Orleans International Airport under Task Force All-American. The division helped evacuate 6,000 residents, treat 1,352 people, and cleared 185 city blocks of debris.^[7]

MG Caldwell walks in Eastern Baghdad in April 2007.

[edit] Multi-National Force - Iraq spokesman

Following his command of the 82nd, Caldwell was assigned as Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Effects and spokesperson for the Multi-National Force – Iraq, a position he held for 13 months. During his deployment to Iraq, Caldwell earned the respect and admiration of both national and international media for his candid assessments of the situation in Iraq and for his responsiveness to the needs of the press.^[8]

[edit] U.S. Army Combined Arms Center

Caldwell was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in June 2007 and currently serves as the Commanding General of the Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. As the Commanding General for the Combined Arms Center, he has responsibility for the Command and General Staff College and 17 other schools, centers, and training programs throughout the United States.

The Combined Arms Center is also responsible for: development of the Army’s doctrinal manuals, training of the Army’s commissioned and noncommissioned officers, oversight of major collective training exercises, integration of battle command systems and concepts, and supervision of the Army’s Center for the collection and dissemination of lessons learned.

[edit] Decorations and badges (incomplete)

U.S. military decorations Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters) Legion of Merit (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters) Bronze Star (with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster) Defense Meritorious Service Medal Meritorious Service Medal (with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters) Joint Service Commendation Medal Army Commendation Medal (with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters) Army Achievement Medal (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters) U.S. unit awards Presidential Unit Citation Joint Meritorious Unit Award (with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters) Army Meritorious Unit Commendation U.S. service (campaign) medals and service and training ribbons National Defense Service Medal (with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster) Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster) Southwest Asia Service Medal with Bronze Service Star (with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster) Iraq Campaign Medal Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal Armed Forces Service Medal Humanitarian Service Medal (with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters) Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal Army Service Ribbon Army Overseas Service Ribbon (with award numeral "4")

U.S. badges, patches and tabs Combat Infantryman Badge Expert Infantryman Badge Master Parachutist Badge Presidential Service Identification Badge Office of the Secretary of Defense Identification Badge Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge Ranger Tab U.S. Army Combined Arms Center Patch 82nd Airborne Division Patch

[edit] U.S. non-military decorations

• Louisiana Cross of Merit
• Louisiana Humanitarian Service Award

[edit] Foreign military decorations

• Bronze German Army Proficiency Badge

[edit] Foreign badges, patches and tabs

• German Bronze Parachutist Badge
• Canadian Parachutist Badge
• British Parachutist Badge
• Irish Parachutist Badge

[edit] See also

Members of the NYPD are greeted by Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV, during his visit to the Times Square Military Recruiting Station in New York City March 10, 2008.

• U.S. Army Combined Arms Center
• Command and General Staff College
• Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
• Multi-National Force - Iraq
• Operation Iraqi Freedom
• 82nd Airborne Division
• Harvard University
• United States Military Academy
• Hargrave Military Academy

[edit] Notes and references

[edit] External links

• Official Army biography
• FM 3-0 Operations, February 2008
• Selected Speeches from Lt. Gen. Caldwell
• Windows Media Clip of Lt. Gen. Caldwell on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (March 10, 2008)
• Major General Caldwell speaks with Al Jazeera (April 11, 2007)
• Top General: Let Soldiers Blog (January 31, 2008)
• 82nd Airborne Division Becomes 'Waterborne' in New Orleans (Sept. 21, 2005)