Hull, John Edwin
Chief of European Theater section of General Staff and a distinguished strategist.
He was no West Pointer, but a graduate of Miami (Ohio) University. He became an Army careerist in World War I. In World War II, as a Brigadier General, he shared with General Thomas Handy, direction of the Operations Div (OPI), which virtually ran Army affairs.
Later, as a 4-star General, was Supreme Commander, Far East. Extremely modest “Ed” Hull was highly popular with his fellow soldiers.
Born at Greenfield, Ohio, May 26, 1895. He was commissioned a Second Lieutenant, Infantry, August 15, 1917, and advanced through the grades to General; permanent Brigadier General, October 1945; permanent Major General, January 24, 1948, with date of rank from July 7, 1942; Chief of Theater Group, Operations Division, General Staff, 1942-44; Assistant Chief of Staff, Operations Div, 1944-46; Plans and Operations Div, 1946; Commanding General, Army Forces Pacific, Hawaiian Dept, 1946-48; Commander of Task Force 7, (first atomic bomb weapons tests, Eniwetok), October 1947-June 1948; Commanding General, US Army in the Pacific, 1948-49; Director of Weapons Systems Evaluation Group, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, DC, 1949-51; Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations-administration, Washington, DC, Jan-Aug 1951; Vice Chief of Staff, 1951-53; Commander-in-Chief, United Nations Forces, Far East, also Commander-in-Chief of the Far East and Governor of the Kyuku Islands, 1953-55.
He retired from the Army in 1955, and died on June 10, 1975. He was buried in Section 7, Grave 8197-B, Arlington National Cemetery. His wife, Lucille Davis Hull (1896-1975) is buried with him.
Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.
Reviewed by: Michael Howard