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LTC H. Norman  Schwarzkopf       Commanding Officer, 1st Bn 6th Inf             11 Dec 1969  -  20 July 1970	General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

Lieutenant Colonel H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who grew up in Lawrenceville, New Jersey,
commanded the 1st Battalion, 6th United States Infantry from 8 Dec 1969 to 20 Jul 1970.

He entered active duty as an infantry lieutenant after graduating from the United States Military
Academy at West Point in 1956.  After attending Infantry Officer Basic and Airborne training at
Fort Benning, Georgia, he served with the 2nd Battle Group of the 187th Airborne Infantry of the
101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

In 1959, he was assigned to serve as a battle group reconnaissance platoon leader and as the
aide to the Army commander in Berlin, Germany.  After completing the Infantry Advanced course
at Fort Benning in 1962, he attended the University of Southern California for two years and
received a Masters Degree in guided missile engineering.  Following that schooling, he served for
one year as an instructor at West Point.

His first tour in Vietnam was in 1964-65 when he served as an advisor to the Vietnamese Airborne
Brigade.  In that position he was awarded two Silver Stars, three Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart.
After serving nine months in the field with the soldiers, he finished his tour at Vietnamese airborne
division's headquarters at Tan Son Nhut air base.  Thereafter, he returned to the Military Academy
to resume his teaching duties.

Following completion of the Command and General Staff school at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in
1969, Lieutenant Colonel Schwarzkopf returned to Vietnam.   During his second tour from 1969-70,
he served in the USARV Headquarters and then as the Commanding Officer, 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry,
of the 23rd Infantry Division (Americal).  While in that position he received his third Silver Star and
another Purple Heart.

General Schwarzkopf  went on to a distinguished career in United States Army, serving as a Deputy
Commander during military operations in Grenada, and as the Commander in Chief of the allied
military forces during Operation Desert Storm.

[General Schwarzkopf recounted his attitude toward the officers, NCOs and men in the Battalion
in his 1992 autobiography  It Doesn't Take a Hero, a book co-written with Peter Petre.  Additional
information about the Battalion during his time in command can be found on the History and Stories
pages of this web site.  See also:  the book Friendly Fire by C.D.B. Ryan at pages 388 to 436; and,
the book Unfriendly Fire by Peg Mullen (particularly  pages 140 to 156 for a series of  letters from
an infantryman before his tragic death from an artillery round that landed short.)]
 

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