Charles H. Gerhardt

Charles Hunter Gerhardt (June 6, 1895 – October 9, 1976) was a major general in the United States Army who commanded the 29th Infantry Division from 1943 until the end of the war and during part of the occupation of Germany. The division's most famous combat operations were the Omaha Beach landings of June 6, 1944 (his 49th birthday), otherwise known as D-Day, the taking of the French crossroads town of Saint-Lô in July 1944, and later the capture of Brest, Jülich, and München-Gladbach.

Early life and military career

From left to right: Major General William M. Wright, commanding the 89th Division, Major General Frank L. Winn, to succeed Wright in command of the 89th, and Brigadier General Henry D. Todd Jr., commanding the 58th Field Artillery Brigade, Stenay, Meuse, France, November 12, 1918. Standing behind Wright is his aide-de-camp, Captain Charles H. Gerhardt.

Gerhardt grew up in the army as the son of Charles Gerhardt, a career officer who retired as a brigadier general. The younger Gerhardt attended the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York, in 1913, where he earned a reputation as a skilled football, baseball and polo player. In 1916, Gerhardt quarterbacked for West Point to a 30–10 upset win over Notre Dame, which was led by the famed freshman George Gipp. It was Notre Dame's only loss that year.

Gerhardt's West Point class graduated on April 6, 1917, the day America officially declared war. Graduation was six weeks earlier than intended because of the U.S. entry into the war. Gerhardt graduated 50th in a class of 139 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Cavalry Branch.

Promoted to first lieutenant on May 15,

Between the wars Remaining in the army during the interwar period, Gerhardt taught tactics back at the Military Academy from February 1926 to August 1931. Gerhardt then attended the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, graduating in May 1933. On July 1, 1940, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel.

World War II British Lieutenant General Brian Horrocks, Major General Gordon MacMillan and Major General Charles H. Gerhardt on the saluting base during the ceremony to mark the handover of Bremerhaven by British to American forces, May 1945.

By the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent American entry into World War II, Gerhardt was in command of the 56th Cavalry Brigade, having been in command since September 13 after receiving a promotion to the temporary rank of brigadier general on July 10, 1941.

Major General Gerhardt was a hard taskmaster, strict disciplinarian, and considered by many of his men to be a martinet who often became upset at small things such as a soldier not having the chinstrap of his helmet buckled. One famous story has him admonishing a soldier on the day after D-Day for dropping peels from the orange he was eating on the ground. He was intolerant of any dirt or mud being on the trucks, and would make soldiers stop and clean a truck under almost any circumstance. Gerhardt was, however, a superb and driven trainer of soldiers and expected the same from his subordinates. He led the 29th Infantry Division throughout the fighting in Western Europe, from D-Day (June 6, 1944) until the end of World War II in Europe on Victory in Europe Day (May 8, 1945). and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Dates of rank

Awards His awards include: Army Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star

His foreign awards include: Croix de Guerre (Belgium)