Paul W. Thompson

Paul Williams Thompson (19 December 1906 – 9 February 1996) was an American military officer. He served as a colonel in the United States Army during World War II on Omaha Beach in the Normandy Invasion, where he was wounded in an action for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. He was later promoted to brigadier general.

Early life and career Paul Williams Thompson was born in Alliance, Nebraska, on 19 December 1906, the son of Silas W. and June Williams Thompson. He entered the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, on 1 July 1925 and graduated on 13 June 1929, ranked 13th in his class. As a cadet, he acquired the nickname "Tommy". In October 1935, he was awarded a Freeman Fellowship to study abroad. He attended graduate classes at the and studied the waterways of European countries. On completion of his studies, he was assigned to the Office of the American Military Attaché in Berlin and was detailed to some German Army engineer units. While there, he met Elfriede Greimelmeier, whom he married on 23 January 1937. Thompson commanded the United States Army Assault Training Centre at Woolacombe in the UK from April 1943 to March 1944, with the rank of colonel from 4 July 1943. . In this role he trained troops and developed tactics for the amphibious assault on Normandy.

After he recovered from his wounds, Thompson returned to Washington, D.C., in September 1944, where he served in the Operations Division of the War Department General Staff, working in its Current Group. In April 1945, and he retired in 1971 when he reached that age.

Dates of rank