R. Ernest Dupuy

Colonel Richard Ernest Dupuy (March 24, 1887 – April 25, 1975) was a United States Army officer and military historian.

Before his National Guard artillery unit was called to serve in World War I, Dupuy was a reporter with the New York Herald. He transferred to the regular army after the war, serving in a number of public relations roles. During World War II, Dupuy served as acting director of public relations at Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force, under General Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 1944, on D-Day, Dupuy was the first to announce on radio that the invasion of Normandy was taking place.

Dupuy was married to Laura Nevitt Dupuy, who was an accomplished illustrator and artist, and their son Trevor Nevitt Dupuy was born in New York City on May 3, 1919.

Dupuy graduated from the Field Artillery School Battery Officers' Course in 1924 and the Command and General Staff School in 1933.

World War II

After the outbreak of World War II, Dupuy was with the War Department's Bureau of Public Relations in Washington. In a broadcast at 12:32 am Pacific Time (3:32 am Eastern War Time) on June 6, 1944, he announced that "Under the command of General Eisenhower, Allied naval forces, supported by strong air forces, began landing Allied armies this morning on the northern coast of France". This announcement, known as Communiqué Number One, was so short that Dupuy read it out twice in a row.

Dupuy was a military historian and had written a number of books in the inter-war years during his spare time. He returned to this passion in retirement and wrote 100 articles and short stories, as well as 22 published books.

Dupuy also served as an associate editor of the Army-Navy-Air Force Journal for five years and was a director and staff editor of the Historical Evaluation and Research Organization (HERO) from 1963. In March 1966, he was inducted as an honorary member of the U.S. Military Academy Class of 1913.

In their later years, Dupuy and his wife lived in Arlington, Virginia. He died on April 25, 1975, at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C.

Publications Among his books are: Governors Island: Its History and Development 1637–1937 (1937) If War Comes (1938) Perish by the sword: The Czechoslovakian Anabasis and our Supporting Campaigns in North Russia and Siberia 1918–1920 (1939) World in Arms: A Study in Military Geography (1939) Where They Have Trod: The West Point Tradition in American Life (1940) To the Colors!: The Way of Life of an Army Officer The Story of West Point: 1802–1943 (1943) Soldiers' Album (1946) with Herbert L. Bergstein St Vith: Lion in the Way: 106th Infantry Division in World War II (1949) Men of West Point: The First 150 years of the United States Military Academy (1951) The Compact History of the United States Army (1956) Military Heritage of America (1956) with Trevor Dupuy Brave Men and Great Captains (1959) with Trevor Dupuy The Compact History of the Civil War (1960) with Trevor Dupuy The Compact History of the Revolutionary War (1963) 5 Days to War, April 2–6, 1917 (1967) The Little Wars of the United States: A Compact History from 1798 to 1920 (1968) with William H Baumer World War II: A Compact History (1969) The National Guard: A Compact History (1971) An Outline History of the American Revolution (1975) The American Revolution, a Global War (1977) The Encyclopedia of Military History: From 3500 BC to the Present (1977) with Trevor Dupuy