Julian Ewell Julian Ewell ( November 5 , 1915 — July 27 , 2009 ) was a career United States Army officer who served in World War II , the Korean War and the Vietnam War . He commanded the 9th Infantry Division and II Field Force in Vietnam , and attained the rank of Lieutenant General . Early life and start of career . Julian Johnson Ewell was the son of Colonel George W . Ewell ( 1879 - 1972 ) , a career Army officer . Julian Ewell was born in Stillwater , Oklahoma on November 5 , 1915 , while his father was serving as a Reserve Officer Training Corps instructor at Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College ( now Oklahoma State University – Stillwater ) . He was raised in California , Panama , Pennsylvania and Washington , D . C . , and graduated from New Mexico Military Institute in 1932 . He attended Duke University before transferring to the United States Military Academy , from which he graduated in 1939 . He received his commission as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry , and received paratrooper training at the start of World War II . World War II . Having advanced to lieutenant colonel , Ewell assumed command of 3rd Battalion 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment , part of the 101st Airborne Division . In June 1944 , Ewell parachuted into Normandy and led his men into combat for the first time . Despite being unable to immediately account for a majority of his battalion because so many paratroopers had missed their landing zones , Ewell was still able to regroup and engage the Nazi defenses . On September 17 , 1944 , Ewell ' s battalion parachuted into the Netherlands and Ewell soon moved up to regimental executive officer . With the death of 501st commander Colonel Howard R . Johnson on October 8 , Ewell moved up to command of the 501st . That winter he commanded the 501st when the 101st Airborne Division was rushed into the emergency defense of Bastogne in the Battle of the Bulge , and received the Distinguished Service Cross for his heroic actions . Korean War . Ewell continued his service after World War II . As a Colonel in the late 1940s he served as Executive Officer to General Maxwell Taylor during Taylor ' s command of U . S . forces in Berlin . In 1953 , he was assigned as commander of the 9th Infantry Regiment in South Korea . Vietnam War . After the Korean War Ewell attained the rank of Brigadier General , and his assignments included : Assistant Commandant of Cadets at West Point ; Executive Assistant to General Taylor during Taylor ' s assignment as Military Aide to President John F . Kennedy and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ; Assistant Division Commander of the 8th Infantry Division ; Chief of Staff of V Corps in West Germany ; and Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff for Combat Developments Command . From 1968 to 1969 Ewell commanded the 9th Infantry Division as a Major General . During his command , the division carried out Operation Speedy Express , an effort to eliminate Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers with overwhelming force . From 1969 to 1970 Ewell commanded II Field Force in Vietnam , receiving promotion to Lieutenant General . After leaving command of II Field Force Ewell was military advisor to the U . S . - South Vietnamese delegation at the negotiations for the Paris Peace Accords . Post Vietnam War . From 1972 until his 1973 retirement Ewell was Chief of Staff of the NATO Southern Command in Naples , Italy . Vietnam War controversy . Critics have charged Ewell with focusing obsessively on " body counts " during the Vietnam War , causing his subordinates to inflate their numbers by killing civilians and committing atrocities in an effort to demonstrate success . David Hackworth , author of " Steel my Soldier ' s Hearts " , was critical of Ewell ' s performance . Hackworth , who served in the 9th Division during the Vietnam War , wrote that in 1968 and 1969 the division was credited with killing 20 , 000 enemy , yet recovered only 2 , 000 weapons , suggesting that the numbers of enemy dead were vastly inflated . A 1972 Inspector General report concluded that there may have been as many as 7 , 000 civilian deaths during Speedy Express . In 1995 General Ewell and Ira Hunt , a retired Major General who had served as Ewell ' s Chief of Staff in the 9th Division , published " Sharpening the Combat Edge " . In their book , Ewell and Hunt argued that the allegations of obsession with the body count were unfounded , and that their effort to inflict maximum damage had " unbrutalized " the war for civilians in South Vietnam . The version of events presented by Ewell and Hunt — an " unbrutalized ' civilian population — is countered in Nick Turse ' s book , " Kill Anything That Moves : The Real American War in Vietnam " . Turse presents detailed documentation of war crimes , including those he argues are Ewell ' s , and argues that the coverup of Speedy Express went to the top of American decision making in Vietnam . Turse ' s book is intended to present a sharp counterpoint to those who attempt to minimize the viciousness and unethical behavior shown by some American commanders and soldiers in Vietnam . Military Education . General Ewell was a graduate of the United States Army Command and General Staff College , the United States Army War College and the National War College . Awards . In addition to the Distinguished Service Cross , General Ewell ' s awards and decorations included : the Distinguished Service Medal ( 4 ) ; Silver Star ( 2 ) ; Legion of Merit ( 2 ) ; Bronze Star ; Purple Heart ; Air Medal ; and Combat Infantryman Badge . He was also a recipient of several foreign decorations , including the Legion of Honor ( Chevalier ) from France . Citation for Distinguished Service Cross . The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Julian J . Ewell ( 0 - 21791 ) , Lieutenant Colonel ( Infantry ) , U . S . Army , for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving as Commanding Officer , 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment , 101st Airborne Division , in action against enemy forces on the night of 18 – 19 December 1944 , at Bastogne , Belgium . In the darkness of 18 – 19 December 1944 , Colonel Ewell ' s regiment was the first unit of the 101st Airborne Division to reach the vicinity of Bastogne , Belgium , then under attack by strong enemy forces . While his regiment assembled , Lieutenant Colonel Ewell went forward alone to Bastogne to obtain first hand enemy information . During the night of 18 – 19 December 1944 , Lieutenant Colonel Ewell made a personal reconnaissance amid intermingled friendly and hostile troops and on 19 December , by his heroic and fearless leadership of his troops , contributed materially to the defeat of enemy efforts to prostrate Bastogne . On 3 January 1945 , when an enemy attack threatened to blunt the impetus of the regimental offensive , Lieutenant Colonel Ewell personally lead a counterattack which stopped the enemy and made possible the continued offensive action of his regiment . Throughout the action at Bastogne , the heroic and fearless personal leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Ewell were a source of inspiration to the troops he commanded . His intrepid actions , personal bravery and zealous devotion to duty exemplify the highest traditions of the military forces of the United States and reflect great credit upon himself , the 101st Airborne Division , and the United States Army . Headquarters , XVIII Airborne Corps , General Orders No . 19 ( March 14 , 1945 ) Hometown : Washington , D . C . Family . General Ewell was married four times . His first two marriages , to Mary Gillem and Jean Hoffman , resulted in divorces . He was married to his third wife , Beverly McGammon Moses , for forty years before her death in 1995 . In 2005 he married Patricia Gates Lynch . Ewell had four children and two stepchildren . Retirement , death and burial . In retirement General Ewell lived in the Fairfax Retirement Community at Fort Belvoir , Virginia . He died at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Fairfax on July 27 , 2009 . He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery , Section 59 , Grave 3854 . Ewell ' s memorabilia . World War II memorabilia from Ewell is on display at the December 44 Museum in La Gleize , a facility which commemorates the Battle of the Bulge .