Maurice Rose Major General Maurice Rose ( November 26 , 1899 – March 30 , 1945 ) was a United States Army general during World War II and World War I veteran . The son and grandson of rabbis , General Rose was at the time the highest ranking Jew in the U . S . Army . He was married twice and had two sons . The Third Armored Division official history of World War II , published after Rose had been killed in action states " He was over six feet tall , erect , dark haired , and had finely chiseled features . He was firm and prompt of decision , brooking no interference by man , events or conditions in order to destroy the enemy . " Early career . Rose first enlisted in the Colorado National Guard as a Private in 1915 hoping to serve with General John " Black Jack " Pershing ' s expedition into Mexico . He was discharged when it was found out that Rose falsified his age . He enlisted again after he was old enough , and was selected for officer training . In 1917 Rose was commissioned in the Infantry , and served with the 89th Infantry Division in France . He was wounded at St . Mihiel , and saw combat in all of the Meuse - Argonne Offensive . He briefly left the Army after the war for a short stint as a traveling salesman . Rose soon returned to the peacetime army as a captain , and continued his Army career during the interwar period , gaining experience in the theories and practices of Armored Warfare . In addition to his completion of Officer Candidate School in 1917 , Rose graduated from the Infantry Company Officer Course ( 1926 ) , the Cavalry Officer Course ( 1931 ) , the Command and General Staff College ( 1937 ) , and the Army Industrial College ( 1940 ) . World War II . During World War II , Rose served in three armored divisions . In North Africa , he served with the 1st Armored Division . During the campaign in Tunisia , General Rose was the first officer to accept the unconditional surrender of a large German unit . He was later the Chief of Staff of the 2nd Armored Division , until he was assigned to command the 3rd Armored Division in August , 1944 , and given the rank of Major General . After assuming command , Rose became known for his aggressive style of leadership , and directing the Division from the front lines not far from his forward elements . Under his command , the " Spearhead " , as his division became known , drove over 100 miles in a single day , a record march for modern warfare , and played a key role in several campaigns . Notably , under Rose ' s command , the Division was the first unit to penetrate the Siegfried Line . On March 30 , 1945 , a few miles south of the city of Paderborn in a rural forest area , General Rose was riding at the front of the Task Force Welborn column . The front of this column consisted of his own jeep , a jeep in front of him , a tank at the lead of the column , an armored car behind him , and a motorcycle messenger bringing up the rear . Suddenly they began taking small arms fire as well as tank and anti - tank fire . General Rose , along with the other men , jumped into a nearby ditch with his Thompson sub - machine gun as the lead tank took a direct hit and was destroyed . When they realized that they were being surrounded by German tanks they re - entered their jeeps and tried to escape . They drove off the road and through a nearby field before heading back towards the road . When arriving back at the road they realized it was occupied by numerous German Tiger tanks . The lead jeep gunned its engine and narrowly made it past the tiger tanks and escaped to the other side . The driver of General Rose ' s jeep attempted to do the same but one of the German Tigers turned to cut them off and as Rose ' s jeep was passing the Tiger tank wedged the jeep against a tree . The top hatch of the Tiger tank flung open and a German soldier appeared pointing a machine pistol at the group in the jeep . General Rose reached towards his pistol holster ( either to throw it to the ground or in an attempt to fight back ) . The German soldier shot him several times with at least one round hitting Rose in the head . It is believed that the German tank crews never had any idea that the man they killed was a general because sensitive documents , as well as General Rose ' s body , were not removed from his jeep . Rose is buried in ABMC Netherlands American Cemetery , Margraten , Netherlands . 110 Germans were executed soon afterwards in reprisal for his death . Rose was the highest - ranking American killed by enemy fire in the European Theater of Operations during the war . ( Lieutenant General Lesley J . McNair was killed by friendly fire in Normandy in July 1944 . ) In modern memory . General J . Lawton Collins aka " Lightning Joe Collins " , regarded Maurice Rose " as the top notch division commander in the business at the time of his death . " However , Rose never gained the prominence of many of his contemporaries , for any of several reasons , including the fact that he did not survive the war , and as an intensely private man , he rarely if ever sought personal publicity . His biographers have stated that he is " World War II ' s Greatest Forgotten Commander " . Andy Rooney , a World War II war correspondent and later 60 Minutes commentator , wrote the following about General Rose in his book " My War " : Maj . Gen . Maurice Rose , who had been with the Second Armored Division at Saint - Lô , was now the commander of the Third Armored and he may have been the best tank commander of the war . He was a leader down where they fight . Not all great generals were recognized . Maurice Rose was a great one and had a good reputation among the people who knew what was going on , but his name was not in the headlines as Patton ' s so often was . Rose led from the front of his armored division . The Army transport , the Rose Medical Center in Denver , Colorado and the MG Maurice Rose United States Armed Forces Reserve Center in Middletown , CT are named in his honor . The Maurice Rose Army Airfield was in Bonames , north of Frankfurt , Germany . Rose Barracks , Vilseck , Germany