Thomas T . Handy Thomas Troy Handy ( March 11 , 1892 – April 12 , 1982 ) was a United States Army four - star general who served as Deputy Chief of Staff , U . S . Army ( DCSA ) from 1944 to 1947 ; Commanding General , Fourth United States Army from 1947 to 1949 ; Commander in Chief , United States European Command ( CINCEUR ) from 1949 to 1952 ; Commander in Chief , U . S . Army Europe / Commander , Central Army Group ( CINCUSAREUR / COMCENTAG ) , 1952 ; and Deputy Commander in Chief , U . S . European Command ( DCINCEUR ) , from 1952 to 1954 . Biography . Handy was born on March 11 , 1892 in Spring City , Tennessee , and attended the Virginia Military Institute , graduating in 1914 . He did not receive an Army commission until two years later , in the Field Artillery . Handy deployed with the 5th Field Artillery Regiment to France in August 1917 , moving to the 42nd Infantry Division in 1918 , and later that year was assigned to the 151st Field Artillery Regiment . Following World War I and occupation duty in Germany he went to Fort Sill , Oklahoma . He returned to his alma mater in 1921 , serving as an instructor until 1925 . After graduating from the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth , Kansas he assumed duties as Executive Officer of the 3rd Field Artillery Brigade in 1928 . He served in various staff assignments from 1929 to 1931 in Panama , then returned to Fort Sill as an instructor at the United States Army Field Artillery School until 1934 . His time there was followed as a student at the Army War College , and after graduating in 1935 he went to the Naval War College . His schooling was followed by assignment to the General Staff until 1940 , interrupted for a year by taking command of the 78th Field Artillery Battalion at Fort Benning . In December 1941 he was promoted to temporary brigadier general , and temporary major general in June 1942 when he became Assistant Chief - of - Staff in charge of Operations Division , succeeding Dwight Eisenhower . In September 1944 he was promoted to temporary lieutenant general . In October 1944 he became Deputy Chief - of - Staff of the Army , receiving his fourth star in March 1945 . In August 1945 he was acting Chief - of - Staff , due to George C . Marshall ' s absence , and transmitted the order for use of the atomic bomb . Following the war , he remained Deputy Chief of Staff , and in September 1947 he assumed command of Fourth United States Army at Fort Sam Houston , Texas . Two years later , in September 1949 , he was Lucius D . Clay ' s successor as Commander - in - Chief of United States European Command . He moved down to Deputy Supreme Commander in 1952 when Matthew Ridgeway was named Supreme Allied Commander , Allied Powers . Handy retired from the Army in 1954 to Washington , D . C . , later residing in San Antonio , Texas . He died on April 12 , 1982 , and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery next to his wife , Alma Hudson Handy ( September 1 , 1890 - April 2 , 1970 ) . Awards and decorations . His awards and decorations included the Distinguished Service Cross , Army Distinguished Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters , Legion of Merit , Croix de Guerre , the Legion of Honor , the Croix de Guerre with Palm ( Belgium ) , the Order of British Empire with Rank of Honorary Knight Commander , Belgian Order of Leopold , Grand Cordon of Yun - Hui ( Republic of China ) , the Order of Abdon Calderon Star ( Ecuador ) , and the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal .