William A . Knowlton General William Allen Knowlton ( June 19 , 1920 – August 10 , 2008 ) was a United States Army four - star general , and a former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy . As a full general , he served as Commander , Allied Land Forces South East Europe , and as the United States Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization . Military career . Knowlton was commissioned in the cavalry in January 1943 after graduating from the United States Military Academy . He reported for duty with the 7th Armored Division , and during World War II led an assault gun platoon in France , and later a reconnaissance troop in Germany , which linked up with the Russians , advancing from the east , northeast of Berlin . For this he was awarded the Silver Star . Following the war , he held a various staff postings , and graduated from the Command and General Staff College in 1955 . Following graduation , he was assigned to his alma mater ' s Department of Social Sciences , becoming an associate professor . He next took command of a battalion of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment , and then attended the U . S . Army War College . Before taking command of a brigade at Fort Knox , he served as military attaché in Tunis . Returning from Tunis , he was assigned to the Pentagon in the Office of the United States Army Chief of Staff and later the Office of the Secretary of Defense . He deployed to Vietnam for two tours of duty where he oversaw Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support ( CORDS ) for General William Westmoreland , and served as assistant division commander for the 9th Infantry Division . After his time in Vietnam , he became Secretary of the Army General Staff , and on March 23 , 1970 he became the 49th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy , an assignment he held for four years . In 1974 , during his tenure , the United States Supreme Court reaffirmed West Point ' s right to enforce the Honor Code in response to two challenges from cadets . After his time as Superintendent , he was assigned as Chief of Staff of the United States European Command . Promoted to full General in 1976 , he took command of Allied Land Forces South East Europe , and finished his career as the United States Representative on NATO ' s Military Committee . Decorations . Knowlton ' s awards and decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal the Army Distinguished Service Medal , the Silver Star with 2 oak leaf clusters , the Bronze Star , Air Medal with 9 oak leaf clusters , and the Distinguished Flying Cross . His foreign awards include the French Legion d ' Honneur and the Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern from Germany . Post military . In retirement , Knowlton served as a Senior Fellow at the National Defense University , lectured at the Armed Forces Staff College , served as an advisor for the Defense Nuclear Agency , and was a member of the Defense Intelligence Agency Science and Technology Advisory Board . Knowlton was also on the board of Chubb Corporation , and was the 2004 Distinguished Graduate Award recipient from the Association of Graduates , the United States Military Academy alumni organization . A collection of Gen . Knowlton ' s military uniforms and awards is on display at the American Military Museum in Charleston , South Carolina . He died in 2008 as a result of intracranial bleeding after a fall , along with Parkinson ' s disease . He was 88 . Personal life . Knowlton ' s daughter , Hollister " Holly " Knowlton , married future four - star general David Petraeus two months after Petraeus graduated from West Point . Knowlton was Superintendent at the time . Holly is a graduate of Dickinson College .