Kidd Jr., Isaac C.

Description

Autograph ID: 6798
Condition: Very good, pencil and pen docket top right
Description: “(1919-1999) USNA 1941, son of RADM Isaac C. Kidd, killed on the bridge of his flagship, the USS Arizona, at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. ADM Kidd served as Supreme Allied Commander of NATO’s Atlantic Fleet, and also as C-in-C, US Atlantic Fleet 1975-78. In 1978 Kidd was among a number of retired 4-star officers who testified before Congress in favor of the controversial SALT II arms control pact with the USSR. He was commissioned an ensign 12 days after his father was killed. During WW II, he served as a destroyer gunnery and operations officer in Europe and the Pacific, and participated in various Allied landings in the Mediterranean as well as at Iwo Jima. His 23 years at sea during his 40-year naval career included 15 years commanding destroyers, destroyer divisions and squadrons and 3 US fleets in the Atlantic, Pacific and Mediterranean; he also was executive assistant and senior aide to the Chief of Naval Operations in the early 1960s, earning citations for his efforts in the Cuban Missile Crisis and other crises. In 1967, he headed the court of inquiry into the USS Liberty incident during the Six-Day War in June 1967. After his 1978 retirement, Kidd taught the law of the sea at the College of William and Mary.

TLS “Ike” on 10 x 7 letterhead as Commander in Chief Atlantic and Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, (Norfolk, Va.),October 31 1975, to “De” (Major General DeWitt C. Smith Jr., Commandant, Army War College). ADM Kidd apologizes for a delay in thanking Smith for the warm hospitality of Smith, the faculty and student body on the 9th, having just returned from Europe. He states it was a “stimulating experience to address your brilliant group of officers” and praises the questions asked him.

DeWITT C. SMITH,JR. (1920 -1985) US Army officer, former deputy Army Chief of Staff, twice (and longest-serving) Army War College commandant 1974 -77, 1978-80. Joined the Army 1942, commissioned 2nd lieutenant, with the 4th Armored Div. in combat after Normandy to the end of the War. Wounded 3 times, awarded Silver Star, 2 Bronze Stars, and 3 Purple Hearts. Discharged 1946, returned to active duty in Korea and stayed in the military. He was an aide to Chief of Staff Maxwell Taylor, served in the “Old Guard” at Fort Myer, a battalion XO and commander in Germany. He served at the Pentagon before going to the Army War College. Led a combat brigade of the 1st Infantry in Vietnam. In 1970, under his leadership, Fort Carson, Colo. was made an initial test site for the modern volunteer Army concept. After his stints at the War College, he retired in 1980.”
Type: Letter