Lt. Gen. (ret'd) Hal Moore, 1922-2017, R.I.P.

[The Bread Guy]

This from The Associated Press, via ABC News:

Retired Lt. Gen. Harold G. "Hal" Moore, the American hero known for saving most of his men in the first major battle between the U.S. and North Vietnamese armies, has died. He was 94.

Joseph Galloway, who with Moore co-authored the book "We Were Soldiers Once ... and Young," confirmed Saturday to The Associated Press that Moore died late Friday in his sleep at his home in Auburn, Alabama.

Galloway said Moore, his friend of 51 years, died two days shy of his 95th birthday.

"There's something missing on this earth now. We've lost a great warrior, a great soldier, a great human being and my best friend. They don't make them like him anymore," Galloway said.

Moore was best known for his actions at the 1965 Battle of Ia Drang, where he was a lieutenant colonel in command of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. His actions were later reflected in the movie "We Were Soldiers" in which actor Mel Gibson portrayed Moore. The book tells what happened to virtually every trooper involved in the 34-day campaign and the climactic four-day battle in which 234 Americans died at landing zones X-Ray and Albany in November 1965.

Galloway, a former war correspondent for United Press International, said Moore was "without question, one of the finest commanders I ever saw in action." ...

This, from Moore's FB page:

We regret to report Lt General Harold G Moore Jr passed away in his sleep on February 10, 2017, also the birthday of his wife, Julia, who passed away in 2004. Mom called Dad home on her day. After having a stoke last week, Dad was more lethargic and had difficulty speaking, but he had always fought his way back…

By the time we held an early birthday party on February 9th, Dad could no longer speak and was visibly tired. Upon seeing his cavalry Stetson, his iron will forced a final communication to his beloved West Point, his precious soldiers and the US Army. This video shows his final hand salute. God bless our Dad. Keep and protect him.

Chills just went up my spine. As I type this, an ice cream truck drove by improbably chiming the 7th Cavalry ballad, Garry Owen. Dad just told all of us he is fine.

We are working the details of the funeral. As a devout Roman Catholic, Dad's Mass will be held in St. Michael the Archangel Church in Auburn AL. After moving to Fort Benning for a memorial service at the National Infantry Museum, internment in the Fort Benning cemetery, the family will host a reception back at the museum.

All are welcome to attend and we will publish a schedule as soon as it is finalized. We will attempt to live stream the memorial and graveside service. The services will probably be on either Thursday or Friday ...

 

[Loachman]

"In the American Civil War it was a matter of principle that a good officer rode his horse as little as possible. There were sound reasons for this. If you are riding and your soldiers are marching, how can you judge how tired they are, how thirsty, how heavy their packs weigh on their shoulders? I applied the same philosophy in Vietnam, where every battalion commander had his own command-and-control helicopter. Some commanders used their helicopter as their personal mount. I never believed in that. You had to get on the ground with your troops to see and hear what was happening. You have to soak up firsthand information for your instincts to operate accurately. Besides, it’s too easy to be crisp, cool, and detached at 1,500 feet; too easy to demand the impossible of your troops; too easy to make mistakes that are fatal only to those souls far below in the mud, the blood, and the confusion."

 

[tomahawk6]

RIP General. His passing brings back some memories thats for sure.

 

[Loachman]

"Out of the Box... Korean War - December 1952. Dad's Infantry regiment rotates off the line to guard POWs for a month. These were hardcore Chinese soldiers -as tough as they get - and were not going to make things easy for our troops. About a week into the tour, the Chinese began to riot. What to do? Start shooting? No. Dad took away all the toilet paper. Within a day, absolute quiet and peace - think biological cycle...
He reasoned the long supply lines to the Chinese favored guns, ammo and chow - not western luxuries like toilet paper. Who knows what they used before arriving at the camp, but, clearly, they enjoyed having this simple luxury we take for granted.

In military jargon, this is called determining the enemies' "center of gravity" - successful campaigning against the center of gravity results in victory. In my professional career, when I ran up against opposition, I would think... "what's the toilet paper?"

 

[jollyjacktar]

A good man    if there is such a thing as the afterlife, I trust and hope Sgt Major Plumley was there to greet him.

 

[PMedMoe]

A good man    if there is such a thing as the afterlife, I trust and hope Sgt Major Plumley was there to greet him.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Garyowen Sir


Fiddler's Green: The Cavalryman's Poem

Halfway down the trail to Hell,
In a shady meadow green
Are the Souls of all dead troopers camped,
Near a good old-time canteen.
And this eternal resting place
Is known as Fiddlers' Green.

Marching past, straight through to Hell
The Infantry are seen.
Accompanied by the Engineers,
Artillery and Marines,
For none but the shades of Cavalrymen
Dismount at Fiddlers' Green.

Though some go curving down the trail
To seek a warmer scene.
No trooper ever gets to Hell
Ere he's emptied his canteen.
And so rides back to drink again
With friends at Fiddlers' Green.

And so when man and horse go down
Beneath a saber keen,
Or in a roaring charge of fierce melee
You stop a bullet clean,
And the hostiles come to get your scalp,
Just empty your canteen,
And put your pistol to your head
And go to Fiddlers' Green

 

[Fishbone Jones]

A good man    if there is such a thing as the afterlife, I trust and hope Sgt Major Plumley was there to greet him.

See my post above

For further info:

Garyowen is synonymous with the 7th Cavalry and can be used interchangeably vocally or written
The Gary Owen is the Regimental March Past
Garyowen is the unit motto.

Fiddlers' Green is taken from an Irish folk song. Modified by the Cavalry, and others.  The cavalry had a story that they would never get to heaven but weren't so bad as to belong in hell. God agreed and gave them the canteen.

 

[medicineman]

RIP 

MM

 

[tomahawk6]

Video of the graveside service.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=yfp-t&p=memorial+aervice+for+LTG+Hal+Moore#id=8&vid=116aaadf06da9996c83a21d756ecf933&action=click