Charles T. Lanham
Major General Charles Trueman Lanham, known as "Buck", was an author, poet, and professional soldier in the United States Army, winning 14 decorations in his career. After retiring from the military, he was active in corporate business. He is the model for one of Ernest Hemingway's heroes, and in life was a close friend of the author.
Military life
Lanham was born in Washington D. C. He attended Eastern High School and graduated from West Point in 1924. He was a short story writer and published poet as well as a soldier. He included among his many military adventures the command of the 22nd Infantry Regiment in Normandy in July 1944, and was the first American officer to lead a break through the Siegfried Line on September 14, 1944, near Buchet. These developments were described by Hemingway in his article "War in the Siegfried Line". He led a breakout in the Battle of the Bulge after surviving a bloody ordeal in the Battle of Hurtgen Forest. Lanham earned the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions in the Huertgen Forest. The citation for the medal reads:It was in the Normandy battles that Lanham and Ernest Hemingway first met, and Hemingway later went with Lanham to Huertgen. Hemingway was writing battlefield stories for the American audience for Collier's and sought assignment with Lanham's regiment. Hemingway described Lanham as "The finest and bravest and most intelligent military commander I have known."
Conversely, one of his least-admired decisions came with the awarding of the Combat Infantryman Badge to his men. Many men in the 22nd Infantry had landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day, but Lanham rejected this date and made awards of the badge effective no earlier than August 10, 1944, which deprived the men of an additional $10 per month for the full period in which they fought. His reason "What ever happened in this regiment before I took command does not concern me."
While serving as Assistant Division Commander, 104th Infantry Division, Lanham was decorated with the Order of the Patriotic War First Class when the division linked up with Soviet Red Army units in May 1945.