Many felt that large number of awards diminished The occupation of Veracruz, an unusually high number of the Medals were For his actions on April 22, Butler was awarded his first Medal of and a very nonchalant Major Butler.Īrrive in Mexico, he sent a contingent of Marines and sailors to Veracruz to intercept it on April 21,ġ914. (far right) with other Marines in Veracruz, Mexico, 1914. Units and states of readiness, updated maps and verified the railroad lines forĪffair when a detachment of sailors ashore to buy gasoline was captured by forces He searched for weapons caches of Mexican Army, determined the size of Johnson, a minor official of the Inter-Oceanic Railway. He was sent on in mufti on a spy mission to January 1914 when he was ordered to report as an officer of a battleship squadron massing off the coast of Mexico, near Veracruz, To command an expeditionary battalion for the Battle of Masaya on September 19, 1912, and the bombardment, assault and capture of Coyotepe Hill, Nicaragua, in October With aġ04-degree fever he led his battalion to the relief of aĭecember 1909 he commanded the 3d Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment Leave, which he spent at home but returned to active duty at the first opportunity.ġ909 to 1912 Butler served in Nicaragua enforcing U.S. Supplies and rations to an isolated outpost in danger of starvationīreakdown and he received nine months sick He always chaffed at the boredom of such assignmentsĪnd was stressed by his separation from his family. Returning home and marrying Butler was assigned garrison duty in the Philippines in 1908. Peace,” he found that the mere presence of his troops caused the rebels to meltĪway only to return and take control of the town of Trujillo when he withdrew. Despite writing home that he was leading an expedition byīoat to “to land and shoot everybody and everything that was breaking the Landowners and allies of American fruit companies against Bonillista rebels. In the so-called Banana Wars of Central America and the Caribbean.Ĭonsulate but in fact to defend the government held by large Spent much of his subsequent career which saw a steady advancement in rank Although he was ineligible for the Medal ofįor bravery by his commanding officer and received a brevet commission as Captain. When he saw anotherĬlimbed out of a trench to rescue him and was shot in the thigh.ĭespite his leg wound, Butler assisted the wounded officer to the rear. The mutilated remains of Japanese soldiers. He took part in the Battle of Tientsin on July 13, 1900, and in the subsequent Gaselee Expedition, during which he saw Globe & Anchor tattoo that started at his throat and extended to his waist.ġ900 as an officer in a company slated to be posted to Guam he instead was sent to China To the Corps by getting a very large Eagle, After this victory he showed his devotion In October 1899, he saw his first combatįrom Filipino troops of the newly declared Was just in time to be sent to Manila for He mustered out of the service in Februaryġ899 but re-enlisted in April with a promotion to first Smedley Butler as a Marine Second Lieutenant in 1898.Īfter its capture by American forces and then spent four months as a Fleet Marine on the armored cruiser USS New York. Out in his senior year to enlist in the Marine Corps for the Spanish Against his father’s wished the boy dropped School where he was an outstanding athleteĪnd scholar. Then the prestigious prep school Haverford His father Thomas was a lawyer, a judge and was later served for 31 yearsĪs a Congressman who became Chairman of the House Naval Affairs Committee during the Harding and Coolidge His parents were descended from local Quaker families. Smedley Darlington Butler was born July 30,ġ881, in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The plan was frankly modeled on Benito Mussolini’s Italian Fascists andĪdolph Hitler’s use of disgruntled veterans as shock troops for a coup d’etat. General would be installed as a figurehead Largely recruited from the ranks of the American Legion on a march on Government and President Franklin Roosevelt The coup backers picked theġ934 a shadowy figure approached a highly decorated retired Marine Corps Major General with a startling proposal. Recipient was tapped to lead a Fascist coup against the United States Smedley Butler, a veteran of multiple wars and two-time Medal of Honor
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