UN commander who conceived the Inchon landing and overruled the unanimous opposition of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
"There is no substitute for victory": farewell address to Congress, 19 April 1951.
Douglas MacArthur was an American five-star general who led the Allied forces to victory in the Pacific War and governed occupied Japan as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Appointed commander of UN forces after the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, he conceived and drove through the Inchon landing against the unanimous opposition of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reversing the course of the war. When China entered the war, MacArthur pressed for an expanded campaign including bombing Manchuria, clashing openly with the Truman administration and leading to his dramatic dismissal in April 1951. His removal remains the Cold War's sharpest constitutional confrontation over civilian control of the military.
Career Timeline
- 1930–1935Chief of Staff, U.S. Army
- 1935–1941Field Marshal and Military Advisor, Philippine Army
- 1941–1945Commander, U.S. Army Forces Far East / Supreme Commander, Southwest Pacific Area
- 1945–1951Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, Japan
- 1950–1951Commander, United Nations Command, Korean War
- 1952–1964Chairman, Remington Rand