Haislip, Wade, born three months after Adolf Hitler (see Alois Hitler) (did you know), on 09-07-1889 in Woodstick, Virginia. He was commissioned a second lieutenant of infantry upon graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1912. He served with the American Expeditionary Forces, first in World War I, then in the occupation of Germany. During World War I he participated in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel
and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Prior to World War II he held a series of staff assignments, including time in the Budget and Legislative Planning Branch of the War Department General Staff from 1938 to 1941, and Assistant Chief-of-Staff for personnel. In World War II, he organized the 85th Infantry Division,
known as Custer Division, named after the famous cavalry commander George Armstrong Custer.




Custer was killed in the battle of Bighorn, age 36 on 25-06-1876, and buried on West Point Cemetery. Through the entire campaign, the 85th Division suffered some 7,268 casualties with 1,717 killed In action. Three soldiers from this division earned the Medal of Honor. Haislip served as commander from April 1942 to February 1943. He next took command of XV Corps and served with it through Normandy, France, Rhineland and Central Europe campaigns. He became commander of Seventh United States Army, and was in that billet when World War II ended in August 1945. The Seventh Army
was the first American formation of Field Army, size to see combat in World War II and the commander was Georg Smith Patton. The seventh Army was involved in the invasion of Sicily together with the British Eighth Army
the victors of El Alamein, under General Bernard “Monty” Montgomery. By the time the army was fighting the Second Battle of El Alamein it had reached a size of over 220.000 men in 10 divisions and several independent brigades. During the entire North African campaign, the Germans and Italians suffered 620,000 casualties, while the British Commonwealth lost 220.000 men and captured including 35.478 confirmed dead. The Free France forces had 20.000 killed, wounded and missing. USA: 2.715 killed, 8.978 wounded, 6.528 missing and Italy: 22.341 dead and missing 340.000 captured. Germany: 18.594 dead, 3.400 missing and 130.000 captured. Vichy France: 1.346 dead, 1.997 wounded. Allied material losses: 2.000 tanks destroyed, 1.400 aircraft destroyed, Axis material losses: 800 Aircraft destroyed, 6.200 guns, 2.500 tanks, 70.000 vehicles destroyed or captured. The assault forces included units of the French Army B
under General, Jean de Lattre de Tassigny and the 6th Army Group
, commanded by Lieutenant General,Commander 6th Army Group, Jacob Devers. Wade Haislip retired in 1951 and became Governor of the Soldiers Home in Washington, D.C.




Death and burial ground of Haislip, Wade Hampton “Ham”.




