Commanding General, U.S. Army
“Our soldiers today are more expert, better educated, better trained, more lethal and more combat-experienced than at any time—certainly, in the 40 years I have served in the ranks.”
Charles “Hondo” Campbell was the 17th Commanding General, United States Army Forces Command (FORSCOM), assuming command on January 9, 2007. Forces Command is the Army's largest organization and Campbell was responsible for manning, training and equipping more than 750,000 soldiers. At the time of his retirement in 2010, he was the last active general officer who served in the Vietnam War.
Campbell was born in Shreveport, Louisiana and earned his commission through ROTC at LSU, where he graduated in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in history. In addition to his military and academic experience, he was a proud member of Lambda Chi Alpha social fraternity. After graduation and commissioning, he entered the U.S. Army in 1970 when it had become an all-volunteer force.
"When I went to Vietnam, we had more than 500,000 soldiers in Vietnam [alone]," Campbell said. “Compared to the size of today's all-volunteer active Army component—about 560,000 soldiers—it was certainly a far different force.” After Special Forces training, Campbell was then assigned to teach tactics at Forces Armeé National Khmere Training Command in Vietnam and subsequently served as commander in Vietnam.
Hondo Campbell then commanded the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas the 3rd Armored Division in Europe and was Commanding General of 8th Army in South Korea. Campbell earned great respect from and the friendship of the Korean people, both civilian and military.
Campbell received a Master of Military Art and Science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He also served as Chief of Staff for U.S. Army Europe and later U.S. Central Command.
General Hondo Campbell died early in 2016 at the age of 67 in Shreveport, Louisiana. His military decorations include the Bronze Star, the Distinguished Service Medal and the Legion of Merit with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters."I think as a nation we are blessed with young men and women in our ranks who made a choice to serve our nation at a seminal point in our history," he said at the time. "They are doing the dangerous and difficult work of a free society and we are blessed to have them."