Waldemar F. A. Wendt
| Waldemar F.A. Wendt | |
|---|---|
Admiral Waldemar F. A. Wendt
|
|
| Born |
March 15, 1912 Millstadt, Illinois |
| Died | October 21, 1997 (aged 85) Virginia Beach, Virginia |
| Service/branch | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1933–1971 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | U.S. Naval Forces Europe |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Medal (3) |
Waldemar Frederick August Wendt (March 15, 1912 – October 21, 1997) was a four-star admiral in the United States Navy who served as commander in chief of United States Naval Forces Europe from 1968 to 1971.
Born in Millstadt, Illinois to Reverend Paul Wendt and Wilhelmine Thowe, he was appointed in 1929 from the state of Wisconsin to the United States Naval Academy, where he rowed on the Navy crew team and was captain of varsity oarsmen in his final year. Upon graduating, he was commissioned ensign on June 1, 1933.
His first assignment was aboard the battleship Oklahoma. In March 1935 he transferred to the destroyer minelayer Ramsay. Detached in December 1935, he returned to the Academy as assistant coach of crew until June 1936, when he reported aboard the destroyer leader Moffett until June 1939.
He attended the Naval Postgraduate School from June to September 1939, for instruction in applied communications, but the course was cut short when President Franklin D. Roosevelt instituted Neutrality Patrol operations, in which he was engaged as gunnery officer and first lieutenant aboard the destroyer Bainbridge in the Panama Canal Zone until June 1940. He then served six months as training officer on the staff of Commander Destroyer Squadron Twenty-Seven before being transferred in December to the staff of Commander Destroyer Squadron 30 until September 1943, for duty conducting escort of convoy operations and participating in the invasion of North Africa.
In December 1943, he assumed command of the destroyer Monaghan in the Pacific Fleet. He commanded Monaghan in action during the invasions of the Marshall and Marianas Islands. He was detached from Monaghan in December 1944 and assigned to the Headquarters of the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, in Washington, D.C. Less than a month later, Monaghan was lost in the 1944 typhoon, with only six survivors.
...
Wikipedia