During the Vietnam War, Ewell commanded the 9th Infantry Division (1968–1969) and II Field Force (1969–1970). He later served as military advisor to the U.S.-South Vietnamese delegation at the negotiations for the Paris Peace Accords and Chief of Staff of the NATO Southern Command. Ewell's Vietnam service generated controversy, especially over concerns that his focus on "body counts" as a measure of success caused his subordinates to inflate their numbers by counting civilian dead as enemy combatants and by committing atrocities. Among the most well-known operations he took part in was Operation Speedy Express, which was estimated by internal Department of Defense documents to have killed as many as 5,000 to 7,000 civilians.[1]David Hackworth alleges that among those in the 9th Division he had commanded, this earned him the nickname the "Butcher of the Delta".[2] According to Geoffrey Ward and Ken Burns in The Vietnam War: An Intimate History, Ewell was apparently proud of this nickname, and saw nothing wrong with what the soldiers under his command had done.[3]
Having advanced to lieutenant colonel during the war, Ewell assumed command of 3rd Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Division. In June 1944, Ewell parachuted into Normandy and led his men into combat for the first time. Despite being unable to immediately account for a majority of his battalion because so many paratroopers had missed their landing zones, Ewell was still able to regroup and engage the German defenses.[11][12][13]
On September 17, 1944, Ewell's battalion parachuted into the Netherlands as part of Operation Market Garden[14] and Ewell soon moved up to regimental executive officer. With the death of 501st commander Colonel Howard R. Johnson on October 8, Ewell moved up to regimental command.
After relinquishing command of II Field Force, Ewell was military advisor to the U.S.-South Vietnamese delegation at the negotiations for the Paris Peace Accords.[32]
Critics have charged Ewell with focusing obsessively on "body counts" during the Vietnam War, causing his subordinates to inflate their numbers in an effort to demonstrate success by counting civilian dead as enemy combatants and committing atrocities.[35][36]David Hackworth, author of Steel my Soldiers' Hearts, was critical of Ewell's performance.[37] Hackworth, who served in the 9th Division during the Vietnam War, wrote that in 1968 and 1969 the division was credited with killing 20,000 enemy, yet recovered only 2,000 weapons, suggesting that the numbers of enemy dead were inflated. John Paul Vann estimated that of those killed in the Delta were, "at least 30 percent were noncombatants".[38] According to Hackworth, Ewell's focus on body counts earned him the nickname the "Butcher of the Delta" from members of the 9th Division[39]
A 1972 Inspector General report concluded that there may have been as many as 5,000 to 7,000 civilian deaths during Speedy Express out of a total of 11,000 enemy combatants reported killed by troops.[40]
In 1974, Ewell and Ira A. Hunt Jr., a major general who had served as Ewell's Chief of Staff in the 9th Division, authored Sharpening the Combat Edge. In their book, Ewell and Hunt argued that the allegations of obsession with the body count were unfounded, and that their effort to inflict maximum damage had "unbrutalized" the war for civilians in South Vietnam.[41]
Ewell and Hunt's views are countered in Nick Turse's book, Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam.[42] Turse argues that Ewell's tactics amounted to war crimes and asserts that a coverup of Speedy Express went to the top of American decision-making in Vietnam.[43] Turse argues that most accounts attempt to minimize the viciousness and unethical behavior shown by some American commanders and soldiers in Vietnam.[44]
The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Julian J. Ewell (0-21791), Lieutenant Colonel (Infantry), U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving as Commanding Officer, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, in action against enemy forces on the night of 18–19 December 1944, at Bastogne, Belgium. In the darkness of 18–19 December 1944, Colonel Ewell's regiment was the first unit of the 101st Airborne Division to reach the vicinity of Bastogne, Belgium, then under attack by strong enemy forces. While his regiment assembled, Lieutenant Colonel Ewell went forward alone to Bastogne to obtain first hand enemy information. During the night of 18–19 December 1944, Lieutenant Colonel Ewell made a personal reconnaissance amid intermingled friendly and hostile troops and on 19 December, by his heroic and fearless leadership of his troops, contributed materially to the defeat of enemy efforts to prostrate Bastogne. On 3 January 1945, when an enemy attack threatened to blunt the impetus of the regimental offensive, Lieutenant Colonel Ewell personally lead a counterattack which stopped the enemy and made possible the continued offensive action of his regiment. Throughout the action at Bastogne, the heroic and fearless personal leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Ewell were a source of inspiration to the troops he commanded. His intrepid actions, personal bravery and zealous devotion to duty exemplify the highest traditions of the military forces of the United States and reflect great credit upon himself, the 101st Airborne Division, and the United States Army.[46]
General Ewell was married four times. His first two marriages, to Mary Gillem and Jean Hoffman, resulted in divorces. He was married to his third wife, Beverly Mccammon Moses, for forty years before her death in 1995. In 2005, he married Patricia Gates Lynch. Ewell had two children and two stepchildren.[53]
Ewell, Julian (February 16, 1967). "Guest Speaker's Biography, Julian Ewell"(PDF). CIA Reading Room. Langley, VA: Central Intelligence Agency. p.1. Archived from the original(PDF) on January 23, 2017. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
Patricia Sullivan, Washington Post, Julian J. Ewell, 93, Dies
External links
"Julian Ewell", Miller Center, University of Virginia, November 7, 1985
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