Arthur Trudeau - Military Biography

Military Biography

Arthur Trudeau entered West Point in 1920 and graduated in the Class of 1924 later serving in the 104th Engineers of the New Jersey National Guard. In 1944, he was promoted to Brigadier General. Considered a specialist on amphibious warfare he assumed command of a secret base in the Philippines in 1945, assisting in the preparation for an invasion of Japan which never came. After the war, he served in Germany before becoming deputy commander of the Army War College in 1950. During the Korean war, Trudeau commanded the 7th Infantry Division and would earn the Silver Star by personally leading a reconnaissance team to scout the strategic position, Pork Chop Hill, while it was under heavy enemy fire. He was named Chief of Army intelligence in October 1953 but was relieved of his command 20 months later when Allen W. Dulles, Director of Central Intelligence Agency sent a scathing memorandum of complaints to the Pentagon. Although the contents of the memorandum were not made public, General Trudeau was noted for his vigorous anti-Communist statements, and he often clashed with other government officials over their differing views of Communist intentions. On October 18, 1956, Trudeau was promoted to Lieutenant General and in 1958 he returned to Korea to take command of I Corps.

Upon retirement from the Army in 1962, Gen. Trudeau went on to head Gulf Labs of the Gulf Oil Corporation in Pittsburgh until 1968. He then served as a special adviser to the chairman of Pittsburgh's Rockwell International aerospace firm until 1972. Throughout his military service, General Trudeau was an outspoken advocate of racial integration of the military. He also said it was in the nation's best interests that educational opportunities be provided for the disadvantaged so they could take advantage of new career openings. General Trudeau is a member of the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame.

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