330:
of them. Most of those who were apprehended were sentenced to indeterminate prison terms, with the compliance of
General Legge, who was unofficially in charge of American military internees. Using the threat of court-martial, Legge warned American airmen not to escape. Escape attempts would alienate their hosts, Legge told Spaatz’s headquarters in England, and slow down the negotiations he was secretly conducting for the airmen’s release. But Legge was more concerned with appeasing the Swiss than with freeing the American internees, and when fellow Americans were caught escaping and imprisoned by the Swiss, he monitored their deplorable prison conditions with inexcusable indifference. In the last two years of the war, the "benevolent hosts" of the American airmen threw 187 of them into one of the most abhorrent prison compounds in Europe, a punishment camp run by a sadistic Nazi."
342:
escapes. As a result, such visits were prohibited, and internees had little personal contact with the attaché or his staff. The airmen were almost entirely cut off from reliable information, and often jumped to conclusions that were based solely on rumors or assumptions. In fact, after making good on their escapes, a number of airmen protested to the War
Department about perceived negligence by the Legation staff. In late 1944, the War Department officially investigated whether Legge had threatened to court martial airmen for unauthorized escape attempts, but it was clear that there was no formal evidence that such a threat had ever been issued. Rather, this was likely a misunderstanding of Legge's instruction not to escape without assistance from the Legation, which was an unsuccessful attempt to improve their chances of success.
334:
and in no way condoned the imprisonment of these men for attempting escape. Rather than appeasing the Swiss, Legge was actually under investigation by the Swiss government for assisting the
Americans to flee from internment. In fact, the Swiss Federal Council considered issuing a formal demarche against his activities, which they communicated to Legge directly. Legge did not bow to this pressure, but rather appealed directly to senior Swiss officials in order to secure better treatment for the airmen. He even threatened to leak word of their actions to the press to embarrass them, as he knew very well that allegations that the Swiss government was violating international law would taint the Swiss reputation for upholding humanitarian norms. The threat was made good on in 1945, when the Army's publication
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235:"All during my service in Europe, Legge served with me. During the latter part he was my second in command in the regiment. I have seen him under all circumstances. He was always cool and decided. No mission was too difficult for him to undertake. His ability as a troop leader was of the highest order. In my opinion no man of his age has a better war record."
329:
Historian Donald Miller regards Legge as an altogether more controversial figure than his post-war accolades would suggest. He is severely critical of Legge's role in
Switzerland: "The country’s military police actively hunted down American fliers making for the border, shooting and wounding a number
333:
However, another historian, Dwight Mears, profiled the fate of
American airmen in Switzerland in his dissertation while teaching at West Point, and reached a starkly different conclusion. Mears documented that Legge was, in reality, running the escape network to get U.S. airmen out of Switzerland,
341:
Mears concluded that the negative impressions of Legge were forged by the lack of communication between the
Legation and the internees, which was a direct consequence of Swiss interference after internment officials discovered that Legation visits to interned airmen quickly resulted in successful
31:
251:
and personally led an attack against a strong enemy position. Legge inspired his men by his courage, cutting his way through entanglements and directing the attacks against three different strong points. For this actions, he was awarded the
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profiled the actions of the Swiss government, ostensibly drawing from U.S. Legation files that virtually quoted Legge's description of punishment camp conditions.
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244:, where half of the men of 26th Infantry Regiment were killed in combat. For conspicuous gallantry in action Legge was awarded 4 Silver Stars.
219:
951:
825:"Interned or imprisoned? The successes and failures of international law in the treatment of American internees in Switzerland, 1943–45"
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and in this capacity, he helped arrange the escape of many interned US fliers. For service in this capacity, Legge was awarded with the
118:
810:(Miller, Donald L (April 25, 2013). Eighth Airforce: The American Bomber Crews in Britain (Kindle Locations 6366-6373). Aurum Pres.
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and combat leader. He is most noted as one of the most decorated U.S. Military members of World War I and as
Military Attaché to
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Brigadier
General Barnwell R. Legge retired in 1948 due to poor health and died on June 7, 1949, in
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299:
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After the War, Legge served at various infantry positions, including the capacity of instructor at
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Average
Americans In Olive Drab – The War As Seen By Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt
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for his leadership of 26th
Infantry regiment and with the Legion of Honour and
294:
He subsequently served for a short period as an Assistant Military Attaché to
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at the age of 57. He was buried together with his wife Phyllis B. Legge at
203:
to Claude Lascelles Legge and Elizabeth Judd Hutchinson Legge. He attended
666:"Biography of Brigadier-General Barnwell Rhett Legge (1891 - 1949), USA"
259:
For his military service during World War I, Legge was also awarded the
638:
295:
288:
307:
230:). Roosevelt Jr. later wrote in his book "Average Americans":
173:
907:
Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States)
887:
United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni
722:"By Lieutenant Colonel then Captain Barnwell Rhett Legge"
912:
Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army)
792:. discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. October 17, 2014
176:(July 9, 1891 – June 7, 1949) was a highly decorated
937:
Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France)
310:. He stayed in Switzerland for the whole period of
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94:
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74:
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37:
21:
877:Military personnel from Charleston, South Carolina
724:. freefictionbooks.org. 2010-07-04. Archived from
218:, he was appointed the regimental adjutant of the
240:Legge participated with the 26th Infantry in the
744:
742:
645:French Croix de guerre 1914–1918 with 2 Palms
610:European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
363:Here is Brigadier General Legge's ribbon bar:
927:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
818:
816:
247:Major Legge subsequently participated in the
8:
630:Commander of the Order of the British Empire
947:United States Army generals of World War II
942:United States Army personnel of World War I
829:University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
29:
18:
542:
222:under the command of Lieutenant Colonel
750:"Valor awards for Barnwell Rhett Legge"
694:. theodoreroosevelt.org. Archived from
657:
318:by the US Government. He also received
902:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery
756:from the original on December 19, 2014
892:United States Army War College alumni
256:for extraordinary heroism in combat.
7:
897:University of South Carolina alumni
752:. militarytimes.com. July 4, 2010.
932:Recipients of the Legion of Honour
14:
922:Recipients of the Legion of Merit
322:in the grade of Commander by the
281:Command and General Staff College
635:Chevalier of the Legion of Honor
555:Army Distinguished Service Medal
533:
526:
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512:
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261:Army Distinguished Service Medal
600:American Defense Service Medal
1:
917:Recipients of the Silver Star
226:(the eldest son of President
584:Mexican Border Service Medal
212:University of South Carolina
952:United States Army generals
668:. generals.dk. July 4, 2010
550:Distinguished Service Cross
351:Arlington National Cemetery
320:Order of the British Empire
254:Distinguished Service Cross
158:Distinguished Service Medal
154:Distinguished Service Cross
80:Arlington National Cemetery
968:
710:Life of Theodore Roosevelt
615:World War II Victory Medal
271:by the French government.
201:Charleston, South Carolina
51:Charleston, South Carolina
16:United States Army general
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589:World War I Victory Medal
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267:Croix de guerre 1914-1918
210:Legge studied law at the
28:
852:Generals of World War II
823:Dwight S. Mears (2012).
625:Army of Occupation Medal
591:with five Battle Clasps
688:"Boyhood Recollections"
605:American Campaign Medal
249:Meuse-Argonne Offensive
214:. After the US entered
207:and graduated in 1911.
139:Meuse-Argonne Offensive
336:Yank: The Army Weekly
306:at the US Legation in
238:
224:Theodore Roosevelt Jr.
220:26th Infantry Regiment
232:
107:Years of service
171:Barnwell Rhett Legge
23:Barnwell Rhett Legge
291:from 1936 to 1939.
882:The Citadel alumni
242:Battle of Soissons
228:Theodore Roosevelt
199:Legge was born in
178:United States Army
134:Battle of Soissons
101:United States Army
650:
649:
564:Oak Leaf Clusters
541:
540:
298:and then was the
181:Brigadier General
168:
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119:Brigadier General
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776:"CAA Admin Tool"
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347:Washington, D.C.
300:Military Attaché
285:Fort Leavenworth
96:
68:Washington, D.C.
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33:
19:
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698:on May 26, 2024
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574:Legion of Merit
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316:Legion of Merit
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846:External links
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790:"OBE citation"
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324:United Kingdom
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65:(aged 57)
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728:on 2014-12-19
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90:United States
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832:. Retrieved
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730:. Retrieved
726:the original
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702:December 19,
700:. Retrieved
696:the original
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670:. Retrieved
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579:Purple Heart
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312:World War II
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275:World War II
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189:World War II
170:
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144:World War II
125:Battles/wars
63:(1949-06-07)
61:June 7, 1949
48:July 9, 1891
872:1949 deaths
867:1891 births
562:with three
560:Silver Star
358:Decorations
304:Switzerland
216:World War I
205:The Citadel
195:Early years
185:Switzerland
162:Silver Star
129:World War I
110:1911 – 1948
861:Categories
732:2013-05-30
653:References
87:Allegiance
44:1891-07-09
269:with Palm
834:July 11,
754:Archived
621:4th Row
596:3rd Row
570:2nd Row
546:1st Row
95:Service/
796:May 30,
760:May 30,
672:May 30,
265:French
187:during
639:France
296:France
289:Kansas
150:Awards
97:branch
75:Buried
836:2017
798:2013
762:2013
704:2014
674:2013
308:Bern
115:Rank
70:, US
58:Died
53:, US
38:Born
708:in
302:to
283:at
174:CBE
164:(4)
863::
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815:^
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
