Courtney Whitney

Major General Courtney Whitney (May 20, 1897 - March 21, 1969) was a lawyer and US Army commander during World War II who later served as a senior official during the US occupation of Japan (1945-1951). He played a major role in the liberalization of Japanese government, society, and economy during the occupation.

Courtney Whitney
Whitney, at left holding binoculars, with MacArthur, seated center, observing the shelling of Incheon, Korea
Born(1897-05-20)20 May 1897
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died21 March 1969(1969-03-21) (aged 71)
Buried
Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army
Rank Major General
Battles/warsWorld War I
World War II
Korean War
AwardsDistinguished Service Medal
Silver Star
Legion of Merit (2)
Other workLawyer

Early life

Born in Washington, DC, Whitney enlisted in the US Army in 1917 and became a pursuit pilot. He received his law degree from George Washington University in 1927 and left the army to open a private practice in Manila.

World War II

In 1940, Whitney returned to active duty. He worked in intelligence in Washington, DC, and was assigned to serve as the intelligence officer to the 14th Air Force in China when General Douglas MacArthur requested for him to be assigned to the Southwest Pacific Theater. Whitney returned to Leyte Gulf alongside MacArthur in 1944.[1]

In his biography of MacArthur, William Manchester states that Lieutenant Colonel Whitney, a "ultraconservative Manila corporation lawyer," was assigned to MacArthur's staff, promoted, and assigned responsibility for Philippine civil affairs.[2] Manchester states:

from the standpoint of the guerrillas he was a disastrous choice. Undiplomatic and belligerent, he was condescending toward all Filipinos, except those who, like himself, had substantial investments in the Philippines... and by the time MacArthur was ready to land on Leyte, Whitney had converted most of the staff to reactionaryism. At his urging the General (MacArthur) barred OSS agents from the Southwest Pacific, because Whitney suspected they would aid leftwing guerrillas.[2]

Occupation of Japan

After Japan surrendered, Whitney accompanied MacArthur to Atsugi Air Base and became Chief of the Government Section at GHQ. With Lt. Col. Milo Rowell, he drafted the Constitution of Japan and sent it to the Diet for approval. Historians emphasize the similarity of occupation policies to the US New Deal programs of the 1930s.[3] Moore and Robinson note that "New Deal liberalism seemed natural, even to conservative Republicans such as MacArthur and Whitney."[4]

Whitney remained close to MacArthur throughout the occupation and served as Chief of Government Section at his headquarters. He accompanied MacArthur, during the Korean War and received Silver Star and second Legion of Merit for his visits on the front. Whitney resigned from the army after MacArthur was removed from command in 1951. He was decorated with Army Distinguished Service Medal at his retirement ceremony. In 1956, Whitney's biography of his commander, MacArthur: His Rendezvous With History, was published.

Decorations
USAF Command Pilot wings
1st Row Army Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star
2nd Row Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster Air Medal World War I Victory Medal American Defense Service Medal
3rd Row American Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one silver and two bronze service stars World War II Victory Medal Army of Occupation Medal
4th Row Korean Service Medal with two service stars National Defense Service Medal United Nations Korea Medal Philippine Liberation Medal with two stars


Legacy

Whitney is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. He is also represented at the MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park in Leyte, in the Philippines as one of the statues of MacArthur and his party wading ashore at Leyte. Whitney's statue is behind the statues of Sergio Osmeña and Carlos P. Romulo.

Whitney was played by Dick O'Neill in the 1977 film MacArthur

Whitney appears frequently as one of MacArthur's key advisors in James Webb's historical novel "The Emperor's General."

References
  1. Dunn, William J. (September 2009). "Pacific Microphone". Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 9781603441575. Retrieved September 27, 2014. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. Manchester W. American Caesar. 1978. pp 378-379.
  3. Theodore Cohen and Herbert Passin, Remaking Japan: The American Occupation as New Deal (1987)
  4. Ray A. Moore and Donald L. Robinson, Partners for democracy: Crafting the new Japanese state under Macarthur (Oxford University Press, 2004) p 98

Bibliography
  • James, D. Clayton. The Years of MacArthur 1941-45 (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1975), vol 2
  • James, D. Clayton. The years of MacArthur: Triumph and disaster, 1945-1964 (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1985), vol 3
  • Manchester, W. 1978. American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964. Little, Brown and Company, Boston. ISBN 0-316-54498-1
  • Whitney, Courtney. MacArthur: His Rendezvous with Destiny (New York: Alfred E. Knopf 1956)
  • Williams, Justin. "Completing Japan's Political Reorientation, 1947-1952: Crucial Phase of the Allied Occupation." American Historical Review (1968): 1454-1469. in JSTOR
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