David Petraeus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
David Petraeus
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Official portrait, 2011
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| 4th Director of the Central Intelligence Agency | |
| In office September 6, 2011 – November 9, 2012 |
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| President | Barack Obama |
| Deputy | Michael Morell |
| Preceded by | Leon Panetta |
| Succeeded by | John Brennan |
| Commander of the International Security Assistance Force | |
| In office July 4, 2010 – July 18, 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Stanley A. McChrystal |
| Succeeded by | John R. Allen |
| Commander of United States Central Command | |
| In office October 31, 2008 – June 30, 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Martin Dempsey (acting) |
| Succeeded by | John R. Allen (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
David Howell Petraeus
November 7, 1952 Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 2002) Independent (since 2002) |
| Spouse |
Holly Knowlton
(m. 1974) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | United States Military Academy (BS) Princeton University (MPA, PhD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1974–2011 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands | International Security Assistance Force United States Forces-Afghanistan United States Central Command Multinational Force-Iraq United States Army Combined Arms Center Fort Leavenworth Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment |
| Battles/wars |
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| Awards | Defense Distinguished Service Medal (4) Army Distinguished Service Medal (3) Defense Superior Service Medal (2) Legion of Merit (4) Bronze Star with valor NATO Meritorious Service Medal Officer of the Order of Australia (More) |
David Howell Petraeus ( born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official.
Contents
Early life and family
Petraeus was born in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, the son of Miriam Sweet (née Howell; 1912–1991), a librarian, and Sixtus Petraeus (1915–2008), a sea captain. His father was a Dutch merchant mariner who emigrated to the United States at the start of World War II, from Franeker, the Netherlands, and his mother was American, a resident of Brooklyn, New York. They met at the Seamen's Church Institute of New York and New Jersey and married. Sixtus Petraeus commanded a Liberty ship for the U.S. for the duration of World War II. The family moved after the war, settling in Cornwall-on-Hudson, where David Petraeus grew up and graduated from Cornwall Central High School in 1970.
Petraeus went on to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Petraeus was on the intercollegiate soccer and ski teams, was a cadet captain on the brigade staff, and was a "distinguished cadet" academically, graduating in the top 5% of the Class of 1974 (ranked 40th overall). In the class yearbook, Petraeus was remembered as "always going for it in sports, academics, leadership, and even his social life."
While a cadet, Petraeus started dating the daughter of Army General William A. Knowlton (the West Point superintendent at the time), Holly. Two months after Petraeus graduated, they married. Holly, who is multi-lingual, was a National Merit Scholar in high school, and graduated summa cum laude from Dickinson College. They have a daughter and son, Anne and Stephen. Petraeus administered the oath of office at his son's 2009 commissioning into the Army after his son's graduation from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His son went on to serve as an officer in Afghanistan as a member of 3rd Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team.
Petraeus's official residence in the United States is a small property in the small town of Springfield, New Hampshire, which his wife inherited from her family. Petraeus once told a friend that he was a Rockefeller Republican.
Education and academia
Petraeus graduated from West Point in 1974, receiving a B.S. degree in Military Science. He earned the General George C. Marshall Award as the top graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College Class of 1983 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He subsequently earned an M.P.A. degree in 1985 and a Ph.D. in international relations in 1987 from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, where he was mentored by Richard H. Ullman.
At that time, he also served as an assistant professor of international relations at the U.S. Military Academy from 1985 to 1987. He completed a military fellowship at Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in 1994–1995, although he was called away early to serve in Haiti as the Chief of Operations for NATO there in early 1995.
From late 2005 through February 2007, Petraeus served as commanding general of Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center (CAC) located there. As commander of CAC, Petraeus was responsible for oversight of the Command and General Staff College and seventeen other schools, centers, and training programs as well as for developing the Army's doctrinal manuals, training the Army's officers, and supervising the Army's center for the collection and dissemination of lessons learned. During his time at CAC, Petraeus and Marine Lt. Gen. James F. Amos jointly oversaw the publication of Field Manual 3–24, Counterinsurgency, the body of which was written by an extraordinarily diverse group of military officers, academics, human rights advocates, and journalists who had been assembled by Petraeus and Mattis.
At both Fort Leavenworth and throughout the military's schools and training programs, Petraeus integrated the study of counterinsurgency into lesson plans and training exercises. In recognition of the fact that soldiers in Iraq often performed duties far different from those for which they trained, Petraeus stressed the importance of teaching soldiers how to think and how to fight, and the need to foster flexibility and adaptability in leaders.
Military career
Upon his graduation from West Point in 1974, Petraeus was commissioned an infantry officer. After completing Ranger School (Distinguished Honor Graduate and other honors), Petraeus was assigned to the 509th Airborne Battalion Combat Team, a light infantry unit stationed in Vicenza, Italy. Ever since, light infantry has been at the core of his career, punctuated by assignments to mechanized units, unit commands, staff assignments, and educational institutions.
In 1981, Petraeus became aide-de-camp to General John Galvin, then commanding general of the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized).
After earning his Ph.D. and teaching at West Point, Petraeus continued up the rungs of the command ladder, serving as military assistant to Gen. John Galvin, the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. From there, he moved to the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized). During 1988–1989, he served as operations officer to the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized)'s 30th Infantry Regiment. He was then posted as an aide and assistant executive officer to the U.S. Army Chief of Staff, General Carl Vuono, in Washington, D.C.
His last assignments in the Army were as commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and commander, U.S. Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A) from July 4, 2010, to July 18, 2011. His other four-star assignments include serving as the 10th commander, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) from October 13, 2008, to June 30, 2010, and as commanding general, Multi-National Force – Iraq (MNF-I) from February 10, 2007, to September 16, 2008. As commander of MNF-I, Petraeus oversaw all coalition forces in Iraq.
Petraeus retired from the U.S. Army on August 31, 2011. His retirement ceremony was held at Joint Base Myer–Henderson Hall. During this ceremony, he was awarded the Army Distinguished Service Medal by Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn. During the ceremony, Lynn noted that Petraeus had played an important role as both a combat leader and strategist in the post-9/11 world. Lynn also cited General Petraeus's efforts in current counter insurgency strategy.
Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in his remarks compared General Petraeus to Ulysses S. Grant, John J. Pershing, George Marshall and Dwight D. Eisenhower as one of the great battle captains of American history. With his four-star rank, Petraeus receives an annual pension of about $220,000.
Dates of rank
| Rank | Date |
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 Second lieutenant |
June 5, 1974 |
 First lieutenant |
June 5, 1976 |
 Captain |
August 8, 1978 |
 Major |
August 1, 1985 |
 Lieutenant colonel |
April 1, 1991 |
 Colonel |
September 1, 1995 |
 Brigadier general |
January 1, 2000 |
 Major general |
January 1, 2003 |
 Lieutenant general |
May 18, 2004 |
 General |
February 10, 2007 |
CIA Director (September 2011 – November 2012)
On April 28, 2011, President Barack Obama announced that he had nominated Petraeus to become the new Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate 94–0 on June 30, 2011. Petraeus was sworn in at the White House on September 6 and then ceremonially sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden at CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia on October 11, 2011. He resigned on November 9, 2012.
Activities in retirement
In March 2013, Petraeus accepted the role of honorary chairman of the OSS Society.
Petraeus was named a visiting professor at Macaulay Honors College at the City University of New York in July 2013.
On May 1, 2013, the University of Southern California named David Petraeus as a Judge Widney Professor, "a title reserved for eminent individuals from the arts, sciences, professions, business and community and national leadership". The president of the Currahee board of trustees announced May 6, 2013, that Petraeus agreed to serve on the board of trustees that preserves Camp Toccoa. During WWII, four of the main parachute infantry regiments of the Army trained at Camp Toccoa prior to their deployment.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P., a New York investment firm, hired Petraeus as chairman of the firm's newly created KKR Global Institute in May 2013. Part of his work would support KKR's investment teams and portfolio companies when studying new investments, especially in new locations. In December 2014, Petraeus was named a partner at KKR and remains chairman of the KKR Global Institute.
Petraeus joined the board of advisers of Team Rubicon on June 18, 2013.
Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) named Petraeus as a senior vice president of the organization in August 2013. According to RUSI, "The honorary role was created by RUSI's trustees and advisory council in recognition of General Petraeus's long association with the Institute and his distinguished contribution to the study and development of defence and international security concepts, as well as his implementation of those concepts in operations in the Balkans, Iraq, and Afghanistan."
In October 2013, Petraeus joined Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government as a non-resident senior fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. According to the school, Petraeus joined to lead a new project focusing on the technological, scientific and economic dynamics that are spurring renewed North American competitiveness. "The Coming North America Decades" project would analyze how potential policy choices could effect this ongoing transformation. In 2016, the center announced a new project involving Petraeus and focusing on strategic leadership.
On February 10, 2014, the University of Exeter in England named Petraeus as an honorary visiting professor of the Strategy and Security Institute. Alongside the other honorary faculty, the appointment would help inform the institute's key objectives of exploring policymaking, strategy, and security.
General Petraeus was one of the "11 legendary generals" profiled in the 2014 National Geographic Channel feature "American War Generals".
In 2015, Petraeus suggested the U.S. should arm members of the terror group Al-Nusra Front (an offshoot of Al-Qaeda) in Syria to fight ISIS.
On June 10, 2016, Petraeus and Mark Kelly, a retired NASA astronaut and later senator from Arizona, announced the creation of the now defunct gun control group Veterans Coalition for Common Sense.
Petraeus delivered the inaugural lecture in a series dedicated to his mentor and the former dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University, General Jack Galvin. He also delivered the inaugural lecture in a series dedicated to Admiral Stansfield Turner at the U.S. Naval War College on August 7, 2018. The lecture series honors the achievements of Turner, who served as the college's president from 1972 to 1974.
As a member of a panel discussion in October 2018 concerning a film documenting the Stars and Stripes newspaper, Petraeus shared his personal experiences with the newspaper with the audience.
On June 12, 2019, Petraeus accepted the invitation of a three-year honorary professorship in the Institute of Conflict, Cooperation and Security (ICSS) at the University of Birmingham in England. The university's announcement of the appointment stated that Petraeus "will share insights from his career with students and researchers through a variety of interactions in Birmingham and virtually."
General Petraeus was the guest speaker at the 500th Night celebration for the U.S. Military Academy's Class of 2020 at West Point, held on January 26, 2019.
Personal life
According to Petraeus, he does not vote in elections, having stopped following his promotion to major general in 2002 as part of a desire to be seen as apolitical. He has confirmed that he did not vote in the 2016 election.
Organizational memberships
- Co-chairman, Task Force on North America, Council on Foreign Relations (June 2013 – December 2015)
- Member, board of directors, Atlantic Council (April 2016 – present)
- Washington Speakers Bureau (June 2013 – present)
- Member, board of advisors, Team Rubicon (April 2013 – present)
- Member, board of directors, Optiv Inc (March 2017 – present)
- Co-chairman, global advisory council, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (August 2015 – present)
- Member, advisory council, Veterans Coalition for Common Sense (June 2016 – present)
- Member, conservation council, Panthera (February 2016 – present)
- Senior vice president, Royal United Services Institute (June 2013 – present)
- Member, board of directors, Institute for the Study of War (November 2013 – present)
- Member, advisory council, American Corporate Partners (April 2013 – present)
- Faculty advisor, USC Student Veterans Association (September 2013 – August 2019)
- Chairman, KKR Vets at Work (May 2014 – present)
- Member, board of directors, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) (October 2015 – present)
- Member, Concordia Leadership Council, The Concordia Summit (September 2015 – present)
- Member, board of trustees, The McCain Institute for International Leadership (December 2015 – present)
- Member, academic advisory board, Warrior-Scholar Project (February 2016 – present)
- Advisor, Global War on Terror Memorial Foundation (February 2016 – June 2019)
- Member, national security advisory council, U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (April 2016 – present)
- Trustee, Arthur F. Burns Fellowship (April 2016 – present)
- Member, board of directors, Fort Campbell Historical Foundation (September 2015 – present)
- Member, board of advisors, The Alexander Hamilton Society (October 2016 – present)
- Member, board of advisors, Partnership for a Secure America (March 2017 – present)
- Churchill Fellow of Westminster College, Westminster College (Fulton, MO) (April 2017 – present)
- Member, council of advisors, Army Heritage Center Foundation (June 2017 – present)
- Member, Golden Plate Award Council, Academy of Achievement (October 2012 – present)
- Advisory trustee, The Camp Tocca At Currahee (June 2013 – present)
- Honorary chairman, The OSS Society (January 2013 – present)
- Honorary fellow, Ivy Club, Princeton University (May 2012 – present)
- Member, board of advisors, National Council on U.S. – Arab Relations (October 2016 – Present)
- Advisor to the board, United States-India Strategic Partnership Forum (January 2018 – present)
- Member, network experts (August 2018 – present)
- Member, board of advisors, Third Option Foundation (March 2019 – present)
- Member, The Trilateral Commission (August 2019 – present)
Recognitions and honors
Decorations and badges
Petraeus's decorations and badges include the following:
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Honorary degrees
- Eckerd College, May 23, 2010, honorary doctorate in laws
- University of Pennsylvania, May 14, 2012, honorary doctorate of laws
- Dickinson College, May 20, 2012, honorary doctorate of public service
- American University of Afghanistan, June 17, 2019, honorary doctorate of humane letters
Civilian awards and honors
Petraeus's civilian awards and honors include:
2007–2010
- 2007: 100 Most Influential Leaders and Revolutionaries of the Year, Time magazine
- 2007: Second Most Influential American Conservative, The Daily Telegraph
- 2007: Person of the Year 2007 runner-up, Time magazine
- 2007: Man of the Year, The Daily Telegraph
- 2008: Leader of the Year, GQ
- 2008: One of World's Top 100 Public Intellectuals, Foreign Policy and Prospect magazines
- 2008: 16th Most Powerful Person in the World, Newsweek
- 2009: George F. Kennan Award, National Committee on American Foreign Policy
- 2009: Distinguished Service Medal, The American Legion
- 2009: Military Leadership Award, The Atlantic Council
- 2009: Abraham Lincoln Award, Union League of Philadelphia
- 2009: Father of the Year Award, National Father's Day Committee
- 2009: Eisenhower Award, National Defense Industrial Association
- 2009: William Donovan Award, Office of Strategic Services
- 2009: Freedom Award, No Greater Sacrifice
- 2009: Distinguished Citizen Award, Congressional Medal of Honor Society
- 2009: Sam Gibbons Lifetime Achievement Award, The World Trade Center Tampa Bay
- 2010: James Madison Medal, The Woodrow Wilson School
- 2010: Leader of Principle Award, The Citadel at Baker School of Business
- 2010: Irving Kristol Award, American Enterprise Institute
- 2010: Intrepid Freedom Award, Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
- 2010: Named No. 12 of 50 People Who Mattered in 2010, New Statesman
- 2010: Top 100 Global Thinkers, Foreign Policy
- 2010: Dwight D. Eisenhower Award, Veterans of Foreign Wars
- 2010: Dedicated Room, Thayer Hotel
2011–2020
- 2011: 100 Most Influential People in the World, Time magazine
- 2012: Golden Plate Award, American Academy of Achievement
- 2012: Golden Eagle Award, Society of American Military Engineers
- 2013: 35th Chesney Gold Metal, Royal United Services Institute
- 2013: History Makers Award, New-York Historical Society
- 2013: Gold Medal for Distinguished Achievement, The Holland Society of New York
- 2015: Luminary Award, WashingtonExec Leadership Council
- 2016: C3 Global Solutions Award, C3 US-Arab Business and Healthcare
- 2016: American Spirited Award, The Common Good
- 2017: Winston S Churchill National Leadership Award, The International Churchill Society
- 2018: Soldier Citizen Award, American College of Financial Services
- 2019: Recanati-Kaplan Award for Civic Excellence and Cultural Engagement, 92nd Street Y
- 2020: Currahee Crest Award, 506th Infantry Regiment
2021–present
- 2021: Leadership Award, The Voices Center for Resilience
- 2021: Top Voices in the Military Community, LinkedIn
- 2022: Decoration Commemorating 200 Years of Diplomatic Relations Between the Republic of Colombia and USA Grade of Grand Cross, The Embassy of Colombia-US
- 2022: American History Award, The Union League Club of New York
- 2022: Sanctioned by Russia for support of Ukraine, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
- 2022: Veteran Leadership Award, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
- 2023: Kissinger Senior Fellow, Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs
- 2023: The 21 Greatest Generals in American History
- 2023: C3 Global Valor Award
- 2023: Dickinson College President's Award
- 2023: U.S.-Arab Bridge Building Award
- 2024: Ticonderoga Award for a Continental Vision
- 2024: HBS Club of D.C. Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2024: Rescuer of Humanity Award
Additional recognition
In 2007, Time named Petraeus one of the 100 most influential leaders and revolutionaries of the year as well as one of its four runners up for Time Person of the Year. He was also named the second most influential American conservative by The Daily Telegraph as well as The Daily Telegraph's 2007 Man of the Year. His Ph.D. dissertation, The American Military and the Lessons of Vietnam: A Study of Military Influence and the Use of Force in the Post-Vietnam Era, published by Princeton University in 1987, was number two on the list of best-selling dissertations in 2007.
On March 7, 2009, Petraeus received the Distinguished Citizen Award from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
On March 16, 2012, the Dutch Minister of Defense Hans Hillen knighted Petraeus at the Hague with the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau with swords.
In 2012, Petraeus received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. The following year, in 2013, the New-York Historical Society established the Petraeus-Hertog Lecture Leadership Library series. Petraeus was featured alongside 18 other graduates of the United States Military Academy in West Point Leadership: Profiles of Courage, a collection of leadership biographies published in 2013."
On November 19, 2020, General Petraeus became the first American military professional to deliver the annual Lee Knowles Lecture at Cambridge University's Trinity College.
On December 7, 2020, the Institute for the Study of War launched "The General David H. Petraeus Center for Emerging Leaders" to offer new educational and professional development programs to its students. Petraeus has been on the board of ISW since November 2013.
See also
In Spanish: David Petraeus para niños
