Martin Dempsey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Martin Dempsey
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Official portrait, 2012
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| Nickname(s) | Marty |
| Born | 14 March 1952 |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/ |
United States Army |
| Years of service | 1974–2015 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chief of Staff of the United States Army United States Army Training and Doctrine Command United States Central Command Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq 1st Armored Division 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment |
| Battles/wars | Gulf War Iraq War |
| Awards | Defense Distinguished Service Medal (3) Army Distinguished Service Medal (6) Navy Distinguished Service Medal Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit (3) Bronze Star Medal (2) with Valor V |
Martin “Tank” Edward Dempsey (born 14 March 1952), is an American retired military officer who served as the 18th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 2011 to September 2015. He previously served as the 37th chief of Staff of the Army from April to September 2011. Before that, he served as Commanding General, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, from December 2008 to April 2011, as Acting Commander, U.S. Central Command, from March to October 2008, as Deputy Commander, U.S. Central Command, from August 2007 to March 2008, and as Commanding General, Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq (MNSTC-I), from August 2005 to August 2007. Dempsey assumed his assignment as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in October 2011, and stepped down from the Chairmanship in September 2015. He has served as a professor at Duke University and as chairman of USA Basketball.
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Early life
Dempsey was born on March 14, 1952, in Jersey City, New Jersey, and grew up in nearby Bayonne. He attended John S. Burke Catholic High School in Goshen, New York. Dempsey is Irish American. Following high school, Dempsey attended the United States Military Academy at West Point and graduated with the Class of 1974. Dempsey's four grandparents were born in the counties of Sligo, Donegal, Mayo and Roscommon in Ireland. He learned a small amount of the Irish language while spending his summers in Ireland as a child.
Career
Dempsey received a commission as an Armor officer upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1974. As a company-grade officer, he served in 1st Squadron, 2d Armored Cavalry Regiment as the officer in charge for personnel. He went on to be the executive officer of the 3rd Brigade 3rd Armored Division during Operation Desert Shield/Storm. As a captain, Dempsey was the commanding officer of Alpha Troop, 1/10 Armored Cavalry at Ft. Carson, CO. As a lieutenant colonel he commanded the 4th Battalion of the 67th Armored Regiment "Bandits" from 1992 to 1995 in the 1st Armored Division in Friedberg, Hesse, Germany.
In 1996 he took command of the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment. Following that assignment as the Army's “senior scout,” he served as an Assistant Deputy Director for Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5) on the Joint Staff, and as Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Henry H. Shelton, USA. During this period of his career, he attended both the Army Command and General Staff College and the National War College, earning master's degrees in military art and national strategic studies.
Promoted to brigadier general in August 2001, Dempsey first served in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia training and advising the Saudi Arabian National Guard.
In June 2003, then Major General Dempsey assumed command of the 1st Armored Division. He succeeded Ricardo S. Sanchez who was promoted to lieutenant general, as commander of V Corps. Dempsey's command of the 1st Armored Division lasted until July 2005 and included 13 months in Iraq, from June 2003 to July 2004. While in Iraq, 1st Armored Division, in addition to its own brigades, had operational command over the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division; the command, called "Task Force Iron" in recognition of the Division's nickname, "Old Ironsides", was the largest division-level command in the history of the United States Army.
It was during this time that the U.S. intervention in Iraq changed dramatically as Fallujah fell to Sunni extremists and supporters of Muqtada al-Sadr built their strength and rose against American forces. Then Major General Dempsey and his command assumed responsibility for the area of operations in Baghdad as the insurgency incubated, grew, and exploded. General Dempsey has been described by Thomas Ricks in his book "Fiasco": "In the capital itself, the 1st Armored Division, after Sanchez assumed control of V Corps, was led by Maj. Gen. Martin Dempsey, was generally seen as handling a difficult (and inherited) job well, under the global spotlight of Baghdad."
On 27 March 2007, Lieutenant General Dempsey was transferred from commander of Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq, and reassigned as deputy commander of U.S. Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.
On 5 February 2008, Dempsey was nominated to head the U.S. Army, Europe/Seventh Army, and was nominated for promotion to four-star general upon Senate approval.
On 11 March 2008, Dempsey's commander, Admiral William J. Fallon, resigned from his post as commander of Central Command. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates accepted this as effective on March 31. Dempsey temporarily took over as acting commander.
On 13 March 2008, Dempsey was confirmed by the United States Senate as Commander, U.S. Army, Europe/Seventh Army. However, due, to Admiral Fallon's unexpected retirement, Dempsey never took command of U.S. Army, Europe/Seventh Army.
On 11 July 2008, Dempsey was nominated to take command of U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command while Lieutenant General Carter F. Ham replaced his nomination to command the U.S. Army, Europe/Seventh Army.
On 8 December 2008, Dempsey assumed command of United States Army Training and Doctrine Command.
On 6 January 2011, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced that he would recommend that the President nominate General Dempsey to succeed General George Casey as the Army Chief of Staff. On 8 February 2011, Gates announced that President Barack Obama nominated Dempsey to be the 37th Chief of Staff of the United States Army. On 3 March 2011, Dempsey testified before the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services, and on 15 March 2011, the committee affirmatively reported Dempsey's nomination. On 16 March 2011, the Senate confirmed Dempsey's nomination by unanimous consent. On 11 April 2011, Dempsey was sworn in as Chief of Staff of the United States Army at a ceremony at Fort Myer.
With Admiral Michael Mullen set to retire as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September 2011, U.S. President Obama needed to select his replacement. The vice-chairman, Marine General James Cartwright, who was initially believed to be the front runner for the job, had fallen out of favor among senior officials in the Defense Department. Obama administration officials revealed on 26 May 2011, that Obama would nominate Dempsey to the post of chairman. In August 2011, General Dempsey was confirmed by unanimous consent to succeed Admiral Mike Mullen as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He was sworn in as 18th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on 1 October 2011. On 26 June 2013, Obama re-nominated General Dempsey to serve a second two-year term as chairman. Dempsey stepped down on 25 September 2015, and was replaced by General Joseph Dunford, USMC.
Dempsey was appointed as the chairman of USA Basketball in 2016. After eight years in the position, he was re-elected as chair in October 2024 through to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
On 18 October 2020, Dempsey was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame, in the Public Service category.
Personal life
Dempsey is married to his high school sweetheart, Deanie. They have three children: Chris, Megan, and Caitlin. Each has served in the United States Army and is married with three children. Chris remains on active duty as a cavalry colonel. Martin and Deanie have nine grandchildren.
Education
- 1974 Bachelor of Science degree, U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York
- 1984 Master of Arts degree in English, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
- 1988 Master of Military Art and Science degree, United States Army Command and General Staff College
- 1995 Master of Science degree in national security and strategic studies, National War College
Dates of rank
| Rank | Date |
|---|---|
 Second lieutenant |
5 June 1974 |
 First lieutenant |
5 June 1976 |
 Captain |
8 August 1978 |
 Major |
1 September 1985 |
 Lieutenant colonel |
1 April 1991 |
 Colonel |
1 September 1996 |
 Brigadier general |
1 August 2001 |
 Major general |
1 September 2004 |
 Lieutenant general |
8 September 2005 |
 General |
8 December 2008 |
Awards and decorations
On 7 December 2011, Dempsey received the USO's Distinguished Service Award on behalf of all military members. In October 2016, he was made an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II, for commitment to British-American defense cooperation. Also, the Association of the United States Army, on 17 October 2019, awarded Dempsey the George Catlett Marshall Medal for distinguished public service, that organization's highest award.
Medals and ribbons
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Interviews
- Dempsey Muses on Challenges as New Head of Joint Chiefs – Thom Shanker. New York Times. 3 October 2011.
- The New Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on "Getting to the Truth" – Karl Moore. Forbes Magazine. 20 October 2011.
- Gen. Martin Dempsey's Interview with Jeremy Paxman – Jeremy Paxman, BBC. 28 November 2011.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey's Interview with Fareed Zakaria – Fareed Zakaria. CNN. 19 February 2012.
- Video: Gen. Martin Dempsey's Interview with Charlie Rose – Charlie Rose. 16 March 2012.
- Video: Gen. Martin Dempsey's Interview on Leadership – The Pentagon Channel. October 2012.
- Video: Gen. Martin Dempsey at the National Press Club – National Press Club. 10 October 2012.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Dan Rather – Dan Rather Reports. AXS.tv. 13 November 2012.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Ted Koppel – Rock Center with Brian Williams. NBC. 24 January 2013.
- Transcript: Sec. Panetta & Gen. Dempsey's Interview with Candy Crowley – State of the Union. CNN. 3 February 2013.
- Transcript: Sec. Panetta & Gen. Dempsey's Interview with Chuck Todd – Meet the Press. NBC. 3 February 2013.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Rachel Martin – Weekend Edition. NPR. 17 February 2013.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Candy Crowley – State of the Union. CNN. 7 July 2013.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Martha Raddatz – This Week. ABC. 4 August 2013.
- Transcript: Gen. Martin Dempsey talks to Steve Inskeep - NPR. Morning Edition. 4 June 2020.
Speeches
- Gen. Dempsey Becomes the 18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff – 30 September 2011
- The Atlantic Council of the United States: Security and Partnership in an Age of Austerity – 9 December 2011.
- End of Mission Ceremony in Baghdad, Iraq – 15 December 2011.
- Duke University's Ambassador S. Davis Phillips Family International Lecture Series: A New Vision for the US Military – 12 January 2012.
- West Point Class of 2013 500th Night – 21 January 2012.
- Harvard University's John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum: Security Paradox – 12 April 2012.
- The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: A Conversation with General Martin Dempsey – 1 May 2012.
- Kansas State University's 161st Landon Lecture – 1 October 2012
See also
In Spanish: Martin Dempsey para niños
