Major Dick Winters, Band of Brothers commander, Dies

[TrueblueF-18Girl]

Maj Richard D Winters, commander of Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment (Airborne) on D-Day passed away today at age 92.
   
Major Richard D. "Dick" Winters has made his last jump. He passed away Sunday January 9, 2011 only days before what would have been his 93rd birthday.

World War Two
He was best known for being commander of Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment (Airborne) of the 101st 'Screaming Eagles" Airborne Davison. Jumping as a young 1st Lieutenant and the second in command of the company on D-Day he assumed command after the commander's plane was lost in the invasion. With his troops spread out across the French countryside behind Utah Beach near Sainte-Mère-Église, Winters positioned his remaining paratroopers to take four murderous German 105mm artillery pieces that could have held up the invasion on Utah. For this action, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross although he was recommended for the Congressional Medal of Honor. He was not awarded the CMOH due to the fact that the unit had already had a winner of the honor and there was a quota system then in place to prevent the inundation of multiple awards in the same unit.

Promoted to Captain, Winters led Easy company through the Market Garden operation (as depicted in the book and later movie A Bridge Too Far), the Battle of the Bulge, the liberation of Dachau, and finally to the capture of Hitler's Bavarian Eagles Nest. He left the Army as a Major in 1946 but was recalled to serve in Korea four years later. He lived for the next forty years in quiet Hersey, Pennsylvania and started a business.

Ads by Google
Top 2011 Online Grants Grant Funding May Be Available Go Back To School! www.ClassesUSA.com
WW II's Untold Story A new book getting rave reviews for readers of history and war www.richard-snow.com
Band of Brothers Connection
In the past fifteen years Winters was elevated from relative obscurity to stardom in military history and leadership circles due to his oft-mentioned accounts in historian by Stephen Ambrose's 1992 book Band of Brothers. Steven Spielberg turned the book into an epic ten-part film production in 2001 of the same name. English actor Damian Lewis portrayed Major Winters in the film.

This led to a number of interviews with media outlets, a biography on his life entitled Biggest Brother: The Life of Major Dick Winters, the Man who led the Band of Brothers and other recognition.

Later Recognition
In 2007, he was awarded the Four Freedoms Award from news anchor Tom Brokaw on behalf of the US Army. An organization of supporters has been pushing for Winters to be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. This legislation is H.R. 796 and is still pending. Winters, always modest, did not endorse it.

When speaking to a group of West Point cadets in modern years Winters said, "The greatest reward you can have as a leader is the look of respect. The key to a successful combat leader is to earn respect not because of your rank but because you are a man."

He is survived by his wife of 62-years Ethel.

[Midnight Mover]

Condolences