Franklin M. Davis, Jr.

File:Spearhead book.jpg

Cover of 1959 Permabook paperback edition of Spearhead by Franklin M. Davis, Jr.

Franklin Milton Davis, Jr. (1918–1980) was an author and major general in the United States Army.

Education

General Davis had a B.A. in Economics/English from the University of Massachusetts and a M.A. degree in International Affairs from George Washington University.

Military

Davis had military participation in both World War II and the Vietnam War.

Davis served as a brigadier general during the Vietnam War and commanded the 199th Light Infantry Brigade from May 1968 to July 1969. Davis' brigade operated in the Long Binh and Duc Hoa regions of Vietnem. While in Vietnam Davis was wounded in action (WIA).

Davis was a commandant of the U.S. Army War College from 1971 to 1974.

Davis's principal awards and decorations included the Distinguished Service Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Legion of Merit, the Purple Heart, and the Bronze Star Medal with V for Valor. His wartime service included three major campaigns in World War II in Europe, and four in the war in Vietnam.

Transcendental Meditation

Davis was a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation and advocated its use to reduce the stress of soldiers. He was also a founding member of the Board of Trustees at Maharishi International University (MIU) (now called Maharishi University of Management). At MIU, General Davis was also an International Resource Faculty member for the United States in Military Science.

Writing

In 1950, Davis wrote for a contest that was designed to "stimulate creative writing among [military] personnel during their off-duty time." He was among three winners of the Army-wide writing contest. One of the prizes for the honor was to be published in Collier's magazine.

Davis wrote books of fiction and historical nonfiction. Two of his early books were published with his military rank attached to his name: "Col. Franklin M. Davis, Jr.":

• Kiss the Tiger, (A Quinn Leland Espionage Thriller) Pyramid Books, 1961
• The U.S. Army Engineers—Fighting Elite, Franklin Watts, 1967 OCLC 6582068

Davis' books published without rank are:

• The Naked and the Lost, Lion, 1954. Subject is the Korean War, 1950-1953
• Spearhead, Permabook, 1957. Subject 3rd Armored Division (Spearhead) during World War II.
• A Medal For Frankie, Pocket Books, 1959. 35 cents.
• Break Through, 1961
• Bamboo Camp#10, 1962
• Secret Hong Kong  (A Quinn Leland Espionage Thriller), 1962
• Combat! The Counterattack, (Illustrated by Arnie Kohn), 1964
• Come As a Conqueror, (The United States Army's Occupation of Germany 1945-1949. Nonfiction), 1967
• Across the Rhine (Time Life, World War II Collector's Edition), 1980 ISBN 0-809-42543-2 OCLC 5893369

Cover of 1961 Pyramid Books paperback edition of Kiss the Tiger by Col. Franklin M. Davis, Jr.

References

Front cover of the 1967 Macmillan Company hardcover version of Come As A Conqueror by Franklin M. Davis, Jr. The book was advertised the "first comprehensive history of the most difficult political-military operation in America's history: the U.S. Army's occupation of Germany 1945-1949."

See also

• Page from August 6, 1968 of Baton Rouge Morning Advocate, has picture of General Davis with following caption: "Wounded-Brig. Gen. Franklin M. Davis, Jr. of Waltham, Mass., bleeds from a gash over his right eye and other cuts on his face after being wounded by a Viet Cong rocket while on a river patrol today, 13 miles southeast of Saigon. Brig. Gen. Davis is commander of the U.S. 199th Light Infantry Brigade which operates south, southeast and west of Saigon.