Burke, Arleigh Albert

▪ 1997

      admiral (ret.), U.S. Navy (b. Oct. 19, 1901, near Boulder, Colo.—d. Jan. 1, 1996, Bethesda, Md.), distinguished himself as one of the finest naval commanders in World War II and reinvigorated the U.S. Navy during the Cold War as chief of naval operations (1955-61). In 1923 he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., where he pursued postgraduate work in ordnance explosives; he earned a master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1931. In January 1943 he entered World War II as the commander of a squadron of destroyers in the Solomon Islands. Proving himself to be an able strategist, he led more than 20 military engagements against the Japanese from November 1943 to February 1944, with much success. After the war he helped guide naval policy and, despite briefly falling from political favour in 1949, was elevated to rear admiral in 1950. Rewarded for his skills in leadership and strategic planning, Burke was promoted over 92 more senior admirals to chief of naval operations, serving an unprecedented three terms under Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower. In this post Burke modernized the navy, adapting it for the Cold War by giving it the versatility to handle smaller, limited missions and by adopting new technology, such as arming nuclear-powered submarines with Polaris missiles. For his efforts, remembered long after his retirement in 1961, he was awarded the National Medal of Freedom in 1977, and in 1991 the navy launched the USS Arleigh Burke, a state-of-the-art destroyer named in his honour.

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