William S. Benson

William Shepherd Benson ( born September 25, 1855 in Macon, Georgia, † May 20 1932 in Washington DC ) was an American admiral.

Life

William Benson graduated in 1877 his education at the United States Naval Academy from. His first years of service included, among other things, a trip around the world aboard the Dolphin during the 1880s. He devoted the next few years, the coastal surveying and hydrographic tasks, taught at the Naval Academy, commanded the cruiser Albany ( CL -23) and served as chief of staff of the fleet. In 1911 he was captain of the first commander of the battleship Utah ( BB -31). From 1913 to 1915 he was commander of the Philadelphia Navy Yard. From there he was transferred to Washington, where he joined the Navy, after his promotion to Rear Admiral, the first Chief of Naval Operations (CNO ). In this role he took over from Rear Admiral Bradley A. Fiske, the last adjutant for Marine tasks.

Benson was devoted to the strengthening of the Navy in a time that was determined by tensions within the Navy Department, U.S. interventions in the Caribbean and in Central America and the beginning of the First World War in Europe. After his promotion to Admiral in 1916 were carried out his responsibilities grew with the USA entered the war in April 1917 strongly. In the next 18 months, he oversaw a vast expansion of the Navy, the expansion of operations in European waters and the transport of the U.S. Army in France. After the armistice with Germany in November 1918, he was an active participant in the broad peace negotiations in France.

Benson left the service in the Navy in September 1919. For the next ten years, he directed the United States Shipping Board. Admiral Benson died on 20 May 1932 in Washington, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. The destroyer USS Benson, Benson lead ship of the class, was named after him.