
Lieutenant General Harold Gregory Moore Jr. was a United States Army lieutenant general and author. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the U.S. military's second-highest decoration for valor, and was the first of his West Point class (1945) to be promoted to brigadier general, major general, and lieutenant general. He was the co-author (with Joe Galloway) of two successful books We Were Soldiers Once... And Young &We Are Soldiers Still: A Journey Back To The Battlefields Of Vietnam about the 1965 battle of the Ia Drang valley in Viet Nam, during most of which Moore (then a Lt. Colonel) was the primary U.S. officer commanding. Mr. Galloway was also present during much of the battle, as a combat correspondent for UPI. After a long and distinguished career, including combat service in the Korean War prior to his service in Viet Nam, Lt. Gen. Moore retired in 1977. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Army Distinguished Service Medal, Legion Of Merit (3 Awards), Bronze Star (4 Awards, including 2 for valor), Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm (3 Awards) and many other medals, decorations, and badges. A full length biography of Lt. Gen. Moore ('Hal Moore: A Soldier Once... And Always', by Mike Guardia) was published by Casemate Publishers in November 2013.
Hal Moore led his life by a set of principles – a code developed through years of experience, trial-and-error, and the study of leaders of every stripe. In a career spanning more than thirty years, Moore’s life touched upon many historical events: the Occupation of Japan, the Korean War, Vietnam, and the refashioning of the US Army into an all-volunteer force. At each juncture, he learned critical lessons and had opportunities to affect change through measured responses. Hal Moore on Leadership offers a comprehensive guide to the principles that helped shape Moore’s success both on and off the battlefield. They are strategies for the outnumbered, outgunned, and seemingly hopeless. They apply to any leader in any organization – business or military. These lessons and principles are nothing theoretical or scientific. They are simply rules of thumb learned and practiced by a man who spent his entire adult life leading others and perfecting his art of leadership.
by Harold G. Moore
Rating: 4.3 ⭐
Each year, the Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps selects one book that he believes is both relevant and timeless for reading by all Marines. The Commandant's choice for 1993 was We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young. In November 1965, some 450 men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, under the command of Lt. Col. Hal Moore, were dropped by helicopter into a small clearing in the Ia Drang Valley. They were immediately surrounded by 2,000 North Vietnamese soldiers. Three days later, only two and a half miles away, a sister battalion was chopped to pieces. Together, these actions at the landing zones X-Ray and Albany constituted one of the most savage and significant battles of the Vietnam War. How these men persevered--sacrificed themselves for their comrades and never gave up--makes a vivid portrait of war at its most inspiring and devastating. General Moore and Joseph Galloway, the only journalist on the ground throughout the fighting, have interviewed hundreds of men who fought there, including the North Vietnamese commanders. This devastating account rises above the specific ordeal it chronicles to present a picture of men facing the ultimate challenge, dealing with it in ways they would have found unimaginable only a few hours earlier. It reveals to us, as rarely before, man's most heroic and horrendous endeavor.
Almost 15 years since its original publication the bestseller "We Were Soldiers Once... And Young" (1992) is still required reading in all branches of the military. Every day the authors receive letters from readers wanting to know what's happened to the characters they came to admire such as Ed "Too Tall to Fly" Freeman and Bruce "Old Snake" Crandall. There are also questions about whether they are still in touch with their North Vietnam counterparts and where they are now.Many of these questions are finally answered in title "We are Soldiers Still", which recounts a unique journey back to the battlefields by the commanders and veterans of both sides - a journey which ended with the authors and some of the comrades stranded overnight, alone, on the isolated field code-named Landing Zone XRay where so many perished. They will tell what was learned and felt during a night when a meteor shower filled the sky and peace came upon them. The authors mix gritty and vivid detail with reverence and respect for their comrades. Their authority on the military, their ability to capture man's sense of heroism and brotherhood, and readers' fascination with their story is sure to make this a must-buy book for all history buffs. While "We Were Soldiers" brought to life an important moment in US history, "We are Soldiers Still" will illuminate how that history has changed the authors, the men involved, and our country.
"I just want to be with my God and family --- and my men throughout eternity."Millions were inspired by the stirring, visceral account of Lt. General Hal Moore’s Vietnam War experience, as told in the New York Times #1 bestseller We Were Soldiers Once… And Young. The major motion picture adaptation, We Were Soldiers, was hailed by many as "one of the best war movies ever made." But there is so much more to the story. What forces shaped the character of this great man, one who still calls each of his fallen soldiers by name, who inspires the respect and awe of both his enemies in war and his friends in life?In A General’s Spiritual Journey, Hal Moore opens his heart and soul about the role of faith through his many life experiences. The book is an evocative collection of his memories, as observed and recorded by his friend and "driver." From his childhood in Kentucky, through West Point, to the bloody battlefields of Korea and Vietnam, in business and family, and into his current days of writing, speaking, and living without his beloved wife, Julia, Hal Moore leaves little doubt as to what he has always valued most in his life – his God."Hal Moore has redefined heroism; his physical courage, his abilities to train and lead even through danger and desperation are only the beginning of character. He believes a leader’s role is not limited to the battlefield he believes that God has created us to aspire to a different kind of Manhood, a Manhood that extends respect, honor, and compassion to everyone touched by the fires of wives, children, parents, siblings, and even those we have met as enemies. His heart is great enough to make Family a matter of choice. I am privileged to call myself a member of Hal Moore’s Chosen Family, and I aspire to live up to that gift." Randall Wallace, director of We Were SoldiersUpon graduating from West Point, Hal Moore chose to spend several days of retreat at the Abby of Gethsemani in Kentucky, to prepare himself spiritually for the challenge of commanding troops in Vietnam. A General’s Spiritual Journey is filled with snapshots of the remarkable experiences that resulted from this attitude of consecration—his wartime decisions not to attack Buddhist temples, his reunion with former enemy commanders in Vietnam, the deep bond he formed with his We Were Soldiers family.This treatise is about the different journeys we all walk and the immeasurable influence that is possible for each person whose actions are determined by an unbending devotion to Christ.
A Tender Warrior is not a military book. Rather it represents a collection of experience and wisdom from a perspective most of us will never have. The essence of leadership is caring about people and General Moore was and is a master in the art of caring.
Complementing the Benning Experiment volume, this study describes the work of the Fort Ord Training Center in developing and promoting the concept of a modern volunteer Army through the practical application of policies developed in Washington.
by Harold G. Moore
by Harold G. Moore