You can edit almost every page by Creating an account. Otherwise, see the FAQ.

Robert H. Sholly

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki




I believe if you re-look at the medals and awards that Colonel Sholly has received you will find that he qualifies. I will quickly take you down the list. Under notability, he must have one his country's highest medal or, the second highest medal more than once. He was awarded the Silver Star, which is the 3rd highest medal for valor. He might also be a "flag, general or air officer." He was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal, which is "most often presented to senior officers in the flag and general officer grades," and is the 3rd highest medal for service. He received the Legion of Merit, which is one of two honors which are neck awards, the other being the Medal of Honor. The Legion of Merit is the 4th highest service medal. He also won the Bronze Star Medal for Valor 4 times. It is 4th highest medal for valor. He was also awarded the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, which is the unit equivalent of the Defense Superior Service Medal. Finally, he received the Presidential Unit Citation which is at the level of the Distinguished Service Cross. 3) He must have played an important role in a significant battle or event, or 4) commanded a substantial body of troops in combat. He lead B Company in the "Battle of Polei Doc" and more particularly the "9 Days of May." I'll let you research those to events. This should qualify him under both points. It is important that the determination notability be made before I continue to make other changes to the page. Note that the Presidential Unit Citation is improperly listed at the Presidential Unit Commendation. I will correct that if the notability issue becomes resolved. I will fix/redress the other issues after the notability determination. --User:Trhousholder
  • Receiving an award that is usually awarded to flag officers does not make someone a flag officer. There may be enough awards and other things to make Sholly notable, but these need to be sourced. There are no sources in the military section now. -Finlayson (talk) 17:13, 30 December 2017 (UTC)

Robert H. Sholly
BornSanta Fe, New Mexico, U.S.
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1958–1992
Rank Colonel
Battles/warsVietnam War
Persian Gulf War
  • Operation Desert Shield
  • Operation Desert Storm
AwardsArmy Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Silver Star
Bronze Star Medal
Other workChief of the Histories Division at the U.S. Army Center of Military History

Robert H. Sholly is a former United States Army officer[1] and author. He has helped contribute to and edit many books and articles about military history for the United States.[2] He is also the author of the novel Young Soldiers, Amazing Warriors – Inside One of the Most Highly Decorated Battalions of Vietnam.[3]

Early life and education[edit]

Sholly was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the son of a national park ranger. His early life consisted of moving from one national park to another. He graduated from Clovis High School in Clovis, California in 1956. Sholly continued his education during military service; he is a graduate of the United States Army War College and has a Master’s Degree in History and English from the University of Texas at El Paso.[4]

Career[edit]

Military[edit]

Sholly began his military career in 1958 by enlisting in the U.S. Army. He advanced through the enlisted ranks to Sergeant. He then applied for Officer Candidate School and graduated a Second Lieutenant of the U.S. Army infantry. Attending various skill courses and working through various assignments, he later left active duty to go back to school. In order to maintain a military affiliation and to finish his education, he joined the 386th Engineer Battalion of the 49th Armored Division of the Texas Army National Guard in Bryan, Texas. At that point he transferred from the infantry branch and became qualified as an engineer officer by attending the Basic and Advanced Engineer Courses at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

Sholly worked as Staff Administrative Assistant for the 386th Engineer Battalion, while continuing to take courses. In 1965, as a captain, he volunteered to return to active duty in South Vietnam. He was assigned to the Fourth Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, Washington.

He arrived with his unit in South Vietnam on 5 October 1966. After filling several positions in the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, on 10 December 1966 he was assigned as Company Commander Company B. He led his men through the Battle of Polei Doc (22 March 1967)[5] which is also referred to as the "Ambush Battle" and is the subject of the documentary film Honor in the Valley of Tears and the Nine Days in May (18 May 1967 through 28 May 1967) which is the subject of the documentary film Search and Destroy. Sholly appears as himself in the first film. He ended his time with Company B when he became the Battalion Operations Officer.

For his services, Sholly was awarded the Silver Star, the Defense Superior Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the Legion of Merit, four Bronze Stars for Valor and Service and other awards and decorations. He was a member of the United Nations Peacekeeping force when it was awarded 1988 Nobel Peace Prize.[6] He was also inducted into the U.S. Army's OCS Hall of Fame.

Sholly was also Chief of Operations for the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization headquartered in Jerusalem, with the mission area of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. Upon completion of this assignment he was the Chief of the Middle East, Africa, South Asia Division of the Defense Intelligence Agency; Deputy Chief of the United States Military Training Mission (USMTM) and Chief, Joint Section, USMTM - Saudi Arabia. He also served as Director, Host Nation Support, Coalition Forces for Desert Shield and Storm, the first Gulf War against Saddam Hussein; and Chief of the Histories Division with the United States Army Center of Military History.

Post-military[edit]

Sholly retired from the U.S. Army in September 1992. He went to work for a Fortune 500 corporation providing logistical and engineering support for military deployments overseas. During that time he also was the General Manager for a wholly-owned subsidiary company of the corporation providing security consultations and security planning services for oil, gas and mining companies working in remote and hostile regions. After 15 years, he retired once again and started a security consulting service and Stonywood Publications, a small publishing company, with his wife, Peggy, to publish books which they write together. Peggy’s Gulf Coast cooking cookbook, Down Home Delicious has won 6 national awards and is sold internationally.

In 2013, Sholly published a book, Young Soldiers, Amazing Warriors – Inside One of the Most Highly Decorated Battalions of Vietnam.[7][8] This novel is comprised of first-hand eye witness accounts and photos of a soldier’s life in the Vietnam War during the days leading up to the Nine Days in May series of battles by the 4th Infantry Division (United States).[9] General Gordon R. Sullivan, U.S. Army (Ret.), 32nd Chief of Staff and President of the Association of the U.S. Army wrote the foreword. His book has been reviewed by Major General Thomas P. Lynch, U.S.Army (Ret.) and historian William Hammond. The book was also a finalist in the USA Book News 2014 awards.[10]

Sholly contributed a chapter to the book The Soul of Success, which was released in 2015 by CelebrityPress.

Personal life[edit]

Sholly is married to Peggy Touchtone Sholly. They currently reside in Pearland, Texas. He is a father and grandfather. As well as English, .Sholly is proficient in Spanish, Farsi, Dari, and Arabic. He can also read and speak some French.

References[edit]

  1. Frederick W. Kagan; Christian Kubik (2 August 2004). Leaders in War: West Point Remembers the 1991 Gulf War. Routledge. pp. 61–. ISBN 1-134-26925-0. Search this book on
  2. Public Affairs: The Military and the Media 1968-1973 by William M. Hammond
  3. "Book review: Young Soldiers-Amazing Warriors". Dispatches, September 2018 edition. via Together We Served website.
  4. Richard J. Orsi (16 May 2005). Sunset Limited: The Southern Pacific Railroad and the Development of the American West, 1850-1930. University of California Press. pp. 505–. ISBN 978-0-520-94086-4. Search this book on
  5. Henry Zeybel. "Young Soldiers, Amazing Warriors by Robert H. Sholly | Books in Review". Vietnam Veterans of America website
  6. Nobel Peace Prize 1988 United Nations Peacekeeping Forces
  7. "Young Soldiers Amazing Warriors: Inside One of the Most Highly Decorated Battalions of Vietnam". reviewed by Bill McDonald, Military Writers Society of America in 2015.
  8. "November 2015 Book Reviews". website, Association of the United States Army. review by Steven A. Patarcity
  9. "Pearland Vietnam vet tells his story in bestselling book". Chron, By Heather Alexander, October 2, 2014
  10. "Congratulations to all of the Winners & Finalists of The 2014 USA Best Book Awards!". USA Book News.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]


This article "Robert H. Sholly" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Robert H. Sholly. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.