Marshall Carter

Marshall Sylvester Carter (September 16, 1909 – February 18, 1993) was a lieutenant general in the United States Army. From 1965 to 1969, he served as Director of the National Security Agency.

Marshall Carter
Born	(1909-09-16)September 16, 1909 Fort Monroe, Virginia, US
Died	February 18, 1993(1993-02-18) (aged 83) Colorado Springs, Colorado, US
Buried	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
Years of service	1931–1969
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands	National Security Agency
Battles / wars	World War II
Awards	Army Distinguished Service Medal (3) Legion of Merit (2) Bronze Star Medal
Relations	Brigadier General Clifton C. Carter (father)

Life and career

Carter was born on September 16, 1909, at Fort Monroe, Virginia, the son of future brigadier general Clifton C. Carter. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1931 and took an M.S. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1936.

Carter served as an aide to General George C. Marshall during Marshall's time as Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Secretary of State, and Secretary of Defense.

Carter, then a lieutenant general, served as Deputy Director of Central Intelligence from April 3, 1962, to April 28, 1965. From 1965 to 1969, he served as Director of the National Security Agency. While serving as Director of the NSA, Carter testified to a House Appropriations Committee about the 1967 USS Liberty incident. He stated that “It couldn’t be anything else but deliberate. There’s just no way you could have a series of circumstances that would justify it being an accident.”^[1][2] Upon retirement from the military, he served as President of the George C. Marshall Research Foundation until retiring from that position in 1985.

Carter was inducted into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame. He was portrayed by Ed Lauter in the film Thirteen Days (2000), based on events occurring during the Cuban Missile Crisis.^[3] Carter is buried in Arlington National Cemetery with his wife, Preot Nichols Carter (1912–1997).^[4]

Carter died of liver cancer on February 18, 1993, in his home in Colorado Springs^[5]

Decorations

1st Row	Army Distinguished Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters
2nd Row	Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster				Bronze Star Medal				American Defense Service Medal with Foreign Service Clasp				American Campaign Medal
3rd Row	Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal				European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal				World War II Victory Medal				Army of Occupation Medal
4th Row	National Defense Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster				Chinese Special Breast Order of Yun Hui				Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau (Netherlands)				Chinese Special Breast Order of Yun Hui (Second Award)