Colin Powell: biography and photos

Even in the second half of the 20th century, it was not easy for black people in the United States to break out into people. One of the few who managed to go beyond this framework was the son of emigrants, Colin Powell. The biography of this man is just full of high posts.

The Origin of Powell

In 1920, to the shores of America, a ship with bananas, as well as emigrants from Jamaica, landed. There was among them a 22-year-old Luther Teofil Powell - a native of a very poor family. He did not even have elementary school education, but the boy was not a blunder. He quickly found work in the US and even rose to the head of the department in the firm. And soon married the same emigrant from Jamaica - the seamstress Maud Arial Macke, and they had children: first a daughter, and then a son - Colin Powell, the future US Secretary of State, after several decades claimed that among his ancestors was the governor of Jamaica - the Irishman Air Koot. And besides him - Africans, Englishmen, Scots, Jews and even Indians!

Childhood and early youth

So, on April 5, 1937, in the family of Powell, who lived in Harlem near New York, a baby appeared. Called him Colin.

When Colin was six, his parents decided to move to the South Bronx. There the boy went to a free school, where he studied somehow. Music also did not please the child. The only thing that fascinated him was reading, cinema and philately. He also heard a lot about the Second World War and Korean War, and often pictured himself as a military general, commanding his tin soldiers with inspiration. Who knows, perhaps, it was then that fateful grains fell in fertile soil?

Not focusing too much on studying, Colin Powell moonlighted in a small Jewish shop, so he could make life easier for his parents, and also learn Yiddish.

In 1956, the life of the Powell family changed dramatically. Whether in dice, or in the lottery, its head won ten thousand dollars, for which a house was bought in the prestigious area of Queens.

But Colin was not able to fully enjoy the joyful event, since at that time already lived in New York as a student. Granite science guy gnawed at City College, mastering first the profession of an engineer, and then a geologist.

The beginning of military career

But neither the geologist nor the engineer Colin Powell wanted to be. The parents insisted on studying in college, and the obedient son did not want to upset them, otrubiv all the course from the call to the call. And the heart meanwhile sought absolutely for other "stars" ... And the sky gave a chance.

At the college there was a certain program, the participants of which received sponsorship, studying military affairs. Young Powell eagerly seized the opportunity and achieved his: in the program it was taken.

As a cadet, Colin showed himself brilliantly. I immediately felt that I had set foot on my path. For two years of training, he rose to the battalion commander, was engaged in briefing on drill and even managed to take the main prize in prestigious competitions.

The official date of the beginning of the army service Colin Powell is 1958, when the young man enrolled in the School of Rangers Fort Bening, where he studied to survive in the swamps of Florida. Behind her was airborne training. And then the real life of the military began to roll ...

First appointments

The first appointment of Powell was the protection of warehouses with nuclear weapons in the small German town of Gelkenhausen (near Frankfurt). The American guided the execution of this mission, commanding a platoon. In Germany, he spent two years, and it is rumored that it was at that time that his personal acquaintance with Elvis Presley was necessary.

Then the young and promising officer was returned to the United States and sent to Fort Devens (Massachusetts). At the end of the service, Colin Powell had the right to be demobilized and put an end to the army forever. But he had no such thoughts. Of course, he remained in the ranks.

Vietnam

At the end of the summer of 1962, Powell was sent to South Vietnam, where the war was on. There he received baptism of fire and was wounded, holding the post of military adviser to the second battalion of the Third Infantry Regiment of the First Division.

After the wound, in 1963, Colin returned and was treated in the US, where he was awarded the rank of major after three years. And in 1968, again sent to Vietnam.

This time, Powell is being brought into the notorious 23rd Infantry Division under the name "Amerikal". Its soldiers have become famous for having destroyed the village community, sending to the next world more than five hundred peaceful Vietnamese, mostly women and children. This glaring case has long been tried to hide from the public, and even when information surfaced, Powell struggled to whitewash himself and his colleagues. But his goal was not achieved.

Approximate to the leadership of the country

In the autumn of 1969, Colin Powell, whose photo had already appeared in the media, returned to the United States, was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and entered the University of George Washington. After graduating with his master, he trained as an assistant to President Richard Nixon.

It was a very interesting work, during which Powell took part in meetings with high-ranking officials from all over the world: the heads of Japan, China, the USSR, Germany, Eastern European countries, etc.

At the end of the internship, Colin was sent to Korea to maintain peace established there in 1953, and to provide all possible assistance to the allies. In the seventies, he worked in the US Department of Defense, and in 1984 he occupied the office of the assistant to the then Minister of Defense, Weinberg.

But on this career Powell does not stop. In 1987, he became a national security adviser to President Reagan, and from 1989 (already under Bush the elder), Colin Powell is a general in the US Armed Forces. And this moment can be called historical, because for the first time the highest army post of the States was occupied by a black man. In addition, Powell became the youngest head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The New American Doctrine

Under the leadership of Colin Powell, America realized the Panamanian military campaign, as well as the successful operation of the 91st year in the Persian Gulf "Desert Storm." In addition, this man played a major role in establishing legitimate authority in Haiti.

With him, in fact, a new American military doctrine was formed, which said: The United States participates only in those conflicts where their superiority is obvious and unquestionable. And only when all diplomatic methods are exhausted. There was one more condition, about which Powell loudly said: the population of the country that is waging the war must support and welcome US intervention.

Did not live up to expectations

In 1993, Powell resigned and seemed to have done with military affairs. Americans predicted a great political future for him and showed their trust. For example, many believed that Colin Powell (the Republican Party had already taken him into his ranks at the time) would run for President in the 1996 elections. But he never submitted his candidacy. Meanwhile, according to polls, the people were ready to support him more palpably than Bill Clinton ...

Colin Powell - US Secretary of State

Four years later, in the 2000 elections, Powell himself supported Bush, and the newly elected president thanked him, appointing him to the post of Secretary of State of the United States of America. And again it was the debut among the blacks!

The main achievement of Colin Powell in the role of Secretary of State was the campaign against terrorism, which was organized and launched after the terrible actions of September 11, 2001.

It was within this campaign that the war in Iraq was launched, which Powell initially criticized negatively, demanding thorough investigation and intervention by the UN. But already in 2002, his statements were voiced that the Iraqis were developing weapons of mass destruction, and the war was justified.

These speeches cost the reputation of Powell dearly when it became clear that all the data on the production of weapons (in particular, bacteriological) were taken from the thesis of an American student ... In 2004, due to a scandal, he resigned.

After the dismissal, he wrote memoirs, appeared in the press with various articles on America's foreign policy and was engaged in other public affairs. In the 2008 elections, Barack Obama supported.

Colin Powell - Privacy Policy

Ex-US Secretary of State, General Colin Powell, gives the impression of a very serious man. But in his youth, like many others, recoillessness was inherent.

Once he went with a friend to a "blind date", where he met a charming girl - Alma Vivian Johnson. This event in 1961 determined the fate of both. The couple played a wedding in 1962 (before the first dispatch of Colin to Vietnam), gave birth and brought up three children: Michael's son and daughters - Annamarie and Linda. Michael tried to follow in the footsteps of his father, but was dismissed because of serious injuries sustained in a car accident.

Colin Powell, personal life and family for whom are of great importance, never hid it. There is information that in 1996 he refused to run for the main US post because of his wife. Like, she said that she and the general are enough, and she will not tolerate the president in the house. And she threatened with a divorce. As a result, America has lost, perhaps, a very worthy candidate, but the family has survived the world!