Who was the first Supreme Allied Commander of NATO?

Who was the first Supreme Allied Commander of NATO? The answer is Dwight D. Eisenhower.

General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first Supreme Allied Commander Europe, commonly abbreviated SACEUR, in December 1950. NATO selected him to organize and lead its newly developing integrated military command in Europe as Cold War tensions intensified. The command and its headquarters, SHAPE, were formally activated in 1951.

Eisenhower was a natural choice because he had commanded the Allied invasion of Normandy in 1944 and coordinated multinational forces during the defeat of Nazi Germany. His experience managing American, British, Canadian, and other allied forces made him especially suited to a command that depended on cooperation among several NATO nations.

He served as SACEUR until 1952, when he returned to the United States and successfully ran for president. His successor was General Matthew Ridgway. Alexander Haig and Lauris Norstad also held the post later, but neither was first. The title refers specifically to NATO’s European military commander, not to NATO’s civilian secretary general.