Lieutenant General Samuel Vaughan Wilson was born on September 23, 1923 and died on June 10, 2017.
He was also known as “General Sam”.
He completed his active military career in the fall of 1977, having divided his service almost equally between special operations and intelligence assignments.
He was also appointed the President of Hampden-Sydney College from 1992–2000 and as Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency from May 1976-August 1977; for his foundational work in doctrine for low intensity conflict, where he coined the term “counterinsurgency” (COIN); and for facilitating the drafting and passage of the Nunn-Cohen Amendment to the Goldwater-Nichols Act creating the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict (ASD/SOLIC).
He was also credited for helping to create Delta Force, the U.S. Army’s premier counterterrorism unit.
Samuel V. Wilson passed away at 93 years old.