Joseph Stilwell the parents of five children, including Brigadier General Joseph, Jr., (West Point 1933) served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Stilwell later taught at West Point, and attended the Infantry Advanced Course and the Command and General Staff College. During World War I, he was the U.S. Fourth Corps intelligence officer and helped plan the St. Mihiel offensive. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for his service in France. Stilwell is often remembered by his sobriquet, "Vinegar Joe", which he acquired while a commander at Fort Benning, Georgia. Stilwell often gave harsh critiques of performance in field exercises,
Joseph Stilwell sometimes took orders directly from Chiang), he escaped Burma in 1942. Chiang was outraged by what he saw as Stilwell's blatant abandonment of his best army without orders and began to question Stilwell's capability and judgment as a military commander. Chiang was also infuriated at Stilwell's strict control of U.S. lend lease supplies to China. But instead of confronting Stilwell or communicating his concerns to Marshall and Roosevelt when they asked Chiang to assess Stilwell's leadership after the Allied disaster in Burma, Chiang reiterated his "full confidence and trust" in the general while countermanding some orders to Chinese units issued