After the war, Koch returned to Milwaukee, where he was one of the re-organizers of his old
Wisconsin National Guard unit, which he commanded as a
captain. He obtained a Regular Army commission as a
second lieutenant of
Cavalry in 1920, was quickly promoted to
first lieutenant, and was appointed to command a troop of the
8th Cavalry Regiment. Koch slowly advanced through the ranks in the 1920s and 1930s, and developed a positive reputation as an instructor and academic, primarily as a member of the faculty at the Army's Cavalry School at
Fort Riley,
Kansas.
During
World War II, Koch joined the staff of
George S. Patton's
2nd Armored Division as
Intelligence officer (G-2). Koch served under Patton in North Africa and Europe as Patton successively commanded
I Armored Corps,
II Corps,
Seventh Army, and
Third Army. During the war, Koch developed procedures and policies for gathering and analyzing intelligence and providing recommendations to commanders, many of which continued to be used after the war.
Following the war, Koch served as deputy commandant and commandant of the Army's first Intelligence school, and as director of intelligence for the Allied occupation of Austria. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1954, and served in the
Korean War as assistant division commander and acting commander of the
25th Infantry Division. He retired in September 1954. After retiring, Koch resided in his wife's hometown of
Carbondale, Illinois, where he was active in several civic and fraternal organizations. He also authored a brief memoir of his World War II service, which continues to be used as a guide for Military Intelligence professionals. Koch died in
Marion, Illinois and was buried at
Arlington National Cemetery.
Early life
Oscar Koch was born in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin on January 10, 1897, a son of Oscar Koch Jr. and Emma (Zimmerman) Koch.[1] He attended the public schools of Milwaukee and graduated from
North Division High School.[2] In high school, Koch played
center on the
football team and was named to the 1913 all-city team.[2]
During
World War I, Koch's unit was activated as part of the
32nd Division.[5] Koch was born Oscar Koch III, and his parents did not give him a middle name.[6] Because the Army habitually asked for a middle initial when Koch completed forms and signed documents, he chose "W" at random and said his middle name was William.[6] Afterwards he was known as Oscar W. Koch or O. W. Koch.[6]
During the division's organization and training at
Camp MacArthur, Texas, Koch played on its football team.[5] While in France, he served with the 32nd Division's 2nd Battalion,
120th Field Artillery Regiment.[5] In April 1918, he received his commission as a
second lieutenant of
Field Artillery.[7] He was then assigned as an instructor at the U.S. Army artillery school established in
Saumur.[7]
Koch graduated from
Fort Riley's advanced course for Cavalry officers in 1933[4] and remained at the school as an instructor.[17] While on the faculty, Koch was selected by the Army to attend courses in
pedagogy at the
University of Michigan.[17] During his coursework, Koch completed a study on the history of military historical research.[17] His work was reviewed by a doctoral committee and accepted as a
dissertation, but Koch did not receive academic credit because he was
auditing courses, not attending as part of a degree program.[17] The Army published Koch's study, as it did a later Koch work on
educational psychology, which became required reading at the
United States Military Academy.[17] Fluent in
German, while at the Cavalry school, Koch translated several German military works into English, enabling the U.S. Army to study and make use of them.[7]
In December 1944, Koch warned Patton that intelligence indicators pointed to an imminent large-scale German offensive against
First Army in the
Ardennes, to Third Army's north.[7] Though G-2s at other commands believed Germany incapable of a large scale offensive, Patton heeded Koch's warning and incorporated emergency measures for aiding First Army into his subsequent plans.[7] As a result, when Germany launched the offensive that became known as the Battle of the Bulge, Third Army was prepared to reorient from attacking on a west to east axis to advance north towards First Army and immediately enter combat.[7] Third Army's effort helped end the German offensive and left the Allies prepared to enter Germany in the spring of 1945.[7]
Post-World War II
Koch remained in Germany after the end of the war. In 1946, he was appointed deputy commandant of the Army's new Ground Forces Intelligence School at
Fort Riley,
Kansas.[20] In 1947, he was named commandant.[21] He completed his military education with graduation from the
National War College.[22] Koch next served as director of intelligence for
Geoffrey Keyes during Keyes' appointment as
Allied High Commissioner in
Austria.[6] During this posting, Koch took part in transferring responsibility for intelligence gathering in Austria from the Army to the
Central Intelligence Agency.[23] Koch next served as deputy director of Training (Special) at the CIA, responsible for training of covert Agency personnel.[24] He held this position until February 1952 and was succeeded by Rolfe W. Kingsely.[24]
Koch was promoted to
brigadier general in January, 1954 and was assigned as assistant division commander of the
25th Infantry Division during its
Korean War service.[25] After briefly acting as division commander in May 1954,[6][26] in June he was assigned to the Career Management Division in the Office of the
U.S. Army Adjutant General.[27] Koch retired from military service in September, 1954.[27] After leaving the military, Koch was given cover employment with the
United States Department of State.[1] In fact, he worked for the
Central Intelligence Agency, though in what capacity he worked during this tenure with the CIA is unknown because Koch did not discuss it with friends, relatives, or his biographer.[28]
Retirement and death
In retirement, Koch settled in
Carbondale, Illinois, his wife's hometown.[7] He became a noted civic activist, including serving on the board of directors of Carbondale's
Rotary Club and the Carbondale
YMCA board of managers.[7] He also served on the city government's Citizens Advisory Council and was a trustee of Carbondale's First Christian Church, an affiliate of the
Disciples of Christ.[7] In addition, he was active in several
Masonic organizations, the
Elks, and the
Jackson County Historical Society.[1] Koch also led unsuccessful efforts to have Carbondale's Woodlawn Cemetery declared a national shrine to commemorate
John A. Logan's work to create a national
Memorial Day holiday, which began in Carbondale in 1866.[29]
In August 1924, Koch married Nannie Caldwell (1898-1995), whom he met while he was participating in a horse show at the
Iowa State Fair.[7][30] They remained married until his death, and had no children.[1]
Koch received a
1954 Guggenheim Fellowship, which he intended to use to author a work on the conduct of military intelligence activities.[7] Shortly before his death, he completed the book, which he coauthored with Robert G. Hays, G2: Intelligence for Patton.[6] Hays reissued this work in 1999, and it remains an important "how to" text for military intelligence professionals.[6] In 2013, Hays published a second work about his friendship with Koch, Patton's Oracle: Gen. Oscar Koch, As I Knew Him.[32]