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The [[District of Columbia]], the [[national capital]] of the [[United States]], was formed in 1790 from 100 [[square mile]]s that were [[cession|ceded]] to the federal government by the [[U.S. state|states]] of [[Maryland]] and [[Virginia]].
<b>Douglas MacArthur</b> ([[January 26]], [[1880]] - [[April 5]], [[1964]]) was a [[United States|US]] [[General|General of the Army]] and recipient of the [[United States Army]] [[Congressional Medal of Honor|Medal of Honor]].
'''Retrocession''' is defined as the reversal of a [[cession]], returning land to the entities to which it originally belonged. The 32 square miles originally ceded by Virginia were returned to Virginia in 1847, and some have proposed that the remaining 68 square miles, or most of them, be returned to Maryland.
MacArthur was the son of the civil War veteran [[Arthur MacArthur|General Arthur MacArthur]] and grew up on Army bases. He was accepted to the [[United States Military Academy]] at [[West Point]] in [[1898]] and graduated first in his class in [[1903]], as a [[Lieutenant|2nd Lieutenant]] of [[engineering|engineers]]
== Virginia retrocession ==
During [[World War I]], he served in France, first with the 42nd Division and, upon his promotion to brigadier general (the youngest ever in the U.S Army), as commander of the 84th Infantry Brigade. He spent most of the inter-war period on different assignments in the [[Philippines]]. He left the U.S. Army in [[1937]] to command the Philippines Army, but returned in July of [[1941]] as commander of [[USAFFE|US Army Forces - Far East]].
Almost immediately after the "Federal City" was laid out north of the [[Potomac River]], the residents south of the Potomac in [[Alexandria County, D.C.]] began petitioning to be returned to Virginia's jurisdiction. Over time, a movement grew to separate [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] from the District for several reasons:
* Alexandria was an important port and market in the [[Atlantic slave trade]]. There was increasing talk of [[Abolitionism|abolition]] of slavery in the national capital, and Alexandria's economy would suffer greatly if slavery were outlawed.
* There was an active abolition movement in Virginia, and the pro-slavery forces held a slim majority in the [[Virginia General Assembly]]. (Eighteen years later, in the [[American Civil War]], the most anti-slavery counties would secede from Virginia to form [[West Virginia]].) If Alexandria and Alexandria County were retroceded to Virginia, they would provide two new pro-slavery representatives.
* Alexandria's economy had stagnated as competition with the port of [[Georgetown, Washington, D.C.|Georgetown, D.C.]] had begun to favor the north side of the Potomac. The [[Chesapeake and Ohio Canal]] was already helping Georgetown take more business from Alexandria, and the canal was still being extended.
* Alexandria's residents had lost representation and the right to vote at any level of government.
After a referendum, voters petitioned Congress and Virginia to return the area to Virginia. By an act of Congress on [[9 July]], [[1846]], and with the approval of the Virginia General Assembly, the area south of the Potomac (39 square miles [101 km²]) was returned, or "retroceded," to Virginia effective in [[1847]].[http://www.citymuseumdc.org/gettoknow/faq.asp]
During World War II, MacArthur fought in south-east [[Asia]] against [[Japan]]: after the defeat of his forces in the Philippines, he was made Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in the Southwest Pacific and took command of Australian, American, Dutch and other Allied forces defending [[Australia]], fighting mainly in and around [[New Guinea]]. MacArthur's forces were eventually successful, overrunning Japanese resistance in 1943 and [[1944]]; afterwards, American forces under MacArthur's command they took back the Philippines from October [[1944]]. In September [[1945]] MacArthur received the formal japanese surrender which ended WWII; he then served as Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers in Japan until June [[1950]].
The retroceded land was then known as [[Alexandria County, Virginia]], and now includes a portion of the [[independent city]] of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] and all of [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]], the successor to Alexandria County. A large portion of the retroceded land near the river was an estate of [[George Washington Parke Custis]]. It would be passed on to his daughter and her husband, [[Robert E. Lee]], and would eventually become [[Arlington National Cemetery]].
After the surprise attack of the communist [[North Korea]] army in [[1950]] started the [[Korean War]], the [[United Nations]] General Assembly authorized a U.N. Force to re-unify the Korean peninsula in October. MacArthur led the U.N. coalition (whose back bone was the American military) counter-offensive, noted for a amphibious landing behind North Korean lines at [[Inchon]]. As his forces approached the Korea-[[China]] border, the Chinese warned they would become involved and on October 25 [[1951]], the [[PLA]] attacked across the Yalu River forcing the U.N forces on a long retreat. MacArthur sought an extension of the conflict into China and was relieved of duty by [[Harry S Truman|Truman]] in April [[1951]]. He was replaced by General Matthew B. Ridgway who stabilized the situation near the 38th parallel. MacArthur's last public appearance was a farewell address to Congress, interrupted by thirty ovations.
== Proposed Maryland retrocession ==
He returned from Korea to considerable public adulation, there was talk of him running for the presidency in [[1952]]. When these hopes died away he spent the remainder of his life quietly in New York.
It has been proposed that the remainder of the District be given back to Maryland. Retrocession would take a simple act of [[U.S. Congress|Congress]], though it is generally accepted that Congress would not take such a step without the approval of Marylanders and Washingtonians via referenda. Currently, there is little support for retrocession, though some see it as a solution to the twin problems of [[D.C. voting rights]] and [[D.C. home rule]].
==Early Life==
Such a move, according to some, would be [[constitutional]] if at least the part of the District that contains the main offices of government (the National Capital Service Area) were to remain in the District officially; the [[U.S. Constitution]] requires a national capital "not exceeding ten Miles square", but does not specify a minimum size for the District. However, it is unclear if the Constitution even requires the creation of a District to begin with; after all, the country did not have such a district until Washington was founded. If it does, then such a move would require, as a technicality, the repeal of the [[Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution|23rd Amendment]] due to there being no citizens of such a district. The only residents of such a rump district would be the [[First Family of the United States|First Family]], who vote in their hometown (plus, possibly, some [[homeless]] people).
MacArthur was born in [[Little Rock, Arkansas]], and was the son of [[General|Lieutenant General]] [[Arthur MacArthur]] and [[Mary Pinkney Hardy MacArthur]] of [[Norfolk, Virginia]]. Douglas' older brother, Arthur, attended the [[United States Naval Academy]] and died in [[1923]], as a [[Captain]]. His other brother, Malcolm, died in [[1883]].
The remainder of Washington would become a city in Maryland, allowing residents to vote for Maryland's Congressional delegation like any other resident of the state, as well as in state elections.
==Military Career==
=== Arguments for retrocession ===
*[[1899]] -- attends the [[United States Military Academy|United States Military Academy (USMA)]], [[West Point, New York]]
*[[June 11]], [[1903]] -- graduates first in his class, [[commissioned officer|commissioned]] as a [[Lieutenant|2nd Lieutenant]] in the [[Corps of Engineers]]
*? - ? -- assigned to the [[Philippines]]
*[[April 23]], [[1904]] -- promoted to [[Lieutenant|1st Lieutenant]]
*[[1905]] - [[1906]] -- serves as an aide to his father in the Far East
*[[1907]] -- aide-de-camp to [[Theodore Roosevelt|President Roosevelt]]
*[[February 27]], [[1911]] -- promoted to [[Captain]]
*[[1914]] -- [[Mexican Expedition|military expedition]] to [[Vera Cruz, Mexico]]
*? - ? --serves on the [[General Staff]]
*[[1917]] - [[1919]] -- joins the [[42nd Infantry Division]]
**is credited with naming the Division, "The Rainbow Division"
**serves as divisional Chief of Staff, [[84th Infantry Brigade]] Commander, and as the divisional commander
**[[June 26]], [[1918]] -- promoted to [[General|Brigadier General]] (National Army)
1919 -- becomes Superintended of the USMA
*[[1922]] - [[1930]] -- serves in the Philippines, commander of the [[District of Manila]] and the [[23rd Brigade]]
*[[January 17]], [[1925]] -- promoted to [[General|Major General]] (Regular army)
*January 1925 -- returns to US as a [[corps]] area commander
*[[1928]] -- leads the US [[Olympics|Olympic Team]] to [[Amsterdam]]
**returns to [[Manila, Philippines|Manila]] as commander of the [[Philippine Department]]
*October [[1930]] -- commander of the [[Ninth Corps]] Area
*[[November 1]], 1930 - [[1935]] -- [[Chief of Staff of the United States Army]]
*1935 -- serves as the [[Office of the Military Advisor to the Commonwealth Government (Philippines)|Military Advisor]] to the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines|Commonwealth Government of the Philippines]]
*[[December 31]], [[1937]] -- retires from the US Army and becomes Field Marshall of the Philippine Army
**April -- marries [[Jean Faircloth]]
*February 21, [[1938]] -- [[Arthur MacArthur IV]] is born
*[[July 26]], [[1941]] -- returns to active duty as the [[general|Major General]] in command of [[USAFFE]]
**[[July 27]] -- promoted to [[general|Lieutenant General]]
*[[December 18]], [[1941]] -- promoted to [[General]]
*[[February 22]], [[1942]] -- [[President of the United States|President]] [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] ordered MacArthur out of the Philippines as the American defense of the nation collapsed. Upon leaving he promises to return.
*[[February 5]], [[1945]] -- He fulfils a promise and returns to liberated [[Manila]].
Proponents like the Committee for the Capital City feel such a move would be of financial benefit to Washington; the city would be relieved of burdens not shared by other American cities such as running a [[prison]] system and a [[Department of Motor Vehicles]], and it would finally be free from the veto power of the [[United States Congress]]. Maryland would benefit from the prestige of being the home state of the national capital of the world's [[superpower]] and would gain additional tax revenue. Congress would benefit from no longer having to scrutinize the decisions of the city government; committees overseeing DC government have traditionally been amongst the least prestigious jobs for members. Further, it would give most residents of the District a say in federal government, as they would be able to vote for a representative and senators, and thus have representation.
-- incomplete
=== Arguments against retrocession ===
==Douglas MacArthur’s Military Promotion History==
Proponents of [[D.C. statehood]] are against the idea of retrocession because they feel that the city, having been separated from Maryland since the [[18th century]], has a separate identity; although Maryland is mere city blocks away from many Washingtonians, there is no connection to the state for them. Others see it as a means to block proper representation, which they feel includes two senators. Because the city is a stronghold of the [[U.S. Democratic Party|Democratic Party]], [[U.S. Republican Party|Republican]]s in the [[U.S. Senate|Senate]] would not be eager to admit the District as a state. Republicans would have less of a problem giving the city back to Maryland, as that would, given the city's current population, add only a single Democrat to the [[U.S. House of Representatives|House of Representatives]]. Many in Washington object to Maryland's use of the [[death penalty]], which has been abolished in the District. Many in Maryland, meanwhile, object to retrocession because they feel that the city, which has relatively high crime and poverty rates, would be a burden on state government agencies. Others feel that the federal government should have a role in running the national capital; such a role allows for proper management of the city as a symbol of the nation and can be used to reject projects that would be seen by a majority of Americans as ruinous to the capital. Finally, the measure still fails to completely solve the problem of voting representation for all Washingtonians, because any transfer of less than the entirety of the District could still leave some citizens without representation.
*First Lieutenant Apr 23, 1904
*Captain Feb 27, 1911
*Major Dec 11, 1915
*Colonel (National Army) Aug 5, 1917
*Brigadier General (National Army) Jun 26, 1918
*Brigadier General (Regular Army) Jan 20, 1920
*Major General (Regular army) Jan 17, 1925
*General (Chief of Staff) Nov 21, 1930
*Major General Oct 1, 1935
*Lieutenant General (Temporary) Jul 27, 1941
*General (Temporary) Dec 18, 1941
*General of the Army Dec 18, 1944
== Current legislation ==
==National Military Decorations and Governmental Awards==
On April 16, 2007, Rep. [[Louie Gohmert]] ([[Republican|R]]-[[Texas]]) introduced H.R. 1858, the "District of Columbia-Maryland Reunion Act," which would transfer the bulk of Washington to Maryland if Maryland will have it.[http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:H.R.1858.IH:]
*United States Decorations
**[[Congressional Medal of Honor]]
**[[Distinguished Service Cross]] (Army) w/ 1 oak leaf cluster
**[[Distinguished Service Cross]] (Navy)
**[[Distinguished Flying Cross]]
**[[Silver Star]] with 1 silver oak leaf cluster
**[[Bronze Star]] with "V" device
**[[Air Medal]]
**[[Purple Heart]] with 1 oak leaf cluster
**[[Philippine Campaign Medal (1899-1903)]]
**[[Mexican service Medal (1911-1917)]]
**[[World War I Victory Medal]] w/ 5 battle clasps
***Representing the following campaigns: Champaigne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St.Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, Defensive Sector
**[[Occupation Medal]] --World War I (Germany)
**[[American Defense Medal]] with Foreign Service Clasp.
**[[Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal]] with 10 Bronze Stars
***representing the following campaigns: Philippine Islands, East Indies, Papua, New Guinea, Northern Solomons, Bismarck Archipelago, Leyte, Luzon, Southern Philippines, Borneo, and an Arrowhead represnting amphibious assault landing
on Leyte.
**[[Victory Medal]]-World War II
**[[Occupation Medal]]-World War II (Japan)
**[[National Defense Service Medal]] (1950-1953)
**[[Korean Service Medal]] (1950-1953) with 3 Bronze Stars
***and Arrowhead representing assault landing at Inchon
**[[Presidential Citation Badge]] with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters:
***(7 Citations-3 USAFFE, 3 Philippines Department, 1 GHQ, SWPA).
**The Thanks of the U.S. Senate
**The Thanks of the U.S. House of Representatives
**[[Chief of General Staff Badge]]
**[[Foreign Service Chevron]]s; 14 Stripes
**[[Expert Rifleman’s Badge]]
**[[Expert Pistol Shot Badge]]
**[[Combat Pilot’s Wings]]
**[[Combat Infantry Badge]]
==See also==
*Philippines:
**[[MedalWashington, of ValorD.C.]]
*[[District of Columbia voting rights]]
**[[Distinguished Service Cross]]
**[[GrandDistrict Crossof LegionColumbia ofhome Honorrule]]
*[[District of Columbia Vote in House of Representatives]]
**[[Defense Medal]] with Star
*[[D.C. Statehood]]
**[[Liberation Medal]] with 4 Stars
**[[Independence Ribbon]]
**[[Presidential Citation Badge]]
**[[Field Marshal Philippine Army]] (Stamp/Coinage Issue)
== External links ==
**The Thanks of the Philippine Congress
**Honorary Pilipino Citizenship
**Permanent Membership in every Filipino Military organization.
*[http://www.washingtonmd.org Committee for the Capital City (pro-retrocession)]
*Australia:
*[http://www.dcvote.org/pdfs/mdrretro062004.pdf The Debates over the Retrocession of the District of Columbia, 1801–2004]
**[[Pacific Star]]
**Thanks of Australian Parliament
[[Category:History of the District of Columbia|Retrocession]]
*Belgium:
[[Category:Home rule and voting rights of the District of Columbia]]
**[[Grand Cross Order of the Crown]] with Palm
**[[Commander Order of the Cross]]
**[[Croix de Guerre]] with palm
*China:
**[[Grand Cordon of Pao Ting]]
*Cuba:
**[[Grand Cross of Military Merit]]
*Czechoslovakia:
**[[Grand Cross Order of the White Lion]]
*Ecuador:
**[[Grand Cross Order of Abdon Calderon]]
*France:
**[[Grand Cross Legion of Honor]]
**[[Grand Officer Legion of Honor]]
**[[Commander Legion of Honor]]
**[[Croix de Guerre]] with 4 Palms
**Honorary Corporal, Chasseurs
**[[D’Alpine de Baccarat]]
**Honorary Private, 8th Infantry Regiment of the Line
**[[Legion of Honor Fourragere]]
**[[Medal Militaire Fourragere]]
*Great Britain:
**[[Grand Cross of Bath]]
*Greece:
**[[Medal of Honor]]
*Guatemala:
**[[Cross of Military Merit]] First Order
*Hungary
**[[Grand Cross Order of Military Merit]]
*Italy:
**[[Grand Cross of the Military Order]]
**[[Grand Cordon Order of the Cross]]
**[[War Cross]]
*Japan:
**[[Order of the Rising Sun]] 1st Class w/ Paulownia Flowers
**Thanks of Japanese Diet
*Korea:
**[[Grand Cross of Military Merit]]
**[[Presidential Citation Badge]]
**Thanks of Korean Congress
*Mexico:
**[[Grand Cross Order of Military Merit]]
*Netherlands:
**[[Grand Cross Order of Orange-Nassau]]
*Poland:
**[[Grand Cross Polonia Restituta]]
**[[Virtuti Militaria]]
*Romania:
**[[Grand Cross Order of Military Merit]]
*United Nations:
**[[Korean Medal]]
*Yugoslavia:
**[[Grand Cross Order of White Eagle]]
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