ARLINGTON, Va. (March 4, 2010) -- In life, retired Gen. Alexander Haig spent more than 60 years serving the United States of America.
The four-star general, former supreme allied commander Europe, White House chief of staff, secretary of state and deputy national security advisor, died at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore, Md. Feb. 20.
His funeral took place Tuesday at Arlington National Cemetery and was attended by more than 100 fellow Soldiers, other servicemembers, foreign military officials and civilians. He was laid to rest in section 30, where American heroes such as President William H. Taft and Gen. Omar Bradley are buried.
His widow Patricia walked in the procession behind the Soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) Caisson Platoon to the gravesite.
Haig's brother, the Rev. Frank Haig, presided over the the funeral, along with Brig. Gen. Donald Rutherford, deputy chief of chaplains. After the Rev. Haig said a final blessing, the Soldiers of the Presidential Salute Battery fired off a 19-Gun salute for the fallen officer.
Lt. Gen. David Huntoon Jr., director of the Army staff, presented a folded flag to Haig's widow as the service closed, and as most of the crowd dispersed, his family, including his three children, lingered behind for a few final moments.
"Our Army Family has lost a great Soldier and statesman who selflessly devoted his life's work to the service of our nation," said Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey Jr., who also attended the funeral. "We honor General Haig for his most distinguished service, and will always remember him as the Soldier who - when the nation called - never failed to answer."
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