Thomas Holcomb

Commandant of the Marine Corps (1879–1965)

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Lived 1879–1965, aged 86United States

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Wikipedia
8 languages
Cross-language footprint
Era
1879–1965
Aged 86
Awards
5
recognised works

Summary

Updated 2026-06-21

General Thomas Holcomb was a United States Marine Corps officer who served as the seventeenth Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1936 to 1943. He was the first Marine to achieve the rank of general, and was a strong supporter of racial segregation in the Marine Corps. After retiring from the Marine Corps, Holcomb served as the U.S. Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to South Africa from 1944 to 1948. One of his ancestors was Joshua Barney, a naval hero of the War of 1812.