Isaac Campbell Kidd, Jr.

Admiral, U.S. Navy

Isaac Campbell Kidd, Jr. was born on 14 August 1919 in Cleveland, OH. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1941 and was commissioned as an Ensign on 19 December 1941; just 12 days after his father was killed aboard his flagship during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As Time Magazine described the event, when Kidd received his commission as Ensign "the U.S. Naval Academy and its guests broke into a thunderous cheer- an unprecedented demonstration in honor of Ensign Kidd and his father."

During World War II, he served as a Gunnery and Operations Officer on destroyers in both Europe and the Pacific, and participated in various Allied landings in the Mediterranean as well as at Iwo Jima.

His 23 years at sea during his 40-year naval career included 15 years in command of destroyers, destroyer divisions and squadrons and three U.S. fleets in the Atlantic, Pacific and Mediterranean; he also served as Executive Assistant and Senior Aide to the Chief of Naval Operations in the early 1960s, earning citations for his efforts in the Cuban Missile Crisis and several other crises. In 1967, he headed the court of inquiry into the USS Liberty incident during the Six-Day War in June of that year.

On 1 December 1971, Kidd was promoted to the four-star rank of Admiral and assigned as Chief of Naval Material (CNM), from 1971-1975. His next assignment was Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic/Commander in Chief, Atlantic Command/Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet (SACLANT/CINCLANT/CINCLANTFLT), from 1975-1978.

Admiral Isaac Campbell Kidd, Jr. retired from the Navy in 1978.

In Retirement

Shortly after his 1978 retirement from the Navy, Kidd was among a number of retired four-star officers who testified before Congress in favor of the controversial SALT II arms control pact. Kidd declared that while he was not entirely thrilled with the proposed treaty's verification procedures, "the alternative of having no ceiling at all, considering our position at this point in the so-called race, I find totally unacceptable."

He also taught the law of the sea at the College of William and Mary.

Medals and Awards

Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal

Personal

His six children included Navy Captain Isaac C. Kidd III.

Death and Burial

Admiral Isaac Campbell Kidd, Jr. died of cancer on 27 June 1999 at age 79 at his home in Alexandria, VA. He is buried at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis, MD.