Ernest J. "Mike" Dawley was a Major General

Major General

Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

 in the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, known for commanding VI Corps during Operation Avalanche. The VI Corps took part in the Allied invasion of Italy

Allied invasion of Italy

The Allied invasion of Italy was the Allied landing on mainland Italy on September 3, 1943, by General Harold Alexander's 15th Army Group during the Second World War. The operation followed the successful invasion of Sicily during the Italian Campaign...

 when it landed at Salerno

Salerno

Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....

 on September 9, 1943, with the British X Corps

X Corps (United Kingdom)

The X Corps was a British Army formation in the First World War and was later reformed in 1942 during the North African campaign of the Second World War as part of the Eighth Army.- First World War :...

 under Fifth Army as part of Operation Avalanche. The stiffness of the German defences sorely tested VI Corps and it suffered heavy casualties before German attempts to throw the American force back into the sea were thwarted by the artillery of its 45th

U.S. 45th Infantry Division

The 45th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the United States Army. As a major formation of the Oklahoma Army National Guard, it was headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma for most of its history...

 and 36th Infantry Divisions

U.S. 36th Infantry Division

-Pre 2 October 1941 Square Organization:*HHC, 36th Infantry Division, TXARNG**36th Military Police Platoon**36th Signal Company**111th Ordnance Company**111th Engineer Regiment , TXARNG**111th Medical Regiment**111th Quartermaster Regiment...

, strongly supported by naval gunfire, bombing and the approach of British Eighth Army from the south. Dawley was replaced by Fifth Army commander Mark Clark

Mark Wayne Clark

Mark Wayne Clark was an American general during World War II and the Korean War and was the youngest lieutenant general in the U.S. Army...

 after Salerno, as he was judged to be "worn out".

During World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, Dawley was the executive officer for the Saumur Artillery School in France.

After demotion at Salerno, Dawley was assigned as the commander of the Tank Destroyer School and Center in the U.S. before retiring in 1947.