Cannon and Castle explained

Cannon and Castle
Coat Of Arms:	File:Cannon-and-Castle logo.png
Birthplace:	Yale University
Former Affiliation:	Independent
Status:	Active
Type:	Honor Society
Scope:	Local
Emphasis:	Military
Nickname:	C&C
Chapters:	1
City:	New Haven
State:	Connecticut
Country:	United States

Cannon and Castle is a military honor society founded at Yale University in 1929.^[1] Elected members include cadets and midshipmen from all three Reserve Officer Training Corps branches, active-duty servicemembers, veterans and faculty of the Yale community.

History

On May 24, 1928, a group of students attending Yale College and the Sheffield Scientific School formed the Cannon and Castle military fraternity.^[2] The founders were all enrolled in the Department of Military Science and were members of field artillery and engineering units of Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC). The 22 founding members and four honorary members included:

Its founders created Cannon and Castle to foster closer ties between Yale's two ROTC programs and to provide a forum for military-related discussions on campus.^[3] Membership was limited to those in ROTC field artillery and engineering units. By 1936, Cannon and Castle was referred to as an "honorary military society".

Each year, Cannon and Castle elected six members from the junior class.^{[4] [5]} These members were selected for their "character, knowledge as reflected by general academic achievements and achievements in military science, and leadership qualities as demonstrated by performance as a cadet in the Reserve Officers Training Corps, and by contributing to the Yale Cadet Battalion."^[6] The six men would in turn, nominate twelve additional men for membership. Members were identified with a braid that could be worn on their uniform.^[7]

The society met every two weeks at various campus locations.^[8] It hosted lectures by military and foreign policy leaders, screened films, and held social events such as the annual Army-Navy Dance.^{[9] [10] [11] [12] [13]} It also offered the Col. Dean Hudnet Award for marksmanship in a competition that was open to any Military Science student at Yale.^[14] The award was named for a deceased professor of military science and tactics who was a member of the 1936 Olympic pistol team.^[15]

Cannon and Castle discontinued operations during World War II but reactivated in 1947 at its units' summer quarters in at Camp Campbell in Kentucky and Stewart Field in New York before returning to campus. However, Cannon and Castle ceased operations in 1967 during the Vietnam War and the eventual expulsion of ROTC from Yale in 1969. The Yale Archives houses Cannon and Castle's records and documents.^[16]

Current activities

Cannon and Castle holds an induction ceremony and dinner for its elected members. Throughout the academic year, the society hosts special film screenings, debates, and guest lectures open to the public. Meetings are generally held in the Yale Naval ROTC unit wardroom on 55 Whitney Avenue.

Membership

To be eligible for membership in Cannon and Castle, an individual must be an undergraduate enrolled in Yale College with military affiliation, whether active-duty, reserves, or ROTC (which returned to Yale in 2012^[17]). Elected ROTC cadets and midshipmen are generally in the top 25% of their class merit standing and possess a GPA greater than 3.90 in their military science courses. Other members come from the Eli Whitney Scholar community.

In exceptional circumstances, the society confers honorary membership to staff, faculty, graduate students, or fellows who have contributed significantly to the Yale military/veterans community. The commanding officers of Yale ROTC are ex-officio members of the society and sit on its Board of Regents, alongside society alumni members.

Notable members

Cannon and Castle's members have participated in many of the major wars of the past century, including World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Global War on Terrorism. Notable alumni include:

• Leslie Aspin, 1960 – U.S. Secretary of Defense and eleven-terms in the U.S. House of Representatives
• David L. Boren, 1963 – three-term U.S. Senator, Governor of Oklahoma, and president of the University of Oklahoma
• Nicholas Dockery - 2023 M.A.S., Army Major, 2x Silver Star recipient, 2022 U.S. Army Soldier of the Year
• Michael deVlaming Flinn – two-term Connecticut House of Representatives^{[18] [19]}
• Porter Goss – U.S. House of Representatives, Director of Central Intelligence, and the first Director of the Central Intelligence Agency^[20]
• Hardie Scott, 1928 – U.S. House of Representatives
• James Donald Strong, 1928 – colonel in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; tennis official at Wimbledon Championships, the U.S. Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open^[21]

Notable honorary members

• Christopher G. Cavoli – U.S. Army General and Supreme Allied Commander Europe
• Charles George Holle, 1928 – U.S. Army Major General, Army Distinguished Service Medal recipient, deputy chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers^{[22] [23] [24]}
• Paul Kennedy – historian
• Clarence Whittlesey Mendell, 1928 – Latin scholar, dean of Yale College^{[25] [26] [27]}
• Vernon Pritchard, 1928 – U.S. Army Major General, first-team All-American football player, Army Distinguished Service Medal recipient
• Charles Hyde Warren, 1928 – chair of Geology at Yale University, dean of the Sheffield Scientific School

See also

• Honor society
• Professional fraternities and sororities

Notes and References

1. Web site: Havemayer . Loomis . January 1961 . Yale's Extracurricular and Social Organizations 1780-1960 . 28 November 2021 . Eli Scholar's Page . Yale University.
2. News: 1929-05-25 . Military Fraternity Formed at Yale; Students of College and Sheffield Scientific School Eligible to Cannon and Castle. . en-US . 25 . The New York Times . 2023-02-02 . 0362-4331.
3. News: 25 February 1930 . Cannon and Castle Society Discusses Vital Problems . 1 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
4. Web site: 6 May 1942 . Cannon and Castle Elects Six Juniors . 2023-02-02 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
5. News: 1934-05-06 . Six Yale Juniors Picked For Cannon and Castle . en-US . Section 2, page 3 . The New York Times . 2023-02-02 . 0362-4331.
6. News: 1963-03-05 . William Schmidt Honored at Yale . 8 . Greeley Daily Tribune . 2023-02-02.
7. News: 7 April 1959 . Albert C. Simmonds, 1959, president of Cannon and Castle, Yale's military honor society, pins the braid of the society on Cadet Battalion Commander Peter H. Elebash, 1959. . 3 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
8. News: 25 February 1930 . Cannon and Castle Society Discusses Vital Problems . 3 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
9. News: 19 April 1948 . ROTC Honor Society To Present War Film . 3 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
10. News: 1 June 1948 . Cannon And Castle Will Hold Party Honor Society Fetes Three Officers Today . 1 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
11. News: 19 November 1947 . Cannon And Castle Holds Beer Bust . 3 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
12. News: 15 April 1960 . Linen, Time Publisher, To Talk in Strathcona On US Foreign Policy . 2 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
13. News: 3 February 1942 . Army-Navy Dance Set For Feb. 21 . 1 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
14. News: 13 April 1949 . MS Award Firing Will Begin Today: Cannon Castle to Offer Colonel Hudnet Award . 6 . Yale Daily News . February 2, 2023 . Yale Daily News Historical Archive.
15. News: 1943-11-03 . Col. Dean Hudnutt Dies in New Haven . 6 . Honolulu Star-Bulletin . 2023-02-02 . Newspapers.com.
16. Web site: Cannon and Castle Military Honor Society Records . 24 June 2022 . Archives at Yale Series Accession 1917-1972 . Yale University Manuscripts and Archives.
17. Web site: Welcome Reserve Officers Training Corps and Military Educational Assistance . 2023-02-02 . rotc.yale.edu.
18. Web site: MICHAEL FLINN Obituary (1941 - 2015) - Greenwich, CT - New York Times . 2023-02-02 . Legacy.com.
19. Web site: Yale College Class of 1962: Obituaries: Michael D. Flinn . 2023-02-02 . yale62.org.
20. News: 1961-10-08 . Mary L. Robinson Engaged to Wed Connecticut Man . 30 . Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . 2023-02-02 . Newspapers.com.
21. Web site: Patterson . Michael Robert . 2023-01-28 . James Donald Strong - Colonel, United States Army . 2023-02-02 . Arlington National Cemetery . en-US.
22. Web site: Patterson . Michael Robert . 2023-01-28 . Charles George Holle Major General, United States Army . 2023-02-02 . Arlington National Cemetery . en-US.
23. Web site: Charles Holle - Recipient - . 2023-02-02 . valor.militarytimes.com . en.
24. News: Charles G. Holle, 90, Dies . en-US . Washington Post . 2023-02-02 . 0190-8286.
25. Cole, T., & Ross, D. (1973). Tribute to Clarence Whittlesey Mendell. In Studies in Latin Language and Literature (Yale Classical Studies, pp. Vii-X). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511933745.001
26. Web site: Gordon . Laura . MENDELL, Clarence Whittlesey . 2023-02-02 . dbcs.rutgers.edu . en-gb.
27. News: 1970-12-16 . Dr. Clarence Mendell, 87 Dies; Latin Scholar Was Dean at Yale . en-US . 50 . The New York Times . 2023-02-02 . 0362-4331.