A 3-goal handicap player, Terry Allen played in the US team at the 1920 Olympics which beat Belgium 11-3 in the bronze medal match after losing 3-13 to Spain in their opening game. A month earlier, Allen and two of his fellow Olympians, Arthur Harris and Nelson Margetts, were in the American Army side which beat Foxhunters 9-5 to win the Novices Cup at Ranelagh. Not only was Terry Allen an outstanding polo player he was one of the US Army’s greatest generals. He was trained at West Point and at the Catholic University of America. He served in both World War I and World War II, commanding the 1st Infantry Division in North Africa and in the invasion of Sicily during World War II. For an alleged tactical mistake he had to return to the US for a short time before he returned as commander of the 104th Infantry Division, called the Timberwolf Division, which landed in France in September 1944, and which was known for its night fighting prowess, conquering Köln and Halle.
Retiring in 1946 with the rank of major general, his decorations included the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, the Distinguished Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster. He was also awarded high honors by the British and French governments. The British Field Marshall, Sir Harold Alexander, described Allen as “the finest division commander he had seen in two World Wars.” In his memory, The United States Military Academy presents the “General Terry de la Mesa Allen Award” to the student with the highest rating in Military Science. Allen’s son, a lieutenant-colonel, was killed in action in 1967 during the Vietnam War.
United States