INDEPTH: COLIN POWELL
Timeline
CBC News Online | November 15, 2004
April 5, 1937
Born in New York City to Luther Theophilus and Maud Ariel Powell, originally from Jamaica.
June 1958
Graduates from City College of New York with a bachelor's degree in geology. Takes part in the Reserve Officer Training Corps – a program that trains post-secondary students to become officers in the U.S. military. He is commissioned as a second lieutenant on graudation.
Dec. 30, 1959
Promoted to first lieutenant.
1962
Marries Alma Johnson.
Secretary of State Colin Powell, left, sits with President Bush, center, and Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, right, during their meeting in Washington on Nov. 4, 2004. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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June 2, 1962
Promoted to rank of captain. Goes to Vietnam to serve as an advisor to an infantry battalion.
1963
The Powells' first child – Michael – is born. Michael Powell will serve as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission under President George W. Bush.
Colin Powell is wounded in action in Vietnam and receives the Purple Heart.
1964
Enrolls in Command and General Staff College.
Supports Democrat Lyndon Johnson in presidential election.
May 24, 1966
Promoted to rank of major.
1968
Powell goes to Vietnam again to serve as an infantry battalion executive officer and assistant chief of staff.
1969
Enrolls at George Washington University.
1970
Promoted to lieutenant-colonel.
1971
Earns a master's of business administration degree from George Washington University.
1972
Selected as White House Fellow. He also serves as special assistant to the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. Meets and impresses two key men at the OMB: Frank Carlucci and Casper Weinberger. Powell is promoted to major.
1973
Assumes command of the First Battalion, 32nd Infantry, in South Korea.
1974
Becomes operations research analyst in the office of the assistant defence secretary.
1975
Enrolls in the National War College.
1976
Assumes command of the Second Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, at Fort Campbell, Ky. He graduates with distinction from the National War College. Promoted to colonel.
1979
Serves as executive assistant to the secretary of energy and is promoted to brigadier-general.
1983
Serves as deputy commander at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., and becomes senior military assistant to the secretary of defence.
1986
Assumes command of the U.S. Army V in Frankfurt, West Germany. He also testifies before the Tower Commission about his role in the Iran-Contra affair.
1987
Becomes deputy national security advisor, then national security advisor.
1989
Promoted to four star general.
Named chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. At 52, he's the youngest person to hold the job – and the first African-American.
U.S. army ousts Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega.
1991
Powell is at the head as the U.S.-led Operation Desert Storm drives Iraq out of Kuwait.
November 1993
Powell steps down as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
1994
Powell plays key role in the negotiation of a compromise with Haiti's military junta allowing Jean-Bertrand Aristide to serve as president after winning a national election.
November 1995
Powell announces he will not run for president in 1996. For the first time, identifies himself as a Republican.
August 1996
Gives a key speech to the Republican National Convention.
1997
Back President Clinton on several major issues including a treaty that would ban poison gas weapons.
August 2000
Gives the keynote address at the Republican National Convention.
December 2000
George W. Bush names Powell as his choice for secretary of state, the first African-American to hold that post.
February 2001
Powell visits Egypt, Syria and Israel. During the trip, he agrees that the UN should ease sanctions on Iraq, arguing they hurt civilians while Saddam remains in control.
October 2001
Powell travels to Pakistan to thank its leaders for supporting U.S. efforts in Afghanistan in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. Powell also pledges American help in easing tensions between India and Pakistan.
September 2002
Powell acknowledges disagreements among Bush's top advisers in dealing with Iraq: Vice-President Cheney called for prompt U.S. action, citing the failure of UN weapons inspections. Powell called weapons inspections "a first step."
Powell says Iraq is in "material breach" of earlier UN resolutions on weapons inspections. He calls for a stronger UN resolution.
December 2002
Powell cites serious omissions in Iraq's latest weapons declaration. Says Iraq is in breach of the latest resolution. U.S. starts deploying troops and combat aircraft to the Gulf Region.
January 2003
After France and Germany announce their opposition to immediate military action against Iraq, Powell says he is not worried that the U.S would have to act on its own.
Feb. 5, 2003
In a lengthy address to the United Nations Security Council, Powell outlines the evidence against Iraq. Powell describes Iraq's ability to produce and stockpile weapons of mass destruction, including chemical and biological agents. He cites clear links between Saddam's regime and organizations such as al-Qaeda.
May 3, 2003
Powell calls on Syria and Lebanon to stop supporting "terrorist networks" in the wake of the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Sept. 14, 2003
Powell spends two days visiting Iraq, including a village that was the site of a poison gas attack under Saddam's crackdown on Kurds.
Dec. 15, 2003
Powell undergoes successful surgery for prostate cancer.
Jan. 24, 2004
Powell concedes Iraq may not have possessed weapons of mass destruction before the war. His comments came after the former head of the U.S. weapons inspection team, David Kay, said he did not believe there were any weapons stockpiles.
April 2, 2004
Powell admits the evidence he presented at the United Nations before the invasion of Iraq may have been wrong.
Aug. 27, 2004
Powell's trip to Athens to represent the United States at the closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games is cancelled. The move comes after anti-American demonstrations in the Greek capital.
Sept. 9, 2004
Powell declares that the killing going on in Sudan's Darfur region constitutes genocide.
Sept. 24, 2004
Powell meets with Libya's foreign minister, Abdurahman Shalgam. It's the highest-level meeting between officials of the two countries in 25 years. The two talk about Libya's efforts to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.
Oct. 25, 2004
During a 24-hour visit to China, Powell angers Taiwan by saying Taiwan is not an independent country and would have to eventually reunite with China. It appears to be a sharp deviation from American policy on Taiwan in place since 1972. Later, State Department officials say Powell used "wrong language."
Nov. 15, 2004
The White House confirms that Powell had submitted his resignation on Friday, Nov. 12, and that it had been accepted. Addressing reporters, Powell says he is returning to private life and that had never intended to serve more than one term.
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