Vietnam War Clifford Barnes Drake (November 7, 1918 – October 25, 1994) was a highly decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps with the rank of major general.

[1] Drake resigned his reserve rank in order to accept an appointment as second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps on July 1, 1940.

Drake was then attached to the Marine detachment aboard the transport ship USS Argonne for a brief period, before he was posted to the staff of Vice Admiral Robert L. Ghormley, Commander, South Pacific Area.

His regiment was subsequently attached to the newly created 4th Marine Division under Major General Harry Schmidt as its main artillery component.

The 14th Marines later relocated to Camp Dunlap for further training and Drake received word of its upcoming combat deployment to the Pacific: the Marshall Islands.

For his actions on 25 July, when the battalion's command post was shelled, Drake received the Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and Navy Presidential Unit Citation.

He was subsequently ordered to nearby Coronado Base, as an artillery instructor within Troop Training Unit, Pacific Fleet under Major General Harry K. Pickett.

[1] Drake was transferred to Washington, D.C., in March 1948 and appointed administrative assistant and aide to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Arthur W. Radford.

He also earned a Master of Arts degree in education from Stanford University in June 1951 and subsequently joined the 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

Drake served under Major General Edwin A. Pollock as assistant chief of staff for personnel and then as commander of the 4th and later 3rd Battalions, 10th Marine Regiment.

Upon graduation in June of the following year, he became the Marine Corps representative to the British Joint Service Amphibious Warfare Center at Poole, Dorset.

One month later, Drake was appointed executive officer of the personnel division at Headquarters Marine Corps and served in that capacity under Major General August Larson until July 1961, when he was ordered to the Far East.

[1] He was subsequently ordered to Vietnam, where he assumed duties as deputy commander of XXIV Corps under Lieutenant General Richard G. Stilwell.

[1][8][9] In June 1969, Drake was relieved by Major General Edwin B. Wheeler and returned to the United States, where he assumed duties as assistant chief of staff for operations at Headquarters Marine Corps.