September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940 | U.S. Army, World War I

Today, Famous Veterans remembers Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, the celebrated American novelist who gave the world The Great Gatsby and became one of the defining voices of the Jazz Age.

But long before his literary fame, Fitzgerald was a young U.S. Army officer preparing to serve in World War I. His military experience would lead him to the woman who became his wife and influence the direction of his writing career.

🇺🇸 From Princeton University to the U.S. Army

In 1917, as the United States entered World War I, Fitzgerald left Princeton University without graduating and joined the U.S. Army.

Although he had already demonstrated considerable literary ambition, his academic performance had suffered as he devoted himself to writing plays, poetry, and stories. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the infantry in October 1917.

Believing he might die in the war before becoming a published author, Fitzgerald worked feverishly on his first novel, initially titled The Romantic Egotist. He continued writing while undergoing military training, including at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

❤️ An Army Assignment That Changed His Life

In June 1918, Fitzgerald was assigned to Camp Sheridan near Montgomery, Alabama.

While stationed there, the 21-year-old officer attended a local country club dance, where he met Zelda Sayre, a young Southern socialite and the daughter of an Alabama Supreme Court judge.

The two quickly developed a romance. Fitzgerald was captivated by Zelda’s lively personality, independence, and love of excitement.

However, their relationship faced an obstacle: Fitzgerald had yet to establish himself as a successful writer and lacked the financial security Zelda wanted before marriage.

Their courtship continued as he pursued his literary ambitions.

📖 The War Ends, and a Literary Career Begins

Fitzgerald’s infantry regiment was preparing for overseas service when the Armistice was signed on November 11, 1918.

The war ended before he could deploy to Europe, and he never experienced combat. He was discharged from the Army in February 1919.

Determined to marry Zelda, Fitzgerald moved to New York City and found work in advertising. But his modest income and uncertain prospects contributed to Zelda breaking off their engagement.

He returned to St. Paul, Minnesota, and devoted himself to rewriting his novel.

That determination paid off. This Side of Paradise was published on March 26, 1920, bringing Fitzgerald immediate literary recognition.

Just eight days later, on April 3, 1920, Scott and Zelda married in New York City.

Their relationship, which began during his Army service, would become one of the most famous marriages of the Jazz Age.

✍️ Famous Friendships and a Fellow World War I Veteran

Fitzgerald’s friendships also connected him to some of the most influential literary figures of his generation.

At Princeton, he had befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson and poet John Peale Bishop. Wilson remained an important literary friend throughout Fitzgerald’s career.

Later, while living in France during the 1920s, Fitzgerald developed a close but sometimes complicated friendship with fellow American author Ernest Hemingway.

Hemingway had served in World War I as a volunteer ambulance driver with the American Red Cross in Italy, where he was wounded. Although Hemingway’s wartime service was different from Fitzgerald’s Army commission, both men belonged to a generation whose lives and literature were shaped by the war.

Fitzgerald championed Hemingway’s early writing, and the two became prominent figures in the expatriate literary community associated with the Lost Generation.

🌟 A Lasting American Legacy

Fitzgerald went on to write The Beautiful and Damned, The Great Gatsby, and Tender Is the Night, exploring themes of wealth, ambition, love, and the American Dream.

His own experiences—including his early romantic disappointments, his military service, his pursuit of Zelda, and his relationships with fellow writers—helped shape his fiction.

F. Scott Fitzgerald passed away on December 21, 1940, at just 44 years old.

Today, on the anniversary of his birth, we remember not only the author behind one of America’s most celebrated novels but also the young Army officer whose military assignment helped change the course of his life.

🇺🇸 Happy Heavenly Birthday, F. Scott Fitzgerald! Thank you for your service and your lasting contributions to American literature.

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