In 1887, he became the
first sergeant of his
company, and in 1889 received a promotion to
second lieutenant. As he rose through the ranks he took part in the
American Indian Wars, served in
Puerto Rico during the
Spanish–American War. He was with the 11th Infantry in 1901 when it was ordered to the Philippines during the
Philippine–American War, and he served at Carigara on the island of Leyte. In 1902, he took part in combat against Filipino insurgents on Leyte and Samar, and in one engagement he was wounded by a bolo. During the
Pancho Villa Expedition, Alexander served on the
Texas–
Mexico border. He was a distinguished graduate of the
Army School of the Line in 1909 and graduated from the Army Staff College in 1910. When the United States joined the Allied forces in World War I, Alexander proved his valor and was able to rise through the ranks. He was also given the responsibility of inspector general in the Zone of Communications from November 1917 to February 1918. Alexander was promoted to brigadier general in February 1918 and then to major general in August 1918. From the headquarters of the
77th Division in
France, Alexander was one of the officers who reported on the
Lost Battalion incident. A group of around 500 soldiers, in nine companies, had disappeared after going into the
Argonne Forest expecting American and French Allied troops to meet them. This had followed an American attack on German forces and, with
Major Charles White Whittlesey leading the group, the men found that the French troops had been stalled. As a result, the battalion was cut off by the Germans who surprised them and suffered large losses with only 197 men coming out of the ravine. In the report he states: In France, he commanded the
41st Division, 63rd Infantry Brigade, and the 77th Division. He commanded the 77th from August 1918 onwards, including during the
Meuse–Argonne offensive, where he was awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) in October for heroism at
Grandpré, Ardennes. The medal's citation reads: He was also awarded the
Croix de Guerre (France), two citations and was made a Commander of the
Legion of Honor (France). in October 1918. In 1919, Alexander received the
honorary degree of
LL.D. from
St. John's College of
Annapolis, Maryland. Alexander later commanded the
3rd Division and
Fort Lewis,
Washington. He retired in 1927 at the rank of major general. He authored a memoir, 1931's
Memories of the World War, 1917–1918. Also in 1931, Alexander received an honorary LL.D. from the
College of Puget Sound. In 1933, Alexander was a delegate to the Washington state convention that ratified the
Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution. He was a candidate for chairman of the convention but after a deadlock he withdrew in favor of a compromise choice. On the ratification question, Alexander was in the majority, which voted to enact the Twenty-first amendment by a vote of 94 to 4. ==Personal life==