{"id":110941,"date":"2026-04-18T11:14:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T14:14:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/nancy-maces-father-former-citadel-commandant-has-died\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T11:14:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T14:14:45","slug":"nancy-maces-father-former-citadel-commandant-has-died","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ubirataonline.com.br\/en\/nancy-maces-father-former-citadel-commandant-has-died\/","title":{"rendered":"Nancy Mace\u2019s father, former Citadel commandant, has died"},"content":{"rendered":"


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He would hold the role as third-in-command at the school for eight years.<\/p>\n

When he told the school’s board of visitors he was stepping down, he said he had accomplished what he came to do \u2014 help men and women cadets coexist at the college.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel I made a small difference in the life of The Citadel,\u201d Mace said in 2005 when announcing his retirement.<\/p>\n

That year, when state lawmakers recognized Mace for his contributions<\/a> at the state\u2019s military college, the resolution noted that under his leadership some 95 women had graduated from the Corps of Cadets.<\/p>\n

The year Mace retired as commandant, the 1,900-member body included about 120 women.<\/p>\n

In an April 16 statement, Citadel President Gen. Glenn Walters noted Mace led \u201cour cadets and community through a period of tremendous change.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was a model Citadel officer and he will be greatly missed. On behalf of The Citadel, Gail and I offer our deepest condolences to his entire family on his passing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Born in Hampton County, Mace attended The Citadel and earned the nickname \u201cBulldog.\u201d He graduated in 1963.<\/p>\n

He became something of a living legend. In her memoir, Nancy Mace wrote that her father built a near-mythic reputation at The Citadel for his extreme backwoods antics, including poaching alligators to pay for school and using them to intimidate freshmen.<\/p>\n

In one story, he allegedly threw a live alligator into a cadet\u2019s room to make a point about discipline, while in another, he chained a gator to the parade field overnight, leaving officers scrambling to remove it the next morning.<\/p>\n

The stories, she wrote, cemented his image as both feared and legendary among cadets.<\/p>\n

The persona he cultivated as a cadet was later reinforced by his record in combat.<\/p>\n

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U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace talks with her father James E. Mace at her election watch party at Patriots Point Links in Mount Pleasant. on Tuesday, June 14, 2022. Andrew J. Whitaker\/Staff<\/p>\n

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\n awhitaker@postandcourier.com<\/span>
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He served in the Army for 28 years and retired as an infantry brigadier general. His service in Vietnam made him one of the most decorated graduates The Citadel ever produced.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n