Editing Spiro Agnew (section)

==War and after==
===World War II (1941–1945)===
By the time of the marriage, Agnew had been [[Conscription in the United States|drafted]] into the United States Army. Shortly after the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]] in December 1941, he began [[United States Army Basic Training|basic training]] at [[Camp Croft]] in [[South Carolina]]. There, he met people from a variety of backgrounds: "I had led a very sheltered life—I became unsheltered very quickly."{{sfn|Coffey|2015|pp=9–10}} Eventually, Agnew was sent to the [[Officer Candidate School (United States Army)|Officer Candidate School]] at [[Fort Knox]] in [[Kentucky]], and on May 24, 1942—three days before his wedding—he was commissioned as a [[Second lieutenant#United States|second lieutenant]].{{sfn|Witcover|1972|p=39}}

After a two-day honeymoon, Agnew returned to Fort Knox. He served there, or at nearby [[Fort Campbell]], for nearly two years in a variety of administrative roles, before being sent to England in March 1944 as part of the pre-[[D-Day]] build-up.{{sfn|Coffey|2015|pp=9–10}} He remained on standby in [[Birmingham]] until late in the year, when he was posted to the [[54th Infantry Regiment (United States)|54th Armored Infantry Battalion]] in France as a replacement officer. After briefly serving as a rifle platoon leader, Agnew commanded the battalion's service company. The battalion became part of Combat Command "B" of the [[10th Armored Division (United States)|10th Armored Division]], which saw action in the [[Battle of the Bulge]], including the [[Siege of Bastogne]]—in all, "thirty-nine days in the hole of the doughnut", as one of Agnew's men put it.{{sfn|Witcover|1972|pp=40–41}} Thereafter, the 54th Battalion fought its way into Germany, seeing action at [[Mannheim]], [[Heidelberg]], and [[Crailsheim]], before reaching [[Garmisch-Partenkirchen]] in Bavaria as the war concluded.{{sfn|Witcover|1972|pp=40–41}} Agnew returned home for [[Military discharge|discharge]] in November 1945, having been awarded the [[Combat Infantryman Badge]] and the [[Bronze Star Medal|Bronze Star]].{{sfn|Coffey|2015|pp=9–10}}{{sfn|Witcover|1972|pp=40–41}}

===Postwar years (1945–1956)===
On return to civilian life, Agnew resumed his legal studies, and secured a job as a [[law clerk]] with the [[Baltimore]] firm of Smith and Barrett. Until that time, Agnew had been largely non-political; his nominal allegiance had been to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], following his father's beliefs. The firm's senior partner, Lester Barrett, advised Agnew that if he wanted a career in politics, he should become a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]. There were already many ambitious young Democrats in Baltimore and its suburbs, whereas competent, personable Republicans were scarcer. Agnew took Barrett's advice; on moving with family to the suburb of [[Lutherville, Maryland|Lutherville]] in 1947, Agnew registered as a Republican, though he did not immediately become involved in politics.{{sfn|Coffey|2015|p=10}}{{sfn|Witcover|1972|p=44}}
[[File:Towson Courthouse.jpg|thumb|left|alt=A courthouse, seen beyond landscaped grounds|The courthouse at [[Towson]], in Baltimore County, Maryland]]
In 1947, Agnew graduated with a [[Bachelor of Laws]] and passed the [[Bar examination in the United States|bar examination]] in [[Maryland]]. He started a law practice in downtown Baltimore, but was not successful, and took a job as an [[insurance investigator]].{{sfn|Witcover|1972|p=44}} A year later, Agnew moved to Schreiber's, a [[supermarket chain]], where his role was store detective.{{sfn|Cohen|Witcover|1974|pp=17–18}} He remained there for four years, a period briefly interrupted in 1951 by a recall to the Army after the outbreak of the [[Korean War]]. Agnew resigned from Schreiber's in 1952, and resumed his legal practice, specializing in [[labor law]].{{sfn|Witcover|1972|pp=45–48}}

In 1955, Barrett was appointed a judge in [[Towson]], the [[county seat]] of Baltimore. Agnew moved his office there; at the same time, he moved his family from Lutherville to [[Loch Raven, Baltimore|Loch Raven]]. There, he led a typical suburban lifestyle, serving as president of the local school district's [[Parent-Teacher Association]], joining [[Kiwanis]], and participating in a range of social and community activities.{{sfn|Witcover|1972|pp=49–52}} Historian [[William Manchester]] summed up Agnew in those days: "His favorite musician was [[Lawrence Welk]]. His leisure interests were all {{Linktext|midcult}}: watching the [[Baltimore Colts]] on television, listening to [[Mantovani]], and reading the sort of prose the ''[[Reader's Digest]]'' liked to condense. He was a lover of order and an almost compulsive conformist."{{sfn|Manchester|1975|p= 476}}