Editing Spiro Agnew (section)

===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}}