George H.W. Bush was the 41st President of the United States and served as vice president under Ronald Reagan. He was also the father of George W. Bush, the 43rd President.

Who Was George H.W. Bush?

George H.W. Bush fought in WWII and was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1966. He served as Ronald Reagan's vice president for two terms and then won the 1988 U.S. presidential race, before losing his bid for a second term to Bill Clinton. Afterward, he made appearances for son George W. Bush, who also was elected U.S. president, and co-founded the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund.

Early Life

George Herbert Walker Bush was born on June 12, 1924, in Milton, Massachusetts. The son of Senator Prescott Bush, he was born into a wealthy and politically active family. Bush attended Phillips Academy, an elite boarding school in Andover, Massachusetts. He began dating his future wife, known as Barbara Pierce at the time, after they were introduced at a Christmas dance in 1941. Bush was 17 years old, and Barbara was just 16. They married in January 1945.

On his 18th birthday, Bush enlisted in the U.S. Navy, becoming the youngest pilot in the Navy during World War II. He served as a combat pilot in the war, flying carrier-based torpedo bomber aircraft and a total of 58 combat missions. He had a brush with death when his plane was hit during a bombing run in the Pacific. After managing to escape the burning aircraft, he was quickly rescued by a U.S. Navy submarine. Bush was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his WWII service.