George S. Hammond

This article is about the Tau'ri general. For the ship named in his honor, see George Hammond.

"As long as I am in command of the SGC, we will hold our self to the highest ethical standard."

―George Hammond

George S. Hammond^[1] was the Commanding Officer of Stargate Command for seven years, before becoming head of Homeworld Command.

Biography

Background information

Major General George Hammond was the head of the United States Air Force's Stargate Command. He replaced Major General W. O. West who commanded Project Giza during the original excursion to Abydos. An Air Force officer since the mid-1960s, shutting down the Stargate program was to have been his last assignment before retirement. (SG1: "Children of the Gods")

Master Bra'tac has been known to call him "Hammond of Texas", referring to Hammond's home state (and occasionally gesturing with a palm over his head, referring to Hammond's bald head). Hammond is a widower; his wife Margaret Hammond died of cancer. He has two grandchildren, Kayla and Tessa, whose phone number is keyed to the 1 button on his office phone above the President of the United States. A former Air Force pilot during the Vietnam War, Hammond was initially reluctant to use the Stargate for exploration purposes. (SG1: "Chain Reaction", "Revelations")

1969

In 1969, Lt. Hammond met SG-1 from approximately 30 years in the future and read a note that he had written to himself. After SG-1 broke out of military custody, Colonel Jack O'Neill shot Hammond with a Zat'nik'tel in order to protect Hammond from a Court-martial for helping the team escape. (SG1: "1969")

1999

When SG-1 was captured by Hathor he went to great lengths to try to rescue them. He sent every team he could to the rescue not even making it an order, asking for volunteers (they all volunteered before he could even finish asking them), trying to get the President of the United States to let him send more men as reinforcements, and, when that failed he went into battle himself to help his people out. He traveled to Chulak and joined Teal'c and Master Bra'tac in gathering Jaffa to help out. When Teal'c piloted the Needle Threader, Hammond joined him with the job of firing the weapons. With Teal'c flying it and Hammond firing the weapons the two took out the Staff cannon emplacements that were causing trouble. After Hammond and Teal'c defeated the staff cannon emplacements he let out a victorious "yeehaaa" and joined SG-1, and the other teams, on the ground, much to their surprise. (SG1: "Into the Fire")

2003

As time went on, however, Hammond came to realize the benefits of Gate travel. He would sometimes butt heads with Colonel Jack O'Neill on some points, but he relied on O'Neill and SG-1 more than any other unit, trusting their respective judgments and more than once showing a willingness to go along with their suggestions regardless of the limited evidence available, such as when he sent SG-1 to Abydos to defend the Abydonians against an attack from Anubis, based on information that O'Neill had allegedly acquired from the currently-Ascended Dr. Daniel Jackson. (SG1: "Full Circle")

2004

After Henry Hayes was inaugurated as President of the United States, Hammond, a former Air Force colleague of Hayes's, was assigned as one of his advisers during the conflict with Anubis, and commanded the Prometheus at the Battle of Antarctica. After the Battle, Hammond was promoted to Lt. General and appointed the first commander of Homeworld Security, a department which was in control of Stargate Command, the Prometheus project, Area 51 and the Alpha Site. (SG1: "Lost City, Part 1", "Lost City, Part 2", "New Order, Part 2")

An alien on M5S-224 in the Pegasus Galaxy impersonated Hammond while making contact with Major John Sheppard's team assigned to Atlantis. He attempted to trick them into believing that they had returned to Earth, but it was really hallucinations brought on when they attempted to dial the Stargate on the alien's planet. The Stargate drew energy from the life forms on the planet, who existed in a naturally gaseous state, and the energy required to send the team to Earth was the equivalent of millions of the creatures. The alien was convinced to let them go when Sheppard assured him that they wouldn't take the opportunity to go home at the cost of millions of innocent lives. (SGA: "Home")

During his term as Head of Homeworld Security, he was asked to pick a commander for the Prometheus on a rescue mission to Atlantis. He decided to command that mission himself. He took CMSgt. Walter Harriman and Dr. Daniel Jackson along with him but due to Vala Mal Doran hijacking the ship, he was stranded aboard a disabled Al'kesh along with everyone else except Daniel. Knowing that they needed new control crystals to fix the engines, he risked his life to ring over to a disabled Tel'tak nearby that had almost no oxygen on board. He got the crystals and managed to ring them back but collapsed before he could ring back himself. He was rescued by Colonel Albert Reynolds and recovered with no apparent ill effects. Later, he led the crew in the Al'kesh in retrieving the Prometheus, somehow tracking it through hyperspace and arriving just in time to drive off an attacking force and save the ship from destruction. Afterward, due to the damage that the ship took, the crew was forced to return home without ever making it to Atlantis. (SG1: "Prometheus Unbound")

2005

He later took a political position in President Henry Hayes' administration, and was later succeeded as commander of Homeworld Security by Major General Jack O'Neill. (SG1: "Avalon, Part 1")

Hammond appeared in a civilian suit during the Ori plague outbreak on Earth addressing military personnel where he was rushed away by Secret Service, later appearing at Stargate Command talking to Major General Henry Landry and SG-1 before being called back to Washington D.C.. His retired status is confirmed by Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter during a meeting with an alternate Hammond. (SG1: "The Fourth Horseman, Part 1", "The Fourth Horseman, Part 2", "The Road Not Taken")

2008

George Hammond died of a heart attack sometime in 2008. The Daedalus-Class warship, Phoenix, was renamed the George Hammond in his honor. (SGA: "Enemy at the Gate")

Alternate realities

In an alternate reality, George Hammond was a Colonel, under the command of Brigadier General Jack O'Neill. He was killed defending Cheyenne Mountain from Apophis. (SG1: "There But for the Grace of God")
In an alternate reality, George Hammond was being tortured by Apophis for the location of the Beta Site. He was saved by Dr. Samantha Carter and Teal'c from our reality. He was later killed, but resurrected by the Asgard. His rank is never specified, though the Teal'c from our reality referred to him as "General Hammond". (SG1: "Point of View")
In an alternate reality that Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter accidentally traveled to in 2007, this George Hammond had yet to retire and was still in command of Stargate Command, second only to President Henry Landry. He agreed to allow Carter to go back to her reality if she helped them finish Major Samantha Carter's research into Matter bridge technology. After Carter told them that Merlin's Arthur's Mantle device was a faster way to save the planet from on Ori attack. After the plan succeed, he convinced Landry to allow Carter to return home. (SG1: "The Road Not Taken")

Alternate timelines

In an alternate timeline, George Hammond was said to have died from a heart attack by the Aschen in 2004, however Dr. Janet Fraiser claimed he was in perfect health. Several years later, she believed he may have been murdered for trying to reveal the infertility side effect of the anti-aging vaccine. (SG1: "2010")
In an alternate timeline, George Hammond was in command of Cheyenne Mountain, but without the Stargate program, in the rank of Brigadier General. The Beta Gate was moved there after Dr. Samantha Carter discovered its location. General Hammond sent Colonel Jack O'Neill and his team on a reconnaissance mission to Chulak. He allowed use of their Puddle Jumper for tactical reasons, but not to go back in time. (SG1: "Moebius, Part 1", "Moebius, Part 2")
In another alternate timeline, he was a Lt. General at The Pentagon, but did not personally recognize any of SG-1, remaining apathetic when Colonel Samantha Carter addressed him. He prepared four F-15's for SG-1 to travel to Antarctica to use the Stargate to travel to Taonas to aquire a Zero Point Module to power the Antarctic outpost. Later, he informed President Henry Hayes that McMurdo Air Force Base had been destroyed by Ba'al's fleet from orbit. When Ba'al's fleet began bombarding the planet, he informed President Hayes that all the elevator shafts had collapsed and that SG-1 had received the message that the other Stargate was in Russia. (SG1: "Continuum")

Service Awards and Decorations

Commanders of Stargate Command

Major General George S. Hammond (1997-2000)

Major General Henry Bauer (2000)

Major General George S. Hammond (2000-2004)

General Shaun Woodburn (2004)

Major General George S. Hammond (2004)

Dr. Elizabeth Weir (2004)

Brigadier General Jack O'Neill (2004-2005)

Major General Henry Landry (2005-201?)

Brigadier General Samantha Carter (201?-)

Over the course of his military career, George Hammond has received a number of awards and decorations for his service in the United States Air Force. (SG1: "Fair Game")

General Hammond's rack on his jacket depicts the following decorations: (SG1: "The Enemy Within")

Behind the scenes

General Hammond apparently retired from active service sometime as he was wearing a civilian suit in “The Fourth Horseman, Part 1”. His retirement status is confirmed in “The Road Not Taken” by Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter. He returned as a voice cameo for the tenth season episode “200” and as an alternate version of himself in “The Road Not Taken”. Although he seems to have retired he seems to still hold some kind of civilian position in the administration as he was shown giving a speech and was hustled off by the Secret Service when the threat of the Prior plague was revealed.
Don S. Davis, the man who played General Hammond, died of a heart attack on June 29, 2008. The character's death was written in to reflect this and as a tribute to him. Furthermore, the Phoenix was renamed the George Hammond in his honor. Also, Children of the Gods: The Final Cut is dedicated to Davis.

External links

Gen. George Hammond on the official MGM website. (backup link)
Template:SciFi
George Hammond in Kathleen Ritter's Lexicon.
GateWorld's article on George Hammond in The Stargate Omnipedia
George Hammond article on Stargate SG-1 Solutions' The StargateWiki
George Hammond on Wikipedia

References and notes

↑ Template:SciFi

Preceded by W. O. West as commander of Project Giza	Commander of Stargate Command 1997–2000	Succeeded by Henry Bauer
Preceded by Henry Bauer	Commander of Stargate Command 2000–2004	Succeeded by Elizabeth Weir
Preceded by New Office	Head of Homeworld Security 2004–2005	Succeeded by Jack O'Neill

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