He was a "war scholar" and strategic thinker in times of "complex and dynamic change" - with these words the then NATO Commander-in-Chief General Curtis Scaparrotti introduced Christopher Cavoli to the post of European Commander of the US Army in Wiesbaden four and a half years ago.
The wiry officer now has four stars himself and will now be Scaparrotti's successor at the NATO headquarters in Mons, Belgium.
Peter Badenhop
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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Cavoli, who was born in Würzburg in 1964 as the son of an Italian-American army family and is known within the American army as a pronounced expert on Europe and Russia, was bid farewell to his current position with a festive ceremony at the Clay barracks in Wiesbaden on Tuesday.
The general has risen unusually quickly in recent years, he acts very reserved in public, but is considered in military circles to be technically competent and well suited for his new leadership role.
In addition to English, he speaks fluent Italian, French and Russian and is an advocate of close multinational cooperation within NATO.
In front of numerous highly decorated guests, Cavoli handed over the Wiesbaden command to his successor Darryl Williams with a flag parade, gun salute and the intonation of the Army song.
He has been in the army for almost 40 years and got his fourth star a few days ago.
Most recently, the 61-year-old headed the military academy in West Point, and now he is the first African American to head the US Army in Europe and Africa.
Williams has been stationed in Germany several times, including in Wiesbaden, and therefore speaks good German.
He, too, is regarded as an expert on Europe and, like his predecessor, will play a central role in the organization and logistical handling of arms deliveries to Ukraine.