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George Smith Patton, Jr.
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QUOTE: There
are three ways that men get what they want; by planning, by working, and by
praying. Any great military operation takes careful planning, or thinking.
Then you must have well-trained troops to carry it out: that's working. But
between the plan and the operation there is always an unknown. That unknown
spells defeat or victory, success or failure. It is the reaction of the actors
to the ordeal when it actually comes. Some people call that getting the breaks;
I call it God. God has His part, or margin in everything, That's where prayer
comes in. (As
quoted in "The True Story of
The Patton Prayer" by James H. O'Neill in Review of the News (6
October 1971))
AUTHOR:
George Smith Patton, Jr. (November 11,
1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army, best
known for his command of the Seventh United States Army, and later the Third
United States Army, in the European Theater of World War II.
Born in 1885 to a
privileged family with an extensive military background, Patton attended the
Virginia Military Institute, and later the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He participated in the 1912 Olympic pentathlon, and was instrumental in
designing the M1913 "Patton Saber". Patton first saw combat during
the Pancho Villa Expedition, in one of the earliest instances of mechanized
combat. He later joined the newly formed United States Tank Corps of the
American Expeditionary Forces and saw action in World War I, first commanding
the U.S. tank school in France before being wounded near the end of the war. In
the interwar period, Patton remained a central figure in the development of
armored warfare doctrine in the U.S. Army, serving on numerous staff positions
throughout the country. Rising through the ranks, he commanded the U.S. 2nd
Armored Division at the time of the U.S. entry into World War II.
Patton led U.S.
troops into the Mediterranean theater with an invasion of Casablanca during
Operation Torch in 1942, where he later established himself as an effective
commander through his rapid rehabilitation of the demoralized U.S. II Corps. He
commanded the Seventh Army during the Invasion of Sicily, where he beat British
General Bernard Montgomery to Messina. There he was embroiled in controversy
after he slapped two shell-shocked soldiers under his command, and was
temporarily removed from battlefield command. Patton returned to command the
Third Army following the invasion of Normandy in 1944, where he led a highly
successful, rapid armored drive across France. He led the relief of beleaguered
U.S. troops at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge, and advanced his army
into Nazi Germany by the end of the war.
After the war, Patton
became the military governor of Bavaria, but he was relieved of this post
because of his statements on denazification. He commanded the Fifteenth United
States Army for slightly more than two months. Patton died following an
automobile accident in Europe on December 21, 1945.
Patton's colorful
image, hard-driving personality and success as a commander were at times
overshadowed by his controversial public statements regarding the Soviet Union
which were out of accord with American foreign policy. But his philosophy of
leading from the front and his ability to inspire his troops with
vulgarity-ridden speeches, such as a famous address to the Third Army,
attracted favorable attention. His strong emphasis on rapid and aggressive
offensive action proved effective. While Allied leaders held sharply differing
opinions on Patton, he was regarded highly by his opponents in the German High
Command. A popular, award-winning biographical film released in 1970 helped
transform Patton into an American folk hero.
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