George Patton

Youths

George Smith Patton was born the November 11th 1885 in California. Wire of an easy family and grandson of a general officer confederated at the time of the American Civil War, Patton followed a teaching, exempted by his/her parents, based on the traditional literature, mythology, the history as well as Christian morals. He spoke, in addition to English, French and read Greek and Latin traditional works in the text (in particular Thucydide and Jules César). He was a fine expert of the United States and Great Britain, French history. A military brilliance historian and a brilliant tactician.

It is only in 1897 that Patton integrated the school cycle “traditional”, without knowing neither to read nor to write but with a physique of athlete.

Like George Marshall, Patton studied at the military Institute of Virginia (Virginia Military Institute) then it integrated the Military academy of West Point of which it left graduate in 1909 as an officer cavalry (second lieutenant).

Good athlete, Patton took part, with the agreement of the Staff, with the Olympic Games of Stockholm in 1912. He finished fifth of the Pentathlon. It is also in 1912 qu ' it wrote in France a report on the military tactics most adapted to the Norman Bocage . Patton was a man resulting from a very rich family and he married the girl of a tycoon of the textile, Beatrice Banning Ayer, whose fortune exceeded his, which enabled them to live without concern material. George Patton did not need her pay to live, but it needed the army to express what it was in the heart: a soldier.

First World War

In 1913 it was affected in Fort Riley and Fort Bliss under the orders of already famous the general Pershing which took it under its wing. Under the orders of this last, Patton took part in 1916 in Mexico, with raids against Pancho Villa. It delivered even a duel to the gun against one of the chiefs of staff of Villa, which lost the life there.

The entry in war of the United States at the time of the first world war in 1917, gave to the impetuous Patton lieutenant-colonel the possibility of turning over to Europe. Belonging to the American force expeditionary (AEF), it formed and organized the brigade of tanks close to Langres (in France). At the time of the first operation of the American army on the French soil, it accepted the responsibility of order the counter-offensive of Saint-Mihiel in September 1918, after which it will obtain the provisional rank of colonel.

Wounded at the time of the offensive of Meuse-Argonne, it was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross-country race and with the Distinguished Service Medal

Irony of fate, the impetuous colonel the very same day celebrated his 33 years Armistice. It was retrogressed with the rank of commander for serious error.

Inter-war period

The Entre-deux-guerres will make it possible Patton to validate in 1924 the diploma of the Command and General Staff School and, in 1932, that of the Army War College . It became acquainted with Omar Bradley which it will find later in Europe. He wrote articles on the tactics of the Tank S of the armor-plated forces, suggesting new methods to use these weapons. This long period also enables him to publish on the play of bridge after having often played there with Eisenhower. The majority of the federal finales of bridge-contract disputed in France at this beginning of 3rd millenium follow its movement Patton .

In 1938, Patton accepted the order to join the general George Marshall in order to integrate her Staff. In July 1940, Patton took the orders of a brigade of the Second armor-plated Fort Benning Division and went even until paying with its own sums of money of the spare parts for its tanks. Less than one year later, it was named with the rank of brigadier general and took the responsability for division.

Second world war

In 1941, whereas the United States declared the war with the Japan following the attack of Pearl Harbor, “the old man, blood and tripe” (nickname given by its men) obtained the rank of major general.

North Africa

In 1942, the allies prepared the Opération Torch, which envisaged an unloading in French North Africa (Morocco and Algérie).

Patton, named to take the command of the terrestrial troops intended to unload with the Morocco was very criticized by the British. Those reproached him its lack of rigor. They pained to include/understand a general who carried two Colts to ivory sticks to the belt… Fortunately, Einsenhower, general-in-chief of the allied forces in Europe supported its turbulent subordinate. An officer who took, nevertheless, care of the families of his men because Patton, having organized a network of information on the families of his soldiers with the assistance of his wife, kept his soldiers informed of what it occurred in their families.

The November 8th 1942, the unloading took place. After some engagements, French Morocco was occupied and Patton took a diplomatic and military role then.

On its side, Rommel, driven out of Egypt and Libya by the 8th British Army had installed its Afrika Korps in Tunisia. It did not cease receiving there reinforcements, of which a battalion of Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger and the 10th Panzer-Division. The “fox of the desert” gave a lesson to the inexperienced troops of the Second body at the time of the Bataille of Kasserine. Eisenhower then names Patton to restore the situation and to go up moral soldiers. The required effect was not made await since Patton, in co-operation with the British and French troops ordered by the general Montgomery, counter-attacked with Gafsa. It obtained a few weeks later the rendering of the Germans. The latter lost 250.000 men during this countryside.

Sicily

After the Countryside of Tunisia, the allies were Masters of North Africa. The reconquest of the Sicily would have allowed the total control of the Mediterranean. Patton took the command of VIIe Armée US charged to unload in the south of Sicily in company of British VIIIe armed with the general Montgomery: the Opération Husky was launched. A true speed race began between the two allied armies. Palermo then Messine fell between the hands from Patton the August 17th, with the nose and the beard of Tommies of Montgomery.

Its career failed to end in August 1943 when he slapped and insulted two sick soldiers at the time of a visit of a military hospital. Patton believed that the soldiers were cowards taken refuge with the back because they did not have visible wounds (they suffered in fact from psychological disorders due to the engagements). This business caused a certain emotion in the United States and Patton had to make public excuses. Moreover it was discharged from its command of the 7th Army before the continuation from the offensive in Italy. It then undergoes a setting in quarantine with Malta then in Great Britain and spent one year complete far from the battle fields.

Normandy

During the time preceding the invasion by the Normandy, Patton gave talks as a commander of the First Group of army (fictitious) American, whose intention was to make accept the unloading in France by Pas-de-Calais. That formed outing in the country of allied misinformation: the Operation Fortitude. The Germans regarded Patton as the best combined general, consequently the command of this army by him renforçat their belief in an unloading in the Pas-de-Calais by the army of Patton.

After the invasion Norman, Patton was placed at the head of the 3rd American army, which was on the right wing of the allied forces, under the orders of Omar Bradley, one of his right-hand man in North Africa. It carried out this army during the Opération Cobra of which the goal was to bore the German face in Cotentin. Patton took part in this opening, fascinating Avranches and penetrating in Brittany before then moving South towards the East, by taking with reverse several hundreds of thousands of German soldiers in the Poche of Cliff. Patton employed the proper German tactics of the attack-flash, while traversing close to: 1000 km in only two weeks. With the passing, the historians think that Patton was one of the first strategists to consider the Blitzkrieg as of the years 1930. However it is in Normandy, between Avranches and Argentan that the American general applied it best.

The offensive of Patton stopped on September 1st 1944 on the Meuse outside Metz, because its army was simply with gasoline court. Time to restock, the Germans had time to strengthen their positions of Metz. In October and November, the 3rd army carried out difficult combat in the the Vosges.

The offensive of the Ardennes

The December 16th 1944, the German army threw 29 divisions approximately (: 600000 men) in a counter-attack through the the Ardennes, to try to cut the armies combined, to take the port of Antwerp and to progress towards the Meuse. Patton directed its 3rd army since the Alsace towards Bastogne, to deliver the 101 {{E}} airborne division, encircled by the Germans.

In February, the Germans were again in full retirement and Patton made movement in the basin of the the Saar. It projected to take Prague and the Czechoslovakia, when General the Eisenhower gave him the order to stop all movements of the American forces, with the great fury of Patton.

Post-war period

In October 1945, the Patton general assumed the control of the 15th Army, a paper army, in occupied Germany. This new command is actually a sanction following its criticisms with respect to the denazification and its will to declare the war with the Soviet Union which it presented like the future adversary of the the United States. Einsenhower, which covers its declarations more or less regularly, withdraws to him the command of the 3rd Army and its post of military governor of Bavaria.

He died in Heidelberg, following an car accident the December 21st 1945.

He is buried with the American cemetery of Hamm, with the Grand-Duché of Luxembourg, in the middle of the men of his 3rd army.

Catalog of films

Its course during the Second world war was the subject of a film, Patton , of Franklin J. Schaffner in 1970, with George C. Scott in the title role, whose quality of interpretation was worth one of the 7 to him Oscars that the film gained. Scott refused the Oscar, as he refused the competition between actors.

Homages

A series of tanks was named in its honor, the M46, M47, M48 and M60 Patton.

Quotations

Patton said after the war: We were mistaken in adversaries!

"The object of the war is not to die for its country, but to make so that the bastard of opposite makes for the sien"

Sources

George S. Patton Jr. III/1885 - 1945 - new book in 3 languages (F-D-E) recalling its life with more than 200 photographs published by General the patton Memorial Ettelbruck Museum.

References

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