The Life of General George Patton - Research Paper Example

? GENERAL GEORGE S. PATTON General George S. Patton Introduction The thesis paper analyzes the life of the general GeorgeS. Patton, who served in the United States military; the paper begins with the analysis of the early years of this person as seen in the work of Blumenson (2005). The essay goes ahead to explain the education and military service of George S. Patton. There is a critical analysis from the biographical and characteristic prospective. Research question Make an in-depth analysis of the general George S. Patton basing the essay on biographical and characteristic prospective of analysis. Background information Having been born in 1885, George S. Patton rose to become one of the finest officers in the army wing of the United States military. General George Patton, born in San Gabriel to George Smith Patton Sr. came from a Scots-Irish and English descent, according to the study of Wilcox (2010). As a little boy, he was a devoted reader; he particularly liked military stories and classics. This is because he grew up in a military family, though some of his relatives died earlier during the war. According to Wellard (2006), George Patton acquired the motivation to venture into military studies from his family members, who had the love of protecting the people and the entire country. George Patton joined Virginia military institute to pursue his ambitions for one year, and there he undertook studies on the Kappa Alpha Order. Having completed the one year course, George Patton enrolled in the United States Military Academy, which made it mandatory for him to repeat his first year as a result of poor performance in some subjects including mathematics. Due to George Patton’s enthusiastic attitude, he repeated the subject and received an honor declaring him a Cadet Adjutant, which was the second highest position a cadet could hold. Having shown dedication in his quest for being in the military, George Patton finished his studies in 1909 and was in a position to become cavalry officer. Literature review The essay focuses on the efforts that George Patton made to ensure that one day he becomes an artistic military officer. This is through enrollment in military schools as seen in the book by Sutcliffe (2005). The thesis places emphasis on the achievements of George Patton from the time he was working as a junior officer until the time when he climbed to become a general in the army. The essay focuses on the various expeditions that George Patton went through, the decisions that he was making that would negatively and positively affect various parties, and the controversy surrounding him. Having been in the World Wars I and II, George Patton’s character depicts exemplary leadership; the essay explains his qualities that depict able leadership, including the decisions made during the attack on France and Mexico. Visiting injured soldiers shows that he was a praiseworthy leader. The essay focuses on the ways and methods used by George Patton in his quest to secure the nation through the military. The findings in the research regarding the efforts done by George Patton are in consideration. This is because they help link the research question with the previous works written by other researchers. Methodology Among the most important expeditions that the general led is the first mobilized military attack by the United State of America. In this punitive expedition, George Patton had a duty of conducting border patrols around the Fort Bliss. During the expeditions, some militia men made an attack on Mexico, killing a number of American citizens. The attackers faced retaliation from the armed forces led by George Patton. The attack mission was under his leadership; as a result of his enthusiasm towards the mission, according to the study work of Rice (2004), George Patton gained the title of personal aide to the general. General Patton also took part in the World War I, according to Rejai and Phillips (2006); at the onset of the war, when America made a decision to participate, George Patton was made captain to lead the USA army into the enemy land. During the war, he demonstrated admirable organizational skills and reached the position of colonel of the army. During the war, George Patton received injuries, especially during the attack on Germany. He was motivated by his urge to deliver justice, to avenge the American citizens who were casualties of Mexico and Germany attacks, especially during the attack by Villas in Mexico. George Patton also received motivation from the general of the battalion and the entire army, of which he was a captain. Having led the army during various invasions and the World War I, George Patton created a virtuous relation with the civilian chain of command, who considered him as an admirable army officer and a patriot to the nation. This came as a result of the enthusiasm demonstrated by George Patton during various attacks and the organization of the battalion that he commanded. The civilian command included the United States Congress, the members of which, looking at his efforts, provided, according to Patton and Harkins (2005), appropriate funding for projects that the army required to conquer the enemies, including the establishment of the armored force, which did not give admirable results. The relation became strong as a result of the professional article that George Patton wrote relating to use of armored car tactics and tanks. He had the courage to approach the civilian chain of command; this made his juniors glad that he was their captain. As a result of the positive feedback given to the commanders in higher ranks about George Patton, the relation between them and him grew strong every day. Being a colonel of the army and a family man, he demonstrated admirable balance in both fields. According to Leslie (2003), George Patton never missed any activity that related to socializing with his family; for example, he found time to attend the wedding ceremony of his daughter, Helen. Giving proposals to the Congress of the United States demonstrated the integration of George Patton with the political figures. This is when he approached the congress to be able to fund various projects to strengthen the army. He showed responsibility in the way he conducted army attacks – before initiating any attack, he would ensure that the people who are around the target area, the civilians, are safe. He demonstrated responsibility by ensuring, to reduce the casualties in his squad, that the equipment which the army uses during the war is efficient and secure. When George Patton commanded the third army, which had not performed well in its previous attacks, he demonstrated that he was an excellent micromanagers; he established a better strategy to strengthen their squad. This happened because George Patton took his time to equip the third army so as to level it with the first and second army at the onset of the Second World War. To rise and to become a legendary leader, he followed advice received from the commander on various occasions about how to conduct attacks. In relation to seeking of advice, as seen in the research work of Johnson (2007), George Patton created a relationship with Dwight Eisenhower, who gave him advice on various affairs. As a leader, George Patton demonstrated admirable traits by making his leadership effective in the administration of the United States army during various attacks at the onset of the World War and during other invasions. These leadership qualities extend to the family and the other officers with whom George Patton was working during the war. He also demonstrates himself as a heartfelt person. This trait of his showed when some people crushed the gates during the wedding of Helen, his daughter. He did not harm the intruders though he could initiate an attack on them. Analysis and findings The events under scrutiny take place between the years 1885 until 1945, when he died from a road clash. Basing the essay on this timeline, collection of all the relevant information relating to General Patton is cumbersome. To come up with the information, the previous research work by Hatch (2005) was used which relates to the current leader. The information borrowed from the book includes personal details relating to George Patton. The film plays a considerable role since one can watch and select a variety of character traits of George Patton depicted in the reading, including the relation with the civilian line of command. Information from articles written in the past forms an able ground for writing the essay. The findings from the research vary from the outstanding leadership qualities of the general to the critique that he received. It can be said that the general’s contemporaries and enemies had different views about him. From the research of Zaloga (2010) it is clear that he was one of the most luminous commanders to operate in the open field that had ever been seen in the army history. This is evident from the various efforts including the planning and successful execution of the allied campaigns in Europe. Most operations of which George Patton was in charge were successful; this shows that he was an excellent planner and leader though some people claimed, according to Gitlin (2010), that though he was a selfless leader, he was a poor planner. The findings in the research are that the general was an exemplary leader and those that worked with him and under him said that he grew to become a distinguished soldier. His army comrades said that the general was an exemplary leader. This is because his name sent terror to the enemies. Further findings indicate that the president Roosevelt in one of his famous speeches declared that the general Patton was the greatest fighting general and a sheer joy to everyone; he received the description of being courageous, dashing and wild when dealing with operations requiring push and thrust. As regards rather negative findings, the general faced much criticism even from the successor of Franklin Roosevelt, who claimed that he was a total failure and a poor decision-maker. Findings indicate that the enemies of George Patton claimed that he was the finest soldier, and even Adolf Hitler declared him as the “crazy cowboy general”. This is in regard to the research work done by Farrar (2008). According to the enemies with whom the general was in war, findings explain that Patton was the most dangerous man that the USA had. In regard to the leadership qualities of the general, it is evident that he was an outstanding leader, who took enormous risks and won most of the times. He was able to lead the soldiers into deep waters, and he had a principle never to leave a hurt soldier behind. In the operations of George Patton, there was keen organization, and most modern attack ideas were used, making him the most feared soldier in the war front. Final findings give a conclusion that those who loved George Patton loved him with a passion and those who hated him did it with a passion (Collins 2002; Winkler and McCuen 2012). From the analysis and the findings, it is clear that the hypothesis of the research study receives support, since the findings show the various leadership aspects of the general, whereas the aim of the research is to do an in-depth analysis on the general George Patton considering biographical aspects and traits of character. The biographical findings include methods that George Patton considered during his operations. This included war tactics and the overall operation while the characteristics taken into consideration include leadership qualities and decision-making qualities. On the basis of the findings, it can be concluded that the hypothesis is logical and supported. Comparing the current research findings with previous works by other researchers, one can find a clear definition of the events that declare the general as a leader. Conclusion Having been born in a family of military background, as seen in the research work of Yeide (2011), it is logical for general George Patton to rise and become one of the finest and most feared field marshals in the history of America. Since he was a young boy, he showed interest in military affairs; following the advice from his parents and friends, he joined a military school to pursue his dream of becoming legendary in the field of military science. Having seen the vulnerability of the army, George Patton went ahead to devise ways of strengthening it by biding for finances from the Congress of the United State (Wee P. and Wee R. 2004). His efforts show that he was patriotic and wanted the best for the military and America as a whole. As a serviceman, he was able to follow the instructions given by the commander and could make decisions his superiors thought were implementable. This made his commander raise his level to that of a captain; later, he went up the administration ranks to become colonel of the United States army. According to Chapman (2009), the research brings out all aspects of Patton through the analysis and brings out all the findings that demonstrate exemplary leadership depicted through his character. During the research work, some of the difficulties are the ambiguity of the information contained in earlier research works – information in one article contradicts what another articles states. Making a comparison between the various researches done so as to get an accurate account of events surrounding general George Patton was cumbersome. To counteract these problems during research and analysis of the findings, it is vital to use audio-visual content so as to view the actual events. The film that was in consideration was shot in the 1970; it depicts the character of George Patton when he was colonel; the study clearly shows that he was an able leader, who led the army during the most difficult times, which included the World War I and II and the various attacks in Europe and Africa. Having spent most of his live in Europe, according to Rozakis (1999), it was in 1945 that he was to make a trip back to California permanently; unfortunately, during a trip to hunt pheasants, his vehicle was involved in a tragic road accident, and he died due to fatal injuries. Comparing the reading with the research question, one clearly sees that there is objectivity in the research proposal. References Blumenson, Martin. 2005. Patton, the man behind the legend, 1885-1945. New York: Morrow. Chapman, Bert. 2009. Military doctrine: A reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO. Collins, John M. 2002. Military strategy principles, practices, and historical perspectives. Washington, DC: Brassey's. Farrar, Steve. 2008. Anchor man: How a father can anchor his family in Christ for the next 100 years. Nashville, Tenn: T. Nelson. Gitlin, Marty. 2010. George S. Patton: World War II general & military innovator. Edina, Minn: ABDO Pub. Co. Hatch, Alden. 2005. General George Patton: Old blood and guts. New York: Sterling. Johnson, David E. 2007. Learning large lessons the evolving roles of ground power and air power in the post-cold war era. Santa Monica, CA: RAND. Leslie, Stuart W. 2003. The Cold War and American science the military-industrial-academic complex at MIT and Stanford. New York: Columbia University Press. Patton, George S., and Paul D. Harkins. 2005. War as I knew it. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. Rejai, Mostafa, and Kay Phillips. 2006. World military leaders: A collective and comparative analysis. Westport, Conn. u.a: Praeger. Rice, Earle. 2004. George S. Patton. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers. Rozakis, Laurie. 1999. Schaum's quick guide to writing great research papers. New York [u.a.]: McGraw-Hill. Sutcliffe, Jane. 2005. George S. Patton Jr. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Co. Warrior. The Story of General George S. Patton. 1967. New York: Putnam. Wee, Patricia Hachten, and Robert James Wee. 2004. World War II in literature for youth: A guide and resource book. Lanham, Md: Scarecrow Press. Wellard, James. 2006. General George S. Patton, Jr., man under Mars. New York: Dodd, Mead, & Company. Wilcox, Robert K. 2010. Target: Patton: The plot to assassinate General George S. Patton. Washington, DC: Regnery Pub. Winkler, Anthony C., and Jo Ray McCuen. 2012. Writing the research paper: A handbook. Boston, MA: Thomson Wadsworth. Yeide, Harry. 2011. Fighting Patton: George S. Patton Jr. Through the eyes of his enemies. Minneapolis: Zenith Press. Zaloga, Steve. 2010. George S. Patton: Leadership, strategy, conflict. Oxford: Osprey Pub. Read More