Eisenhower and Patton Comparison Essay

There are a number of qualities that quantify good leaderships and good leaders. According to Kouzes and Posner in their book The Leadership Challenge, all successful leaders have (5) practices in common. They “Model the Way”, “Inspire a shared vision”, “Challenge the process”, “enable others to act” and “encourage the heart”(15). Never is there a more important time to have exemplary leadership, than in a time of war. Both the American Civil War and World War II showed what was possible through good leadership. From abolishing slavery and preserving the Union, to fighting tyranny and oppression abroad, both events in American history had a profound impact on all those involved. The impact would most certainly be different if not for the leadership of Colonel Lawrence Chamberlain of the Union Army during the Civil War and General George S. Patton during World War II. Both leaders possessed the 5 practices essential for god leadership, yet both leaders to different approaches to accomplish their goals.

General George Smith Patton Jr. was one of the most complicated military men of all time. He is known as one of the most successful U.S. Field Commanders of any war. Shortly before WWI, he was promoted to Captain. When the United States entered WWII, he was a Commanding General. He also designed his own sword as a student which became known as the Patton Sword. He carried two ivory handled pistols which became his trademark. One of his nicknames is, “Old Blood and Guts”.

George Smith Patton Jr. was born November 11, 1885 in San Gabriel, California. He was born to George Smith Patton Sr. and his wife Ruth Wilson and had a younger sister, Anne. When Patton was child, he had difficulty learning to read and write, though he eventually overcame this and during his adult life he was known to be and great reader. Up until he was eleven years of age, he was home tutored, but then he was enrolled in Stephen Clark’s School for Boys, a private school in Pasadena, California, for six years.

In 1944, the United States war effort in Europe was just starting to pick up. Even though the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor occurred just three years prior, the growing power of the Third Reich could not be ignored. During this time, France was already occupied by Nazi Germany and Hitler's war machine was on the path of conquering all of Eurasia. In an attempt to combat this immense threat, the U.S. formulated a plan to engage the German forces through an invasion of Normandy. This bloody offensive would be remembered in infamy as D-Day. Shortly before this violent clash of U.S. and German forces, the inexperienced men of the United States Third Army was given an encouraging and inspiring speech by the four star general George S. Patton.

President Truman helped in the process of putting an end to World War II by taking the decision of using an atomic bomb on Japan. He used the bomb to give a message to the Soviet Union that the United States was not afraid of using nuclear weapons if it was necessary. Also he wanted to find a quicker way to stop the war without losing troops.

Both men, Eisenhower and Truman, reaffirmed that nothing in the coming campaign could damage their friendship, but that very quickly fell apart. After various misunderstandings, the ultimate fall out for the pair revolved around two men, Joe McCarthy, a scoundrel both men abhorred, and George Marshall, a statesman both men widely respected. This disagreement about these two men was the great divider that set Eisenhower and Truman at war. Only after many years once Eisenhower was out of the office would the two rekindle their friendship. The duo faced many political and personal problems that led to their untimely deterioration.

Americans despise cowards. Americans play to win all of the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost nor will ever lose a war; Ffor the very idea of losing is hateful to an American(paragraph #).” This section of the speechquote exemplifies that Patton is using American appeals to conjure up motivation into the troops because so they can feel more encouraged and willing to fight and possibly die by the fact that all Americans are winners and hate to lose. All Americans are the best and real men who like to fight, Patton does this to make the troops want to win. He makes them feel like it’s in their identity and blood to win, he wants them to have the courage and perseverance to win. Also Patton later conjures the image of the comic book superman, He Man, to encourage all men to tap into their own super powers. on says “ Americans pride themselves on being He Men and they ARE He Men. He validates their own superiority by stating, “Remember that the enemy is just as frightened as you are, and probably more so. They are not supermen.” Patton says this to further explain that Americans are winners and they will win this war. Patton is trying to inspire these soldiers by also lowering their reputation of the enemy saying

President Eisenhower was the greatest president in United States history because he instilled firsthand his experiences from times of war and times of peace, to increase the government’s power during his presidential term and years to follow. He was a well-established military general during many United States campaigns, before he took office as president of the United States. The most notable campaign he took part in was World War II, where he was the Supreme Allied Commander of European Forces and held the highest rank a United States officer can obtain, 5-Star General. He was one of nine generals to ever hold the rank of 5-Star General, which greatly gave him an advantage when he later ran for president. But he also used the side of

The fear of killing and being killed in battle is no easy thing to contemplate or to inspire. Inspiring soldiers to participate earnestly in battle is crucial to winning wars. Approaches to accomplish this have been studied and tried by military leaders for millennia. George S. Patton attempted this very thing in his speech to the Third Army. Patton delivered a profane and vulgar speech to untried soldiers who have yet to see combat. Patton is able to inspire his soldiers by using his reputation while dismantling his authority, using obscene humor, and appealing to their sense of honor and courage.

George Patton was a decorated U.S World War II general. Throughout the war he was called upon to win important battles. Patton was an extremely aggressive in his battle tactics, which gave him the ability to win battles that other generals could not. Patton was born into a family with a long military history, Patton decided to carry on that tradition and graduate from West Point in 1909. Patton saw his first battle experience during World War I when he led cavalry troops against Mexican forces. Patton continued his career in WWII and had a very important role. Due to George Patton’s tactics to liberate Nazi territory, he able to win crucial battles and push the Germans back to defeat Hitler.

Mr. John Eisenhower is a retired Army General from Westchester, Pennsylvania. He is also the son of retired General and later President, Dwight D. Eisehower. He is an author as well as a military historian. Mr. Eisenhower’s other works include, The Bitter Woods, published in 1987 and critically acclaimed by Life magazine author, S. L. A. Marshall as being “written with power by a true military historian.” Reviews of his work from The New Yorker and New York Times Book Review describe his accounts as “Exceptionally interesting” and “Written with enthusiasm that is hard to resist.” Using his military background, Mr.

Becoming familiar with these men proved to be an asset in Eisenhower’s military career. Before the entrance of America into World War II, he found himself promoted to the rank of brigadier general.

The first troops deployed into battle were paratroopers. Over thirteen thousand U.S. paratroopers were dropped by an armada of C-47s behind German lines before dawn. Their mission was to seize bridges, disrupt communications, and prevent German soldiers from reinforcing the Normandy beaches as the Allied assault hit the coastline (Alberecht). Heavy cloud coverage made for difficult navigation and forced many of the paratroopers to jump “blind”. This resulted in them being scattered over a 100-square mile radius. Thirty-five percent of these soldiers landed at their designated drop point, while many others died when they landed in fields flooded by the Germans. Despite all of this, the remaining troops were able to secure their intended positions (Dry).

In the 2004 movie, Ike: Countdown to D-Day, a profile of the leadership style of General Dwight D. Eisenhower is presented as planning and preparation for the single greatest invasion in the history of the world is engaged. This paper examines the leadership style and qualities of the Supreme Allied Commander as presented in the movie and in other literary references.

During presidencies, Eisenhower and Truman both struggles on how they would end the cold war around the globe. They had high expectations on how they would prevent the war in crippled Europe using America‘s foreign policy.