George S. Patton and His Contribution to WW2

General George Smith Patton and His Contribution in World War II

General George Smith Patton (1885 -- 1945)

George S. Patton, an American general in World War II, was born in California in 1885. He was graduated in 1909, from American Military Academy, and was recognized for his contradictory characteristics. He was well-known as a polo player, horseman, a poet and also a competent sailor. In addition, he was an introvert and famous for his unpredictable actions.

He participated in the U.S. 1912 Olympic pentathlon team and created the U.S. Cavalry's last combat sever in 1913 due to which it was named as "Patton Saber." He was also the first one to do the U.S. motorized vehicle attack at the Mexican Border. He was also given the responsibility of doing action with the new United States Tank Corps in World War I[footnoteRef:1]. [1: Wilson, Dale. The American Expeditionary Forces Tank Corps in World War I: From Creation to Combat. p. 19]

He served as an 'aide-de-camp'[footnoteRef:2] (French word meaning: camp assistant) to the General Pershing in his expedition against the Mexican Pancho Villa, who crossed the American borders and attacked Columbus in New Mexico. Many people even did not have idea that Patton could be connected to such a critical campaign which will always be linked to his military career. [2: Pipkin, Trent, Hazlett and Bierman . Geology and the Environment (5th ed.). Belmont, California, USA: Thomson Brooks/Cole. pp. 172 -- 173. Retrieved July 03. 2012.]

He also established a training school tank-training school which is counted as one of his remarkable contributions. Patton also played an important role in World War II, which will be discussed in detail later in this paper. He was famous as a daring and eccentric military commander after a successful campaign at North Africa. His conquest of Sicily also contributed in his rising fame.

From his defined traits, the most appreciated were his unique brand of leadership, his charisma and leading qualities established a showy image in the public. He encouraged his troops to an incredible level and adopted an offensive and rude personality with a commanding will to conquer. He directed his soldiers with uniformity and his soldiers were quite aware and dependant that only man that can save their life and take them back home alive was Patton. He was the one who established the concept of blitzkrieg among his people. He was popular for his uncompromising and rigid behavior towards his troops.

George S. Patton's contribution is remarkable and after many decades he is still considered as a symbol for the nation. He was a protuberant combat and a bold soldier, who trained his army with effective goals and built the spirit of victory. Just prior to his death, he was given the command of the 15th Army. Unfortunately one day before that he met a car accident and passed away near Mannheim in Germany. His neck was broken in this accident and he died in Heidelberg hospital after 12 days, on 21 December 1945. He's been called with multiple traits even after 50 years of his death and still considered to as the U.S. Army General giving an example of a fighting soldier in World War II.

Patton's efforts and personality was highlighted in a film named "Patton" made in 1970. The film portrayed the character of Patton with different ranges of his nature; showing his offensive and brutal behavior along with his sentimental emotions.

Contribution of George S. Patton in World War II

George Patton was a very passionate student of war and will always be counted as a legend and one of the leading practitioners of war. He is considered as an example in the U.S. Army for his excellent leadership in World War II. He is famed for the way he fought against the Germans in 1944-45; when he was given the authority to command the Corps and Armies in North Africa, Sicily and the European Theatre of Operations.

When he was assigned to United States Tank Corps, he played his role with full enthusiasm and in a short spade of time became the leading tank expert. He took all the responsibility of the American Tank School on his shoulders and composed the training manuals and papers for the Tank Corps. He taught the tankers, trained them and finally took them to the Combat.

Patton was also given tasks to prepare his troops for the desert. It was under his supervision that the first American force fought on the foreign soil in World War II. He prepared his troops in the Imperial Valley prior the war. He started their training exercises in 1941 and continued them till the summer of 1942. He selected a forty square kilometer space for this exercise, which was an intolerant desert due to its extremely high temperatures and sandy rivers. Patton selected this location because it was closely matching with the conditions that he was expecting his troops will face in North Africa. This exercise location chosen by Patton about fifty miles from Palm Springs still has signs of foxholes and shell casings3.

The first objective of Patton's team was North Africa. He did excellent and detailed planning of the entire operation. After achieving this target, the force went to Norfolk, Virginia and reached the French Morocco in 1942. In 1943, he did courageous attacks and along with 7th U.S. Army got victory in the invasion of Sicily.

Patton navigated to England in the spring of 1944 on Queen Mary ocean liner which was provided to the military service as a mode of transportation of troops of World War II. Looking at his hard work and intelligence defense techniques, he was given the command of the 3rd U.S. Army by President Eisenhower after he defeated Kasserine Pass in Tunisia. This Third Army proved to be the luckiest weapon for him and he was able to make good Chemistry with them. It was only under the Patton's leadership that the 3rd U.S. Army was able to clear its way across France and to other towns one by one[footnoteRef:3]. [3: Charles M. Province, George S. Patton, Jr. U.S. Army, 02605 1885-1945, p.2]

In all stages of the war, Patton and his troops gave a brilliant performance. Third Army moved faster and was able to kill, wound and capture enemies more than any other Army in the history of the war. Patton instructed his troops to go over, under or through the enemy and achieve the targets. Due to his tremendous efforts and courage, General Patton hit the peak of his career in World War II.