battle-clasp

George Marshall

[mahr-shuhl]

George Catlett Marshall, Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American military leader, Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense. Once noted as the "organizer of victory" by Winston Churchill for his leadership of the Allied victory in World War II, Marshall supervised the U.S. Army during the war and was the chief military adviser to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. As Secretary of State he gave his name to the Marshall Plan, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953.

Early life

George C. Marshall was born into a middle-class family in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. Marshall was a scion of an old Virginia family, as well as a distant relative of former Chief Justice John Marshall. Marshall graduated from the Virginia Military Institute (VMI), where he was initiated into the Kappa Alpha Order, in 1901.

World War I

Following graduation from VMI, Marshall was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. Until World War I, he was posted to various positions in the US and the Philippines, and was trained in modern warfare. During the war, he had roles as a planner of both training and operations. He went to France in mid-1917 as the director of training and planning for the 1st Infantry Division. In mid-1918, he was promoted to American Expeditionary Forces headquarters, where he worked closely with his mentor General John J. Pershing and was a key planner of American operations. He was instrumental in the design and coordination of the Meuse-Argonne offensive, which contributed to the defeat of the German Army on the Western Front.

Between World War I and II

In 1919, he became an aide-de-camp to General John J. Pershing. Between 1920 and 1924, while Pershing was Army Chief of Staff, Marshall worked in a number of positions in the US Army, focusing on training and teaching modern, mechanized warfare. Between WWI and World War II, he was a key planner and writer in the War Department, spent three years in China, and taught at the Army War College. From June 1932 to June 1933 he was the Commanding Officer at Fort Screven, Savannah Beach, Georgia, now named Tybee Island. In 1934, then-Col. Marshall directed the publication of Infantry in Battle, a book that codified the lessons of World War I. Infantry in Battle is still used as an officer's training manual in the Infantry Officer's Course, and was the training manual for most of the infantry officers and leaders of World War II.

Marshall was promoted to Brigadier General in October 1936. He commanded the Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, Washington from 1936-1938. Nominated by President Franklin Roosevelt to be Army Chief of Staff, Marshall was promoted to full General and sworn in on September 1, 1939, the day German forces invaded Poland, which began World War II. He would hold this post until the end of the war in 1945.

World War II

As Chief of Staff, Marshall oversaw the largest military expansion in U. S. history, inheriting an outmoded, poorly equipped army of 200,000 men and, partly drawing from his experience teaching and developing techniques of modern warfare as an instructor at the Army War College, coordinated the large-scale expansion and modernization of the U. S. army into a force of over eight million soldiers by 1942 (a forty-fold increase within three years). Many of the American generals that were given top commands during the war were either picked or recommended by Marshall, including Dwight Eisenhower and Omar Bradley.

On December 16, 1944, Marshall became the first American general to be promoted to 5 star rank, the newly created General of the Army. He was the second American to be promoted to a 5 star rank, as William Leahy was promoted to Fleet Admiral the previous day. This position is the American equivalent rank to Field Marshal.

During World War II, Marshall was instrumental in getting the U.S. Army and Army Air Forces reorganized and ready for combat. Marshall wrote the document that would become the central strategy for all Allied operations in Europe. It was assumed that Marshall would become the Supreme Commander of Operation Overlord, but Roosevelt selected Dwight Eisenhower as Supreme Commander due to many reasons. First, it was due to his success in working with Congress and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, along with his refusal to lobby for the position. At the time, the President told him: "I didn't feel I could sleep at ease if you were out of Washington." Secondly, when rumors started that this top job would go to Marshall, there was an uproar from the American public - they saw it as a demotion for Marshall since he would leave his position as Chief of Staff of the Army. Lastly, if Marshall became the Supreme Commander, he would lose his seat on the Combined Chiefs of Staff.

Throughout the remainder of World War II, Marshall coordinated Allied operations in Europe and the Pacific. He was characterized as the organizer of Allied victory by Winston Churchill. Time Magazine named Marshall Man of the Year in 1944. Marshall resigned his post of Chief of Staff in 1945, but did not retire, as regulations stipulate that Generals of the Army remain on active duty for life.

Post War: China and Secretary of State

In December 1945, Truman sent Marshall to China to broker a coalition government between the Communists under Mao Zedong and America's Nationalist allies under Chiang Kai-shek. Marshall had no leverage over the Communists, but threatened to withdraw American aid essential to the Nationalists. Both sides rejected his proposals and the Chinese Civil War escalated, with the Communists winning in 1949. His mission a failure, he returned to the United States in January 1947. As Secretary of State in 1947-48, Marshall seems to have disagreed with strong opinions in The Pentagon and State department that Chiang's success was vital to American interests, insisting that U.S. troops not become involved.

On his return in early 1947, Truman appointed Marshall Secretary of State. He became the spokesman for the State Department's ambitious plans to rebuild Europe. On June 5, 1947 in a speech at Harvard University, he outlined the American plan. The European Recovery Program, as it was formally known, became known as the Marshall Plan. Clark Clifford had suggested to Truman that the plan be called the Truman Plan, but Truman immediately dismissed that idea and insisted that it be called the Marshall Plan. The Marshall plan would help Europe quickly rebuild and modernize its economy along American lines. The Soviet Union forbade its satellites to participate.

Marshall was again named TIME's Man of the Year in 1948, and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. As Secretary of State, Marshall strongly opposed recognizing the State of Israel, telling President Truman, "If you (recognize the state of Israel) and if I were to vote in the election, I would vote against you." In 1949, he resigned from the State Department and was named president of the American National Red Cross.

Secretary of Defense; attacked by McCarthy

When the early months of the Korean War showed how poorly prepared the Defense Department was, Truman fired Secretary Louis A. Johnson and named Marshall as Secretary of Defense in September 1950. His main role was to restore confidence. He served in that post for less than one year, retiring from politics for good in September 1951. In 1953, he represented America at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.

On June 14, 1951, as the Korean war stalemated in heavy fighting between American and Chinese forces, Republican Senator Joe McCarthy attacked. He charged that Marshall was directly responsible for the "loss of China," as China turned from friend to foe. McCarthy said the only way to explain why the U.S. "fell from our position as the most powerful Nation on earth at the end of World War II to a position of declared weakness by our leadership" was because of "a conspiracy so immense and an infamy so black as to dwarf any previous such venture in the history of man." McCarthy said that "If Marshall were merely stupid, the laws of probability would dictate that part of his decisions would serve this country's interest." McCarthy argued that General Albert Coady Wedemeyer had prepared a wise plan that would keep China a valued ally, but that it had been sabotaged; "only in treason can we find why evil genius thwarted and frustrated it. McCarthy suggested that Marshall was old and feeble and easily duped; he did not charge Marshall with treason. Specifically McCarthy alleged:

Public opinion became bitterly divided along party lines on Marshall's record. In 1952, Eisenhower while campaigning for president denounced the Truman administration's failures in Korea, campaigned alongside McCarthy, and refused to defend Marshall's policies.

In 1953 Marshall was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the Marshall Plan. He is the only United States Army general ever to receive this honor.

Marshall died on Friday October 16, 1959. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Fictional Portrayals

Marshall was played by Harris Yulin in the television drama "Truman".

Marshall was played by Harve Presnell in the 1998 film Saving Private Ryan.

Family life

He married Elizabeth Carter Cole of Lexington, Virginia, in 1902. She died in 1927. In 1930, he married Katherine Boyce Tupper. George Marshall maintained a home, known as Dodona Manor (now restored), in Leesburg, Virginia.

Dates of rank

No pin insignia in 1902	Second Lieutenant, United States Army: February 2, 1902
	First Lieutenant, United States Army: March 7, 1907
	Captain, United States Army: July 1, 1916
	Major, National Army: August 5, 1917
	Lieutenant Colonel, National Army: January 5, 1918
	Colonel, National Army: August 27, 1918
	Major, Regular Army (reverted to peacetime rank): July 1, 1920
	Lieutenant Colonel, Regular Army: August 21, 1923
	Colonel, Regular Army: September 1, 1933
	Brigadier General, Regular Army: October 1, 1936
	Major General, Regular Army: September 1, 1939
	General, Regular Army, for service as Army Chief of Staff: September 1, 1939
	General of the Army, Army of the United States: December 16, 1944
	General of the Army rank made permanent in the Regular Army: April 11, 1946

Awards and decorations

U.S. military honors

	Distinguished Service Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster
	Silver Star
	Philippine Campaign Medal
	World War I Victory Medal with four battle clasps
	Army of Occupation of Germany Medal
	American Defense Service Medal
	American Campaign Medal
	World War II Victory Medal
	National Defense Service Medal

Task Force Marshall, a training organization of the South Carolina Army National Guard, was named in his honor

Foreign military honors

British Order of the Bath
French Legion of Honor
French Croix de Guerre
Soviet Order of Suvorov
Soviet Grand Cross Order of Military Merit
Moroccan Grand Cross of Ouissam Alaouite
Cuban Order of Military Merit, First Class
Liberian Centennial Medal
Greek Grand Cross Order of George I with swords
Order of the Crown of Italy
Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus (Italy)
Netherlands Grand Cross with Swords in the Order of Orange Nassau
Montenegro Silver Medal for Bravery
Panamanian Medal of La Solidaridad, Second Class
Peruvian Gran Official del Sol del Peru
Brazilian Order of Military Merit
Chilean Order del Merito
Ecuadorian Star of Abdon Calderon, First Class
Colombian Grand Cross of the Order of Boyacá Cherifien (Given by President Ospina Perez as he opened the IX Panamerican Conference)

Civilian honors

In 1948, he was awarded the Distinguished Achievement Award for his role and contributions during and after World War II.
Nobel Peace Prize 1953 for the Marshall Plan
1959 Karlspreis (International Charlemagne Prize of the city of Aachen)
The British Parliament established the Marshall Scholarship in recognition of Marshall's contributions to Anglo-American relations.
Many building and streets throughout the U.S. and other nations are named in his honor.
George C. Marshall Award, the highest award given to a chapter in Kappa Alpha Order
George C. Marshall High School, founded in 1962 and located in Falls Church, Virginia, is the only public high school in the United States named for Marshall. The nickname of the school -- "The Statesmen" -- appropriately reflects his life and contributions.

Bibliography

Cray, Ed. General of the Army: George C. Marshall, Soldier and Statesman. Norton, 1990. 847 pp.
Harold I. Gullan; "Expectations of Infamy: Roosevelt and Marshall Prepare for War, 1938-41." Presidential Studies Quarterly Volume: 28#3 1998. pp 510+ online edition
May, Ernest R. "1947-48: When Marshall Kept the U.S. out of War in China." Journal of Military History 2002 66(4): 1001-1010. Issn: 0899-3718 Fulltext: in Swetswise and in Jstor
Levine, Steven I. "A New Look at American Mediation in the Chinese Civil War: the Marshall Mission and Manchuria." Diplomatic History 1979 3(4): 349-375. Issn: 0145-2096
Parrish, Thomas. Roosevelt and Marshall: Partners in Politics and War. 1989. 608 pp.
Steele, Richard W. The First Offensive, 1942: Roosevelt, Marshall, and the Making of American Strategy. 1973. 239 pp.
Mark C. Stoler, George C. Marshall: Soldier-Statesman of the American Century. (1989) 252pp
Forrest Pogue, Viking, (1963–87) Four-volume authorized biography: complete text is online

References

Primary sources

The Papers of George Catlett Marshall: (Larry I. Bland and Sharon Ritenour Stevens, eds.)

Vol. 1: The Soldierly Spirit," December 1880-June 1939. (1981)
Vol. 2: "We Cannot Delay," July 1, 1939-December 6, 1941. (1986)
Vol. 3: The Right Man for the Job, December 7, 1941-May 31, 1943. (1991)
Vol. 4: "Aggressive and Determined Leadership," June 1, 1943-December 31, 1944. (1996)
Vol. 5: "The Finest Soldier," January 1, 1945-January 7, 1947. (2003)

Bland, Larry; Jeans, Roger B.; and Wilkinson, Mark, ed. George C. Marshall's Mediation Mission to China, December 1945-January 1947. Lexington, Va.: George C. Marshall Found., 1998. 661 pp.
Marshall, George C. George C. Marshall: Interviews and Reminiscences for Forrest C. Pogue. Lexington, Va.: George C. Marshall Found., 1991. 698 pp. online edition
George Catlett Marshall. Memoirs of My Services in the World War, 1917-1918 (1976)
Greg Behrman. The Most Noble Adventure: The Marshall Plan and the Time When America Helped Save Europe Free Press, 2007.