George Patton died peacefully at 1755 hours on December 21, 1945. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Three days after VE-Day, Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower called a conference of all his U.S. Army commanders and told them that they were not to criticize publicly any of the campaigns that had won the war and of the need for solidarity in the event that any of them were called before any congressional committees. The Tragic Death Of General George S. Patton - Grunge On November 11, Pattons 60th birthday, he was thrilled to find his staff had arranged a surprise party. Patton did not remain in his plot for long. The train stopped six times during the journey to allow honor guards, bands, and mourners, despite the freezing weather and heavy rain, to pay homage. George Patton's Widow Put a Deadly Hawaiian Curse on his Mistress During their two-hour meeting Eisenhower was more excited than I have ever seen him, remembered Patton in his diary. The latter then skillfully and ruthlessly demonstrated that the Fritz Schaeffer administration in Bavaria was full of former Nazis. Such a feat was made possible in large part by Pattons intelligence officer, Col. Oscar Koch, who had predicted the German offensive on the basis of a shrewd analysis of enemy troop strength and disposition. We examine the circumstances and the theories.Dr. My language was not particularly politic, but I have yet to find where politic language produces successful government. Cartoonist Bill Mauldin describes the moment: "Beside him, lying in a big chair was Willie, the bull terrier. These are the 8 reincarnations of General Patton He was buried in Luxembourg. There were tears in Meekss eyes. He lay in a shell hole for hours before it was safe to evacuate him, but he refused to be taken to the hospital until he had reported to his commander. The war was over and a different type of leadership was needed. Patton Museum: Death Car, Fort Knox, Kentucky May God bless you and your family the way HE has blesses your Grandpa! General William H. Simpson, commander of Ninth Army, has received little attention in the historiography of World War II. She was the bridesmaid for both the Patton girls. Even though you dont know me, it is a privilege for me to write to you! The United States should have helped destroy the Soviet Union in 1941. When Patton received a message instructing him to bypass the city because it would take four divisions to capture it, Patton replied, Have taken Trier with two divisions. Best personal history of Patton. His wife preferred to have him buried along with his men who died in Battle of Bulge. They were then driven through the suburbs of Boston to a ticker tape reception in the city itself. It is to be found on battlefields from Morocco to Bad Tlz. No one was hurt except Patton, who, despite a nasty gash on his head, immediately realized he had been paralyzed. Two days later he repeated his concern when he wrote his wife: "If we have to fight them, now is the time. One of Pattons last acts before handing over command was to award a Silver Star to his driver of more than four years, Master Sergeant John Mims. I think it is amusing that no one tries to get any [medals] for me. This is the only language they understand and respect. His task was to keep a group of disparate actors on the same page while still planning a strategy to win a war. Patton had taken so little interest in the new administration that he did not even recall meeting its Minister President, a Dr. Fritz Schaeffer. December 21, 1945 - General Patton dies following mysterious car A destroyed and bankrupted Europe would not have supported war against Stalin. Mark . Ive always admired Patton, he was a great leader of fighting men and a natural leader of men. Omar Bradley was the MOST incompetent Commanding General. Helen, In August of this year, I was at the American cemetery in Luxembourg where General George Payton is buried. But at the recommendation of Major General Geoffrey Keyes, Pattons deputy commander in North Africa and Sicily, Beatrice made up her mind. His normal cavalry breeches, swagger stick, and pistols had been left behind. General Patton's Warning | National Vanguard His admiration for Germans was indeed troubling.. (Video: National Archives and Records Administration), Local news, weather, sports, events, restaurants and more. One staff officer wrote later: It was obvious he was undergoing deep and gnawing turmoil.. Crazy maybe but a hero nonetheless. Early life Jean Gordon's father died at an early age and her invalid mother was the half sister of Patton's wife. General Patton MURDERED? Mystery pertaining to the suspicious death of Marc Ferraiolo, 23, of Evesham, New Jersey, was arrested by the Evesham Police Department early Sunday morning and charged with two counts . So, how did Patton die? General Patton's Car Accident Remains Controversial Today Twelve days before his death, on December 9, 1945, Patton was sitting in the back of his limousine when his driver, PFC Horace Woodring, sped too fast over a railroad crossing in Manheim, Germany, and plowed into the passenger-side of a left-turning Army truck headed into a depot. Joe Scruce seemed troubled in the weeks leading up to his death. Gordon was 21, and the daughter of Beatrices half sister. He was promoted to the temporary rank of lieutenant general in March 1943 and led the U.S. Jean Gordon's father died at an early age and her mother, Beatrice Patton wife's half-sister, was an invalid. Shortly after Beatrice Patton buried her husband, Gen. George S. Patton Jr., she summoned a woman to her hotel room. His cross faces those of the men he led, as if he were leading them again for one last battle. He often led from the front, and he almost always delivered victory. Despite Pattons indiscretions and lack of interest in his overall duties, in August 1945 Bavaria was judged by Secretary of War Stimson to be the best-governed area in the whole U.S. European Theater of Operations (ETO), an opinion apparently shared by his deputy. The Funeral of General George S. Patton, Jr. - The Text Message The official cause of death was pulmonary edema and congestive heart failure. The black car stands at roughly the position of the USArmy truck, prior to it turning left into a depot, denoted by the cobblestone driveway. Was General Patton Murdered? New Light on an Old Conspiracy Marking the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, The National WWII Museum connects two instances of remorse for Nazi criminality by leading German politicians. 30 views, 2 likes, 1 loves, 7 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Jefferson Avenue UMC: Jefferson Avenue UMC When Patton was a young adult, he was kicked by a horse, who broke his leg in three places. She wanted the body returned to the United States and buried near their Massachusetts home. June 2009. America could use a great leader like him today! Pattons diary entry ended with the words, I took the train., The following day Bedell Smith phoned Patton and read a letter to him from Eisenhower. His last diary entry, dated December 3, describes a luncheon hosted by Bedell Smith for Eisenhowers successor, McNarney. Best of regards, Sam Virzi, Hemet, CA. Pattons supporters claim that the Cold War may have unfolded differently had the West taken the capital, but this largely ignores the military situation on the ground in eastern Europe. Over the next 10 years, the marriage was salvaged, and the general went on to become a legendary, if controversial, figure in the defeat of Nazi Germany. When this was announced on the 2nd, many of the newspaper headlines, including that in Stars and Stripes, read PATTON FIRED. Some papers were sympathetic; the New York Times wrote: Patton has passed from current controversy into history. Robert Brown was an educator, civil rights activist, community leader, elected official, and a WWII combat veteran. It was too late by 1945, the US had made the USSR a superpower. This is a bit off topic but perhaps you might clarify something for me. With Patton, you always knew where you stood with him, no doubt or grey areas! However, fewer accounts exist of Operation Flashpoint, Ninth US Armys assault crossing of the Rhine, which began on March 24. Close to death from his wounds, Patton had a vision of his death as a Viking raider where a vision appeared to him on the battlefield, offering to take him to the Viking afterlife. He wrote in his diary, If we let Germany and the German people be completely disintegrated and starved, they will certainly fall for Communism, and the fall of Germany for Communism will write the epitaph of democracy in the United States. Patton may have been a great war general, but the business of politics and running a country would not have been his cup of tea. . Eisenhower returned and went to see Patton at Tegernsee on September 16. Patton desperately wanted to complete an encirclement of the Germans, but his commander, Gen. Omar Bradley, feared that such an attack would leave Pattons flanks weak and exposed to counterattack. But the end of the war with Japan only added to his low morale; on August 10 he wrote in his diary, Another war has ended and with it my usefulness to the world. The highlight was perhaps a reenactment of the 1912 Olympic pistol competitionPatton came second, 13 points better than I made in 1912., The Swedish trip was the last highlight of Pattons life. Truman wrote in his diary, Dont see how a country can produce such men as Robert E. Lee, John J. Pershing, Eisenhower and Bradley and at the same time produce Custers, Pattons and MacArthurs., Patton did not enjoy his time there and on the 21st wrote to Beatrice, We have destroyed what could have been a good race and we [are] about to replace them with Mongolian savages. You seem to have forgotten that you lost the war! However, Hubert Meyer, the ex-Chief of Staff of the Hitlerjugend, recalled that on the occasion of Pattons visit things had been very different. George Patton IV - Wikipedia There, he was x-rayed, revealing two crushed vertebrae. Allied friends and acquaintances walked behind the casket. The cemetery belongs to and is gifted to USA by Luxembourg and hence he is buried on American soil. From now on we will get . When Alexander took command on February 20, 1943, one of his first tasks was to assess II Corps combat readiness after its setbacks during its early engagements around Kasserine Pass. Pattons version of what Ike said at this conference can be read in his diary. Patton was a great war time general and a bad choice for an administrator. Patton obviously saw into the future and what the world would be like in our time with Russia and china. No comparison to Ike or Bradley. This is one of them.. A 12-man squad raised its rifles, and a three-round volley of salutes echoed into the Luxembourg hills. Some of the politics then was similar to what we see now in the general ranks. After knowing how our Soldiers were treated in Japanese Prison Camps, old Gutless left our boys to rot. This was. Pattons opening words were, Well, you know damn well I didnt ask for this job, dont you?, The headquarters was in an old hotel in Bad Nauheim, and Pattons arrival in the mess for lunch was greeted by some 100 officers standing to attention. He discovered that the German organization set on behalf of Patton to administer Bavaria was riddled with former Nazis. Why didnt I think of it? He could think of no better way to spend his last Sunday in Europe than hunting with an old and trusted friend. The ceremony lasted 25 minutes. Wholly ill-suited for the administrative position, Patton was on a hunting trip when he was critically injured in a low-speed car accident. The fake news that haunted George Washington. America and warfare were never the same. 945 Magazine Street, New Orleans, LA [email protected] He asked his chief of staff, Major General Hobart Hap Gay, who was sitting next to him, to rub his fingers. A Cadillac similar to that in which General George S. Patton was traveling when struck by a waiting 2.5 ton U.S. Army truck. "May the Great Worm gnaw your vitals," Beatrice Patton declared to Jean Gordon. George Patton, in full George Smith Patton, Jr., (born November 11, 1885, San Gabriel, California, U.S.died December 21, 1945, Heidelberg, Germany), U.S. Army officer who was an outstanding practitioner of mobile tank warfare in the European and Mediterranean theatres during World War II. The Open Question Of George Patton's Last Days Who in hell let him in? Patton is said to have told the American officers accompanying him that he thought it was sheer madness to intern these people.. At least, I have done my best as God gave me the chance.. The ambulance, which eventually arrived at the scene with two medical officers, took Patton to the 130th Station Hospital in Heidelberg, 15 miles away, where he was admitted at 1245 hours. In the Meuse-Argonne offensive a few weeks later, Patton was badly wounded by a machine-gun bullet. They had a daughter, Maria de Jesus (called Sue) and a son John, before she . Instead, the museum was temporarily closed, remodeled, and reopened in 2018 with a tighter emphasis on Patton himself. While I knew little of this great man save what minor things that I had learned in my youth I was moved to silence. Patton The whole luncheon party reminded me of a meeting of the Rotary Club in Hawaii where everyone slaps everyone elses back while looking for an appropriate place to thrust the knife. The first American home that I stayed in, back in 1988, was that of General Ben Partin (U.S. Air Force). Whether or not these were his own or due to too much cooperation with the British I dont know. Wonderfully done! One can start with O-Reillys book. Assassins!A Confederate spy was accused of helping kill Abraham Lincoln. shock and flaw (@sbwheat1) august 22, 2021. Walter T. Patton met his end during the infamous ill-fated attack known as Pickett's Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg. One could perhaps be forgiven for suspecting that Patton saw this as an award to himself the Silver Star was after all conspicuous by its absence among his many decorations. It took the form of a gala evening in the ballroom of the Spa Hotel in Bad Nauheim, and Patton found himself once again surrounded by friends and the center of attention. Patton's granddaughter revisits father's time as armor commander On the evening of December 8, Gay suggested to Patton that they should spend the following day pheasant shooting in an area known to be rich in game about 100 miles southwest of the headquarters. But Gordon had reappeared in Europe during the war, alarming Beatrice. There he will have an honored place. 504-528-1944, Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy, Two Moments of Remorse for Nazi Crimes: Willy Brandt, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and the Memory of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Operation FLAX, April 1943: Severing the German, General William H. Simpsons Ninth US Army and the Crossing of the Rhine, Black Volunteer Infantry Platoons in World War II, Servility Is Just Not for Me: Robert Brown and the Racial Politics of the Alabama Black Belt. Gen Patton's Clear Vision - Why He Was Murdered 12-5-9 At the end of World War II, one of America's top military leaders accurately assessed the shift in the balance of world power which that war had produced and foresaw the enormous danger of communist aggression against the West. She was the wife of Brig. His wife, Beatrice, flew in from Boston to be at his side and read him books and letters from well-wishers. The Tragic Death of General George S. Patton - YouTube And may your bones rot joint by little joint.. George S. Patton (son) George S. Patton (grandson) Colonel George Patton Sr. (June 26, 1833 - September 25, 1864) was a Confederate colonel during the American Civil War. Hordes of well-wishers tore up the cemetery grounds making the trek to his grave in the back corner. This was despite the fact that an Army order banning dependents had prevented Beatrice from accompanying him. But any satisfaction Patton might have derived from this report was to be short-lived. Now, more than half the Germans were Nazis and we would be in a hell of a fix if we removed all Nazi party members from office. Thirty-year-old Lieutenant Patton managed to build an acquaintance with the general. Patton is said to have predicted his own death to both his daughters, Ruth Ellen and Bee, during a visit to the latters home in Washington shortly before his return to Germany. While there I was taken by wheelchair to a room which was supposedly that of the hospital room where General Patton had died. (I doubt it would have been possible standing up to that juggernaut, even with our Air Force, to push them back to their borders, though. Needless to say, the press ran with this story, particularly the Democrat versus Republican analogy. Only two months earlier he had told Ike, I cannot eat at the same table with Beetle Smith, and before he died he told Beatrice that he did not want either of them to attend his funeral. Rather than IKE. When they were alone again, Patton suggested that he should be simply relieved, but Ike said he did not intend to do that and had had no pressure from the States to that effect.