George C. Marshall
George Catlett Marshall Jr. GCB (31 December 1880 – 16 October 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, then served as Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense under Truman.[3] Winston Churchill lauded Marshall as the "organizer of victory" for his leadership of the Allied victory in World War II. During the subsequent year, he attempted to but failed to avoid the impending Chinese Civil War. As Secretary of State, Marshall advocated for a U.S. economic and political commitment to post-war European recovery, including the Marshall Plan that bore his name. In recognition of this work, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953, the only Army general ever to receive the honor.[4]
"George Marshall" and "General Marshall" redirect here. For other uses, see George Marshall (disambiguation) and General Marshall (disambiguation).
George C. Marshall
Position established
Position abolished
16 October 1959 (aged 78)
Walter Reed Army Medical Center
VMI (1900)
Born in Pennsylvania, Marshall graduated from the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in 1901. He received his commission as a second lieutenant of Infantry in February 1902 and immediately went to the Philippines. He served in the United States and overseas in positions of increasing rank, including platoon leader and company commander in the Philippines during the Philippine–American War. He was the top-ranked of the five Honor Graduates of his Infantry-Cavalry School Course in 1907 and graduated first in his 1908 Army Staff College class.[5] In 1916 Marshall was assigned as aide-de-camp to J. Franklin Bell, the commander of the Western Department. After the nation entered World War I in 1917, Marshall served with Bell who commanded the Department of the East. He was assigned to the staff of the 1st Division; he assisted with the organization's mobilization and training in the United States, as well as planning of its combat operations in France.[5] Subsequently, assigned to the staff of the American Expeditionary Forces headquarters, he was a key planner of American operations, including the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
After the war, Marshall became an aide-de-camp to then Army Chief of Staff John J. Pershing. Marshall later served on the Army staff, was the executive officer of the 15th Infantry Regiment in China and was an instructor at the Army War College. In 1927, he became assistant commandant of the Army's Infantry School, where he modernized command and staff processes, which proved to be of major benefit during World War II.[6] In 1932 and 1933 he commanded the 8th Infantry Regiment and Fort Screven, Georgia. Marshall commanded 5th Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division and Vancouver Barracks from 1936 to 1938; he received promotion to brigadier general. During this command, Marshall was also responsible for 35 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps in Oregon and Southern Washington. In July 1938, Marshall was assigned to the War Plans Division on the War Department staff; he later became the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff. When Chief of Staff Malin Craig retired in 1939, Marshall assumed the role of Chief of Staff in an acting capacity before his appointment to the position, which he held until the war's end in 1945.[7]
As Chief of Staff, Marshall, working closely with Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, organized the largest military expansion in U.S. history, and received promotion to five-star rank as General of the Army. Marshall coordinated Allied operations in Europe and the Pacific until the end of the war. In addition to accolades from Winston Churchill and other Allied leaders, Time magazine named Marshall its Man of the Year for 1943 and 1947.[8] Marshall retired from active service in 1945, but remained on active duty, as required for holders of five-star rank.[9] From 15 December 1945 to January 1947, Marshall served as a special envoy to China in an unsuccessful effort to negotiate a coalition government between the Nationalists of Chiang Kai-shek and the Communists of Mao Zedong.
As Secretary of State from 1947 to 1949, Marshall advocated rebuilding Europe, a program that became known as the Marshall Plan, and which led to his being awarded the 1953 Nobel Peace Prize.[10] After resigning as Secretary of State, Marshall served as chairman of the American Battle Monuments Commission[11] and president of the American National Red Cross. As Secretary of Defense at the start of the Korean War, Marshall worked to restore the military's confidence and morale at the end of its post-World War II demobilization and then its initial buildup for combat in Korea and operations during the Cold War. After resigning as Defense Secretary, Marshall retired to his home in Virginia. He died in 1959 and was buried with honors at Arlington National Cemetery.[12]
Early infantry career and the Philippines[edit]
Following his graduation from VMI, Marshall served as Commandant of Students at the Danville Military Institute in Danville, Virginia.[24] He took a competitive examination for a commission in the United States Army, which had greatly expanded to deal with the Spanish–American War and Philippine–American War.[25] Marshall passed and used endorsements his father obtained from both of Pennsylvania's U.S. Senators to bolster his application.[25] VMI Superintendent Scott Shipp also supported Marshall's application, and in a letter to President William McKinley compared him favorably to other VMI graduates serving in the Army, saying Marshall was "Fully the equal of the best."[26] He was commissioned a second lieutenant of Infantry in February 1902.[25] In a matter of days he married, resigned the Danville job, and shipped out to serve with the 30th Infantry Regiment in the Philippines.[25][27][28]
Prior to World War I, Marshall received various postings in the United States and the Philippines, including serving as an infantry platoon leader and company commander during the Philippine–American War and other guerrilla uprisings.[5] He was schooled in modern warfare, including tours from 1906 to 1910 as both a student and an instructor.[29] He was ranked first of five Honor Graduates of his Infantry-Cavalry School Course (now the United States Army Command and General Staff College) in 1907 and graduated first in his 1908 Army Staff College (now the United States Army War College) class.[5] After graduating in 1908, Marshall was assigned as an instructor at the Infantry-Cavalry School.[30][31]
After another tour of duty in the Philippines beginning in 1913, Marshall returned in 1916 to serve as aide-de-camp to Major General J. Franklin Bell, the commander of the Western Department and former Army Chief of Staff, at the Presidio of San Francisco.[32] In the summer and fall of 1916, Marshall was responsible for organizing several Western Department Citizens' Military Training Camps.[33][34] After the American entry into World War I in April 1917, Marshall relocated with Bell to Governors Island, New York, when Bell was reassigned as commander of the Department of the East.[31] Shortly afterwards, Marshall was assigned to help oversee the mobilization of the 1st Division for service in France.[5]
General John Pershing rides under Arc de Triomphe in parade with aide-de-camp George C. Marshall. 1919.
General John Pershing (left) with Colonel Marshall in France, 1919.
Left to right: Brig. Gen. Frank Parker, Col. James A. Drain, and Lt. Col. George C. Marshall at the White House in Washington, D.C., on 4 October 1924.
Marshall as Army Chief of Staff, circa 1941 to 1944.
Army Chief of Staff George Marshall with Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. "Hap" Arnold accompanying Brig. Gen. James H. Doolittle while being presented the Medal of Honor from President Franklin Roosevelt for his achievement on leading the Doolittle Raid. 18 April 1942.
Oveta Culp Hobby being sworn in as the first WAAC by Major General Myron C. Cramer. General George C. Marshall, second from left, and Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson witness the ceremony. 16 May 1942.
Army Chief of Staff George Marshall, 1944
Generals George C. Marshall and Henry "Hap" Arnold in 1944.
Shown from left to right are: an unidentified driver, General George C. Marshall, Major General Horace L. McBride, Major General Manton S. Eddy, Lieutenant General George S. Patton, and an unidentified aide.
General Marshall greets Major General John R. Deane and Brigadier General Stuart Cutler while arriving at Potsdam, Germany on 15 July 1945.
General Marshall with General of The Air Force Henry H. Arnold and Air Force Major General Lauris Norstad at The Potsdam Conference in Germany, 21 July 1945.
Recently sworn in George C. Marshall as the new United States Secretary of State shaking hands with his predecessor James F. Byrnes, as President Truman looks on, at the White House, 21 January 1947.
Secretary of State George Marshall greeted by President Harry S. Truman at Washington National Airport. 13 August 1947.
Secretary of State Marshall pointing out landmarks at Mount Vernon to Mexican President Miguel Aleman. April 1947.
Award of honorary degrees at Harvard to J Robert Oppenheimer (left), George C. Marshall (third from left), Omar N. Bradley (fifth from left), and T. S. Eliot (second from right). The President of Harvard University, James B. Conant, sits between Marshall and Bradley. 5 June 1947.
Secretary of Defense Marshall with President Truman and Princeton University President Harold W. Dodds at the Library of Congress. 17 May 1950.
Anna M. Rosenberg being sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Defense by Felix Larkin (left), General Counsel of the Department of Defense. General George Marshall (second from right) and Robert A. Lovett (right), Deputy Secretary of Defense, witness. 15 November 1950.
Secretary of Defense George C. Marshall with President Truman, Secretary of State Dean Acheson, and Prime Minister of France Rene Pleven during Pleven visit to Washington D.C., at the White House on 29 January 1951.
Secretary of Defense George C. Marshall greeting President Truman following Truman's return from the Wake Island Conference at Washington National Airport, 18 October 1950.
Marshall has been played in film and television by: