patton

general george s. patton jr. he probably has the biggest mouth in the world. he never knew when to shut up. but maybe it did him some good, because he did say a lot of good things. if talk enough something wise is bound to come out at some point. but anyways he was a great general, well at least in the field of battle. in the conference room, not so much. but he had a lot to say and said it all and he set a good example sometimes. his big mouth and tough leadership would lead him to trouble sometimes. he also had some seemingly bizzarre beliefs. but he also had a great knowledge and respect for history that he used to his advantage on the battlefield. despite his flaws and oddities he was a great man.

i recently watched the movie patton. although it is not like a modern thriller with the explosions and hardly a story line, it is a good movie. it teaches a lot about leadership along with character and also character flaws. i definitely reccomend it. i thought i would share this poem that he wrote:


THROUGH A GLASS, DARKLY by Gen. George S. Patton, Jr.

Through the travail of the ages,
Midst the pomp and toil of war,
Have I fought and strove and perished
Countless times upon this star.

In the form of many people
In all panoplies of time
Have I seen the luring vision
Of the Victory Maid, sublime.

I have battled for fresh mammoth,
I have warred for pastures new,
I have listed to the whispers
When the race trek instinct grew.

I have known the call to battle
In each changeless changing shape
From the high souled voice of conscience
To the beastly lust for rape.

I have sinned and I have suffered,
Played the hero and the knave;
Fought for belly, shame, or country,
And for each have found a grave.

I cannot name my battles
For the visions are not clear,
Yet, I see the twisted faces
And I feel the rending spear.

Perhaps I stabbed our Savior
In His sacred helpless side.
Yet, I've called His name in blessing
When after times I died.

In the dimness of the shadows
Where we hairy heathens warred,
I can taste in thought the lifeblood;
We used teeth before the sword.

While in later clearer vision
I can sense the coppery sweat,
Feel the pikes grow wet and slippery
When our Phalanx, Cyrus met.

Hear the rattle of the harness
Where the Persian darts bounced clear,
See their chariots wheel in panic
From the Hoplite's leveled spear.

See the goal grow monthly longer,
Reaching for the walls of Tyre.
Hear the crash of tons of granite,
Smell the quenchless eastern fire.

Still more clearly as a Roman,
Can I see the Legion close,
As our third rank moved in forward
And the short sword found our foes.

Once again I feel the anguish
Of that blistering treeless plain
When the Parthian showered death bolts,
And our discipline was in vain.

I remember all the suffering
Of those arrows in my neck.
Yet, I stabbed a grinning savage
As I died upon my back.

Once again I smell the heat sparks
When my Flemish plate gave way
And the lance ripped through my entrails
As on Crecy's field I lay.

In the windless, blinding stillness
Of the glittering tropic sea
I can see the bubbles rising
Where we set the captives free.

Midst the spume of half a tempest
I have heard the bulwarks go
When the crashing, point blank round shot
Sent destruction to our foe.

I have fought with gun and cutlass
On the red and slippery deck
With all Hell aflame within me
And a rope around my neck.

And still later as a General
Have I galloped with Murat
When we laughed at death and numbers
Trusting in the Emperor's Star.

Till at last our star faded,
And we shouted to our doom
Where the sunken road of Ohein
Closed us in it's quivering gloom.

So but now with Tanks a'clatter
Have I waddled on the foe
Belching death at twenty paces,
By the star shell's ghastly glow.

So as through a glass, and darkly
The age long strife I see
Where I fought in many guises,
Many names, but always me.

And I see not in my blindness
What the objects were I wrought,
But as God rules o'er our bickerings
It was through His will I fought.

So forever in the future,
Shall I battle as of yore,
Dying to be born a fighter,
But to die again, once more.


here are some famous quotations by him:
"A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week."
"America loves a winner, and will not tolerate a loser, this is why America has never, and will never, lose a war.”
“A pint of sweat will save a gallon of blood.”
“I am a soldier, I fight where I am told, and I win where I fight.”
“Live for something rather than die for nothing.”
"Wars might be fought with weapons, but they are won by men. It is the spirit of the men who leads that gains the victory."
"May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't.”

you can find more quotations here: http://www.generalpatton.com/quotes.html

he is was a man made for and who lived for battle. once the war was close to ending and he began what wonder what he would do without a battle to fight. but he died just on december 21, 1945 from injuries sustained in an automobile accident while commanding the fifteenth army in american-occupied germany. this goes out to a great man and one of the greatest military figures in history.