101 George Patton Quotes About The US Army General's Leadership (2023)

FAQs

What was General Patton's famous quote? ›

“Lead Me, Follow Me or Get Out of My Way. “ Perhaps one of the most famous quotes that people don't realize originated with Patton, this mantra summed up his style.

General Patton once stated, “Prepare for the unknown by studying how others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the unpredictable.” Great leaders in the past have much to teach us, and by studying some of their successes and failures, we become better leaders ourselves.

Patton is the best war movie of all time, and yes, George C. Scott was great. According to Wikipedia, Patton did indeed make such a speech, only Patton's real life speech was even more profane.

If it should be necessary to fight the Russians, the sooner we do it the better.

That's why Americans have never lost and will never lose a war. Because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans. Now, an army is a team. It lives, eats, sleeps, fights as a team.

Personally, I use these three words to define leadership and keep focused on terms that allow for personal leadership traits to be effective: Vision. Direction. Support.

Passion, teamwork, and social skills are three important qualities for leaders to possess in order to be effective. Learn how to bring these qualities into your workplace and put your best foot forward in both your personal and professional life.

Eisenhower ended the meeting by telling Patton that he felt he should get back to Bad Tölz as quickly as possible and that his personal train was ready to take him at 1900 hours. Patton's diary entry ended with the words, “I took the train.”

Was Patton a 5 star general? ›

Patton achieved four-star rank for his battlefield exploits as one of the best commanders of mechanized forces on either side during the War. He succeeded Dwight D. Eisenhower as the Military Governor of the U.S. Occupation Zone in Germany, when Ike -- a five-star general -- was promoted to Army Chief of Staff.

The handguns most associated with him, and which are now in the Patton Collection of the West Point Museum, are a . 45 Long Colt Single Action revolver, 1873 Army Model, and a . 357 Magnum Smith & Wesson revolver.

But Patton, although he might have wanted eventually to get to Moscow, made the case for pushing the Soviets back to their pre-war borders. And history tells us that was possible. His 3rd army was the best in US history, and with a force of 500,000. Stalin feared them and so did the Germans.

Instead, says Yeide, the Germans viewed Patton “in the narrow context of armored commanders,” as a skillful tactical commander, i.e., an executer of the plans of others. He quotes General Gunther Blumentritt: We regarded general Patton extremely highly as the most aggressive panzer-general of the Allies. . .

These happened during the World War II Allied campaign in Sicily. General Patton slapped two soldiers he thought were cowards who were in hospitals for battle fatigue. The general lost his command.

Inspirational Military Quotes

Bravery is being the only one who knows you're afraid. Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.

A jury consisting of 1,500 film artists, critics, and historians selected "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn", spoken by Clark Gable as Rhett Butler in the 1939 American Civil War epic Gone with the Wind, as the most memorable American movie quotation of all time.

SEPTEMBER 2, 1945

By the end of the war, Patton had led Third Army on eight major campaigns across France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Austria. Third Army becomes part of the Army of Occupation, remaining in Germany until 1947.

How many soldiers are in Patton's Third Army? ›

The strength of the Third Army as of 19 December, the date the bridgehead occupation was completed, was 9,638 officers and 221,070 enlisted men.

OTHER WORDS FOR leadership

1 administration, management, directorship, control, governorship, stewardship, hegemony. 2 authoritativeness, influence, command, effectiveness; sway, clout.

I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion. A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.

Definitions of leader. a person who rules or guides or inspires others.

Leadership Weakness

Unable to delegate responsibility which leads to burnout. Disrespectful attitude towards employees. Poor communication skills. Afraid of making the wrong decision, which leads to making no decisions at all.

Good leaders possess self-awareness, garner credibility, focus on relationship-building, have a bias for action, exhibit humility, empower others, stay authentic, present themselves as constant and consistent, become role models and are fully present.

In particular, empathy, communication, decision-making, resilience, and delegation constitute the 5 characteristics of a good leader in today's business environment.

The next time you are leading your team, focus on your mindset and decide to be a three-C leader: competent, committed and with strong character. When we do that, our employees win, and when they win, we all win.

A good leader should have integrity, self-awareness, courage, respect, empathy, and gratitude. They should be learning agile and flex their influence while communicating and delegating effectively. See how these key leadership qualities can be learned and improved at all levels of your organization.

Was Patton a toxic leader? ›

Whether you call it self-confidence or narcissism, Patton's attitude defined his command, both in its highs, such as beating Montgomery to Messina, and its lows, such as slapping a hospitalized soldier. But it's the combination of selfishness and incompetence that makes a toxic leader.

Scott Was Almost the Last Choice for Patton. Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum, Lee Marvin, Rod Steiger and even Ronald Reagan, all of them turned down the title role. Most of them later said it was one of the biggest regrets of their careers.

In April 1945, Patton was promoted to temporary four-star general but was removed by Eisenhower from his leadership of the Third Army for making inflammatory remarks concerning the denazification policies.

No person have ever been awarded or promoted to a seven-star rank, although some commentators might argue that General George Washington posthumously became a seven-star general in 1976 (see Part Seven).

Grant joins George Washington and John J. Pershing as the only generals to achieve the rank. This honor has been informally referred to as being a "six-star general." The highest official star rank in the U.S. Army is a five-star general, called the General of the Army.

Many military historians would probably rank MacArthur ahead of either Eisenhower or Patton, and would likely rate several other World War II generals at least as highly as Patton, to include George C.

Throughout his military career, General George S. Patton, Jr. had the opportunity to test and use many different handguns. However, one of his favorite sidearms was a . 45 caliber Colt Model 1873 Single Action Army Revolver with a 4 3/4″ barrel.

The . 357 Smith & Wesson was purchased by Patton while serving as G-2 for the 24th (Hawaiian) Division in the 1930s and continued to carry it as well. Both pistols feature engraving of Patton's initials "GSP" on the handles.

Patton suffered his only military defeat during the fighting at Fort Driant in the fall of 1944.

Vietnam War

Patton served a total of three tours of duty in South Vietnam, the first from April 1962 to April 1963 at Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, during which he was promoted to lieutenant colonel.

Which American general did the Germans fear most? ›

The German high command in World War II feared General George Patton more than any other general.

“The Americans were what might be called bad prisoners. A group of 14 were brought in one day and when asked about their units refused to talk. They refused to work and talked back to the officers, much to the annoyance of the officers and the concealed delight of the men.”

General George S.

Without a doubt, George Patton was one of the most controversial figures of the Second World War. During the Sicilian campaign, he slapped two of his subordinates who were suffering from PTSD and ordered them both back to the frontlines.

Winston Churchill

An interesting fact about the speech was that from the beginning “We shall fight on the beaches...” and ending “… we shall never surrender”, consists of words derived from Old English (Anglo-Saxon). The only exception is the word “surrender”, which is derived from Old French.

Graciously hearken to us as soldiers who call upon Thee that, armed with Thy power, we may advance from victory to victory, and crush the oppression and wickedness of our enemies, and establish Thy justice among men and nations. Amen.

Patton's final command was to head the Fifteenth U.S. Army in Bad Nauheim, Germany, where he oversaw the writing of a history of the war in Europe, a role Patton described as serving as an “undertaker at my own funeral.” On December 9, 1945, Patton sustained serious injuries to his head and spine in a low-speed car ...

Patton. These happened during the World War II Allied campaign in Sicily. General Patton slapped two soldiers he thought were cowards who were in hospitals for battle fatigue. The general lost his command.

The Seventh Army was the first U.S. Field Army to see combat in WWII and was activated at sea when the I Armored Corps under the command of Lieutenant General George Patton was re-designated July 10, 1943.