"Old Blood and Guts" is what many came to call Patton.
This fairly
simple nickname exemplifies much of General George S. Patton1s
spirit as
well as the spirit of our country during his most glorious decade.
General
Patton hailed from San Gabriel, California where he was born in
1885. He
attended West Pint and served in World War I. During the Second
World War he
served as the commander of both the 3rd and 7th Armies at times.
He helped
lead the invasion of North Africa and Syracuse and the sweep across
France
into Germany. It is because of his patriotism and fortitude that
he is a
representative American of the 1940's.
Patton loved our country dearly as did most Americans of the
time.
During the decade the country united behind the war effort and
a large sense
of patriotism existed. Patton like many others understood the
many great
things our nation did for him and he ended up giving his life
for it. He
rallied his troops by speaking about the greatness of our country
and
people. "Americans play to win at all times. ...That's why
Americans have
never lost nor ever lose a war." he once said to his troops.
This is an
example of how Patton believed in our country and expected others
to do so
as well.
In addition to being patriotic Patton was also a man of great
fortitude.
During the 1940's fortitude was especially common due to hardships
brought
about such as serving in the military or for women having to get
very new
and different jobs. He fought with great courage and expected
the same from
his men. He once slapped a soldier for reporting to an aid station
saying he
couldn1t handle battle. Patton felt that there was no reason a
soldier
should be leaving his place in the military because of mental
problems and
he called him a coward for doing so.
During the 1940's Patton displayed exemplary traits of patriotism
and
fortitude. These traits helped create one of America1s finest
generals of
all time who was vital to victory in World War II . These same
traits make
General George S. Patton a representative American.
http://www.wargamer.com/contests/pg3-patton.gif
http://www.pattonhq.com/pattonbio.pdf
Sound Clip From Patton Speech from "Patton."