General of the Army: George C. Marshall, Soldier and Statesman

George Marshall is arguably the greatest man of what has come to be known as the Greatest Generation. Only George Washington commanded a similar level of veneration and awe from his contemporaries as Marshall. And, like Washington, Marshall was revered mostly for his irreproachable integrity and honor. In this solid, single volume life of the celebrated Army Chief of Staff, Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense, Ed Cray captures the essence of a man who was at once Olympian, yet, in a sense, quite common and whose special qualities should have been, in an ideal society, unexceptional. Marshall became a legend by being a world-class manager (one might even say a highly skilled bureaucrat) and earning a reputation for incorruptibility and almost unnatural selflessness. He was a larger-than-life figure who got that way through hard work and honesty, rather than uncommon genius or death-defying battlefield heroics. That has been Marshall's reputation since his lifetime, and Cray's biography generally endorses that image. But this is no hagiography. As Cray tells the story, Marshall was, in fact, deeply ambitious; the prospect of being passed over for Chief of Staff drove the future five-star general to fits of despair and he fretted over his slow career advancement during the 1920s and 1930s. Moreover, Cray argues that Marshall didn't shy away from using connections and influence to advance his own cause and engaging in self-promotion when necessary, especially early on his career. In one memorable anecdote, Cray writes how a young Marshall literally elbowed his way into the Oval Office to talk President McKinley into giving him a shot at taking the Army Officer's commission test (it worked and Marshall passed). Any notion that Marshall simply worked hard, kept his head down and let the chips fall where they may has to be rejected after reading Cray's biography. Not surprisingly, Cray devotes a great deal of focus to Marshall's role in the Second World War. He stresses Marshall's unswerving commitment to a few core strategic principles and his epic battles with some of the biggest egos of the 20th century. First, he steadfastly promoted the maximization of industrial production in the US and the careful allocation of resources based the key objectives being sought (much needed amphibious landing craft - LSTs - played an unusually critical role). Second, from the earliest days of the war Marshall maintained a steady focus on a "Europe-first" approach to strategy and a landing in France as the means to winning the war, which brought him into frequent clashes with Admiral King, General MacArthur, overall US public opinion, and, last but not least, Winston Churchill and his penchant for operations in the Eastern Mediterranean and the "soft underbelly" of Nazi Germany. Finally, Cray describes Marshall as an unapologetic defender of his commanders in Europe - especially Eisenhower - against the badmouthing and operational encroachme

A commendable biography, Cray provides a teasing yet comprehensive, manageable introduction to this mountainous but almost forgotten figure. "Teasing" is an appropriate description; the work draws Marshall out of the shadows but does not subject him to the glare of over-exposure. I finished the work with two distinct feelings. First, there was the painful realization that FDR's fear Marshall would be "all but forgetten" by history largely came to pass. This book marks a significant step toward resurrection. Second, Cray's portrait compelled me to ask why no current leaders come close to eclipsing or even matching Marshall's stature and integrity. This book challenges us to demand a higher standard. Combining well-paced story-telling with polished diction and frank balance, Cray's achievement merits a prominent, treasured place every military and 20th century history bookshelf.

I purchased this book following a visit to the Marshall Museum at VMI. I opened it this past autumn and began to read. As some other reviewers have indicated, 700+ pages is a daunting read. I am very glad that I sat down to read it. I didn't know very much about Marshall prior to my visit to VMI. I knew about the European Recovery Program that bore his name; I knew about his remaking of the Infantry School, and his elimination of the seniority system in promotions. That's about it.This book is far more than a biography; it's an excellent study of the make-over of the US Army's personnel and educational system, under Marshall's guidance at the Infantry School. It's a study of the interplay between Churchill and Roosevelt. It's a study in the subbordination of the military to civil rule in America. It's a fine summary of "how we lost China," as if anything could have saved the Nationalists from their own venality and ineptitude. It's a study in how a man of personal fortitude, rectitude, and character made such a contribution in service to his nation. We are blessed to have such figures on occasion in American life. Marshall goes into my personal list of heroes in American public-life alongside George Washington, George Mason, and Robert E. Lee. This book is excellent in every way. The prose is well-written, and the compelling narrative keeps things moving along at a brisk pace.

This is a fine companion piece to Leonard Mosley's "Marshall: Hero For Our Times." Together, the two volumes provide a managable portrait of a man who conceivably can be considered the most influential American of the 20th Century. Forrest Pogue's volumes are far more comprehensive, though not from a human-interest standpoint. Cray's and Mosley's works explore Marshall's more sensitive facets.Marshall's towering integrity (he wrote no memoirs because he wanted no one profiting from them) has kept him in history's shadow, though he wasn't exactly cloaked in anonymity during WWII (since he reported to Roosevelt, and gave orders to MacArthur and Eisenhower). I hope more young people will read about him, and emulate his character.[H]is name was placed upon one of the largest public assistance programs in history, the European Reconstruction Plan.

General George Marshall deserves to be as well know as Patton or Ike. He more than anyone else is responsible for America's victory in WWII. He could have been Surpreme Commander of all forces in Europe but out of duty and honor he stayed in Washington where he was needed. No person wielded more power during the war years except perhaps FDR. He was responsible for promoting such men as Ike, Patton, and Bradley. Who knows how history might have changed if he had sought the fame and glory that Ike received as Surpreme Commander. In this book Ed Cray follows Marshall from his childhood through his WWI and WWII service, including his later positions as Secretary of Defense and Secertary of State. I don't know of any other man who did as much in his life as Marshall. Best of all, he did it all with complete honesty and integrity. He had the absolute trust of all mjor players in WWII including FDR, Churchill, and Stalin. This book derserves to be on the shelf of all WWII buffs as well as anyone who wants to know what true leadership is about.