# Worst American Generals?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-american-generals/625152
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [June 14, 2012, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-american-generals/625152 "2012-06-14T16:20:54Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 5

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### Author: ![easyk83](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/da6949/32.png) [@easyk83](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easyk83)
#### Post date: [August 23, 2012, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-american-generals/625152/81 "2012-08-23T13:45:10Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Not the worst, but maybe the most overrated, would be Patton in my view.
> 
> At the rank of General, to have no concept at all of logistics, no concept of what was possible to ask of men and what was not is pretty indefensible. This was proven in the Bulge. He was an excellent Divisional commander, a reasonable Corp commander (but only in pursuit mode), but promoted above his ability.
> 
> Tactically excellent, in everything else hopeless.

While Patton had his shortcomings, a committment to an impractical tank/tank destroyer doctrine and his handling of the finest American British Commander of the war(John S. Wood), logistics was not among them. The man had a tremendous ability to organize and supply his units on the fly. Look at his counterattack in the Battle of the Bulge, for instance. Patton disengaged across his front and shifted his axis of advance 90 degrees to attack the enemy flank more than a hundred miles North, this was the Sistine Chapel of logistics.

Patton’s real problems were A) Eisenhower favored the British front. B) Patton was a bit of an old dog and was too slow to adapt to tactical realities, namely the need for heavier tanks with more armor and stopping power. C) He lacked the courage to stand up to his subordinates after he was sacked following the Sicily Campaign. When the OOG(Original Overrated General) Omar Bradley balked at the idea of promoting a tank guy and insisted that corps commands should be given to infantry guys we wound up with the John S. Wood fiasco.

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