America's Greatest General
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Who are the greatest generals in American military history?
Army, Marines, Air Force, Navy. The room is a tapestry of dressed blue and white uniforms. Rows and rows of high-ranking members from every branch of the U.S. military stand at attention, shifting subtly on their feet in disciplined silence, eagerly awaiting a ceremony few ever witness. All eyes drift towards the velvet-covered podium at the front of the room, and more specifically, to the small blue box positioned at its center. Inside of it lies a five-pointed gold star on a field of blue.
What role does the Medal of Honor play in recognizing military leadership?
It is the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration for valor. And since its creation in 1862, it has been awarded to 3,536 service members. But here's a question. Throughout our history, who of the greatest generals in our military has earned the Medal of Honor? And how did so many others not?
Good day, listeners. Don Wildman here. Thanks for tuning us in. From time to time on this series, we'll take a look at history from another angle, not concentrate so much on a singular moment or pivotal event, but rather back up for a broader view.
How do military members perceive the importance of generals?
Make comparisons between different ages and iconic figures who commanded them, in this case, quite literally. Today on this episode, we're looking at who were the greatest generals of American history. We've shortlisted this to four, the four greatest generals of U.S. American history, understanding this is a slim number considering over 250 years we've produced something like 4,000 generals across all the branches of the U.S. military. So we've narrowed things down and such a conversation requires an expert. And once more, we're calling on our friend and frequent guest, Major Jonathan Bratton of the Maine National Guard, who has served actively as an engineer officer, a sapper in the parlance, as well as command historian.
Major Bratton is the author of To the Last Man, a National Guard regiment in the Great War era. 1917 to 1919, which chronicles the Guard's 103rd Infantry Regiment in World War I. Cool stuff.
What qualities define a great general according to military standards?
Welcome, Jonathan. Welcome back to American History Hit. Thanks so much, Don. It's great to be here. Thanks for having me. So, Jonathan, we got four generals to explain today. But first, I got to ask a more general question. I'm curious, how do members of the military, such as yourself, think of generals? I mean, generally speaking, is it a stratospheric achievement? And explain what's with the stars.
Well, first of all, props for cramming in as many general puns as possible there. Well done. I raise my coffee cup to you, sir. Yeah, that's a great question because we sort of approach this militarily right from the soldier background. We're usually, U.S. soldiers are pretty great. We tend to view everything through a very jaded and cynical perspective. So there's not a lot of sort of looking at the, oh, well, the stars fell down on their shoulders, so we obey them no matter what.
What distinguished Dwight D. Eisenhower's military strategies during WWII?
There's always this healthy level of, It's that leveling spirit of the American spirit, right? That's just a little bit like, hey, well, aspirational. I could be that someday. So I think over time, it's changed. Absolutely. From the American Revolution through the Civil War, World Wars to today, you have changing attitudes and norms. And what's with the stars? Well, I don't think we have a long enough conversation to go back and look at our uniform and heraldry that we inherited from the British, stole from the French and Germans and Spanish and literally anyone else would give us pretty much anything. If you remember in the revolution, it all started with a sash. So I think we should go back to that.
I believe that I think our general officer should wear sashes again. And this is my new move for general officer originalism, if you will.
That might knock them down a few pegs. Right. But we do think of these guys as luminaries. I mean, of course, the five star general is just an untouchable position to be in. What makes a great general, in your opinion? Oh, that's a tough one.
I think as a soldier, you have to answer it as, are they looking out for me? Do they have my interests in mind as well as the mission?
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Who are the greatest generals in American military history?
0:00–0:36
2
What role does the Medal of Honor play in recognizing military leadership?
0:36–1:25
3
How do military members perceive the importance of generals?
1:25–2:18
4
What qualities define a great general according to military standards?
2:18–3:04
5
What distinguished Dwight D. Eisenhower's military strategies during WWII?
3:04–6:20
6
How did Nathaniel Greene contribute to the American Revolution?
6:20–12:01
7
How did George Washington's leadership shape the Revolutionary War?
12:01–16:06
8
What were Ulysses S. Grant's key strategies in the Civil War?
16:06–48:20