Everyone who went from the military academy to the barracks thought that one day, they would be able to go to the battlefield to charge and kill the enemy and do a great job. Second Lieutenant Marshall was no exception, saying goodbye to his newlywed wife and coming to the Philippines with a dream of becoming a great soldier and embarking on a year-long life of overseas service.
With the work experience of the first captain of the Virginia Military Academy, Marshall's life in overseas military camps is relatively smooth, leading more than 50 people to garrison a military station, he "subdued" disobedient veterans, controlled the raging cholera disease, fully demonstrated his management ability and leadership skills, but farther and farther away from the dream of killing the enemy on the battlefield.
Marshall's seriousness gave him the opportunity to further his studies and stay on as a faculty member.
One year of overseas military experience can learn many things that military schools do not have. After returning home, Marshall was more experienced and experienced, and he was assigned to a barracks in Oklahoma to take charge of logistics. In peacetime, the status of soldiers is not high, the opportunities for promotion are few, the officers and soldiers are superfluous, lazy and drunk, and the barracks are even more dilapidated.
But this did not affect Marshall's enthusiasm in the slightest, and he not only had the ability to mobilize the enthusiasm of the officers and men, but also fully mobilized the families of the generals. In order to do a good job in environmental sanitation, he announced: If anyone cleans the front of his house, he can paint the walls of his home according to the color that his family likes, and the family members and soldiers have taken action.
Soon, the barracks, which used to be full of garbage and bed bugs, were renovated and became the cleanest family area in the Army. What is more interesting is that in the past, the lazy soldiers also checked a lot, and the atmosphere was greatly improved. Marshall's work ability and self-motivation have been highly praised and praised by colleagues and superior leaders.
In 1905, Marshall was ordered to lead a survey team to Texas to map a 5,000 square kilometer map. In the hot, arid desert, he and his team worked for months, verifying and marking each individual target, and the commander of the garrison commented: "This is the best and most complete copy of the map received." ”
Due to his outstanding performance, Marshall was sent to Fort Leavenworth Military Academy (the predecessor of the U.S. Army Command and Staff College) for further studies. To his great surprise, the cadets who participated in the training were all officers above the rank of captain, and only he was a second lieutenant. It turned out that according to the requirements of the school, the trainees must be above the rank of captain, fortunately, this requirement was after Marshall was sponsored.
The 55 cadets who joined the school in August 1906 can be said to be the elite of the U.S. Army and have a bright future. But they didn't look at the young lieutenant at all, and Marshall looked particularly "different." He once again showed plenty of momentum to study and study various subjects, and his grades ranked first in the class.
He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and sent to the senior class with the first place for another year of further study. In other words, Marshall's career will be bright. What makes everyone envious is that as an excellent student, he stayed in the school to teach. A lieutenant gave a lesson to a group of captains or majors, a feeling that Marshall enjoyed.
But he still likes to go to the battlefield and prefers to be promoted.
In 1913, relations between the United States and Mexico became tense, leaving Marshall, who had been a military academy instructor for a while, to feel that this was a rare opportunity. In his view, the promotion of soldiers in peacetime is all about seniority, and only by participating in war can they get ahead. So he was active and asked to join the battle.
However, Marshall was once again sent to the Philippines. Seeing that the war was getting farther and farther away from him, as an 11-year lieutenant, he was discouraged and retreated. Over the years, he has been diligent and conscientious, whether on official business, organizing training, participating in exercises, or serving as a military academy instructor, and has been praised by his superiors every time.
But he was only a lieutenant. For a ambitious, successful and promoted Marshall, it is not so much a helpless wait as a painful ordeal. Fortunately, at this time, Europe was "in a mess" and could break out into war at any time. In other words, Marshall still has the opportunity to participate in the war and realize his ideals.
Life in the Philippines was still very comfortable. There was no war, and the position of staff assistant was relatively easy, and Marshall, with his staff professionalism in Fort Leavenworth, appeared to be handy in various exercises, and even when the chief of staff was ill, he still dispatched troops and strategized to successfully complete the exercise tasks.
In 1914, shortly after the end of the war of armed intervention in Mexico by the United States, World War I officially broke out. The United States, far away on the other side of the Atlantic, although not greatly affected, its interests in Europe made them consider that it was only a matter of time before they sent troops to war, and the work of strengthening armaments began.
"It is gold that shines everywhere." General Bell, who had just returned from the Mexican battlefield and was in charge of training civilian volunteers, immediately thought of Marshall as an assistant. Marshall was very pleased to accept the appointment, not only for the first time in 14 years, to be promoted to captain, but also to hold such a position that would give him the opportunity to participate in World War I.
In particular, there is an opportunity to directly lead troops to fight, and in the war years, the promotion of front-line officers is rapid.
After returning home, Marshall's main job was to train civilian volunteers, most of whom were people of certain social status, such as lawyers, doctors, teachers, etc., who were reserve officers for future wars. Because they are at their own expense to train, they have never paid attention to training, and even think that they are coming for sightseeing and tourism, bringing their families and girlfriends with them.
This is a "thankless job", and strict training will lead to a series of resistance, even official ranks; without serious training, how these people will lead troops to fight in the future. Marshall did things according to the rules, carefully organized the training, his rich experience and attitude of leading by example, quickly "subdued" the gang, the training effect is very good.
In 1917, the third year of World War I, the United States also made three years of war wealth, and finally announced its participation in World War I. General Bell was appointed commander of the Eastern Theater, and Marshall followed him, in charge of the military affairs of the entire military district. With the support of General Bell, the senior generals were at the disposal of "a captain.".
But Marshall was not "satisfied" with this, and when he heard that General Pershing would first lead the 1st Army Division to Europe, he could not sit still and tried his best to "drill in". General Bell is very "sorry for talent", although reluctant to leave Marshall, but for his future, he still "endures pain and cut love" and sends heartfelt blessings.
The moment the Army's 1st Division set foot on the French mainland, Marshall was both excited and disappointed. In his opinion, it was a rare thing to be able to participate in the war in the first place, that is, to get more opportunities for meritorious service than others; but what disappointed him was that he was still responsible for the training of the troops, because in the war years, no one valued the work of staff officers, and winning battles could not be promoted.
The "ambitious" Marshall began to look for opportunities. Those who can only work and will not shout can only be "stupid"; if they have both achievements and can show them, it is called "will do". He wanted to do the second kind, and since the chance of directly participating in the war was slim, he hoped that General Pershing would be able to look after himself, promote himself, and get promoted.
In fact, Marshall himself may not have realized that since he went to the Fort Liverworth Military Academy for further study, it has been decided that he cannot lead the troops to charge in the US army, especially after another year of a senior refresher course with only 24 people, it is even more doomed to his future, which can only be a staff work of planning and dispatching troops.
What do you think? Discussions and comments are welcome.
bibliography:
World War II, Marshall
Welcome to search for "Poplar Trees Talk about History" // Learn History, Spread Cultural Positive Energy // Unauthorized, Please Do Not Reprint!