History UsefulNotes / GeorgeSPatton

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, Patton's first taste of fighting came during [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution The Hunt for Pancho Villa]], where he participated in America's first ever military action that used motor vehicles, and shot down three of Villa's men with [[CoolGuns his custom made ivory handled]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter revolvers]] (it's not known if he got the kills as several other soldiers were firing as well, but he did definitely hit and wounded all three of them). Afterwards, he served with the American Expeditionary Force in World War I as a tank officer.

* Famously played by Creator/GeorgeCScott in the 1970 film ''{{Film/Patton}}''. Of note, Scott's gravely voice is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4_47O2Pfy8 nothing like Patton's actual voice]].

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, Patton's first taste of fighting came during [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution The Hunt for Pancho Villa]], where he participated in America's first ever military action that used motor vehicles, and shot down three of Villa's men with [[CoolGuns his custom made ivory handled]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter revolvers]] (it's not known if he got the kills as several other soldiers were firing as well, but he did definitely hit and wound all three of them). Afterwards, he served with the American Expeditionary Force in World War I as a tank officer.

* Appears in semi-canonical ''Manga/StrikeWitches'' doujinshi set around North African Campaign, ''Witches of Africa'' where he led a personal unit of [[IstanbulNotConstantinople Liberion]] Army's land battle witches dubbed as "Patton's Girls".

* Played by Kelsey Grammar in the American conservative comedy ''Film/AnAmericanCarol''.

Unfortunately, this posting would be Patton's last.

On December 8, 1945, only eight months after the end of the war in Europe, Patton was involved in an automobile accident while travelling with another general. Despite the crash being very low speed and the other occupants of the crash getting out unharmed, Patton complained of paralysis and trouble breathing; It would later be revealed he suffered a serious compression fracture and injuries to his spinal cord that left him paralyzed from the neck down. He would die 12 days later of heart failure, his [[FamousLastWords last words]] often attributed as being, "Hell of a way to die." Rather than being returned to the U.S. for burial, he was buried with the wartime casualties of the Third Army at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, per his request to be buried [[TogetherInDeath with his men.]]

Recognizing that they were no longer defending all of Western Europe, and how poorly the Allies supply train was, the Germans attempted to launch an offensive in December 1944 through the Ardennes Forest, the exact same invasion route they took in 1940. At first, they were incredibly successful, routing newly arrived American G.I.'s. However, at Bastogne, one of the major town to the German objective of Antwerp, they ended up facing elite American airborne divisions, including the 101st "Screaming Eagles," which were resting in the area. Patton saw immediately what was happening and took his Third Army, which was already heavily engaged 100 miles to the south, to relieve the paratroopers at Bastogne. Disengaging the majority of his force and reorienting it for a forced march over what could only be called "roads" in the most generous sense of the word amid one of the harshest winters in Europe's history, while still keeping the Germans to his front tied up and unable to move, attacking the main German force in their flank, and relieving Bastogne before the 101st Airborne and remnants of the 10th Armored Division were overwhelmed is rightly considered Patton's CrowningMomentOfAwesome and one of the most brilliantly-executed operations in history. This ended up tapping the Germans of their remaining reserves and in May 1945, Berlin fell to the Russians. The war in Europe was over.

On December 8, 1945, only eight months after the end of the war in Europe, Patton was involved in an automobile accident while travelling with another general. Despite the crash being very low speed and the other occupants of the crash getting out unharmed, Patton complained of paralysis and trouble breathing; It would later be revealed he suffered a serious compression fracture and injuries to his spinal cord that left him paralyzed from the neck down. He would die 12 days later of heart failure, his [[FamousLastWords last words]] often attributed as being, "Hell of a way to die." Rather than being returned to the U.S. for burial, he was buried with the wartime casualties of the Third Army at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, per his request to [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming be buried]] [[TogetherInDeath with his men.]]

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, Patton's first taste of military action came during [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution The Hunt for Pancho Villa]], where he shot down three of Villa's men with [[CoolGuns his custom made ivory handled]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter revolvers]]. Afterwards, he served with the American Expeditionary Force in World War I as a tank officer.

Patton was also an Olympian Athlete who finished fifth place in the modern pentathlon, as well as participating in swimming, shooting, fencing, and cross country riding.

Unfortunately, this posting would be Patton's last. on December 8, 1945, only eight months after the end of the war in Europe, Patton was involved in an automobile accident while travelling with another general. Despite the crash being very low speed and the other occupants of the crash getting out unharmed, Patton complained of paralysis and trouble breathing; It would later be revealed he suffered a serious compression fracture and injuries to his spinal cord that left him paralyzed from the neck down. He would die 12 days later of heart failure, his [[FamousLastWords last words]] often attributed as being, "Hell of a way to die." Rather than being returned to the U.S. for burial, he was buried with the wartime casualties of the Third Army at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, per his request to [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming be buried]] [[TogetherInDeath with his men.]]

Much is often made of the supposed rivalry between Patton and the commander of German troops in North Africa, Erwin Rommel. In truth, Patton and Rommel were never opposing commanders in battle in either Tunisia or France, not to mention Rommel was always at least one rank above Patton. Nevertheless, their respective sons, Manfred Rommel and George Patton IV, had a much-publicized friendship, which also included David Montgomery, son of Bernard Law Montgomery.

The next objective for the Allies was Sicily, as a stepping ground for invading Italy, during which he was placed in a supporting role to Montgomery thanks to the latter's machinations. As per usual for Montgomery, he got bogged down(This time due to more or less basing his entire invasion on single roads at a time), while Patton maneuvered across western Sicily through Palermo and then took Messina, the primary objective of the entire invasion ahead of Montgomery. He was eventually sidelined by General UsefulNotes/DwightDEisenhower for nearly a year however, due to losing his cool and slapping a pair of soldiers he accused of cowardice, who were suffering from what was then known as Battle Fatigue would would later be understood as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, until the summer of 1944.

Meanwhile, the Germans held a great deal of respect for Patton as a battle commander and considered him to be a crucial element to the eventual invasion of France. By 1944, it was clear that the Allies were going to attempt a return to the continent; it was simply a question of where. The Allied Supreme Command, aware of this, placed Patton in command of the fictitious First United States Army Group, in order to give the impression that the Allies were going to land in Calais instead of Normandy. Once the landing and breakout at Normandy was a success, Patton was placed in command of the Third Army and began a relentless drive across France, striking too rapidly for the Germans to organize any defenses.

By the autumn of 1944, supply problems caught up with the Allies. They were advancing too rapidly and far ahead of their schedule; in September, they found themselves liberating towns they had not expected to reach until ''spring 1945''. Montgomery, whom Patton shared a bitter rivalry with, attempted to accelerate the conclusion of the war with a badly thought out airborne assault in Holland called Operation Market Garden. Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful and the Allied invasion ground to a halt.

Unfortunately, this posting would be Patton's last. on December 8, 1945, only eight months after the end of the war in Europe, Patton was involved in an automobile accident while travelling with another general. Despite the crash being very low speed and the other occupants of the crash getting out unharmed, Patton complained of paralysis and trouble breathing; It would later be revealed he suffered a serious compression fracture and injuries to his spinal cord that left him paralyzed from the neck down. He would die 12 days later of heart failure, his [[FamousLastWords last words]] often attributed as being, "Hell of a way to die." Rather than being returned to the U.S. for burial, he was buried with the wartime casualties of the Third Army at the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, per his request to [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming be buried with his men.]]

After the fighting, Patton was appointed to be military governor of Bavaria, which was within the American occupation zone. Throughout his career, he was a staunch anti-communist and believed that a war against the Russians would be inevitable. He famously made comments that he would rearm the defeated Germans in order to fight their "true enemy." Naturally, none of the Allied Supreme Command had any stomach for starting World War III when World War II was still settling down, and so he was relieved of his command. For the final months of his life, he was in command of the Fifteenth Army, who sought to compile a complete history of the war. Patton was killed (ironically enough, in a traffic accident) in December 1945.

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/post_647_1303028118.jpg]]

Unlike the Allies, the Germans held a great deal of respect for Patton as a battle commander and considered him to be a crucial element to the eventual invasion of France. By 1944, it was clear that the Allies were going to attempt a return to the continent; it was simply a question of where. The Allied Supreme Command, aware of this, placed Patton in command of the fictitious First United States Army Group, in order to give the impression that the Allies were going to land in Calais instead of Normandy. Once the landing and breakout at Normandy was a success, Patton was placed in command of the Third Army and began a relentless drive across France, striking too rapidly for the Germans to organize any defenses.

Recognizing that they were no longer defending all of Western Europe, and how poorly the Allies supply train was, the Germans attempted to launch an offensive in December 1944 through the Ardennes Forest, the exact same invasion route they took in 1940. At first, they were incredibly successful, routing newly arrived American G.I.'s. However, at Bastogne, one of the major town to the German objective of Antwerp, they ended up facing elite American airborne divisions, including the 101st "Screaming Eagles," which were resting in the area. Patton saw immediately what was happening and took his Third Army, which was already heavily engaged 100 miles to the south, to relieve the paratroopers at Bastogne. Disengaging the majority of his force and reorienting it for a forced march over what could only be called "roads" in the most generous sense of the word amid one of the harshest winters in Europe's history, while still keeping the Germans to his front tied up and unable to move, attacking the main German force in their flank, and relieving Bastogne before the 101st Airborne and remnants of the 10th Armored Divisiom were overwhelmed is rightly considered Patton's CrowningMomentOfAwesome and one of the most brilliantly-executed operations in history. This ended up tapping the Germans of their remaining reserves and in May 1945, Berlin fell to the Russians. The war in Europe was over.

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, Patton's first taste of military action came during [[UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution The Hunt for Poncho Villia]], where he shot down three of Villia men with [[CoolGuns his custom made ivory handled]] [[RevolversAreJustBetter revolvers]]. Afterwards, he served with the American Expeditionary Force in World War I as a tank officer.

Recognizing that they were no longer defending all of Western Europe, and how poorly the Allies supply train was, the Germans attempted to launch an offensive in December 1944 through the Ardennes Forest, the exact same invasion route they took in 1940. This time, they were facing elite American airborne divisions, including the 101st "Screaming Eagles," which were resting in the area. Patton saw immediately what was happening and took his Third Army, which was already heavily engaged 100 miles to the south, to relieve the paratroopers at Bastogne. Disengaging the majority of his force and reorienting it for a forced march over what could only be called "roads" in the most generous sense of the word amid one of the harshest winters in Europe's history, while still keeping the Germans to his front tied up and unable to move, attacking the main German force in their flank, and relieving Bastogne before the 101st Airborne and remnants of the 10th Armored Divisiom were overwhelmed is rightly considered Patton's CrowningMomentOfAwesome and one of the most brilliantly-executed operations in history. This ended up tapping the Germans of their remaining reserves and in May 1945, Berlin fell to the Russians. The war in Europe was over.

Patton was also an Olympian Athlete who competed who finished fifth place in the modern pentathlon, as well as participating in swimming, shooting, fencing, and cross country riding.

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, eventually serving with the American Expeditionary Force in World War I as a tank officer.

The next objective for the Allies was Sicily, as a stepping ground for invading Italy, during which he was placed in a supporting role to Montgomery thanks to the latter's machinations. As per usual for Montgomery, he got bogged down(This time due to more or less basing his entire invasion on single roads at a time), while Patton maneuvered across western Sicily through Palermo and then took Messina, the primary objective of the entire invasion ahead of Montgomery. He was eventually sidelined by General UsefulNotes/DwightDEisenhower for nearly a year however, due to losing his cool and slapping a pair of "Cowardly" suffering from what was then known as Battle Fatigue would would later be understood as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, until the summer of 1944.

Recognizing that they were no longer defending all of Western Europe, and how poorly the Allies supply train was, the Germans attempted to launch an offensive in December 1944 through the Ardennes Forest, the exact same invasion route they took in 1940. This time, they were facing elite American airborne divisions, including the 101st "Screaming Eagles," which were resting in the area. Patton saw immediately what was happening and took his Third Army to relieve the paratroopers as Bastogne. This ended up tapping the Germans of their remaining reserves and in May 1945, Berlin fell to the Russians. The war in Europe was over.

The next objective for the Allies was Sicily, as a stepping ground for invading Italy. His hard approach to combat eventually caught up with him as he slapped two soldiers who suffering from "battle fatigue" (now known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). He was eventually sidelined by General UsefulNotes/DwightDEisenhower for nearly a year, until the summer of 1944.

Unlike the Allies, the Germans held a great deal of respect for Patton as a battle commander and considered him to be a crucial element to the eventual invasion of France. By 1944, it was clear that the Allies were going to attempt a return to the continent; it was simply a question of where. The Allied Supreme Command, aware of this, placed Patton in command of the fictitious First United States Army Group, in order to give the impression that the Allies were going to land in Calais instead of Normandy. Once the landing and breakout at Normandy was a success, Patton was placed in command of the Third Army and began a relentless drive across France.

By the autumn of 1944, supply problems caught up with the Allies. They were advancing too rapidly and far ahead of their schedule; in September, they found themselves liberating towns they had not expected to reach until ''spring 1945''. Montgomery, whom Patton shared a bitter rivalry with, attempted to accelerate the conclusion of the war with an airborne assault in Holland called Operation Market Garden. Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful and the Allied invasion ground to a halt.

->''"No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the ''other'' poor, dumb bastard die for ''his'' country."''

After the fighting, Patton was appointed to be military governor of Bavaria, which was within the American occupation zone. Throughout his career, he was a staunch anti-communist and believed that a war against the Russians would be inevitable. He famously made comments that he would rearm the defeated Germans in order to fight their "true enemy." Naturally, none of the Allied Supreme Command had any stomach for starting World War III when World War II was still settling down, and so he was relieved of his command. For the final months of his life, he was in command of the Fifteenth Army, who sought to compile a complete history of the war. Patton was later killed in a traffic accident in December 1945.

-->First line of the film ''{{Film/Patton}}''

'''George Smith Patton, Jr.''' (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) is one of America's most celebrated officers and most notable of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, along with one of the most controversial.

George Smith Patton Jr. is one of America's most celebrated officers and most notable of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, along with one of the most controversial.

Unlike the Allies, the Germans held a great deal of respect for Patton as a battle commander and considered him to be a crucial element to the eventual invasion of France. By 1944, it was clear that the Allies were going to attempt a return to the continent; it was simply a question of where. The Allied Supreme Command, aware of this, placed Patton in command of the fictions First United States Army Group, in order to give the impression that the Allies were going to land in Calais instead of Normandy. Once the landing and breakout at Normandy was a success, Patton was placed in command of the Third Army and began a relentless drive across France.

Born in California, Patton came from a military family, with his grandfather having served for the Confederates during the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar. He attended the Virginia Military Academy and West Point, eventually serving with the American Expeditionary Force as a tank officer.