George C. Marshall, Vol. 1: Education of a General, 1880-1939 [Hardcover]

Forrest C. Pogue (Author), Gordon Harrison (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1963

Hardcover book with dust jacket. 421 pages with index, notes, bibliography. Foreword by Gen. Omar N. Bradley. Approximately 9 1/2 inches by 6 inches. Three illustrations. Blue and maroon boards. This is Gen. Marshall's biography from 1880-1939 focusing on his early life.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 421 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; 1St Edition edition (October 1963)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670336858
• ISBN-13: 978-0670336852
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.6 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #771,087 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An engaging and thorough biography., June 29, 2008

By 

John C. Navarra (Daytona Beach, Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: George C. Marshall, Vol. 1: Education of a General, 1880-1939 (Hardcover)

Pogue does an excellent job of telling the life of Marshall. You will learn about the man behind the stern image. Marshall had a definite unique personality but often hid it to keep the respect of his men. Marshall also struggled to get the job as Chief of Staff of the military. So far from reading the first volume Marshall isn't as close with Roosevelt as I had imagined.
Pogue basically does a fine job creating a readable book with extensive research. I still have three volumes to go, but once you read the first volume you'll want to get all four books to get the whole story. I guess due to classified documents the first volume was published in 1963 and the last in 1987.

John Navarra
Daytona Beach, Florida

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars George C. Marshall: Education of a General, July 30, 2009

By 

Darrell E. Fisher (Lincoln, Nebraska) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: George C. Marshall, Vol. 1: Education of a General, 1880-1939 (Hardcover)

This was the first of a four volume set on the life of General George C. Marshall, who became Chief of Staff of the Army for President Franklin Roosevelt immediately before World War II. General Marshall became the architect for the war strategy which pulled the allies from disaster to victory. This first volume dealt with General Marshall's early life from childhood to adolescent, through his education at VMI, to early military service, through staff service and command of men in World War I, to his apppointment as Chief of Staff. The book also reveals, mostly for the first time, information about his trials and tragedies; his strained relationship with his brother, his overwhelming desire to lead men in combat assignments, the heartbreaking loss of his first wife. We read so much about other famous leaders during WWII, i.e., Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley, and rightfully so; but never has so much material been available on the actual strategist who brought us to victory: General George C. Marshall. This book is a must-read for any history buff!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very engaging, September 10, 2010

By 

James D. Crabtree "Doc Crabtree" (Fort Leavenworth, Kansas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: George C. Marshall, Vol. 1: Education of a General, 1880-1939 (Hardcover)

Although first printed in 1963 the relevance of this book remains as strong as ever. George C. Marshall is not as well known today as Eisenhower, MacArthur or Patton but if the great U.S. Army generals of WWII had the tactical skill and strategic vision to beat the Axis then it was Marshall who made certain they had the men and material to do it with.

This book looks at Marshall from his earliest days to his formal assumption of the office of the Chief of Staff. Trained as a cadet in VMI, he was fortunate enough to go to the service schools available during his service years. He had practical combat and staff experience but more importantly he learned how to train men for combat. It was in this capacity that he laid the foundation not just for the creation of the armies needed to fight in WWII but also for today's modern army. He believed in large-scale exercises to practice maneuver, employed innovative techniques for training staffs borne of necessity and fought for a regular army backed by a "citizen's army," or as we know it today the National Guard. Pogue really brings this subject to life and provides the reader with insight into the character and genius of General George C. Marshall.