There is a story about Dwight D. Eisenhower and his role as Supreme Commander in Europe that supposedly deals with an American officer who had gotten into a heated argument with a British counterpart. The scene is London circa 1943–1944, with the Normandy invasion still months away. A furious Eisenhower bawls out his subordinate in blunt language.
Finally he says, “If you had just called him a son of a bitch, that would have been okay. But you called him a British son of a bitch. For that, I am sending you home.”
This insightful, almost apocryphal tale demonstrates Eisenhower’s sensitivity about the coalition relationship. Even the closest of allies have different ideas about military operations, overall strategy, political problems, and post-war plans.
Eisenhower, affectionately known as “Ike,” did everything possible to keep the coalition harmonious. The alliance held, and the war was won. The general’s personality and his genuine friendship with key British figures carried the day.
A Rapid Rise through the Army Ranks
Dwight D. Eisenhower was born in Denison, Texas, in 1890. He was admitted to West Point in 19ll. When he graduated four years later, he was commissioned a second lieutenant. World War I had begun less than a year earlier, but when the United States entered the war in 1917, Ike never made it overseas. Stationed in the States, he commanded something very new in the U.S. Army: a tank brigade. After the war, Eisenhower was promoted to major and served in Panama. From 1933 to 1939, he was on Douglas MacArthur’s (Number 8) staff, first in Washington and then in the Philip-pines.
In the fall of 1941, army maneuvers were held in Louisiana. Ike was commander of the victorious army, catching the attention of Chief of Staff George Marshall (Number 5). Shortly after Pearl Harbor, Eisenhower was ordered to Washington to take over the War Plans Division. Promotions and responsibility came rapidly as the war intensified. By June 1942, Ike was in London to head the European Theater of Operations. By now he was a lieutenant general, with three stars. Two and a half years later, he would be wearing five.
Eisenhower and the North Africa Campaign
Ike’s role was as political as it was military. He received his political trial-by-fire in charge of “Torch,” the invasion of French North Africa. It was the fall of 1942, and Erwin Rommel (Number 39) was in full retreat from Egypt.
French North Africa was administered by Vichy France, the government of unoccupied France, whose capital was Vichy. Occupied France was under direct Nazi rule. The French government at Vichy was opposed to having its territory invaded by any-body, and here is where the politics came in.
To say there was bad blood between the French and their former allies, the British, is an understatement. When France surrendered in June 1940, its leaders firmly believed that England would “have its neck wrung like a chicken” and quit soon after. But England refused to fall to the Nazis, and that was a blow to French honor and dignity. What came shortly afterward was even worse.
Fearing that the French naval fleet might fall into Nazi hands, England had demanded that part of the French fleet at Oran either sail to the West Indies for safety or else scuttle its ships so the Nazis would not seize them. When the French refused, elements of the British navy attacked the French force, sinking several ships and killing l,300 French sailors.
Amid this French and British animosity, the Allies were planning to invade French North Africa. The goal was to occupy the area with the least number of casualties, which could only be done if the operation was an “American” one. So American diplomatic and military staff secretly went ashore in North Africa prior to the invasion, hoping to gain French cooperation to ensure a relatively bloodless takeover through a quick cease-fire. The French were told it would be an American operation.
As it turned out, the British did supply air and naval support. A number of their troops also participated—but wore American uniforms.
Finally, Eisenhower—an American—was in command.
It was in North Africa that Eisenhower’s troops got their first battle scars. In late 1943, Sicily and the Italian mainland were invaded. Benito Mussolini (Number 74) was overthrown and Italy surrendered.
The European Front
It was time to turn to Nazi Germany. In December 1943, Eisenhower was officially chosen to lead the Allied invasion of Europe. In the months prior to the Allied invasion of Normandy, D-Day, Eisenhower made it a priority to visit every camp, every airfield, every military hospital, every naval base, and every headquarters in England. He didn’t just want to see them; he wanted the warriors to see him, to know that he was aware of who they were and what their jobs were. It was, he felt, an important morale booster.
The Normandy invasion—D-Day—was supposed to be on June 5, 1944. The weather was foul and the invasion was delayed. Weather, tides, and moonlight could have delayed it for weeks. Ike pressed the meteorologists. The ships were all loaded, and there was still the possibility for a surprise landing. What were the chances for the weather lifting? The meteorologists went back to their charts and reported that there was a chance that the weather would improve on June 6. Ike dragged on his cigarette and made his decision. It was a go.
As the operations proceeded, Eisenhower drafted a statement to be used if the troops had to withdraw from the beaches. In it, he took full responsibility for the failure and praised the men who had done everything that was humanly possible to make it succeed. The statement never had to be used. The landings succeeded and Hitler (Number l) and his Nazi regime were doomed.
There would be many military and political decisions to come. Eisenhower wanted Harold Alexander (Number 76) to lead the British forces. It was not to be. Bernard Montgomery (Number 37) was chosen instead. The antagonism between Montgomery and his American counterparts was probably the worst-kept secret of the war.
Political and Military Decisions
Eisenhower’s problems with Montgomery’s failure to obey orders were legendary, but they weren’t the only issues that needed to be resolved. Winston Churchill (Number 3) was pushing for an invasion through the Balkans instead of northern France. Charles De Gaulle (Number 51) held an inflated perception of what his role should be in the coming Normandy invasion. Joseph Stalin (Number 4) and the Allies were at odds regarding access to Russian airfields following long-range bombing raids by Allied planes. George S. Patton’s (Number 11) had a penchant for public relations disasters, and Henry Morgenthau, Jr. (Number 93) had his own plan for post-war Germany.
There were still more questions: Should the Western Allies try to beat the Russians to Berlin? Should the Allies blow up the railroad lines to the death camps or the gas chambers and ovens being used by the Nazis? What was the best way to provide for displaced persons? Some of these were military problems, but all were political, as well. Eisenhower dealt with some, ignored others, and gave his opinions on still others. It was all part of running a coalition war. Some British historians have criticized Ike for being too involved in the political, but it all went with the territory.
When the European war ended in May of 1945, Eisenhower was an international hero. He came back to the United States and became Army Chief of Staff. He was chosen president of Columbia University, but went on leave to head the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In 1952 he was nominated by the Republican Party for president. The Korean War had been going on for two years, and he promised to go to Korea and try to end the war. He won the presidency and four years later was reelected for a second term. Eisenhower died in 1969.
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