Today we kiss 2011 goodbye, which I will do without regret. I can't come up with any enthusiasm for taking a look at the year in review. In my life, the biggest event of 2011 was my retirement, and I think I've beat the hell out of that subject enough.
So, let's talk about General George C. Marshall (12/31/1880 - 10/16/1959), whose birthday is today. This guy was the Army Chief of Staff during World War II and later Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense. He is widely considered one of the brightest, ablest military men ever.
The thing for which I remember him fondly was his promotion in 1944. Roosevelt wanted to elevate him, among other army generals, for setting us on the road to victory, but Marshall was already at the ceiling as a four-star General. The United States had never had a rank higher than that before. Other countries with equivalent ranks did have one higher, the rank of field marshal.
But George Marshall did not want to be known as Field Marshal Marshall, so somebody decided to resurrect General of the Army for a five-star general. (During the Civil War, that designation went with a rank of four stars, held only by Union Generals Grant, Sherman and Sheridan.)
There have only been four other Generals of the Army: Douglas MacArthur, Dwight Eisenhower, Henry Arnold, and Omar Bradley.
I personally would have loved for him to be called Field Marshal Marshall, and I bet Joseph Heller would too.
Happy new year, everyone.
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