27 April 2015

PATTON’S HAWAIIAN ORDEAL: EVEN A LEGEND CAN LEARN FROM HIS MISTAKES

By Col. Cole C. Kingseed, U.S. Army retired

Long before Gen. George S. Patton Jr. achieved international recognition as one of World War II’s most celebrated heroes, he had compiled an enviable military record. A recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry in action and the Distinguished Service Medal for distinction in a post of high responsibility during World War I, Patton emerged as one of the U.S. Army’s most vocal proponents of armored warfare. Less well-known was Patton’s tour of duty with the Hawaiian Division, where his promising career was nearly sidetracked when he was relieved from duty as the division’s operations officer.

Then-Maj. Patton arrived in Hawaii in March 1925. Detailed to Schofield Barracks, he was appointed acting G-1 (personnel officer) and G-2 (intelligence officer) of the Hawaiian Division. Patton’s transfer to Hawaii was fortunate for an officer interested in training regiments, brigades and a division for war. In the continental U.S., the Army was dispersed in small detachments. As in the Philippines and Panama, however, Schofield Barracks could accommodate a sizable number of troops.

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