George S. Patton slapping incidents facts for kids
During World War II, a famous American general named George S. Patton was involved in two surprising events. These happened in Sicily in 1943. General Patton slapped two soldiers who were in hospitals. He thought they were pretending to be sick or were too scared to fight. Because of these incidents, General Patton lost his important job leading troops. He was sent to England and could not take part in the big D-Day invasion in Normandy.
Why It Happened
General George Patton believed it was very important for a general to visit wounded soldiers in hospitals. He did this more often than other generals, even though he found it difficult. When he visited, he would talk to the soldiers and tell them how much he admired their courage. His helpers would follow him, giving medals to soldiers as they went.
General Omar Bradley, who knew Patton well, said that Patton cared deeply for his men. This was true even though Patton often seemed tough and strict.
When Patton was growing up, he had many doubts about himself. He came from a family with many military heroes. One of his biggest fears was that he might be scared in battle. He worked very hard to overcome his own fears. Because of this, he expected all the men he led to do the same. If he saw someone showing fear, it reminded him of his own past struggles.
The Incidents
On August 3, 1943, General Patton was visiting the 15th Evacuation Hospital. He saw a soldier sitting on a supply box. The General asked him why he was there. The soldier, Private Charles H. Kuhl, said, "I guess I just can't take it."
General Patton immediately became very angry. He swore at the soldier and slapped him with his gloves. It turned out that Private Kuhl was actually sick with malaria and dysentery.
A week later, on August 10, Patton visited the 93rd Evacuation Hospital. He found Private Paul G. Bennet lying on a bed. When Patton asked what was wrong, the soldier replied, "it's my nerves."
The general yelled, "What did you say?" Bennet repeated himself. Then Patton angrily swore at the soldier, calling him a coward. He hit the soldier and told him he had to return to the front lines. He even reached for his pistol. Patton was still yelling when he left the hospital tent.
What Happened Next
When Patton and his army entered Messina on August 16, 1943, General Dwight D. Eisenhower sent him a message. Eisenhower had heard about the slapping incidents. He told Patton that there was no excuse for losing his temper in front of his soldiers. He also said there was no excuse for being rough with sick and injured people.
Eisenhower ordered Patton to apologize publicly to his divisions and to the two soldiers personally. Patton wrote an apology note to Eisenhower. Then, he started to speak to his troops as he was told.
On August 30, he was giving his public apology for the third and last time to the 3rd Division. Patton was giving his short speech when his troops realized he was about to apologize. They started chanting, "No general, no, no; General, no, no." They stopped him from apologizing and would not let him finish. Patton was very emotional and left the stage.
Eisenhower and Army Chief of Staff George Marshall considered the incidents handled. News reporters were told not to write any stories about them.
However, in November 1943, an American writer named Drew Pearson published the story anyway. He accused the Army of trying to hide what happened. But most American people still supported Patton. The Germans found the story amusing. They saw nothing wrong with a general slapping a soldier.
Patton was too important to be completely removed from the war effort. So, in early January 1944, Eisenhower sent him back to England. There, he was put in charge of the First United States Army Group. This was an army that did not actually exist. It was only meant to trick the Germans into thinking Patton would lead the invasion of Europe. For the next six months, Patton behaved very well. After the D-Day landings, he was given command of the US 3rd Army in Normandy.
Images for kids
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Lieutenant General George S. Patton, commander of the Seventh United States Army, in 1943
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General Dwight Eisenhower, commander of the Sicily invasion and Patton's superior, in 1943. Eisenhower privately criticized Patton for the incidents, but refused to remove him completely from command.
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Omar Bradley, whom Eisenhower selected to lead the US ground forces on the invasion of Normandy over Patton. Bradley, Patton's former subordinate, would become Patton's superior in the final months of the war.
