Douglas Macarthur: The Makings Of King Arthur

On April 11, 1951 President Harry Truman made the decision to fire the Army General Douglas McArthur after MacArthur made public statements that had contradicted the policies and positions of his administration. While General MacArthur was a well redound hero of World War Two, his role in the Korean War can be a questionable and controversial topic.

In reminding his audience of how America became what it is today, MacArthur urges his audience to remember to maintain the status of America and keep the country united through the moral code. His message, illustrated by the moral code of “Duty, Honor, Country”, is underscored through a repetition of these key terms throughout MacArthur’s speech. This repetition expresses the importance of citizens remembering the code, for its definition reveals the method for America’s survival. American citizens and soldiers should always remember that this code is our main priority, for it will keep us united no matter the conditions. Only memorizing the code, however, is not sufficient. MacArthur’s

Douglas MacArthur was an American general who commanded the Southwest Pacific in World War II and was responsible for the successful Allied occupation of Japan and led United Nations forces in the Korean War. Through great leadership and much controversy, MacArthur changed the course of history for the U.S. and many other countries. He is considered one of the most important generals in the history of the U.S. because his way of being influenced generations of generals to come. From birth until death he was devoted to the U.S. army and lived a life devoted to helping our nation.

General Douglas Macarthur is most commonly known for what he did in combat, but it is also amazing how successful he was during the US Occupation of Japan after World War II. In 1945, Douglas Macarthur was nominated head of the Supreme Command of Allied Powers (SCAP), which placed him in charge of the whole Occupation process. This was a very difficult job, which only talented men like Macarthur could have handled. He was forced to make very hard decisions, which are still relevant today. The American Occupation of Japan was undoubtedly the most successful occupation, and possibly the only successful occupation of a defeated nation ever attempted. Macarthur’s plan could be divided into three parts. First, it was to intentionally punish and

at the age of 84. Following his time after graduation, MacArthur was commissioned as a junior officer in the Army Corps of Engineers and spent the next decade fulfilling a variety of duties. This early period in his military career was marked by frequent promotions and led to posts in countries around the world, including the Philippines, Japan, Mexico and, in 1914, France. In 1918 he participated in the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Sedan offensives, during which he repeatedly distinguished himself as a capable military leader. Upon returning from Europe, MacArthur became the superintendent of West Point, a post he held for the next three years. During this time he was promoted to brigadier general of the Army. In 1930, MacArthur was promoted to general and selected as the Army chief of staff. Over the next few years his efforts were primarily devoted to maintaining a military that, like the rest of the country, was crippled by the Great Depression. He also spoke frequently of what he considered to be the increasingly serious threat of Communism, both in the United States and abroad. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt chose MacArthur as his military adviser to the Philippines and sent him there to establish a defensive military force. In July 1941, MacArthur was recalled to active duty and became commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific. A Japanese invasion of the Philippines that same year drove MacArthur’s forces from the country, but

Douglass MacArthur was born in 1880 at the Little Rock Barracks in Arkansas to his father Arthur MacArthur and his Mother Mary Pinkney Hardy MacArthur. His father Arthur MacArthur was a United States Army captain. Being born in a Barracks, Douglas MacArthur said that “it was here I learned to ride and shoot even before I could read or write—indeed, almost before I could walk or talk”. Being raised there was the first of many times Douglas MacArthur would ride and shoot a gun. In the year 1893, his family moved to San Antonio and at 13 years old, Douglas MacArthur attended West Texas military academy and there “he began to show academic promise” After he graduated from the Military Academy, MacArthur enrolled at West Point and in the year 1903 MacArthur graduated from West Point at the top of his class. As soon as he graduated from West Point, Douglass became a Junior Officer. Soon after, World War I began.

"With great power comes great responsibility," said Uncle Ben to Peter Parker, who would go on and take that advice to channel his energies into being Spider Man and saving his city time and time again. What could happen when a person with great responsibilities begins disregarding them? Perhaps the most notorious civilian-military confrontation in the history of the United States could convey how such person can lose their authority and trustworthiness. President Harry S. Truman terminated General Douglas MacArthur from his position as the leader of the U.S. forces in Korea after General MacArthur escalated the conflict, going against the U.S. policy and igniting a huge argument between the Chinese and the Americans. MacArthur also went against Truman 's diplomatic policy directly and taunted the People 's Republic of China by leaking news to a congressman about his desire to involve Chinese Nationalist forces in the Korean War. Truman remained committed to his promise of keeping the conflict in Korea a "limited war" and fired MacArthur as punishment. Due to the fact that MacArthur publicly disagreed with Truman 's policies, then attempted to shape the American foreign policy with his own hands by directly going against Truman 's orders, which could have potentially escalated the conflict in Korea to World War III, President Harry S, was justified in relieving General Douglas

America continues to battle with the Japanese in the Pacific after Pearl Harbor. Tensions would rise when a once American, Japanese student (Iva Toguri A.K.A Tokyo Rose), would go to Japan and criticize the Americans and try to kill the American moral. Instead Americans would be reminded of what they are fighting for and continue to be strong on their attack against the Japanese. In the Spring of 1942, America would suffer the loss at the fall of the Philippines. The battles in the Philippines was led by General Douglas MacArthur. Following the fall of Bataan and in the Philippines, the Americans would suffer through the brutal Bataan Death March on April 9. Men were forced to march all through the Philippines to a concentration camps and an prisoners who would fall or become

After his death, a memorial has been created out of his resting place. The Douglas MacArthur Memorial in Norfolk, Virginia is a museum devoted to recording his military service and life. He is remembered today not only for his military genius during Pacific Ocean theater (when he fought against the Japanese forces during World War II) but also for his assistance to Japan when they were devastated by the war, when the fate of Japan was placed into his care, and he took on the challenge with ease. "Never before in the history of the United States had such enormous and absolute power been placed in the hands of a single individual,” says William Manchester in his book American Caesar. “He was the last of the great colonial overlords, remote and

General Douglas MacArthur is the prime example of what a lot of Americans strived to be. He was a respected war hero, a “brilliant” leader and iron fisted rebel against the big government. MacArthur knew that after the end of World War II and his placement in Japan he controlled a lot of political and man power. This began to fester when he pushed the invasion of Yalu. He continually denied orders after being warned by President Truman that his power did not extend to invading North Korea and that any subsequent invasion could cause direct retaliation from the USSR and China. MacArthur was sure that the Chinese would remain on the side of the U.S. He made a fatal mistake during an announcement about the cureent timeline of the now invaded Korea. The war “would be terminated

For this acceptance speech, MacArthur chooses to focus on the motto of West Point, “duty, honor, country”, as the center of his speech. This is an extremely well chosen topic because the majority of his audience are the West Point Cadets who will be instilled with these three words during their time at the academy. MacArthur’s goal is to inspire these cadets, and to show them the power that adhering to this model and the ideals of the academy can have on ones life. To do this most effectively MacArthur begins with an idea that will work to add to the credibility of his entire argument.

2 Japan wanted to capture capture the Philippines not only because of its abundant resources but also because a substantial U.S. military force was there, threatening the Japanese and allowing the U.S to have an overseas base of operations in the Pacific Theater. When Japan invaded the Philippines, General Douglas MacArthur was in command of the Commonwealth forces there. 3After the Japanese landed in Luzon, the Philippines’ largest island, General MacArthur withdrew to the Bataan Peninsula to reorganize a proper resistance for the Japanese invaders by delaying the Japanese invasion force and waiting to be relieved by American forces.4 However, MacArthur was ordered by President Roosevelt to move to Australia and the American-Filipino force was left under the command of Lieutenant General Wainwright and Major General King, both of whom surrendered weeks later to the Japanese forces. 5 This marked the end of the Battle for the Philippines. However, this end marked the horrific march of U.S. and Filipino prisoners, known as the “Bataan Death March,” during which 600 Americans and 10,000 Filipino prisoners were killed. Now that Japan was on the offensive, the Japanese military went on to capture the Dutch East Indies, Singapore, Malay Burma, and many other South East Asian

In the 1960’s, America’s intense nationalism was shattered by the horrors brought about by two consecutive World Wars. Thousands of Americans died fighting in what they saw as another man’s war, an eastern war. America experienced the pain of war and sought to avoid experiencing it ever again. But the world feared a newer, and more dangerous threat after the great wars: communism. When America’s government again wanted to become involved in the other man’s war, many young men and their families protested vehemently. When General Douglas MacArthur received an award from Westpoint, his acceptance address, entitled “Duty, Honor, Country,” morphed into a call to arms to the students, future military leaders, a reminder of the three ideals that

Americans morale was low because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. This was also the biggest army America has ever surrendered to another country (Biography.com, 2012). This hit every American and especially the General. On top of this the Japanese did not take too kindly to prisoners. This led to the famous Bataan death march, where thousands of American POWs were tortured and killed by the Japanese army. An example was in the book “Ghost Soldiers.” In this book it describes an event where the American POWs were led into air raid shelters and then burned alive by the Japanese (Sides, 2001). MacArthur would have heard about this and all he could do was wait till he had

In 1951, MacArthur was relieved of his duty. This came to pass during the Korean war when South Korea was invaded by the North Korean army, and MacArthur led the recently formed United Nations and swiftly pushed back the North Koreans’ attack. On the other hand, he could not foresee the Chinese forces’ approaching powers, and the UN forces soon had to evacuate. After the setback, MacArthur angrily spoke of his position that China must be included in this war, though President Truman told him to stay silent about that opinion. Infuriated by MacArthur’s defiance, Truman fired him. As an article in the New York Times described the situation, “The President said he had relieved General MacArthur ‘with deep regret’ because he had concluded that