The Importance Of Military Bearing

     George S. Patton (1885 - 1945) was ideally suited to command an army. "He was bold

When leading a country in war is a completely fatal choice, you would think the president would pick the strongest, most intelligent person to lead our country into victory, right? Well that wasn’t the case for the Civil War in 1861-1865. You may have heard of all the bad generals from Braxton Bragg, to Benjamin Butler, and you’ve probably heard of George McClellan, a field commander, and not a good one to say the least.

According to Army Doctrine Reference Publication (ADRP) 6-22, “leaders illustrate through their presence that they care. There is no greater inspiration than leaders who routinely share in team hardships and dangers” (Department of the Army, 2012). SGM Stackhouse displayed military and professional bearing by not only looking like a confident leader, but also, acting as a professional. When SGM Stackhouse would walk into a room everyone would instantly stop what they were doing and be quiet. She displayed an exuberant amount of confidence just by the way she carried herself. Her uniform was always

One well revered expert on the topic, General Antoine-Henri Jomini. He defines generalship in two ways. First Jomini states, “The most essential qualities for a general will always be as follow: - First, a high moral courage, capable of great resolutions; Secondly, A physical courage which takes no account of danger”. This definition speaks to the motivation of the General. The second of Jomini’s definitions speaks to the knowledge and actions. He begins stating, “Two very different things must exist in a man to make him a general: he must know how to arrange a good plan of operations, and how to carry it to a successful termination”. He finishes by stating, “The first of these talents may be a natural gift, but it may also be acquired and developed by study. The second which depends more on individual character, is a personal attribute, and cannot be created by study, although it may be improved”. General Jomini’s views on generalship are widely accepted and were among the teachings Civil War generals, such as Grant and Sheridan, learned from during their tenure at West Point. As such his views on generalship are what will be used to examine General Sheridan’s exploits. In addition to General Jomini’s definition of generalship, there must also be added the importance of results. A general’s job is to fight and win wars. As such, the outcome of an action, whether good or

Troppman notes that even at this early stage of his military career, the youthful colonel from the Virginia militia exhibited the characteristics of an exceptional leader. As history has shown however, the traits that make a leader a great are also those that make them interaction with them difficult. In Troppman 's words, "During the French and Indian War, Washington showed signs of a true leader. He was self-confident. But he also was impatient and arrogant at times. Those traits made dealing with his superiors difficult." It is interesting to observe that great military minds through the ages, from Caesar to Washington to as recently as George S. Patton, have been remembered by history for both their difficult personalities and their extraordinary achievements in times of war.

Over the past 241 years, the United States Army has protected the American way of life through the service and sacrifice of countless leaders. Each leader leaves an impression on those they lead - through their action or inaction and the attributes they posses. Major General Joseph Hooker commanded the Army of the Potomac. He was well known for his commitment to the welfare of his Soldiers: cleaning up corruption among officers, improving benefits, and the drastic improvement of living conditions (Civil War Trust, n.d.). General Ulysses S. Grant was “an aggressive and determined leader” (History.com, 2009). His performance on the battlefield earned him the successful bid as the 18th President of the United States. As president in the middle

In today’s military, professionalism is a key component of our mission. According to the “Profession

Generals are the classes everyone takes in college, but are they actually helpful? Some students say no. This is usually because they already have their major picked out. Then there are the undecided students who just want to continue schooling until they figure out what they want to do. Either way, generals are an important part of college education whether or not you have your major picked out.

According to Army Doctrine Reference Publication (ADRP) 6-22, “leaders illustrate through their presence that they care. There is no greater inspiration than leaders who routinely share in team hardships and dangers” (Department of the Army, 2012). SGM Stackhouse displayed military and professional bearing by not only looking like a confident leader, but also, acting as a professional. When SGM Stackhouse would walk into a room everyone would instantly stop what they were doing and be quiet. She displayed an exuberant amount of confidence just by the way she carried

Warren Bennis, a renowned scholar in leadership studies said, “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.” (Bennis, 2014) Widely regarded as one of the greatest Generals in U.S. military history and one of the most important men of the 20th century, George C. Marshall was an extraordinary visionary and ethical leader. In this paper I will first, cover how George Marshall used his understanding of pressures for organizational change to transform the post WWI United States Army and how his transformational leadership put his vision into action. Next I will cover how George Marshall was an ethical leader through ethical behavior and how his fair-mindedness helped create and enact the Marshall Plan. Last, I will relate the principle of a visionary and ethical leader to my personal relevance.

The generals were the brains of the army and the war they had to go to. And that it took years to come up with them. They hired swords men to make better swords and armor and they trained the army to sustain the armor and that is how the Generals worked. But with so many people admiring the General they also got blamed for every thing they lose. So being a General can be very frustrating.

I, for my part, think that in the perfect general these four qualities should be present: knowledge of military matters, overall excellence, authority, good fortune. In that case, who has ever been, or ever should be, more knowledgable than this man?

The general should be able to understand the enemy’s keen strategy, adjust his own actions accordingly, and apply the needed timely counter-measures. The skilled general is flexible and innovative, he alters and adapts his strategy, according to the needs of a changing environment, while recognizing that the concept of war possess too many uncertainties, multiple elements of surprise, wild cards and risks to consider and analyze. While the general is very flexible, he is very cautious and careful at the same time. “He is capable of keeping his officers and men in ignorance of his plans”, so no one has knowledge of what he is doing. (Chapter 11, P.137. 43, 45) He takes advantage of the enemy’s unpreparedness; attacks him when he does not expect it. (Chapter 4, P.89. 20) His actions are pursuing the indirect approach in strategy – avoiding the enemy’s strength and probing for weakness. "Anciently, the skillful warriors first made themselves invincible and awaited the enemy’s moment of vulnerability. Invincibility depends on one’s self; the enemy’s

Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery. Montgomery is one of the most successful generals of world war two and is still held in high regards by many historians today however, it is still controversial whether he was actually a great leader or not. This essay aims to look at whether Montgomery could be considered part of the great man theory or whether he falls under the trait theory. I will also look at how the leadership style of Montgomery would make him a transformational leader, how other attributes of Montgomery would make him a situational leader focusing on the time that he first took command of the 8th British and commonwealth army in Egypt, to the 2nd battle of El-Alamein. This essay will also looks at, how Montgomery was able to adapt

The generalship of a commander refers to his qualities of wisdom, trustworthiness, benevolence, courage and discipline. As a leader, one must be willing to change for his followers, understanding the risks and returns, hence the way to reward your follower’s contribution and take care of them. A good generalship is required to plan a perfect attack or a perfect defense of an army. Without a good generalship, a commander will have high chance to lose a war even with outnumbered army.