Article of the day for June 28, 2016
The Article of the day for June 28, 2016 is George S. Patton slapping incidents.
After he slapped two soldiers, US Lieutenant General George S. Patton was sidelined from combat command by General Dwight Eisenhower and Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall. On 3 August 1943, during the Sicily Campaign of World War II, Patton struck, kicked and berated a soldier he found at an evacuation hospital with no apparent injuries, for being "gutless"; in fact, the soldier had malaria with a temperature of 102.2 °F (39.0 °C). Patton struck another soldier complaining of "nerves" at another hospital seven days later and threatened him with a pistol for being a "whimpering coward"; in fact, the soldier had been begging to rejoin his unit. Both soldiers suffered from what is now known as post-traumatic stress disorder. Patton's actions were suppressed in the news until journalist Drew Pearson publicized them. Congress and the general public expressed both support and disdain. Patton was removed from combat command for almost a year, but did take a decoy command in Operation Fortitude to mislead German agents as to the location of the planned invasion of Europe. His later successes commanding the US Third Army largely rehabilitated his reputation.
After he slapped two soldiers, US Lieutenant General George S. Patton was sidelined from combat command by General Dwight Eisenhower and Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall. On 3 August 1943, during the Sicily Campaign of World War II, Patton struck, kicked and berated a soldier he found at an evacuation hospital with no apparent injuries, for being "gutless"; in fact, the soldier had malaria with a temperature of 102.2 °F (39.0 °C). Patton struck another soldier complaining of "nerves" at another hospital seven days later and threatened him with a pistol for being a "whimpering coward"; in fact, the soldier had been begging to rejoin his unit. Both soldiers suffered from what is now known as post-traumatic stress disorder. Patton's actions were suppressed in the news until journalist Drew Pearson publicized them. Congress and the general public expressed both support and disdain. Patton was removed from combat command for almost a year, but did take a decoy command in Operation Fortitude to mislead German agents as to the location of the planned invasion of Europe. His later successes commanding the US Third Army largely rehabilitated his reputation.
