General George Patton is my favorite general from the Second World War. I think without a doubt he was the best American field general ( but I don’t think I would’ve liked to serve under him, you know that mandatory necktie thing and all :lol: ). I would like to post some of his quotes here and let me know what you think. If anyone has a favorite, please share them. His first quote:
“A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week.”
A pint of sweat will save a gallon of blood."
Having just watched a gaff on the US “NBC Evening News,” I’ll add this one: “Only a pimp from a cheap New Orleans whorehouse would carry a pearl-handled pistol.”
“Actually, the Germans are the only decent people left in Europe.” 
I would rather have a German division in front of me than a French one behind me.
Good tactics can save even the worst strategy. Bad tactics will destroy even the best strategy."
In Case of Doubt Attack!!
(I got this quote from the History Channel:):)
If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking."
Herman2
I’m pleasantly surprised you were able to get any historical facts from the History Channel. It seems all they ever have anymore is stuff like Pawn Stars, American Pickers, Swamp People, and Ice Road Truckers. I’m glad you were able to get that bit of info. Nice going! 
When I worked there in northern Bavaria, it was a nice place, with good weather, the Beer was always good, and the ladies were generally friendly. And even if they weren’t, the Beer was still good.
All fine…as long as you don’t call them Bavarians German.
What do you think of them as ? I’m just curious about how people from the different States view (ed) each other. Would you speculate that this may be due at least in part to Germany’s relatively recent Birth as a Nation ?
It’s more of the opposite. To us the Bavarians are just south Germans, they consider themselves kinda different. The official designation of their home is " Free State of Bavaria", to them we (the rest of Germany) are “Saupreißn” as they call it (~ damn Prussians).
I always thought that Patton’s prayer for good weather was somewhat of a paradox, praying for the ability to kill more of the enemy. I’m not sure God approved, but here is the prayer:
Almighty and most merciful Father, we humbly beseech Thee, of Thy great goodness, to restrain these immoderate rains with which we have had to contend. Grant us fair weather for Battle. Graciously hearken to us as soldiers who call upon Thee that, armed with Thy power, we may advance from victory to victory, and crush the oppression and wickedness of our enemies and establish Thy justice among men and nations.
He then ordered 250,000 copies to be distributed to the troops.
I had not heard that before FTG, which may be because most all of my tour was based in N.Bavaria. I have spent time in other States, but not enough to get the local flavor. This sounds a bit like the relationship between the Norwegians, and Swedes.
“Fixed fortifications are monuments to man’s stupidity.”
“His guts, our blood”… Said to have been uttered by many of Patton’s soldiers…
I suspect said before Metz.
The following is General Patton’s personal prayer to God, NOT the more widely publicized one distributed to the troops:
Lord, this is Patton speaking to you. The last fourteen days have been awful. Rain, snow, more rain, more snow and I have begun to ask myself, why not go to your headquarters. Which side are you on? For three years, my chaplains have explained that this is a religious war. They have told me that this is a crusade, the only difference being that we move on tanks instead of horses. They have insisted that we destroy the German army and this atheist Hitler, so that freedom of religion can return to Europe.
Until now I followed them, the more so as you helped us without reserve. Blue sky and calm sea in Africa helped to make our unloading easy to eliminate Rommel. The capture of Sicily was relatively easy, and you gave us a perfect time for our armored push through France, the greatest military victory that you have granted me. You often gave me excellent counsel in my difficult decisions of command, and you dropped German units into my traps, which made their elimination relatively easy.
But now you seem to have changed horses. You seem to me to have given to Von Rundstedt the green light. My army is neither trained nor equipped for war in winter. And as you know, this weather is more appropriate for Eskimos than for Southern riders.
In fact, Lord, I have begun to think that I have offended you in some way. That suddenly you have lost your sympathy to our cause. That you are in complicity with this Von Rundstedt and his puppet.
You know, without my saying so, that our situation is desperate.
Obviously, I tell my staff that everything is going as planned, but do I need to add that the 101st Airborne is opposing terrible forces in Bastogne, and that these continual storms make air supplies impossible? I sent good Hugh Gaffey, one of my able generals, with his 4th Armored Division, to this important Noeud road to help the encircled garrison, but he has more trouble with your rotten weather than with the Boches!
I do not like to complain unnecessarily, but my soldiers really suffered martyrdom from the Meuse to Echternach. Today I visited several hospitals, all full of cold people, while the wounded remain strewn across the fields, because we cannot bring them back to give them care. But that is not the worst of the situation. The poor visibility and the continual rains have completely paralyzed my air forces on the ground. My battle plan requires help from the fighter-bombers, and if my planes cannot fly, tell me how I can use them as air artillery?
This is not the only deplorable situation, but worse still, my reconnaissance aircraft have not taken to the air in fourteen days, and I do not have the slightest idea what is happening behind the German lines. Jesus, Lord, I fight a shadow! Without your cooperation on the weather, how can I lead effective attacks? All this probably appears irrational to you, but I have lost patience with your ministers who try to persuade me that this is one typical winter in the Ardennes, and that I must have confidence.
The devil with confidence and patience! You have to only choose which side you are on. You must come to my aid, so that I can liquidate the entire German army, and offer it like a birthday gift to the Baby Jesus. Lord, I have never been unreasonable. I do not ask the impossible of you. I do not even ask for a miracle, only four little days of beautiful weather.
Give me four clear days so my planes can fly, so my fighter-bombers can bomb the Germans (and punish them well), so my observation planes can pinpoint the targets for my splendid artillery. Give me four sunny days to dry this rotten mud, so my tanks can roll, so the ammunition and the rations can reach my starving and badly equipped infantrymen. I need these four days to send Von Rundstedt and his army of infidels to their valhalla.
I am sick of this useless butchery of young Americans, and in exchange for these four days of weather favorable to combat, I will provide you enough Boches to keep your accountants occupied with months of work.
So it is."
GOOD STUFF !! :tank:
