“The first thing a young officer must do when he joins the Army is to fight a battle, and that battle is for the hearts of his men. If he wins that battle and subsequent similar ones, his men will follow him anywhere; if he loses it, he will never do any real good.” Field… Read More
“Late in February 1949 sailors on the Canadian destroyer Athabascan, on a spring training cruise to the Caribbean, staged a nonviolent demonstration, and the following week, in Far Eastern waters, so did about one-third of the 150-man crew of HMCS Crescent. The Athabascan was one of the escorts of the aircraft carrier Magnificent, thirty-two of… Read More
“What troops and subordinate commanders appreciate is that a general should be constantly in personal contact with them, and should but see everything simply through the eyes of his staff.” Field Marshal A.P. Wavell (1953) Soldiers and Soldiering. London: Jonathan Cape.
“I will give you two simple rules which every general should observe: first, never to try to do his own staff work; and secondly, never to let his staff get between him and his troops.” Field Marshal A.P. Wavell (1953) Soldiers and Soldiering. London: Jonathan Cape.
“In [1814], Lieutenant Frederick Young, … [led 2000 irregulars against 200] Gurkhas in the hills. Their first showing, when not yet drawn together by any marked esprit de corps, was a poor one. The Gurkhas attacked on sight, whereupon the irregulars incontinently fled, leaving the chagrined Young with a handful of officers where he stood.… Read More
“War is much to brutal a business to have room for brutal leading; in the end, its only effect can be to corrode the character of men, and when character is lost, all is lost. The bully and the sadist serve only to further encumber an army; their subordinates must waste precious time clearing away… Read More
“Only the officer who dedicates his thought and energy to his men can convert into coherent military force their inarticulate thoughts about their country; nor is any other in a position to stimulate their desire to be of service to it.” S.L.A. Marshal, Men Against Fire, 1947.
Boot Camp & Military Fitness Institute 