Author to Discuss Marshall and His Generals

Stephen R. Taaffe, who is a professor of history at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas, will discuss his highly acclaimed book, Marshall and his Generals, on March 13 at The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond.

His remarks begin at 5:30 PM with a reception and book signing to follow.  Reservations are required.   Send an email to Leigh McFaddin at mcfaddinlh@marshallfoundation.org to reserve your seat.

“The men Marshall chose came from varied backgrounds, Mr. Taaffe observes, but all met Marshall's strict criteria: ‘integrity, initiative, a sense of duty, a can-do attitude, aggressiveness, and drive,’” writes Jonathan W. Jordan in his review in The Wall Street Journal. Click here to read the WSJ review.      

 

General George C. Marshall, chief of staff of the U.S. Army during World War II, faced the daunting task not only of overseeing two theaters of a global conflict but also of selecting the best generals to carry out American grand strategy.  Marshall and His Generals is the first and only book to focus entirely on that selection process and the performances, both stellar and disappointing, that followed from it.  Stephen Taaffe chronicles and critiques the background, character, achievements, and failures of the more than three dozen general officers chosen for top combat group commands—from commanders like Dwight Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur to some nearly forgotten.

 

Prof. Taaffe is the author of Commanding Lincoln's Navy: Union Naval Leadership During the Civil War; Commanding the Army of the Potomac; The Philadelphia Campaign, 1777-1778; and MacArthur's Jungle War: The 1944 New Guinea Campaign; and is a two-time winner of the Army Historical Foundation's Distinguished Book Award.