Editing George S. Patton (section)

=== As viewed by Allied leaders ===
[[File:Patton Monument West Point in new location 2009 upright.JPG|thumb|upright|A statue of Patton at the US Military Academy at [[West Point]]]]

On 1 February 1945, Eisenhower wrote a memo ranking the military capabilities of his subordinate American generals in Europe. General Bradley and the [[Army Air Forces]] General [[Carl Spaatz]] shared the number one position, [[Walter Bedell Smith]] was ranked number three, and Patton number four.{{Sfn|D'Este|2002|p=801}} Eisenhower revealed his reasoning in a 1946 review of the book ''Patton and His Third Army'': "George Patton was the most brilliant commander of an Army in the open field that our or any other service produced. But his army was part of a whole organization and his operations part of a great campaign."{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=818}} Eisenhower believed that other generals should be given the credit for planning the successful Allied campaigns across Europe in which Patton was merely "a brilliant executor".{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=818}}

Eisenhower's overall view of Patton's military value is revealed in his refusal to even consider sending him home after the slapping incidents of 1943, after which he privately remarked, "Patton is indispensable to the war effort—one of the guarantors of our victory."{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=536}} [[Assistant Secretary of War]] [[John J. McCloy]] told Eisenhower: "[[Abraham Lincoln|Lincoln]]'s remark after they got after [[Ulysses S. Grant|Grant]] comes to mind when I think of Patton—'I can't spare this man, he fights'."{{Sfn|D'Este|2002|p=442}} After Patton's death, Eisenhower wrote:

<blockquote>He was one of those men born to be a soldier, an ideal combat leader&nbsp;... It is no exaggeration to say that Patton's name struck terror at the hearts of the enemy.{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=818}}</blockquote>

Historian [[Carlo D'Este]] insisted that Bradley disliked Patton both personally and professionally,{{sfn|D'Este|1995|pp=466–467}}{{sfn|D'Este|2002|pp=403–404}} but Bradley's biographer Jim DeFelice noted that the evidence indicated otherwise.{{sfn|DeFelice|2011|p=402}} President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] appeared to greatly esteem Patton and his abilities, stating "he is our greatest fighting general, and sheer joy".{{sfn|D'Este|1995|p=755}} On the other hand, Roosevelt's successor [[Harry S. Truman]] appears to have taken an instant dislike to Patton, at one point comparing both him and [[Douglas MacArthur]] to [[George Armstrong Custer]].{{sfn|D'Este|1995|p=755}}

For the most part, British commanders did not hold Patton in high regard. General [[Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke|Alan Brooke]] noted in January 1943:

<blockquote>I had heard of him, but I must confess that his swashbuckling personality exceeded my expectation. I did not form any high opinion of him, nor had I any reason to alter this view at any later date. A dashing, courageous, wild, and unbalanced leader, good for operations requiring thrust and push, but at a loss in any operation requiring skill and judgment.{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=451}}</blockquote>

One exception was Field Marshal [[Bernard Montgomery]] who admired Patton's ability to command troops in the field, if not his strategic judgment.{{Sfn|D'Este|1995|p=549}} Other Allied commanders were more impressed, the [[Free France|Free French]] in particular. General [[Henri Giraud]] was incredulous when he heard of Patton's dismissal by Eisenhower in late 1945 and invited him to Paris to be decorated by French President [[Charles de Gaulle]] at a state banquet. At the banquet, President de Gaulle gave a speech placing Patton's achievements alongside those of Napoleon.{{Sfn|Blumenson|1974|p=801}} Soviet leader [[Joseph Stalin]] stated that the [[Red Army]] could neither have planned nor executed Patton's rapid armored advance across France.{{Sfn|Hirshson|2003|p=562}}