Patton

Battling with History

By J. Furman Daniel III, and Reviewed by Shelby Robertson

Article published on: June 1, 2025 in the Summer 2025 edition of Army History

Read Time: < 5 mins

University of Missouri Press, 2020 Pp. xvi, 305. $40

Despite the wealth of books on General George S. Patton Jr., J. Furman Daniel III finds a unique story to tell in this thematic biography, Patton: Battling with History. Daniel challenges famous perceptions and myths of Patton as a pure, natural warrior that have been perpetuated by popular culture, and he details how Patton’s disciplined study habits produced his battlefield successes. Daniel takes particular aim at the 1970 film Patton starring George C. Scott, even appearing to have structured his book to follow the course of the movie. The myths of Patton perpetuated by Patton, such as his claims of reincarnation, are likely to be familiar to Daniel’s readers. Indeed, the power of Patton to shape perceptions of the actual Patton is well-known to this reviewer. I recall the image of Scott as Patton being so vivid in my mind as a child that I was disappointed and confused by the image of the real Patton once I finally saw it. Daniel supports his thesis by attempting to dispel myths of Patton through ample examples of his dedication to and love of history and military theory—anecdotes with which the average reader may not be familiar. For instance, Patton took time during his honeymoon in England to purchase an English-language version of Carl von Clausewitz’s On War, a volume which would join hundreds of books in Patton’s personal library.

Much has been written on General Patton in the past eighty years, including a previous release by Daniel titled 21st Century Patton: Strategic Insights for the Modern Era (Naval Institute Press, 2016). Count it as a credit to Daniel’s research and creativity that he found an intriguing and novel angle from which to study the general in Battling with History. Time and again, Daniel details how Patton’s forward thinking and study led to his exceptional preparedness. Patton’s devotion to studying history and observing global events led him to some remarkably accurate predictions. Patton did not have a sixth sense for warfare; instead, his discipline in reading and preparing for future contingencies consistently put him ahead of his peers and adversaries. Years before the United States joined the hostilities of World War II, Patton was reading about German military tactics from the likes of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, whom he studied in 1937. He even conducted sand-table exercises of German maneuvers in 1938. This initiative would pay great dividends for Patton and the Allies when the U.S. Army landed in North Africa and Europe.

Daniel chronicles how Patton often took advantage of his superior historical knowledge to provide some dubious and distorted historical support for his theories or to justify poor behavior. Daniel details how Patton’s journals evolved from revealing the thoughts of a young officer grappling with his understanding of complex military theory to those of a confident senior officer using history to defend his decision making and criticize his dissenters. The latter point led Daniel to conclude that Patton knew he was making history as a World War II commander. He began writing for an audience, knowing his journals eventually would become part of the historical record at the war’s conclusion. Such an assessment is necessary to provide the most objective and robust historical analysis, but it is hardly groundbreaking to suggest that Patton had an outsized ego. This fact is one that even the greatest of myths could never hide.

With regard to Patton, Daniel may have overasserted his thesis in Battling with History. Yes, General Patton is often vaunted as a military genius and natural warrior and the film certainly delivers the drama, but it also does work in several indications of Patton’s extensive study habits. For example, during the scene in which Patton’s army successfully counters Rommel’s force to win an important battle, Patton declares, “Rommel . . . I read your book!” In another scene, an aide wakes General Patton, who has been sleeping with a copy of Rommel’s book open on his chest. Such scenes signal to the viewer that Patton was prepared for Rommel’s tactics because he had studied the German general. As for the claims of reincarnation, both Battling with History and Patton give credibility to the idea that Patton made such claims and believed them, although the movie takes some artistic liberty with the information.

Overall, Daniel’s book is a worthy contribution to the study of General Patton, and it should be required reading for young Army officers. It can be intimidating, perhaps demotivating, to try to live up to the example of one of America’s great warriors; however, Daniel’s demystification of Patton shows that his methods can be duplicated. Young officers can emulate Patton’s habits of deep study, appreciation of history, and pursuit of excellence in the craft while exercising caution to avoid falling into the state of hubris that led to Patton’s undoing. Despite Patton’s character f laws, Daniel’s account impresses the reader with the general’s legacy. Battling with History routinely displays Patton’s devotion to his profession and the study of history—a valuable and inspiring example for today’s Army leaders. His work ethic and the knowledge he gained from it put him ahead of his adversary, leading to great success in World War II and throughout his career. The reality of Patton as a student of history and a profoundly prepared tactician, as presented by Daniel, is a far richer legacy than any of the myths could produce. In this case, the truth is better than fiction.