The Army Ground Forces
ORIGINS OF THE ARMY GROUND FORCES:
GENERAL HEADQUARTERS
U.S. ARMY, 1940-1942
Study No. 1
By
Lt. Col Kent Roberts Greenfield
and
Dr. Robert R. Palmer
Historical Section • Army Ground Forces
1946
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HEADQUARTERS ARMY GROUND FORCES
WASHINGTON 25, D.C. |
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314.7 (1 Sept 1946) GNHIS |
1 September 1945 | ||
| SUBJECT: | Studies in the History of Army Ground Forces | ||
| TO: | All Interested Agencies | ||
| 1. The history of the Army Ground Forces as a command was
prepared during the course of the war and completed immediately thereafter.
The studies prepared in Headquarters Army Ground Forces, were written
by professional historians, three of whom served as commissioned officers,
and one as a civilian. The histories of the subordinate commands were
prepared by historical officers, who except in Second Army, acted as such
in addition to other duties.
2. From the first, the history was designed primarily for the Army. Its object is to give an account of what was done from the point of view of the command preparing the history, including a candid, and factual account of difficulties, mistakes recognized as such, the means by which, in the opinion of those concerned, they might have been avoided, the measures used to overcome them, and the effectiveness of such measures. The history is not intended to be laudatory. 3. The history of the Army Ground Forces is composed of monographs on the subjects selected, and of two volumes in which an overall history is presented. A separate volume is devoted to the activities of each of the major subordinate commands. 4. In order that the studies may be made available to interested agencies at the earliest possible date, they are being reproduced and distributed in manuscript form. As such they must be regarded as drafts subject to final editing and revision. Persons finding errors of fact or important omissions are encouraged to communicate with the Commanding General, Army Ground Forces, Attention: Historical Section, in order that corrections may be made prior to publication in printed form by the War Department. BY COMMAND OF GENERAL DEVERS: |
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1 Incl: |
/S/ J.L. TARR Colonel, AGD Acting Ground Adj General |
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PREFATORY NOTE Study No. 1, Origins of the Army Ground Forces: General Headquarters, U.S.A. 1940-1942, is not a definitive history of GHQ. The objective of its authors was comprehensive, but it was restricted by their mission as members of the Historical Section, Headquarters Army Ground Forces, and by the inevitable conditions of the wartime historical project. Broadly stated, their objective was to explore the antecedents of the Army Ground Forces in the history of GHQ. Such an exploration was obviously necessary, since the evolution of the Army Ground Forces was dominated by the views of Gen. Lesley J. McNair, who directed the staff of GHQ, and since GHQ, from July 1940 until 9 March 1942, supervised the training of ground units for combat, a task which became the primary mission of the Army Ground Forces. As the study progressed it was seen that an understanding of the history of the Army Ground Forces would benefit by an account of the origin of agencies and policies later inherited by the Army Ground Forces and also by an account of the reorganization of the War Department in which that command itself originated, since no previous study of this was available. A limitation dictated by the need for economy of effort was to confine research almost entirely to the records of GHQ. This decision seemed justified since the object was to set forth the point of view of GHQ as the predecessor of the Army Ground Forces. Other records were explored when necessary to complete or supplement those of GHQ. It will be found that certain subjects, such, for examples, as the activities of GHQ as a planning and operational agency, and the reorganization of the War Department itself, are treated more fully, perhaps, than the restricted scope of the study required. In such cases the wealth of information found in the records of GHQ inspired the hope that incidental contributions might be made to an understanding of larger questions. At the same time it was believed that a better understanding of the mission, authority, and policies of the Army Ground Forces would result. Helpful, in some cases invaluable, information or criticism in preparing the present study was obtained from Maj. Gen. Harry J. Malony, Maj. Gen. Charles L. Bolte, Maj. Gen. Clyde L. Hyssong, Maj. Gen. Frank A. Keating, Maj. Gen. Alexander R. Bolting, Maj. Gen. Floyd L. Parks, Maj. Gen. William F. Dean, Brig. Gen. John M. Lentz, Brig. Gen. Paul McD. Robinett, Brig. Gen. William G. Walker, Brig. Gen. John S. Winn, Jr. Brig. Gen. Riley F. Ennis, Col. John W. Wurts, Lt. Col. George Seleno, and Maj. Kenneth W. Hechler. The system of references and abbreviations used in the footnotes is explained in Appendix II. |
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Kent Roberts Greenfield |
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Last updated 22 February 2005
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