We think of General George S. Patton Jr. as one of our greatest combat leaders in World War II. Certainly our “fightingest” General, and someone who must have been a constant threat to the enemy. Did the Germans fear this hard-charging tank commander and watch his every move? The answer may surprise you. There have been many books written about General Patton, but the author says “This is the book that hasn’t.” And one would have to agree with him, as Fighting Patton is more about German generals than it is about Patton. Author Harry Yeide has searched German archives for reports from the men who faced Patton on the battlefield to see how they fought him and what they thought of his leadership skills.

German generals such as Hasso von Manteuffel, Paul Hausser, Gerd von Rundstedt, and many more appear in this book. It’s interesting to note that all of Patton’s counterparts had much more combat and leadership experience than Patton did.

The book begins with a brief biography of Patton, who would, during his military career, face Mexican bandits (he shot one of Pancho Villa’s officers out of the saddle with his pistol), Vichy French, Italians, and Germans in both World Wars. Patton became our first tanker – forming a U.S. armor school in WW I France. When Patton’s armored force went into combat at St. Mihiel on Sept. 11, 1918, he walked alongside the tanks, tapping on the side with his walking stick to get the tanker’s attention. In Patton’s second action fifteen days later, he was hit by machine gun fire in the hip. By the time he recovered, the war was over.

Returning to the cavalry between the wars, Patton read books by the likes of Irwin Rommel and Hans Guderian and realized the horse cavalry would have only a limited role in the next war. In April, 1941, Patton was promoted to major general and was put in command of the 2nd Armored Division. But his German counterparts were already veterans of the Polish and French campaigns, and preparing for the attack of the Soviet Union.

Patton’s first WW II actions in North Africa and Sicily resulted in some early successes, but the Germans really were more preoccupied with Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery. By the time of the Normandy Invasion, there is little evidence the Germans knew who Patton was, but the U.S. news media had made Patton a hero in the states, an image he lived up to in his charge across France following the Normandy breakout.

This led to the battle of Lorraine, Patton’s hardest battle. According to the author, two German commanders stood out here, Otto von Knobelsdorff and Hermann Balck, Russian Front veterans who stemmed the advances of Patton’s Third Army with battered infantry divisions, few anti-tank guns, no air support, and an armored force outnumbered 10 to 1. They held off Patton, whom they considered cautious and slow, while the Germans built up their army for the Ardennes Offensive. Finally, with German defenses seriously weakened, Patton was poised for the final breakthrough when he was ordered to go to the rescue of allied forces in Bastogne. Despite having suffered irreplaceable losses, the line had held, and the Germans considered it a victory.

The final four months of war saw the Wehrmacht crumble before the allied onslaught. Once in Germany, Patton could move in any direction, and the general once classified by the German army as “cautious” was seizing cities and towns with lightning speed in what would be known as “Patton’s Blitz”. Yet the enemy fought on. When U.S. troops captured General Edwin von Rothkirch, Patton asked him why the Germans kept fighting a hopeless war. “Orders,” said Rothkirch.

While many German officers came to respect Patton (Alfred Jodl would call him the “American Guderian”), his name hardly ever came up on official reports. Readers may be surprised by the Allied General that worried the enemy the most.

Patton fans will be disappointed as most of the book deals with the German commanders and their attempts to stem the allied advance. This book is not light reading – it can be somewhat dry and hard to follow at times. However, it is very well researched and written and puts an end to some of the myths surrounding George Patton. It is recommended to those who enjoy reading about tactics of the German army during WW II. Thanks to Zenith Books for the review copy and to IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review it.