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Questions regarding military leadership development
Military leadership development
Military leadership development
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Major General Oliver P. Smith took command of the 1st Marine Division in late July 1950 and prepared the understrength organization to deploy to Asia in less than a month. The division was the principle amphibious assault force during the Battle of Inchon and General Smith was uniquely qualified lead the division during the operation. First, General Smith had extensive experience working in an inter-service environment and leading large organizations that enabled him to quickly integrate his division into the joint force. Secondly, his experience conducting amphibious operations compensated for a lack of experience on the part of his higher headquarters, the U.S. Army X Corps. Finally, General Smith’s character and personality enabled …show more content…
him to work within a difficult command climate and focus himself and his organization on accomplishing mission objectives. General Smith’s leadership supported unity of effort during the Inchon landing as was essential to the success of the operation. One of the reasons General Smith was able to quickly integrate the newly formed 1st Marine Division into a joint force was his previous experience working with other services and leading large organizations.
General Smith was extremely familiar with the culture and doctrine of the U.S. Army, having attended that service’s Infantry school in the early 1930s. This experience was further reinforced during the Second World War, when General Smith served as the Assistant Division Commander of the 1st Marine Division while under the overall command of General MacArthur. Later in the war General Smith was assigned to the staff of the Tenth U.S. Army, which included a corps of Marines, during preparations for the invasion of Okinawa. His familiarity with the U.S. Army and experience working at the division and army level in a joint force made General Smith the ideal person to command the 1st Marine Division as part of X …show more content…
Corps. General Smith’s experience studying and conducting amphibious operations spanned nearly two decades and mitigated the relative lack of experience on the part of Army planners. One can trace General Smith’s study of amphibious operations to at least the early 1930s, when as an instructor at Quantico he helped refocus the Marine Corps’ land centric doctrine on amphibious assaults. Later in the 1930s, General Smith attended the École Supérieure de Guerre where drew insights from French infantry tactics focused on creating breakthroughs in enemy lines that he applied to amphibious landings. In addition to his extensive studying amphibious operations General Smith conducted multiple landings during World War II. He first commanded the 5th Marine Regiment during operations in New Britain in the South Pacific. Later in that same campaign he served as the Assistant Division Commander of the 1st Marine Division. With this extensive amphibious experience, General Smith contributed to the unity of effort by organizing and leading his staff to conduct the detailed planning for the Inchon landing. Recognizing the difficulty involved in conducting amphibious operations, he selected personnel for his staff who had held the same staff positions during World War II. With so much experience the 1st Marine Division was able do the majority of the planning for the operations, making up for the lack of experience on the part of X Corps’ staff. The expertise that General Smith and his Marines brought to the joint force was critical to the success of the operation. General Smith’s personality and professionalism enabled him to apply his expertise and superior judgement operational decisions despite personal tensions between himself and the X Corps leadership.
Personal tension between General Smith and Major General Almond, the X Corps commander, emerged almost immediately after the two officers met. Personal difference between the two commanders, along with the relative lack of experience of General Almond and his staff could have created significant problems during the planning and conduct of the landing. However, General Smith always maintained control of his emotions and performed his duties in a professional manner. Rather than becoming involved in petty squabbles, General Smith focused on the mission and provided professional advice to his higher headquarters to better inform operational decisions so as to avoid costly mistakes. One example of this is when General Smith advised against replacing the 5th Marine Regiment with the Army’s 32nd Infantry Regiment as part of the assault force less than two weeks before the landing. General Smith stressed that significant changes prior to such a complicated operation posed unacceptable risks to the mission, ultimately resulting in the selection of a less risky course of action. General Smith’s professional character allowed him to rise above personal rivalries and ensure that both his expertise and that of his division were able to contribute to the success of the joint
fight. General Smith was the right leader for the 1st Marine Division at the right time. He had a deep familiarity with the Army from both his professional education and previous combat experience that prepared him to lead his division as part of an Army Corps. Additionally, General Smith brought over two decades of personal experience in amphibious warfare and selected a staff capable filling the void of experience that existed at X Corps. Finally, General Smith’s professional character allowed him to operate within a challenging command environment and ensure his experience and that of his staff was available to support critical decisions. General Smith is an excellent example of a joint leader who contributed critical service competencies to the joint force to accomplish unity of effort.
Things quickly turned around in 1950, once Brigadier General Theodore R. Wessels became leader. He was also respon...
During the battle, COL Hughes moved to areas under heavy fire to advice his commanders directly and motivate his Marines to push forward. He exhibited extraordinary professionalism as he maintain his presence as a true ground commander who fought side-by-side with his Marines. Initially, cloud cover was heavy and poor weather prevented close air support (CAS) and artillery support. With organic assets readily available, he personally directed fire support on enemy defenses slowly weakening Communist forces hold on the city. Clearly, COL Hughes was able to inspire trust to his subordinates whose end result was a cohesive team that fought a successful battle
COL Prescott’s role in the Battle of Bunker Hill, or more correctly know as the Battle of Breed’s Hill, is a great example of how to properly execute mission command. An overview from The Cowpens Staff Ride and Battlefield Tour (Moncure) reveals a number of operation and strategic objectives that the American militia had to consider. In this instance, COL Prescott takes charge of 1200 men with instructions to defend against incoming British forces that were seeking to occupy the surrounding hills during the Siege of Boston campaign. COL Prescott utilized a variety of steps in the operations process that contributed to his expert utilization of mission command over his forces. Through various sources from published works by experts on the subject, COL Prescott’s mission command demonstrates its effectiveness in his understanding of the situation against the British, his visualization to create an end state for t...
The 2nd Brigade of 101st Airborne Division found out in the summer of 2004 that they had to prepare for the war in the Middle East more particularly for Iraq. With Colonel Todd Ebel in Command of the 2nd Division with a year to prepare over 3,400 men and woman he got right to work. Colonel Ebel started by choosing his staff and who he thought was fit to take charge and lead this ever more complicated war. It was a huge religious civil war taking place in Iraq at the time with the Sunnis at war against the Shi’ite and after the capture of Saddam insurgency started uprising immediately. This uprising along with the uprising of Muqtada al-Sadr a key leader that had lots of violent followers that soon grew into a form of a militia called Mahdi Army which became another huge problem for the U.S. because the line between a legitamite populist movement and a huge theocratic organized-crime and terror ring was a thin one. The 2nd Brigade Infantry Battalions consisted of 1-502nd (First Strike) and 2-502nd (Strike Force) and 2nd brigade as a whole is known as the “Black Hearts”. Ebel’s mission was to deny insurgent’s access to Baghdad through his AO and as intelligence increased to uproot and destroy insurgent safe havens, while also training the IA so they could ensure the stability of the region later on. Ebel chose Lt. Col. Kunk as commander of “First Strike” 1-502nd and Lt. Col. Haycock as commander of “Strike Force” 2-502nd. By Ebel’s personality evaluations of Kunk and Haycock he decided that Kunk would work in the area that involved him being more engaging where populist centers were and work with local officials and Haycock more in the fighting areas. Kunk was in command of 3 rifle companies, 1 weapons company, 1 logistics company...
The book Black Hearts by Jim Frederick is an in-depth narrative about the 1st platoon, Bravo Company 1-502nd Infantry 101st Airborne Division deployed to Iraq in 2005. The leadership failures documented in this book range all the way from the general officer level down to the lowest private. LT general Ricardo Sanchez failed to understand the climate his command group was entering as they were deployed into Iraq. From then on the entire leadership failures continued to compound upon each other with improper time to plan. It is customary to have a six month lead time to have a proper battle hand off when preparing to take over an AO from another unit. To compound this problem, the entire time the 502nd was in pre-deployment training, they were preparing for the rigors of urban combat. In reality, they were given six weeks to recon their new area of responsibility and were going to a countryside crafted by the heavens for guerilla warfare. As Colonel Ebel said in the book, “It is not going to be an easy road. They are not even sure of what they have in the area. It just feels bad. We can expect a real fight.”
The Marine Corps today has developed itself into an elite fighting force based on strong naval traditions. The basic Marine is amphibious, which means that the warrior is capable of fighting on land and sea. The idea of an amphibious landing was developed through the training of the Marine Raider Battalions, which was tested and perfected in combat. Although there were two Raider Commanders with very different views on how to prepare their marines, Evans Carlson and Merritt Edson were responsible for training lightly armed Marines for amphibious assaults.
Stewart R. W. (2005). American Military History (Vol. 1). The United States Army and the
Brigade General Scales, Robert H. JR. Certain Victory. The U.S. Army in the Gulf War.
The United States Army has been a leader in military prowess on the world stage since its inception in 1775, and with such a record, it is reasonably assumed that there must be solid foundation within the organization working to maintain the high level of performance. The Noncommissioned Officer Corps is one institution within the Army that serves as a large portion of this foundation that makes it the fighting force that it has always been, and the noncommissioned officers have been an integral piece since the very inception of the Army. The Prussian General Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, organizer of the Noncommissioned Officer Corps, encapsulated this idea when he coined the noncommissioned officer (NCO) as the backbone of the Army. (Arms, 1991) In an Army that is continuously adjusting to world around it while maintaining its status as the military leader to all other nations, the Noncommissioned Officer Corps has always provided the platform for continuity through a growing rank system based on its original core, an evolving training program to develop effective leaders, and a creed that moves us forward while remembering the rich history of the corps that came before us.
The performance of Major General Ambrose E. Burnside at the helm of the Army of the Potomac can be characterized as less than stellar. His failures to understand, describe, lead, and assess during the Battle of Fredericksburg ultimately led to his army’s defeat and the death of tens of thousands of Federal soldiers. The fate of the mission and our soldiers rely on our ability to conduct mission command activities. It is essential we learn from the grave mistakes of the commanders of the past and become prepared to carry out these activities when we are called to do
Black Hearts is a great example of the reality on how severe bad leadership skills can ripple throughout a unit and impact its overall mission. This book serves as a guide for future leaders of America and will set the examples of what not to do in leadership positions. The lessons we can take from these soldiers can help us as potential leaders to become more competent and effective. The fact that this book focused on the hardships, poor decisions and sound judgment of the soldiers it helped emphasize on what was not the best choice of action and leaves a moment for you as the audience to think how you would of done it better. So right or wrong there was a lesson to be learned and the book did a good job including the reader. This book puts you in the shoes of a small group of soldiers from the 502nd Infantry Regiment and gives you an up close and personal take on the experience of the soldiers, from the bottom of the the ranks all the way up to the commander. 502nd Bravo Company 1st platoon deployed in the fall of 2005 into one of the most dangerous battle zones in Iraq known as the “Triangle of Death”. Thrown into the heartland of a growing insurgency, with undefined goals and a shortage of manpower, Bravo Company began piling up casualties at an alarming rate. They suffered many losses, as well as mental anguish. Because of the long and tragic deployment, a collapse in leadership began to unfold causing one of the most tragic, brutal, and infamous deployments in U.S Army history. There were many reasons that caused the deconstruction of leadership, and eventually, the actions of the soldiers accompanied by the lack of control, lead to the rape and murder of an innocent Iraqi girl and her family. This is a story about character...
Lieutenant General Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, through dedication to his mission and the welfare of his marines, was a visionary leader even by today’s standards. In his youth, Chesty attempted to join World War I before he had reached the required age. He attended Virginia Military Institute, but dropped out after one year to satisfy his urge to experience combat. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps as a private and remained enlisted for only a year before his commissioning as a lieutenant. Unfortunately, the war ended before he was able to experience combat. When a force reduction ensued after the end of the war, Lt Puller was sent to the reserves and given the ...
Exemplary performance has always attracted accolades and numerous prices; this gives morale and vigor for everyone to achieve their best. In the disciplined forces, particularly the marine, the service members always receive a major reward that elevates them in rank; this is the medal. This rewards them for their bravery and contribution in the missions they are involved in. Indeed, they contribute a lot to the peace and security of the world at large and they truly deserve these medals for recognition (Tucker, 2011). This has been a practice for the U.S. Marine to issue Corps medals since the Civil War to present day. Among the Corps Medal categories include American Defense Medal-WWII, Armed Forces Civilian Service Medal, Bronze Star Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, and Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal among others. Since the Civil War there have been over 120 U.S. Marine Corps Medals. This paper identifies Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell “Chesty” Puller and describes why he has been one of the most decorated marines in the history of the U.S.
Alexander Hamilton was disliked by many people but, he is now popular because of a hit Broadway show created by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Hamilton was born on January 11, 1755 or 1757 in Charleston, Nevis in the British West Indies. He was abandoned by his father which made him an orphan at the age of 13. Hamilton started attending school in Elizabethtown, New Jersey but, plans changed, and he entered Kings College. At the age of 17 he was already interested in government. Later, in 1776 he was introduced to George Washington. He became Washington’s advisor not long after that. Some main events that changed Hamilton’s life were his family, his accomplishments, and George Washington.
Armed with numerous studies, and intensive public hearings, Congress mandated far-reaching changes in DOD organization and responsibilities in the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986. This landmark legislation significantly expanded the authority and responsibility of the chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. Included in this expanded authority and responsibility was the requirement for the chairman to develop a doctrine for the joint employment of armed forces. As operations Urgent Fury, Just Cause, and Desert Storm have vividly demonstrated, the realities of armed conflict in today's world make the integration of individual service capabilities a matter of success or failure, life or death. Furthermore, the operation Desert One demonstrated the need for a strengthened Joint Warfare Doctrine and the consequent change in Joint Warfare Employment. It is plain to see the benefits of having the greatest navy integrated with the world's greatest army and air force. However, even in the wake of a relatively successful joint operation in the Middle East (Desert Storm), certain weaknesses are evident in the current joint employment tactics and/or capabilities. By analyzing past operations such as Urgent Fury and Desert Storm, we are able to see sufficient evidence that the Joint Warfare Concept can be disastrous in one instance and virtually flawless in another.