General Haig's Background and Military Experience
General Haig is one of the most important men in world war history,
made famous for his tactics of the battle of the Somme, where
thousands of soldiers died, apparently needlessly. In this question, I
will be looking into Haig's life, and how it shaped him into the army
leader in 1915.
[IMAGE]Text Box: Haig at private school in 1887. He is at the extreme left of the back row.
Haig was born in 1862, the youngest of eleven children, to a rich
family that had made their money out of whiskey. His father died when
Douglas Haig was in his teens, so his mother played a crucial role in
his upbringing. The death of his father and being the youngest of
eleven children may have seemed quite hard for the young Douglas, and
his childhood possibly influenced his later life. From an early age,
Haig had a fascination with horses, and when he climbed up in the army
ranks, he often spoke of how vital he saw horses regarding war. This
was definitely influenced with his upbringing, and he would always be
seen on horseback through his early years.
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From the age of eight Haig went to private schools, firstly in
Edinburgh, then at the high class Clifton school in Bristol, From
1880-1883 he attended Brasenose College in Oxford, and enjoyed an
active social life. His continued love for horses was shown, as he
played Polo for the college. It may have been that while on a
continental trip at university that he developed his interest in
joining the armed forces. He went to Sandhurst royal military school
in 1884, and passed impressively in under a year, holding the Anson
memorial sword as S...
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...any
historians take swipes at Haig, but this seems justified. They did not
know Haig, and those who did spoke of his anguish at the death toll.
His heart may have been in the right place, but he did not have the
credentials to take such a high job, despite his credentials.
I conclude that I think that calling Haig the butcher of the Somme was
overly harsh, as those that knew him are likely to give more accurate
accounts of what Haig was like as a person. Yes Haig was the wrong
person for the Somme, but so would most people be. However he was not
a butcher. It is easy to find an easy scapegoat for the British death
rate, but perhaps some historians should look further and realise that
Haig did not hire himself, and that deep down he probably cared deeply
for the troops he commanded in the horrific battle of the Somme.
Introduction. Common Attributes of military leaders are just that, common. The accomplished Generals, Colonels and Majors that contributed to the most successful wars of our country have been molded a certain way. They are molded through vigorous training both in scholastic training and in the field along with rigorous mentorship. Colonel Lewis McBride was a rare exception to the rule. As a renowned Chemical museum curator so distinctively puts it, he was, without a doubt, one of the most interesting and industrious officers in the history of the US Army Chemical Corps.
I believe that even though most of the sources tell us that Haig was a
He had amazing talent and was very bright. His family thought he would have an amazing future,
He didn’t want to die. I know if anyone was in this situation they would
as facts go - Haig was that far away. The rest of the source is
Colin Powell: Military leader, Statesman. The question of “What makes a leader great?” is without one solitary answer. Effective leaders in the corporate and political arenas are deserving of praise, but because of the nature of their work, military leaders are arguably more complex and intriguing. “Military leadership qualities are formed in a progressive and sequential series of carefully planned training, educational, and experiential events—far more time-consuming and expensive than similar training in industry or government.
"A general who wears down 180,000 of the enemy by expending 400,000 men...has something to answer for." This idea from military historian C.E.W Bean is the main line of argument from traditionalist historians. They represent General Douglas Haig, British Commander-in-Chief of the BEF from 1915 to the end of the war in 1918, in a critical, damning light: a hopelessly incompetent general with a willingness to sacrifice the men of Britain for a few metres of muddy ground. On the converse of this interpretation is a revisionist perspective of Haig as a caring ‘architect of victory’, bringing long-term achievements with his perceptive strategies. With an examination of these two seemingly polemic perspectives and primary evidence, judgement, albeit a complex and multifaceted one, can be reached on both these smaller debates and of Douglas Haig’s role in World War One: villain or vanquisher?
had a choice, he had made the wrong one: the choice to leave. And now he was
...le to move on from that, and instead died thinking of himself as a success.
Introduction “Leaders have always been generalists”. Tomorrow’s leaders will, very likely, have begun life as specialists, but to mature as leaders they must sooner or later climb out of the trenches of specialization and rise above the boundaries that separate the various segments of society.” (Gardner, 1990, pg. 159). The. In a recent verbal bout with my History of the Military Art professor, I contended that the true might of a nation may be inversely proportional to the size of its military during peacetime.
...live because he believed he wasn’t truly out to get his wife, but more so to the fact that he could sing the tale of the events later when it was all done.
..., but he had a chance. Even if he may not have done outrageously well, the fact that he had a choice remains.
George Washington started his military career at the age of 20. He started in the French and Indian war. There he gained reputation for his bravery. He later faced defeat at fort necessity during French and Indian war. His top qualities were toughness, persistence, bravery and motivation.
for him. He was a man full of pride but has realized there is nothing
He was willing to risk everything he had in order to show his love for