THE COMMANDERS

A veteran military historian delves into the leadership qualities of three iconic World War II commanders.

Clark is a longtime professor of modern war studies, the founder of the Centre for Army Leadership in the U.K., and author of Anzio, Arnhem, Blitzkrieg, and other acclaimed books on WWII. In his latest, he shows that the elements of effective leadership are not in short supply, but for Patton, Montgomery, and Rommel, rising to the top of their brutally competitive profession required prodigious ambition, a fascination with the minutiae of war, and boundless self-confidence. All matured before World War I, when military officers mostly came from upper-middle-class families where it was a traditional, if not high-status, career choice. Reaching midlevel ranks, all experienced combat in WWI and impressed their superiors; they continued to mature during the two decades between the wars. Clark delivers an insightful, warts-and-all account of this lesser-known period in their lives, which accurately forecasted their later triumphs and controversies. Patton was the wealthiest and most pompous. He never concealed his yearning for military glory, an ambition shared by few under his command, who mostly admired his leadership but not his bravado. Boorish behavior endangered his career several times, but superiors valued his aggressiveness, a quality lacking in most American generals. Montgomery was as flamboyant as Patton, but he had plenty of self-confidence and dedication. The conviction that he knew best was on full display as commander of British forces in Europe during WWII, making him a controversial figure at home and widely disliked by American commanders, perhaps Patton most of all. Rommel wasn’t as conceited as Patton or Montgomery; he preferred to lead men and fight. Like most historians, Clark admires Rommel’s performance in North Africa but admits that he was probably the least intelligent of the three. A fawning admirer of Hitler, he did not change his mind until it was too late.

Nothing new but astute and entertaining.