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Shaleem Dempsey

Grantham University

HS 315: Great Commanders

Professor Wagner

October 14, 2021

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General John J. Pershing was one of the most impactful field commanders in American history, serving in numerous campaigns on U.S. soil and abroad, but ultimately being most well-known for his strategic leadership in World War I.

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Born in 1860, Pershing was a highly trained and experienced military officer.

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Graduated West Point, started service as a second lieutenant assigned to the 6th Cavalry, which was conducting campaigns against natives in the Southwest.

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Served as a military attaché to the U.S. embassy in Japan

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He became an instructor in military science at the University of Nebraska in 1891 and earned his law degree in 1893.

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Took command of a troop within the 10th Cavalry Regiment, an all-African American Buffalo Soldier regiment

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Became an instructor at West Point

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Served in the campaign to suppress the Sioux uprising in the Dakota Territory

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Served in Cuba and the Philippines during the Spanish American War

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Served as a military attaché to the U.S. embassy in Japan

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President Roosevelt promoted Pershing to the rank of captain, far ahead of schedule and before others with more seniority

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Returned to the Philippines and served as the commander of the department of Mindanao as well as the governor of Moro Province

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Commanded the expedition sent against Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa

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Succeeded Gen. Funston as commander on the U.S.-Mexican border. After the U.S. declared war on Germany and joined the allies, President Wilson nominated Pershing to command the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), the American troops that would go on to fight in Europe.

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The allied European troops originally only wanted financial support and resources from the Americans. However, the Americans sent over troops as well that were just supposed to support the allied efforts. However, by 1918, the allies were suffering and Pershing determined that most of the Americans would fight under his leadership as an American military rather than under the command of the various European militaries.

Pershing never entirely got his wish and the Americans mostly fought alongside allied troops. However, Pershing was largely credited with many victories in battle that led to the surrender of Germany and the end of WWI.

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The rigid attention, upright bearing, attention to detail, uncomplaining obedience to instructions

Pershing “balanced policy of “benevolent assimilation” and economic development coupled with a willingness to rapidly and ruthlessly suppress any challenge to American rule or local stability” (p. 126).

Pershing was politically savvy, knowing when to obey and when to push back

Unlike many of the other famous leaders, he did not have an ego that would get in the way of the mission

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Not known as a warm and compassionate leader, especially following the death of his wife and daughters

Pershing often proclaimed the superiority of “independent infantry” and American techniques towards European militaries and this did not win him many likability points with the allies.

Often inflexible when it came to his beliefs and conditions

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Led and participated in many successful battles leading up to WWI. For example, Edgerton (2020) notes that Pershing played a key role in the "crucial but often overlooked period in the development of American counterinsurgency strategy" in the Philippines.

He knew how to negotiate with the allied military leaders so that America could get the recognition and respect that they deserved for their efforts in WWI. He had the full support of President Wilson.

He led a hastily-assembled military, mostly staffed with civilians who were quickly entered into the military. In his formal report about the entry into the war, he wrote, "Prior to our entrance into the war, the regiments of our small army were very much scattered, and we had no organized units, even approximating a division, that could be sent overseas prepared to take the field" (Pershing, 1920, p. 5).

Known for leading the assault on the Saint-Mihiel salient successfully in 1918 before quickly regrouping his troops for the Meuse-Argonne offensive, leading the inter-Allied offensive that quickly weakened German resistance and led to the Armistice less than a month later.

He created the general staff system that is still used today.

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He was widely criticized for operational and logistical errors made on the European battlefield.

His “incomplete preparations and inexperience slowed the Meuse-Argonne operations” (Ray, 2021).

He largely relied on frontal assaults, which led to many casualties

He disagreed with many allied tactics such as trench warfare and splitting up the American military, which led to conflicts with other leaders.

He disregarded the German armistice on November 11, not calling for a ceasefire and leading to more deaths.

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Pershing had to lead in far more different contexts than most military leaders, serving everywhere from Mexico to the Philippines to Japan to Europe.

He also had to adapt to rapidly changing military technology and capabilities. “When Pershing entered active service as a cavalry officer in 1886, his world was one of horses, single-shot carbines and the occasional Gatling Gun or mountain howitzer. In those days, the army’s strength hovered around 28,000 men. On 11 November 1918, Pershing ‘s world was one of rapid firing artillery, tanks, machine guns, aircraft, and the industrial- strength logistics and administration of an army of two million men in the AEF alone” (Gabel & Willbanks, 2019, p. 123).

Additionally, Gabel and Willbanks points out that “senior commanders are political creatures who must have a sound comprehension of the social and political realities that drive their nations. John J. Pershing clearly understood this requirement and held the greatest political skill required of American generals: knowing when to keep his mouth shut” (2019, p. 130). This social and situational awareness is crucial for elite leadership.

He also worked alongside people who were far different than he was. He was a white male from Missouri, but he served alongside blacks, Asians, Cubans, Mexicans, and a variety of Europeans. Most people today don’t even work with such diverse teams, but he did- and for the most part, he was respected by all he worked with. Perhaps his ability to adapt to changing contexts is the most interesting aspect of his leadership.

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Pershing eventually served as the United States’ chief of staff from 1921 until 1924. He also advised military leadership during WWII regarding strategy. Today his military strategic lessons live on and are studied by military scholars around the world.

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1. Edgerton, R. K. (2020). American Datu: John J. Pershing and Counterinsurgency Warfare in the Muslim Philippines, 1899-1913. University Press of Kentucky.

2. Gabel, C. & Willbanks, J. (Eds.). (2010). Great commanders. Fort Leavenworth, KS: Combat Studies Institute Press. Retrieved from https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/combat-studies-institute/csi-books/GreatCommanders.pdf.

3. Pershing, J. J. (1920). Final Report of Gen. John J. Pershing: Commander-in-Chief American Expeditionary Forces (No. 626). US Government Printing Office.

4. Ray, M. (2021, September 9). John J. Pershing. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-J-Pershing