We are a volunteer City Committee that promotes educational and Cultural Exchange between the city of kahn and normandy and the city of alexandria here in virginia. This is the first of two programs that we will be hosting this year for the 78th anniversary of dday. Tonight is my pleasure to welcome back dr. Holian. For our 12th annual dday commemoration lecture dr. Kim bernard holian was a professional historian with the us army for 34 years where he received commendations from the late John Marshall secretary of the army and president ronald reagan. He is the recipient of the 2008 joseph l harsh history award for the Northern Virginia association of historians and the clover recipient of the 2016 T Michael Miller alexandria history award from the alexandria historical society. His father served in the Us Army Medical as a medical officer during the Second World War and took care of many dday wounded on their return to england later serving under president Dwight Eisenhowers medical staff. We were fortunate to have dr. Holian. Join us as a lecturer last year and in 2019. Tonight dr. Holian will speak on patton and rummel . The missing generals of dday well have time for q a afterwards and then well invite everyone to join us downstairs for a reception. And now ladies and gentlemen, madam and messiah dr. Kim holian. Thank you very much. When i was called earlier this year about doing tonights program. I asked. What do you want . The program to be and they said something different. And something short well will definitely be different and well try to be short to leave more time for q a which is just as important as what ill be saying up here tonight i come. From an old army family my wife comes from an old navy family. Come that big game in december it gets a little bit. Touchy as to whos going to win and whos going to lose a course for those of you that are lucky enough to be married, you know, the wife always wins, so well leave it at that. Tonight were going to look at the two most famous generals. From the eto european theater of operations that when you talk about dday. You talk about World War Two in europe or north africa. You end up talking about George Smith Patton jr. Or irwin rummel and theres certainly the most two famous generals. That werent at dday on dday. In may of 1944 rummel is walking along the beaches of normandy with his loyal aid captain helmuth lang and he turns to captain lang and he says lang the first 24 hours will be decisive. For germany as well as for the allies it will be the longest day. With that in mind, lets go to slide number one. I would do the slides, but im probably going to blow up the room if i do that. There we go. Well, wait a second. I thought we were talking about dday. And thats a viking ship up there. And whos that guy in the costume who looks like he should be at the queens anniversary. Well normandy is named after my viking ancestors. Who came down . And saw the most beautiful countryside in the world on the beaches of normandy perfect for their rating along the european coastline and settling in and so they came around the year 900 ad. And were smart enough to stay. The next century one of them was william duke of normandy . And he would lead the last successful invasion of the british isles. And that would be in the famous battle of hastings in 1066. So it all goes back to a bunch of norwegians and swedes who didnt want to eat ludafist anymore up in scandinavia, and they came down. So they could take part in that wonderful french cuisine and they decided to state just like relatives who come for a weekend and stay for a year. You cant get rid of them. Khan our sister city was mentioned. Con is the most important city in the province of normandy. Why is that not because its our sister city. Because it is a road hub. And as a road hub, ladies and gentlemen, it controls ingress and egress from all of central and eastern normandy. If you control khan you control central and eastern normandy. Western normandy is where the americans would land thats critically important, but it doesnt have the road network that khan does and whats so important about that road network . It goes straight east to paris. The diamond of france so consequently if you take con youre on the road to victory to paris. George patton is next to the bat. Pat instead if the proper study of mankind is man the proper study of warfare are maps. Patent like rummel is a connoisseur of his profession. And hes studying maps and studies maps and studies maps. If youll go to the movie patton with George C Scott. When hes flying from england into france. As he complains with all the other spare parts after the normandy invasion. What blue book is sitting on his lap take a quick look in gold lettering. Its the Norman Conquest of england all about william the conqueror and how he developed a road Network Infrastructure in normandy to enable him to build a base of operations to invade england in 1066. Patent knew that he knew the allweather roads that william the conqueror had built 900 years earlier. Nobody else did but george did. What about George Smith Patton jr. When his family immigrated over from scotland . They came locally to fredericksburg and they married into the humeruser family. You can go down down to old town, fredericksburg. You can see the humeruser medical apothecary shop. Its still there. He was a very famous doctor during the revolutionary war with the Continental Army personal friend of president , washington. Patent patton wants to go to west point in the worst possible way. But he has dyslexia. And its not until age 16 that he can read and write so before going to west point. What does he do . He goes to vmi to prep for a year. And when he walks into the tailor shop at vmi to be fitted for his uniform the taylor says oh mr. Patton, i fitted your father. Heres my log book and you have the exact same measurements of your father. And you say your grandfather went . To vmi. Ill get his measurements. Theyre the exact same as yours in your fathers this reinforces George Pattons belief in reincarnation. He goes to west point. But he has a little bit of trouble that first year so he has to repeat it his plea beer. So he ends up graduating in 1909. In 1909 this fine looking young gentleman in the lower corner erwin rummel starts his apprenticeship at the officer cadet school at danzig on the baltic. Thats now known as gedans in poland. And romo graduates in 1913 and while hes there. He meets and falls in love with his dancing instructor. Lucia mullen and her heritage is shes half italian and half. Polish i believe. And they are deeply in love and this will come back to haunt rummel on june 6th 1944. The great war comes in 1914 and what happens George Smith Patton jr. Is the Training Officer and then the combat officer for the First American tank brigade in their first attack and he gets severely wounded in his glutamus maximus. Thats his backside. Now patton receives personally from general of the armies purging the distinguished service cross. He also gets the distinguished service medal. And in 1932 when their first issued hell get his purple heart. He has an illustrious career in world war one. Erwin rummel is a young officer in the german light cavalry the ulons and hes wounded in front of her done in 1914. He goes back to recuperate in a hospital. And then when hes well enough for combat again, he is transferred to the alph front in the elk mountains. And he surprises a small contingent of italians numbering 7,000. And he takes them prisoner with his company of 200 men. Because hes commanding gabertier mountain troops. Very elite. And then a little bit later on in the alps. He has given command of a battalion of 700 men and he captures an Italian Division of 10,000. For those two accomplishments on the battlefield. He is given the german equivalent of our medal of honor the poor le mare. The order of merit so these are both very distinguished young officers coming out of world war one. Wait a second. Whats that . Thats pearl harbor being attacked. How did we switch from the army to the navy . Ah, George Patton, hes always up to something. Now in 1927 patton is the Intelligence Officer the g2 for the Hawaiian Division in pearl harbor. And when he transfers out for his next assignment, he writes a summary intelligence report. And in that report he says. The japanese will attack pearl harbor on a sunday morning around 7 30 and theyll do it with naval aircraft. Coming in from the southwest course they came in from the northwest, but otherwise and were 30 minutes later than his proposed attack time, but Everything Else he was right on the money. Thats because he was a student. Of history lived eat breathed history all the time now later on. He was stationed just up the road here four times at fort myer. Next to Arlington National cemetery in the mid1930s. Its not well known but he was the executive officer. He built the old post chapel. So many of you have gone there for weddings and funerals. Then he became the Commanding Officer and where you go to patton hall the Officers Club at fort myer. That was his administrative headquarters from 1938 to 1940. What happened to erwin rummel between the wars . He is retained in a miniaturized german army the reich fair only a hundred thousand men. You know you had to be the cream of the crop of an officer to be retained in that german army. He has many assignments all of which he handles is extremely well and then in 1937, he writes his memoirs infantry attacks. Now when you watch the movie patton and patent is there in north africa towards the beginning of the movie and hes asleep in that luxurious bed, and he is a book spread out on top of his chest. When Sergeant Meeks and the aid come in to wake him up saying general wake up. We just got word from intelligence that pat or that rummel is going to attack. And patent rears up in his bed. And yells out rumble you magnificent i read your book. This is the book that he read. Now this book. Will cause the death of erwin rummel seven years later and well go into that in a moment. But this book brings rummel to the attention. Of hitler and hitler says i want that cracker jack officer to be in command of my fewer escort. My personal bodyguard of 500 men thats what happens. World war two comes with the german invasion of poland in september of 1939 what happens . Rummel is there in poland with hitler hitlers right up almost on the front lines. Under combat conditions and theres a long line of we used to call them in the pentagon strap hangers. Staff officers escort officers one of whom is a nazi lackey by the name of martin borman. And hes hitlers right hand man. And bormans a vicious nasty nazi as bad as they come. And he and rummel have a running. Because rummel is the officer in charge of security. And borman tries to put his car ahead of rummels following hitlers open mercedes touring the battlefront in poland and they were coming under combat conditions. Rummel shuts down borman borman never forgets that pulls out his little black book. And says get revenge on erwin rummel one day. Thats coming in 1944. Rummel does so well in poland that hitler gives him a command of the seventh Armored Division for the invasion of france. And that division performs magnificently. Its known as the Ghost Division because it races from the rhine river. All the way to the English Channel faster than anybody else. And because rummel does so brilliantly in the French Campaign of 1940. Then when there are problems in north africa with the italian troops facing the british troops. In egypt and libya what happens hitler turns to rumble and says general rummel, i want you to go down to north africa. Take two light tank divisions. And straighten things out for us and thats where he gets his great reputation as the desert fox. He is absolutely brilliant because he uses tanks in the sands of the desert like a good navy admiral would you ships at sea . But how does he do this . He has an ace up the sleeve that is not known about for a long time and well touch on that in a minute George Patton. Meanwhile in 1940 leaves fort myer and goals and sets up the Desert Training Center in south california and in southwest, arizona. And you can still visit a large part of it today part of the park systems out. There. It is outstanding. It is a brilliant concept only George Patton could have set up such an outstanding Training Center because you fight as you train. And thats why the troops that go through that Desert Training Center are properly prepared for combat. Now in 1942 in november patton leads the american liberation. Of northwest africa operation torch he goes into french, morocco. And then later when things get very very sticky in tunisia eisenhower calls on him to save the day in tunisia, and once again patton pulls eisenhowers bacon out of the fire so to say and eisenhower will turn to him later in the war and say george every time i get a promotion i get attacked and george responds ike every time you get attacked. I save your bacon. They knew each other very well. Now a course George Patton will go on from north africa to the invasion of sicily. Where he beats one of the finest units in the german army the herman gary division. Which is given a verbal reference in the movie. Patent knows how to command he knows how to use history. He knows everything there is to know about warfare, but he has a trick up his sleeve also will touch on in a little bit. Then the great invasion is getting prepared. That patch you see is that the patent war . And that a lot of gis. And others war its foose. God United States army group. I understand if you can find one of the originals of these its quite valuable now fooscog was the phantom army that was set up under patton. To keep the german 15th army at calais for the invasion. The german 15th army numbered about 75,000 men. They sat just to the east of the province of normandy and they could have come right along the coastline and rolled up the allied invasion. If it wasnt for George Patton with his phantom 5th phantom First Army Group there because the germans were convinced especially hitler that patton would lead the assault at calais because its only 20 miles from calais to the english coastline and its the most direct line from calais to berlin. Theyre thinking textbook. George patton thinks outside of the textbook now you see an aircraft there. Thats a british typhoon. What happens . To rummel is this airplane here . Rummel is back visiting his wife on june 6th in germany. Why because its her birthday and the german weather officer said the English Channel will be too rough weatherwise for eisenhower to cross not realizing that Group Captain stagged the scottish weather officer had given eisenhower a window of opportunity to do the landing landing and eisenhower rolled the dice. And made the great decision for the landing on june 6 after it had already been postponed from june 5th. Now this is critically important for rumble because he has to race back in an open staff car. From wittenberg germany in south central, germany across the rhine through france to normandy he gets there and finds out that the allies have lodged a beachhead. Remember what he told lang . The first 24 hours will be decisive. Now rummel is not fighting just eisenhower and the allies and montgomery and the british. Allies he has to fight hitler micromanaging him. From back in germany and he has to fight fun runstad. As to whos going to control what units and what theyre going to do fund runstead had never fought against the allies. And theyre overwhelming air superiority and overwhelming naval superiority. He had no realization mentally that he could not move his reserve units up to the front lines. You cant do that in the daytime over the open french roads. If the allies like this, typhoon fighter attack aircraft are controlling the skies and shoot up everything that moves. Now late in july rummel is riding through the normandy countryside trying to patch Work Together a defensive line against the allies. And a british typhoon sees him a target of opportunity. And they come down on a strafing run with their rocket pods and their machine guns. And rummels car is hit and flips over remember. Its an open turing car. Rumble suffers a cracked skull loses his left eye. His cheek is crushed. Hes out of action. Thats on the 17th of july. We know how the rest of the war goes patent drives through france saves eisenhower at bastogne. Goes into germany almost into czechoslovakia. Rumble doesnt make it that far. But both end up dying because of automobiles now rummel is the first one to go supposedly according to his chief of staffs by dell. Who will become a big shot in the postwar german army the bundesfair . Speidel turns rummels name over to the gestapo because spidell is up over his eyeballs in the assassination plot against hitler and that plot takes place on july 20th. Three days after romulus wounded. And speidel tells the gestapo when they come to interrogate him. That hey you ought to look at erwin rummel, you know he what was going on with the plot and he kind of acquiesce to it and etc. Etc. So spidell. Is later arrested put in a concentration camp escapes almost at the end of the war and then resurfaces and becomes commanding general i