The Marshall Story

A Biography of General George C. Marshall

Originally published in 1951, this is the story of the life and mind of George C. Marshall, soldier and statesman, as told by a distinguished writer whose own background makes him particularly qualified to discuss some of the more controversial aspects of General Marshall’s work since World War II.

Robert Payne carefully places George Marshall against the Virginia background from which he came and takes him from there through his education at V.M.I., his experiences as a young officer, the first indications of his genius in World War I, his work between the wars, his colossal achievement as one of the architects of victory in World War II, his ill-fated mission in China, his contribution to the Marshall Plan and his present work in the military effort.

Showing in quite an extraordinary way how Marshall represents the strengths and weaknesses of the American tradition, this book’s study of the life of a great contemporary American illuminates the American scene with an insight rarely equalled in a biographical work.

This book will shatter some illusions about George C. Marshall, but it will also place him in the perspective of his time and demonstrate that he may be even greater than many of us have thought him to be.