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What did general patton say after ww2
Executive summary
General George S. Patton made many blunt, controversial public and private statements after World War II ended—most notably questioning Allied denazification and expressing strong anti‑Soviet views—comments that cost him authority and contributed to his removal from key posts [1] [2]. His postwar remarks ranged from speeches to reporters and private diary entries in which he lamented loss of purpose and criticized Allied policy; historians and contemporary leaders, including Eisenhower, reacted negatively and curtailed his influence [3] [4].
1. The comment that changed his postwar career: “I do not see the need for ‘this denazification thing’”
On September 22, 1945, Patton told reporters he did not see the need for “this denazification thing,” even likening the controversy over Nazism to a “Democratic and Republican election fight,” a public position that provoked immediate criticism and led Eisenhower to remove him from certain commands [1]. History.com frames this remark as a turning point: Patton’s impolitic press statements about denazification angered Washington and damaged his standing with Allied leadership [1].
2. Anti‑Soviet sentiment: “We were wrong opponents” and fears about communism
After Germany’s surrender Patton shifted quickly from fighting Nazis to fearing the Soviet Union; some contemporary accounts and biographies record him voicing anti‑Soviet sentiments and suggesting the Soviet Union, not Germany, would be the true postwar menace [5] [3]. His outspoken views about communism and willingness to criticize Allied policy toward the USSR alarmed superiors and were cited among the reasons he lost command and was reassigned during the occupation period [3] [6].
3. Personal frustration and the end of a warrior’s purpose
Patton’s private diaries and later recollections show he struggled with the abrupt end to wartime command: he wrote that “Yet another war has come to an end, and with it my usefulness to the world,” a line that historians and reference works reproduce when describing his postwar mood [2]. Warfare History Network and other accounts describe him pacing, seething about perceived betrayals by fellow commanders, and contemplating resignation so he could “speak his mind” more freely [3] [4].
4. Public speeches and quotable bravado—what audiences remembered
Beyond controversial policy remarks, Patton continued to produce the rousing, profane, and morale‑building language that made him famous—lines captured in many quote compilations and the cinematic depiction in Patton [7] that amplified his public persona [8] [9]. Collections of his sayings remain widely circulated, but many modern compilations and quote sites mix verified wartime addresses with later attributions; researchers caution about verifying each line against primary records [10] [11].
5. Consequences: relieved posts and a rapid denouement
Patton’s press missteps and outspoken private remarks about denazification and the Soviets led Allied commanders—most notably Eisenhower—to curb his public commentary and reassign him. Sources note he was removed from some key positions in occupied Germany and that his last months were spent in less influential roles before his death in December 1945 [1] [3] [4].
6. What the archival record can and cannot tell us
The Library of Congress holds Patton’s diaries through March 1945 and annotated transcripts through December 3, 1945, which illuminate much of his candid thinking but leave gaps; later quotations attributed to him should be checked against those primary papers and contemporaneous reporting [12]. Available sources in this collection and the cited reporting document Patton’s denazification remarks and his anti‑Soviet turn, but compilations of “postwar quotes” differ in reliability and sometimes conflate film dialogue, secondary biographies, and newspapers [12] [9] [10].
7. Competing interpretations among historians
Some historians emphasize Patton’s tactical genius and portray his postwar remarks as the outbursts of a frustrated soldier who misread occupation politics [6] [4]. Others stress that his private anti‑Semitic and anti‑Soviet comments and his trivialization of denazification were serious lapses that undermined Allied aims and civilian trust in military governance [13] [3]. Both lines of interpretation draw on the same sources—diaries, press conferences, and aftermath orders—but reach different judgments about his legacy [3] [13].
8. Bottom line for the question “what did General Patton say after WWII?”
Patton publicly questioned the need for denazification, compared it to domestic partisan fights, warned about the Soviet threat, and expressed private despair at losing his wartime role—remarks that cost him influence and provoked official rebuke [1] [2] [3]. For precise wording of any single quotation, consult his diaries and contemporary press reports in the Library of Congress and the cited historical accounts, because many popular quote lists mix verified lines with apocrypha [12] [10].