Bradley

A study of the life and influence of Omar Nelson Bradley, five-star US Army general, World War II leader, and military policy maker.

Alan Axelrod applies his signature insight and compelling prose to the life, strategy and legacy of the general Bradley who remains the model for all commanders today as the man who revolutionized the National Guard, shaped the US Army's focus on the individual soldier, and emphasized cooperation and coordination among the military services—a cornerstone of modern US military doctrine.


Dubbed by the World War II press as "the GI General" because of his close identification with his men, Omar Bradley rose to command the US 12th Army Group in the European Campaign. By the spring of 1945, this group contained 1.3 million men—the largest exclusively American field command in US history.


Mild mannered, General Bradley was a dedicated mentor, the creator of the Officer Candidate School system, and a methodical tactician who served through World War II. Then, as a five-star general, he lifted the Veterans Administration from corruption and inefficiency to a model government agency, served as US Army chief of staff, first chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and head of NATO.