The Mantle of Command: FDR at War, 1941-1942
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The Mantle of Command: FDR at War, 1941-1942 Hardcover – May 13, 2014
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Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
A popular biographer of various twentieth-century leaders, Hamilton here addresses a seemingly exhausted subject. Not so, he avers. FDR’s leadership as commander-in-chief is a space Hamilton offers to fill with this work. The first of two projected volumes, it chronologically extends from FDR’s August 1941 meeting with Churchill to the November 1942 Allied landings in French North Africa. Thematically, Hamilton depicts FDR’s assertion of his authority over American army and navy chiefs and, increasingly over time, Churchill. Palpably gleeful when pinpointing unflattering episodes these figures omitted from their memoirs, Hamilton is tantamount to the amanuensis for the memoir FDR never wrote. The portrait that emerges is complimentary and praises FDR as a strategist superior both to fellow Allies and to Axis enemies. He insisted MacArthur fight in the Philippines, he rejected British requests to defend India, he refuted his military officers’ proposals to invade France and to concentrate on Japan, and he ordered them to carry out Operation Torch, the North African invasion. Well researched and confident in its conclusions, Hamilton’s study ably augments the gallery of WWII leaders. --Gilbert Taylor
Review
"The Mantle of Command is splendid: It’s the memoir Roosevelt didn’t get to write."
—New York Times Book Review "Masterly."
—Wall Street Journal
"FDR has frequently been underestimated as a military leader, yielding, in the historical imagination, to George Marshall and Winston Churchill, among others. Nigel Hamilton attacks this view with his characteristic verve, portraying a president with the reins of war fully, if often subtly, in his hands. The conventional wisdom will never be the same."
—H.W. Brands, author of Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
"Nigel Hamilton’s Mantle of Command is a stirring and noteworthy book about Roosevelt’s crucial role as commander-in-chief during World War II. Hamilton writes with insight, passion, and a great grasp of history. I believe this book will become the standard by which other books about FDR’s role in World War II will be measured." — Carlo D’Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War and Warlord: A Life of Churchill at War, 1874–1945
"This is not the Roosevelt (or Churchill) you'd expect. From the start, an aggressive, in-charge FDR emerges from a wonderful weaving of established scholarship and the fascinating bits and pieces that make history live. Churchill is an inspirational nag, with a busy, unfocused strategic vision. A key entry into the ongoing debate over who made grand strategy in the early war years — Roosevelt or Churchill?" — Warren F. Kimball, author of Forged in War: Roosevelt, Churchill, and the Second World War
"Nigel Hamilton in Mantle of Command presents a very different wartime Franklin Delano Roosevelt than the one we are used to seeing. Whether or not one agrees with all his conclusions, Hamilton clearly shows that FDR was an extremely strong and effective commander-in-chief. This volume should go a long way to dispelling popular myths about Roosevelt as a naïve and weak war leader."
— Mark Stoler, editor of the George C. Marshall Papers & Professor Emeritus of History, University of Vermont
"Nigel Hamilton has written a spirited and thoughtful ‘revisionist’ study of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as commander-in-chief during the first phase of U.S. involvement in the Second World War. Hamilton’s narrative skill brings alive the human dramas, logistic hurdles, and strategic debates to show how FDR’s indispensable drive and forward-looking leadership tamed his own ‘team of rivals’ and set the United States and its Allies on the road to victory over the Axis. The books enlivens the often murky worlds of bureaucratic struggle and military detail to demonstrate how important it was for the United States to ‘get it right’ early in the war and how FDR accomplished this."
—Michael Schaller, author of Douglas MacArthur & Regents Professor of History, University of Arizona
—H.W. Brands, author of Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
"Nigel Hamilton’s Mantle of Command is a stirring and noteworthy book about Roosevelt’s crucial role as commander-in-chief during World War II. Hamilton writes with insight, passion, and a great grasp of history. I believe this book will become the standard by which other books about FDR’s role in World War II will be measured." — Carlo D’Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War and Warlord: A Life of Churchill at War, 1874–1945
"This is not the Roosevelt (or Churchill) you'd expect. From the start, an aggressive, in-charge FDR emerges from a wonderful weaving of established scholarship and the fascinating bits and pieces that make history live. Churchill is an inspirational nag, with a busy, unfocused strategic vision. A key entry into the ongoing debate over who made grand strategy in the early war years — Roosevelt or Churchill?" — Warren F. Kimball, author of Forged in War: Roosevelt, Churchill, and the Second World War
"Nigel Hamilton in Mantle of Command presents a very different wartime Franklin Delano Roosevelt than the one we are used to seeing. Whether or not one agrees with all his conclusions, Hamilton clearly shows that FDR was an extremely strong and effective commander-in-chief. This volume should go a long way to dispelling popular myths about Roosevelt as a naïve and weak war leader."
— Mark Stoler, editor of the George C. Marshall Papers & Professor Emeritus of History, University of Vermont
"Nigel Hamilton has written a spirited and thoughtful ‘revisionist’ study of Franklin Delano Roosevelt as commander-in-chief during the first phase of U.S. involvement in the Second World War. Hamilton’s narrative skill brings alive the human dramas, logistic hurdles, and strategic debates to show how FDR’s indispensable drive and forward-looking leadership tamed his own ‘team of rivals’ and set the United States and its Allies on the road to victory over the Axis. The books enlivens the often murky worlds of bureaucratic struggle and military detail to demonstrate how important it was for the United States to ‘get it right’ early in the war and how FDR accomplished this."
—Michael Schaller, author of Douglas MacArthur & Regents Professor of History, University of Arizona
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
30 of 32 people found the following review helpful
By
Hal Jordan
VINE VOICE on April 25, 2014
Format: Hardcover
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Winston Churchill survived World War II to write a six-volume memoir in which he -- naturally -- portrayed his leadership, including his military leadership, in a very favorable light. Most of the Allied senior commanders also wrote memoirs in which -- naturally, once again -- they burnished their images and highlighted the important roles they played in the conflict. Franklin Roosevelt died before the war's end, and although he left some notes for a future memoir, he was accordingly unable to provide an account of his wartime leadership as commander-in-chief.
Nigel Hamilton argues strongly that because FDR did not live to write a memoir, both other leading figures on the Allied side and, more tellingly, most historians have downplayed or overlooked how well FDR discharged his duties as commander-in-chief. Hamilton makes a compelling case that FDR was truly the indispensable man, realizing just what was required to rally the American public for a struggle that many had opposed right up to December 7, 1941, and dealing adroitly with Churchill at a time when the British army was encountering one setback after another. Hamilton argues that Roosevelt's time as assistant secretary of the navy during World War I was crucial in providing him with the perspective necessary to evaluate the strategic position of the United States and the advice pushed on him by George Marshall and the other senior U.S. commanders. In fact, Hamilton shows convincingly that Roosevelt's strategic judgement was generally superior to that of his military advisers, particularly in overruling their push for an immediate cross-channel invasion of Europe in favor of an invasion of North Africa.Read more ›
Nigel Hamilton argues strongly that because FDR did not live to write a memoir, both other leading figures on the Allied side and, more tellingly, most historians have downplayed or overlooked how well FDR discharged his duties as commander-in-chief. Hamilton makes a compelling case that FDR was truly the indispensable man, realizing just what was required to rally the American public for a struggle that many had opposed right up to December 7, 1941, and dealing adroitly with Churchill at a time when the British army was encountering one setback after another. Hamilton argues that Roosevelt's time as assistant secretary of the navy during World War I was crucial in providing him with the perspective necessary to evaluate the strategic position of the United States and the advice pushed on him by George Marshall and the other senior U.S. commanders. In fact, Hamilton shows convincingly that Roosevelt's strategic judgement was generally superior to that of his military advisers, particularly in overruling their push for an immediate cross-channel invasion of Europe in favor of an invasion of North Africa.Read more ›
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31 of 35 people found the following review helpful
By
George Webster, Ph.D.,
VINE VOICE on April 3, 2014
Format: Hardcover
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This is a splendid book. The author has made an exhaustive study of documents relating to the Oval Office during 1941 and 1942. Although the United States had been aiding the Allies (especially Britain) during 1940 and 1941, America had no thought of danger to its territory. The Pearl Harbor attack and subsequent losses, showed that the American Military was woefully unprepared for war. Recognizing that the assembly of a world-class fighting force would take time, Roosevelt worked to put this force together. In doing this, he had to overcome constant debate with his Generals and Admirals, with his cabinet members, and with Winston Churchill's attempts to direct the pathway of America's war effort. The bickering is amazing. Still, Roosevelt stuck to his brilliant plan to hold off the Japanese forces and conduct limited war against Hitler. During 1942 and 1943, millions of American draftees were trained for combat, and American Industry created a miracle of production of hundreds of warships, thousands of aircraft, and tens of thousands of tanks and guns, until Roosevelt ordered all-out attacks that defeated the Nazis and the Japanese. The mountain of documents examined shows Roosevelt's ability to choose the right path to victory. I found this book fascinating, and I suspect it may be equally-enjoyable to readers interested in American history.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By
Paul K. Rowe
on August 13, 2014
Format: Kindle Edition
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First, the good points: 1. Breezy and readable. 2. Useful and unusual perspective on FDR's conflicts with the War Dept and Chiefs of Staff, and on how poorly the war was going for the UK, especially in light of Churchill's consistently poor choices for commanding generals. 3. Use of some unusual sources, notably Daisy Suckley's diary, Ian Jacob's diary, and so on.
Now for the bad points: 1. Sometimes, it's TOO breezy, given the serious issues the author wants to deal with. 2. When it comes to Marshall and others who opposed Torch, Hamilton is certainly correct that FDR had a better sense of what the 1942 US military was capable of than the on-to-Berlin-immediately crowd, but he does not seem to understand that rather than them having been motivated by mere stubborn-ness or petulance, the military men were (I think) simply following the best military theory -- don't divert resources to the periphery, concentrate your forces on the enemy's main force (Clausewitz, Jomini). 3. Some of the unusual sources are a bit off-point and perhaps unreliable. Large swaths of Goebbels' diary are quoted. Daisy Suckley is interesting on FDR's personality, but not on grand strategy.
In sum, this is an interesting read. Especially for those who can take it with a grain of salt. The author can't seem to decide how to integrate his two themes -- what a great man FDR was personally in terms of moral vision and ability to motivate -- with the grand strategy theme (how to go about winning the war).
A final point: While reading the book, I was struck by how Hamilton, a Brit, was remorseless brutal in condemning British military performance (and Churchill's leadership) in the 1939 to 1942 period (and there is much to condemn); most writers tend to cut the UK some slack for their failures.Read more ›
Now for the bad points: 1. Sometimes, it's TOO breezy, given the serious issues the author wants to deal with. 2. When it comes to Marshall and others who opposed Torch, Hamilton is certainly correct that FDR had a better sense of what the 1942 US military was capable of than the on-to-Berlin-immediately crowd, but he does not seem to understand that rather than them having been motivated by mere stubborn-ness or petulance, the military men were (I think) simply following the best military theory -- don't divert resources to the periphery, concentrate your forces on the enemy's main force (Clausewitz, Jomini). 3. Some of the unusual sources are a bit off-point and perhaps unreliable. Large swaths of Goebbels' diary are quoted. Daisy Suckley is interesting on FDR's personality, but not on grand strategy.
In sum, this is an interesting read. Especially for those who can take it with a grain of salt. The author can't seem to decide how to integrate his two themes -- what a great man FDR was personally in terms of moral vision and ability to motivate -- with the grand strategy theme (how to go about winning the war).
A final point: While reading the book, I was struck by how Hamilton, a Brit, was remorseless brutal in condemning British military performance (and Churchill's leadership) in the 1939 to 1942 period (and there is much to condemn); most writers tend to cut the UK some slack for their failures.Read more ›
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14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
By
Harold M.
TOP 500 REVIEWER on April 22, 2014
Format: Hardcover
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I found this book interesting, with a different slant of FDR as Commander In Chief, and I recommend the book to those interested in the finer points of the history or WWII and of FDR. The thesis of this book is that FDR was more than just the constitutionally mandated Commander in Chief of the US armed forces - a commander in name only, but was a formulator of US military policy. The focus is on several areas, namely:
1) the decision to concentrate on defeating Germany first
2) FDR’s actions in formulating US war policy, versus having his military chiefs Admiral King and General Marshal do it, with his approval after the fact
3) The book contains a lot on FDR’s interactions with Winston Churchill, especially his unsuccessful push to have Churchill promise to grant independence of India as a way to get its wholehearted support for the war.
4) The decision to invade North Africa as a way to get the US into the European war is discussed at length.
The final part of the book focuses on operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa. This book presents the ideas behind Torch that are contrary to many that I have read in other books. Most books imply the Torch was the way in which the British maneuvered the US away from its desire to invade France as early as 1942. Knowing that the US was not ready for such an undertaking, the British are often depicted as deflecting it with the idea of invading North Africa instead. This book paints a somewhat different picture, with the US military seeking an invasion of France and with FDR, not the British, proposing Torch instead.
1) the decision to concentrate on defeating Germany first
2) FDR’s actions in formulating US war policy, versus having his military chiefs Admiral King and General Marshal do it, with his approval after the fact
3) The book contains a lot on FDR’s interactions with Winston Churchill, especially his unsuccessful push to have Churchill promise to grant independence of India as a way to get its wholehearted support for the war.
4) The decision to invade North Africa as a way to get the US into the European war is discussed at length.
The final part of the book focuses on operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa. This book presents the ideas behind Torch that are contrary to many that I have read in other books. Most books imply the Torch was the way in which the British maneuvered the US away from its desire to invade France as early as 1942. Knowing that the US was not ready for such an undertaking, the British are often depicted as deflecting it with the idea of invading North Africa instead. This book paints a somewhat different picture, with the US military seeking an invasion of France and with FDR, not the British, proposing Torch instead.
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