General George C. Marshall (1945)

Vietnam Army Veteran Frank Sciullo recently shared a letter written by WWII Army Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall to men being discharged from the Army in 1945-1946. Frank ran across the letter in a new book by Michelle Wright, The Secret Diary: The True Story of World War II POW Marvin Doyle. Marvin Doyle was a B-24 crew member shot down on November 4, 1944 over Mostar, Yugoslavia, and held at Stalag Luft 1. Doyle counted the message from Marshall among his most prized possessions. He even called it “The Treasured Letter.” In the letter, Marshall warns about the importance of avoiding war in the future and calls upon the nation’s veterans to be civic leaders. Above all, he said, “Choose your leaders wisely – that is the way to keep ours the country for which you fought. . . . . You know what war is. You know that we must not have another.”

Frank infected me with his curiosity about the letter, and I wondered if every Army soldier received it after the war. I’ve run across just a few references to it, and I would like to know more about how, when, and why it was composed.

The mystery of the letter deepened for me when I saw Marshall wasn’t the only letter who signed his name to it. Here is another copy that went out under General Jonathan M. Wainwright’s signature.

If you have a copy passed down to you or know anything about the letter’s composition, please let us know. Here is the letter transcribed:

Message from the Chief of Staff

You are being discharged from the Army today—- from your Army. It is your Army because your skill and your patriotism, your labor and courage and devotion have been some of the factors which make it great. You have been a member of the finest military team in history. You have accomplished miracles in battle and supply. Your country is proud of you and you have every right to be proud of yourselves.

You have seen, in the lands where you worked and fought and where many of your comrades died, what happens when the people of a nation lose interest in their government. You have seen what happens when they follow false leaders. You have seen what happens when a nation accepts hate and intolerance.

We all are determined that what happened in Europe and in Asia must not happen to our country. Back in civilian life you will find that your generation will be called upon to guide our country’s destiny. Opportunity for leadership is yours. The responsibility is yours. The nation which depended on your courage and stamina to protect it from its enemies now expects you as individuals to claim your rights of leadership, a right which you earned honorably and which is well deserved.

Start being a leader as soon as you put on your civilian clothes. If you see intolerance and hate, speak out against them. Make your individual voices heard, not for selfish things, but for honor and decency among men, for the rights of all people.

Remember, too, that No American can afford to be disinterested in any part of his government, whether it is county, city, state or nation.

Choose your leaders wisely— that is the way to keep ours the country for which you fought. Make sure that those leaders are determined to maintain peace throughout the world. You know what war is. You know that we must not have another. As individuals you can prevent it if you give to this task which lies ahead the same spirit which you displayed in uniform.

Accept that trust and the challenge which it carries.
I know that the  people of America are counting on you.
I know that you will not let them down.

Goodbye to each and every one of you and to each and every one of you good luck!

GEORGE C. MARSHALL

General
Chief of Staff