Omar Nelson Bradley (12 February 1893-8 April 1981) was a General of the Army of the US Army during World War II. Bradley was one of the most important generals in United States history, and he had the largest command of any American general; in 1945, he led 43 divisions (1,300,000 troops).
Biography[]
Early career[]
Omar Nelson Bradley was born on 12 February 1893 in Clark, Missouri to a poor family; his family had emigrated from England to Kentucky in the mid-1700s. Bradley worked on the Wabash Railroad before entering the US Army's military academy at West Point, and he was a baseball star. In 1923, he joined the Freemasons, as he was not sent out of the country to fight in war; he served on the border with Mexico during the Mexican Revolution, and the outbreak of the Spanish Influenza and the armistice at the end of World War I prevented his division from being sent to France in 1918. In 1918, he became a Captain, and he became a military instructor at West Point and other military academies. In 1934, he studied at the Army War College, and he became a Lieutenant-Colonel in 1936, a Brigadier-General in February 1941, and a Major-General in February 1942.
North Africa and Sicily[]
Bradley at Kasserine, 1943
On 25 March 1942, by which time the United States had entered the Allied Powers during World War II, Bradley took command of the US 28th Infantry Division. His first frontline command was the US VIII Corps in North Africa, arriving in Africa shortly after the Operation Torch landings. In April 1943, he took over the US II Corps from George S. Patton and led it in the capture of Bizerte and the final battles against Nazi Germany and Italy in Tunisia from April to May. Later in 1943, he led the II Corps during the Operation Husky invasion of Sicily, facing heavy resistance while Patton and his forces raced to capture Messina and Palermo. Friction rose between Bradley and Patton over Patton's arrogance, as Patton was willing to sacrifice the lives of his men in order to beat Bernard Montgomery to capturing Palermo and Messina and to gain personal glory.
Invasion of Europe[]
Bradley in 1944
In 1944, Bradley was given command of the US 1st Army for the Operation Overlord landings in northern France's Normandy region, collaborating with the British general Bernard Montgomery for the invasion of France. In June 1944, the Allied troops landed in Normandy and began the invasion of Western Europe, and Bradley's July 1944 Operation Cobra breakout was a success. Bradley would then take command of the US 12th Army Group for the invasion of Germany, leading 900,000 troops from four armies; this was the largest combat command ever held by an American general. The advance into Germany was slow, as the Americans had to break through the heavily-fortified Siegfried Line and face dreadful casualties during the Battle of Huertgen Forest. Bradley was nearly forced to serve under George S. Patton after Patton distinguished himself by saving the Allies during the Battle of the Bulge, but Dwight D. Eisenhower did not want to upset the chain of command. Bradley ended the war in command of 1,300,000 troops.
From 1945 to 1947, Bradley served as Administrator of Veterans Affairs, as Chief of Staff of the US Army from 1948 to 1949, and as the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1949 to 1953, overseeing the policy-making of the Korean War. Bradley retired from the army in 1953, and he died in New York City, New York in 1981 at the age of 88.