Top 243 Quotes & Sayings by George S. Patton - Page 2

I have studied the enemy all my life. I have read the memoirs of his generals and his leaders. I have even read his philosophers and listened to his music. I have studied in detail the account of every damned one of his battles. I know exactly how he will react under any given set of circumstances. And he hasn't the slightest idea of what I'm going to do. So when the time comes, I'm going to whip the hell out of him.

There are three ways that men get what they want; by planning, by working, and by praying. Any great military operation takes careful planning, or thinking. Then you must have well-trained troops to carry it out: that's working. But between the plan and the operation there is always an unknown. That unknown spells defeat or victory, success or failure. It is the reaction of the actors to the ordeal when it actually comes. Some people call that getting the breaks; I call it God. God has His part, or margin in everything, That's where prayer comes in.

The most difficult thing about being humble is not being able to brag about it.

Plans must be simple and flexible....They must be made by the people who execute them.

The test of success is not what you do when you are on top. Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.

Always do more than is required of you.

Good tactics can save even the worst strategy. Bad tactics will destroy even the best strategy.

Never let the enemy pick the battle site.

Let's keep our boots polished, bayonets sharpened, and present a picture of force and strength to the Red Army. This is the only language they understand and respect.

I'd rather have a German Division in front of me than a French one behind.

There is only one tactical principle which is not subject to change. It is to use the means at hand to inflict the maximum amount of wound, death, and destruction on the enemy in the minimum amount of time.

To be a successful soldier, you must know history.

When in doubt, observe and ask questions. When certain, observe at length and ask many more questions.

The soldier is the Army. No army is better than its soldiers. The Soldier is also a citizen. In fact, the highest obligation and privilege of citizenship is that of bearing arms for one’s country

When everyone agrees, someone is not thinking.

No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country.

Pressure makes diamonds

When you have collected all the facts and fears and made your decision, turn off all your fears and go ahead!

I am a Soldier, I fight where I am told, and I win where I fight.

A leader is a man who can adapt principles to circumstances.

Do not make excuses, whether it's your fault or not.

Attack rapidly, ruthlessly, viciously, without rest, however tired and hungry you may be, the enemy will be more tired, more hungry. Keep punching.

Let us not mourn that such men died, but rejoice that such men lived.

I read the Bible - every goddamn day.

Don't fall victim to what I call the ready-aim-aim-aim-aim syndrome. You must be willing to fire.

Fixed fortifications are a monument to the stupidity of man.

Say what you mean and mean what you say.

The courageous man is the man who forces himself, in spite of his fear, to carry on.

No good decision was ever made in a swivel chair.

Be willing to make decisions. That's the most important quality in a good leader.

In case of doubt, attack.

When a decision has to be made, make it. There is no totally right time for anything.

Often I have encountered in life that great disappointments have proved to be the road to future successes.

Lack of orders is no excuse for inaction.

You shouldn't underestimate an enemy, but it is just as fatal to overestimate him.

...It is a proud privilege to be a soldier – a good soldier … [with] discipline, self-respect, pride in his unit and his country, a high sense of duty and obligation to comrades and to his superiors, and a self confidence born of demonstrated ability.

All men are timid on entering any fight. Whether it is the first or the last fight, all of us are timid. Cowards are those who let their timidity get the better of their manhood.

But between the plan and the operation, there is always an unknown. That unknown spells victory or defeat. ... Some people call it getting the breaks. I call it God. God has His part in everything. That's where prayer comes in.

Accept the challenges so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory. Always do more than is required of you. If a man has done his best, what else is there?

A man is not measured by how much he can take and stand but by how fast he regains once fallen.

We entered a synagogue which was packed with the greatest stinking bunch of humanity I have ever seen. Either these Displaced Persons never had any sense of decency or else they lost it all during their period of internment by the Germans. My personal opinion is that no people could have sunk to the level of degradation these have reached in the short space of four years.

Discipline can only be obtained when all the officers are imbued with the sense of their awful obligation to their men and to their country that they cannot tolerate negligence. Officers who fail to correct errors or to praise excellence are valueless in peace and dangerous misfits in war.

Anyone in any walk of life who is content with mediocrity is untrue to himself and to American tradition.

An active mind cannot exist in an inactive body.

Always advance. Never dig in.

The most vital quality a soldier can possess is self-confidence.

By perseverance, study, and eternal desire, any man can become great.

In case of doubt, push on just a little further and then keep on pushing.

Never draw a gun on a man unless you intend to kill him. And believe me, if you do intend to kill him he will already know it. Then he will feel the cold breath of the tomb.

The reason there are so many tree-lined boulevards in Paris is so the German army can march in the shade.

There is no such thing as luck, merely opportunity meeting preparedness. George S. Patton Jr.

You must be single minded. Drive for the one thing on which you have decided.

Do your duty as you see it, and damn the consequences.

Men, this stuff that some sources sling around about America wanting out of this war, not wanting to fight, is a crock of bullshit. Americans love to fight, traditionally. All real Americans love the sting and clash of battle. You are here today for three reasons. First, because you are here to defend your homes and your loved ones. Second, you are here for your own self respect, because you would not want to be anywhere else. Third, you are here because you are real men and all real men like to fight.

The real hero is the man who fights even though he is scared.

If everybody's thinking the same thing, then nobody's thinking.

When in doubt, ATTACK!

Remember praise is more valuable than blame.

Those who live in fear die a thousand deaths.

You fight like you train.