s American defeat at the Kasserine Pass, Gen. Eisenhower knew that a hard driver was needed to recoup American morale and to force back the Germans. He immediately promoted Patton to lieutenant general and put him in charge of the 2nd Corps, which had suffered the defeat. Patton's first job was to restore the morale and discipline of the dispirited troops of his new command. He set about this mission with a vengeance. He began at the bottom by mandating strict enforcement of military rules governing hygiene and attire. Also, officers in the 2nd Corps were now ordered to set an example for their troops and lead them from the front, rather than safely from the rear. According to Patton, "A man of diffident manner will never inspire confidence."' Patton's hard-nosed discipline and flamboyance succeeded in "waking up'' his men and won him their respect. He always wore his ivory-handled revolvers and medals, partly because he was a great showman, but primarily because having his men see all the trappings of rank let them know they were commanded by a fighting general. Patton also knew that loyalty to a leader would inspire men to take on objectives against all odds; his troops proved this theory correct again and again. Within a few months of taking over the 2nd Corps, Patton had galvanized them and by March 1943 their counteroffensive had pushed the Germans back, while Patton's British arch-rival Montgomery hit the Germans from the East. In recognition of his accomplishments, Patton was given command of the new U.S. 7th Army in April 1943. He immediately threw himself into training his new command for the amphibious invasion of Sicily. When the invasion was launched, Patton's 7th Army was given the job of liberating the western half of the island, while Montgomery's 8th British Army took the eastern half. When a German counterattack delayed the advance, Patton put his command principles into practice by going ashore and personally taking co...
