Pershing, John J.

Pershing, John J. (1860–1948), leader of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in Europe during World War I.Missouri‐born, Pershing was a U.S. Military Academy graduate, Indian fighter, commander of the African‐American Tenth Cavalry (hence his nickname, “Black Jack”), founder of the Bureau of Insular Affairs during the Spanish‐American War, and a military campaigner against the Moros of the Philippines in the aftermath of that war. He married Frances Warren in 1905. A fire at their army quarters took her life and the lives of three of their four children. Promoted by President Theodore Roosevelt from captain to brigadier general, Pershing led the punitive expedition into Mexico against Pancho Villa in 1916. Pershing's fighting and command experience led President Woodrow Wilson to name him in 1917 to lead the American forces sent to join the Allies in France after the United States entered the war against Germany. (Ironically, Pershing himself was of German‐American stock; the name was originally Pfoershing.)

Quickly grasping the desperate Allied situation, Pershing realized that Britain and France wanted to use American troops in their war‐torn ranks. Resisting this pressure, Pershing preserved the integrity of the AEF and launched his First Army in a successful attack against German‐held Saint‐Mihiel Salient in September 1917. After a swift shift northward, his army attacked strong German positions in the Meuse‐Argonne sector in late September. Bitter fighting enabled the Americans to drive toward Sedan, a key rail center. Pershing's leadership made the AEF a vital factor in Allied victory.

Awarded the unique rank of General of the Armies, Pershing was army chief of staff from 1921 to 1924, chaired the American Battle Monuments Commission, and sometimes consulted with his protégé, General George Marshall, during World War II.
See also Foreign Relations: U.S. Relations with Latin America; Indian Wars; Military, The.

Bibliography

John J. Pershing , My Experiences in the World War, 2 vols., 1931; reprint 1995.
Donald Smythe , Guerrilla Warrior: The Early Life of John J. Pershing, 1973.
Frank E. Vandiver , Black Jack: The Life and Times of John J. Pershing, 2 vols., 1977.
Donald Smythe , Pershing: General of the Armies, 1986.

Frank E. Vandiver