Major General Maurice Rose: World War II's Greatest Forgotten Commander

Given the paucity of material General Maurice Rose left behind about anything except his impressive military achievements, this fine biography of a distinguished American commander, the highest-ranking American Jewish officer ever killed in battle, represents a considerable success. Commissioned into the Army during World War I, Rose (b. 1899) was wounded in action at St. Mihiel; then, after a short stint as a traveling salesman, he returned to the peacetime army as a captain. When World War II broke out, he rose rapidly, commanding the first armored formations to hit the beaches in Sicily and Normandy and putting into action his belief that""it was only by visible acts of personal courage and public demonstrations of bravery that a leader can inspire his men and imbue them with fighting spirit."" Ashore in France, he was given command of the Third Armored Division and led it ably (if not perfectly) through the Battle of the Bulge and into Germany, where he was killed in action in March, 1945, possibly after surrendering. The authors, a WWII veteran and a military historian, also discuss the question of why Rose, who came from a distinguished family of rabbis, chose to list himself as a Christian with the army, a decision they suggest was motivated by Rose's career ambitions and his laissez-faire attitude towards religious matters. Though the authors' prose is often stilted, they provide a worthy, informative account of a curious and little-documented career.