The Age of Eisenhower: America and the World in the 1950s

by William I. Hitchcock

Even the normally restrained chief of staff of the U.S. Army, General Marshall, exulted in his success, writing a glowing personal tribute to him on V-E Day: “You have completed your mission with the greatest victory in the history of warfare. You have commanded with outstanding success the most powerful military force that has ever been assembled. . . . You have made history, great history for the good of mankind.”2 Within days of the German surrender, Eisenhower’s headquarters filled up with congratulatory letters from heads of state, generals, friends, and citizens. Prominent among these was an invitation from the British prime minister to receive recognition from the people of London and to be named to the Order of Merit by King George VI. On June 12, 1945, Eisenhower traveled to London to receive the key of the city and to give an address at the bomb-shattered gothic Guildhall, the ancient seat of London’s lord mayor. Eisenhower worked on his Guildhall speech for three weeks, hoping to strike the right notes at this august occasion. He wanted to stress that the war had been won by soldiers, not generals.