George S. Patton III, Maj Gen, USA (Ret)
 and the 39th Colonel of the Blackhorse Regiment died peacefully last night, June 26, 2004.

Flags Flown at Half Staff by order
President 11th ACVVC

George S. Patton
Wednesday, June 30, 2004

Maj. Gen. George S. Patton, U.S. Army, retired, 81, of Hamilton, son of the late Gen. George S. Patton Jr. and Beatrice Ayer Patton, died June 27, 2004, at his home after a long illness.

     Gen. Patton had been the owner of Green Meadows Farm in Hamilton. He retired from active duty in the fall of 1980, after 34 years of service to his country, which included combat experience in Korea, nine years of assignments in Germany and three tours of duty in Vietnam during the conflict there. His assignments, after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1946, ranged from company commander in both Europe and Korea, through staff and command assignments and attendance at all U.S. Army schools, from basic officer to the Army War College. His career culminated in commands of the 11th Armored Cavalry "Blackhorse" Regiment in Vietnam and the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas.

     Gen. Patton's education included a bachelor of science degree from the U.S. Military Academy, a master's degree in international affairs from George Washington University and the Senior Managers in Government Program at Harvard University.

     Gen. Patton was awarded many decorations for both bravery and meritorious service, including the Distinguished Service Medal, the Purple Heart and two awards of the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation's highest decoration for bravery in combat.

     After his retirement in 1980, Gen. Patton devoted his attention to developing land in Essex County, which had belonged to his family. Assisted by state agricultural and environmental authorities, local farmers and hands-on experience, he and his farm management team created a working commercial farm and firewood operation, with special focus on small fruit crops. His Green Meadows Farm was recently awarded certification as a full organic operation and has established a community-supported agricultural (CSA) program.

     A dedicated sailor, fisherman and hunter in his recreational time, Gen. Patton also served on a variety of civic boards, including the board of trustees of Norwich University, the West Point Fund Committee, the Hamilton Historical Society and the Board of Trustees of the Essex Agricultural and Technical Institute.

     He is survived by: his wife of 52 years, Joanne Holbrook Patton; five children, Mother Margaret Georgina Patton, OSB; George S. Patton Jr., Robert H. Patton and his wife, Vicki, Helen Patton Plusczyk and her husband, Dr. Thorsten Plusczyk, and Benjamin Wilson Patton and his wife, Jennifer; six grandchildren, Robert and James Patton, Ingmar and Ragnar Plusczyk, Thomas and Christian Zawacki; and one great-grandson, Zachary Zawacki.

     A memorial service will be held Wednesday, July 7, 10 a.m., from St. John's Episcopal Church, Beverly Farms.

     In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Army Emergency Relief, the National Military Family Association, the West Point Fund, St. John's Episcopal Church, or the New England Small Farm Institute.

Major General George S. Patton (ret.) wrote his comments concerning the Vietnam soldier in a letter to Time Magazine.  In part he said:

As a veteran of two wars, Korea and Viet Nam, I can say the Viet Nam soldier far surpassed his Korean War predecessor in overall professionalism and dedication to U.S. objectives.  His basic problem was that those objectives were often unclear.  This was not the soldier's fault, but he made the best of it.  In conclusion, I forward this letter to explain that the characteristics of the leaders portrayed in Platoon do not apply to our military forces across the board.

      General Patton, as the reader may have surmised, comes from an eminent military background.  He spent thirty-three months in Vietnam.  He also was regimental commander of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam.

     Military historian, Shelby L. Stanton, has written of this regiment (nicknamed the Blackhorse Regiment), "The 11th Armored Cavalry would become one of the Army's finest units in Vietnam. ...A series of excellent commanders and aggressive flak-vested cavalrymen would ensure that the 11th ACR gained an enviable combat reputation far out of proportion to their actual numbers."

General Patton was one of the finest of the excellent commanders of the 11th Armored Cavalry and his comments about American soldier in Vietnam have the utmost credibility.  He is among the most eminently qualified people to make a judgment of this sort.

Copyright 2000 JG