General Omar Nelson Bradley (February 12, 1893 - April 8, 1981), nicknamed Brad, was a senior officer in the United States Army during and after World War II. Brad was the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and oversaw US policy during the Korean War. You can see a photo of Omar Bradley below. A direct look and a modest smile betray in him an extremely honest and decent person.
The Way of the Warrior
Omar Bradley was born in Randolph County, Missouri, and worked in a railroad shop before attending the US Military Academy at West Point. He graduated from the academy in 1915 with Dwight D. Eisenhower as part of a "star-struck class." During World War I, Omar guarded the copper mines in Montana. After the war, he taught at West Point and held other positions before taking a position in the War Department under General George Marshall. In 1941 he became commander of an infantryUS Army Schools.
After the US entry into World War II, Omar Bradley oversaw the transformation of the 82nd Infantry Division into America's first airborne division. He received his first frontline command in Operation Torch, serving under General George S. Patton in North Africa. After Patton was reassigned, our hero led the II Corps in the Tunisia campaign and the Allied invasion of Sicily.
He commanded the First United States Army during the invasion of Normandy. After leaving Normandy, he took command of the twelfth United States Army Group, which eventually included forty-three divisions and 1.3 million men, the largest number of American soldiers ever to serve under a single field commander.
Origin and early years
Omar, the son of schoolteacher John Smith Bradley (1868–1908) and Mary Elizabeth Hubbard (1875–1931), was born into poverty in rural Randolph County, Missouri, near Mauberley. Omar Bradley was named after Omar D. Gray, a local newspaper editor admired by his father and local physician, Dr. James Nelson. He was of British descent, having emigrated from Britain to Kentucky in the mid-1700s.
He attended at least eight schools in the country where his father taught. The head of the family never made more than $40 a month in his entire life, he taught at a school and de alt in stocks. The family never owned a wagon, horse, bull or mule. When Omar was 15 years old, his father died, passing on to his son a love of books, baseball and shooting.
His mother moved to Mauberly, Missouri and remarried. Our hero graduated from Mauberly High School in 1910, an outstanding student and athlete, captain of the baseball and track teams. The people of Mauberley called Omar Bradley "the best son of the city" and throughout his life the great general called Mauberley his home and favorite city in the world. He was a frequent visitor to Moberly throughout his career, was a member of the Moberly Rotary Club, regularly played handicap golf at the challenging Moberly Country Club course, and had a Bradley Pugh at Central Christian Church.
When the Veterans Flag Project was unveiled at the historic Mauberley Cemetery in 2009, General Bradley and his first son-in-law and West Point graduate, the late Major Henry Shaw of Beukema, were commemorated by grateful citizens with flags in their honor.
Beginning of military career: World War I
Bradley was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Infantry and first assigned to the 14th Infantry Regiment. He served on the border between Mexico and the United States in 1915. When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, he was promoted to captain and sent to guard the Butte, Montana copper mines. Bradley joined the 19th Infantry Division in August 1918, which was scheduled for a European deployment, but the influenza pandemic and the armistice with Germany intervened.
Louisiana maneuvers
The Louisiana Maneuvers were a series of US Army exercises conducted around North, West, and Central Louisiana, including Fort Polk, Camp Claiborne, and Camp Livingston, in 1940 and 1941. The exercise, which involved about 400,000 troops, was designed to evaluate the preparation of the US Army.
Many Army officers present at the maneuvers went on to high-profile posts in World War II, including Omar Bradley, Mark Clark, Dwight D. Eisenhower, W alter Krueger, Leslie J. McNair and George Patton.
Lt. Col. Bradley was assigned to the General Staff during the Louisiana maneuvers, but as a courier and observer on the ground, he has gained invaluable experience. Our hero helped plan the maneuvers and kept the General Staff in Washington, D. C. up to date with the preparations that were going on during the Louisiana maneuvers.
Later, Omar said Louisians welcome the soldiers with open arms. Some soldiers even slept in the houses of local residents.
Memoirs
Bradley's personal experiences in the war are documented in his award-winning book, The Soldier's Story, published by Henry Holt in 1951. It was reprinted by the Modern Library in 1999. The book is based on an extensive diary kept by his adjutant Chester B. Hansen.
World War II
At the start of the war, Omar Bradley, recently promoted to major general, took command of the newly activated 82nd Infantry Division. Heoversaw the division's transformation into the first U. S. Airborne Division and was trained in parachuting. In August, the division was redesignated the 82nd Airborne Division, and our hero handed over command to Maj. Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway.
Invasion of Normandy
Bradley moved to London as commander-in-chief of the American ground forces preparing to invade France in 1944. He was chosen to command the US 1st Army, which, along with the British 2nd, made up General Montgomery's 21st Army Group.
As the build-up continued in Normandy, the Third Army was formed under Patton, former commander of Bradley, while General Hodges took over from our hero in command of the First Army; together they formed Omar's new command, the 12th Army Group. By August it had grown to 900,000 men, and eventually consisted of four field armies.
Siegfried Line
US forces reached the "Siegfried Line" or "Westwall" at the end of September. The success of the offensive took the Allied High Command by surprise. They expected the German Wehrmacht to take up positions on the natural lines of defense provided by the French rivers and did not prepare the logistics for the much deeper advance of the Allied armies. Bradley's team took the brunt, this battle will be called the Battle of the Bulge. For reasons of logistics and command, General Eisenhower decided to deployBradley's First and Ninth Armies under the temporary command of Field Marshal Montgomery's 21st Army Group on the northern flank of the Bulge.
Honorary Veteran
After the war, Bradley headed the Veterans Administration. He became Chief of Staff of the United States Army in 1948 and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1949. In 1950, Bradley was promoted to the rank of General of the Army.
He was a senior military commander at the start of the Korean War and supported President Harry S. Truman's wartime containment policy.
Bradley retired from active duty in 1953 but continued to serve in public service until his death in 1981.
Death
Omar Bradley died on April 8, 1981 in New York of cardiac arrhythmia, just minutes after receiving an award from the National Institute of Social Sciences. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery next to his two wives. The personal life of Omar Bradley characterizes him as a loyal and constant person. His first wife died of leukemia, leaving Omar with a daughter, Elizabeth. The second marriage lasted until the end of his life.
The General served continuously in the army from August 1, 1911 until his death on April 8, 1981 - a total of 69 years, 8 months and 7 days. This is the longest career in the military.
Legacy
General Bradley donated some of his World War II memorabilia to the Carnegie Library at Mauberley, where they are on display in the General Omar Bradley Trophy Room.
Also, in honor of the 125th anniversary of his birth, a museum was founded, which opened on February 12, 2018. Sam Richardson, local biographer of military leader Omar Bradley, is curating the new museum.
