The Making of a Leader: The Formative Years of George C. Marshall

A portrait of one of the greatest leaders of modern history, George Catlett Marshall (1880–1959), and a distillation of the essential lessons his formative years offer to the leaders of today and tomorrow

George Marshall’s accomplishments are well known: after helping to guide the Allies to victory during World War II, he set Europe on the postwar path to recovery with the plan that bears his name and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. But how did he become such an effective leader?

By eschewing the years and accomplishments for which Marshall is most often remembered and focusing instead on the decisive moments that preceded them, The Making of a Leader provides the most detailed look yet at the mettle of Marshall’s character, from his arrival as a cadet at the Virginia Military Institute and his Fort Leavenworth days—where he “learned how to learn”—to his instructive time as John J. Pershing’s aide-de-camp and his critical experiences during World War I. Josiah Bunting III, a lifelong educator and former superintendent of Marshall’s alma mater, highlights the importance of Marshall’s activity between the wars, when he led “the single most influential period of military education” at Fort Benning, eventually culminating in his appointment as Army Chief of Staff in 1939.

In this illuminating portrait, Bunting cuts through the legend of Marshall to the man—his frustrations, passions, loves, and brilliance—revealing a humble commander who knew not only how to lead but how to see the leader in others.

JOSIAH BUNTING III is an author, educator, and military historian. A graduate of the Virginia Military Institute and former Rhodes Scholar at the University of Oxford, he served as a major in the United States Army and later as the superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute. His previous books include The Lionheads (one of Time’s ten best novels of 1973) and Ulysses S. Grant (published as part of Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.'s American Presidents series). In recognition of his many accomplishments and lifelong devotion to higher education, Bunting was appointed to the National Council of the National Endowment for the Humanities by President George W. Bush. He lives with his wife in Newport, Rhode Island.