Dwight D. Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Western Europe, during the Second World War. He was the man leading the massive invasion of Europe, which was occupied by Nazi forces. Eisenhower had been in command of the NATO forces in Europe in 1952, which was when the Republican Party convinced him to enter the race for President. He duly obliged and managed to win with a landslide victory over Adlai Stevenson, and then served two terms in the White House.
He is widely regarded by many as one of America’s greatest presidents and managed to oversee the tensions with the Soviet Union during the Cold War-era when the threat of nuclear weapons was at its height. He also ended the Korean War in 1953 and sanctioned a whole host of covert anti-communist operations managed by the CIA all over the world. His tenure on the home front was largely prosperous, and he was responsible for strengthening Social Security and helped create the huge new Interstate Highway System.
The early life and military career of Eisenhower
Dwight David Eisenhower was born on 14th October 1890 in Denison, Texas, and was the 3rd of seven sons in a poor family. His early childhood was spent in Abilene, Kansas, and young ‘Ike’ (his nickname) joined the U.S. Military Academy at West Point New York, against the wishes of his mother. He would graduate in 1915 in the middle of his class, and was then sanctioned as the 2nd lieutenant in San Antonio, Texas, where he would go on to meet with his future wife, Mamie Geneva Doud. He married her in 1916, and they had two sons, Doud Dwight (who died from scarlet fever in infancy) and John.
Did You Know?
In July 1945, General Eisenhower was amongst the people who actually opposed dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He believed that the Japanese were about to surrender, and dropping the nuclear bombs on their cities would actually harm the reputation of the United States in the international community, just when their reputation was at its highest.
Eisenhower was incredibly frustrated, when World War I ended, just as he was about to be scheduled to travel to Europe. However, he was then appointed to the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, from where he would graduate 1st in his class of 245 students. He would then serve as a military aide for General John J. Pershing, who was the commander of the U.S. forces during World War I, and then served for seven years under General Douglas MacArthur, who was U.S. Army Chief of Staff.
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