The recent decision to turn Pershing Park, near the White House, into a National World War I Memorial has re-focused attention on the commander of the American Expeditionary Force (A.E.F.)----General John J. 'Black Jack' Pershing. The man himself had a wide and varied career even before the War.
- General John Blackjack Pershing
- General John J Blackjack Pershing
- General John Blackjack Pershing Poster
- General John Black Jack Pershing
Early Life
If not quite born in a log cabin, Pershing's beginnings were humble enough. His father was a foreman in the Hannibal & St. Louis railroad, raising his growing family in a shanty near Laclede, Missouri. Pershing himself was born there on September 13, 1860.
When Pershing was still in his teens, he took his first job as a schoolteacher in an Afro-American school. Local bullies tried to attack Pershing for this, but he always fought back----and won. Meanwhile during the summer months he attended Kirkville Normal School, getting an A.B. degree in 1880.
And then came the moment that changed the rest of his life, and that of many other people. By chance, Pershing came across an ad for West Point, seeking 'honest, strong, God-fearing boys.' He took the entrance tests, achieved 'top honors,' and joined West Point in 1882.
Pershing graduated in 1886, 30th in a class of 77. His first posting was at Fort Bayard, New Mexico, where, among other things, he became a 1st lieutenant commanding a unit of Afro-American cavalry, the 'buffalo soldiers.' One theory is that this is where he got his nickname of 'Black Jack' Pershing. Another explanation is that it was an old army term for a punishment detail. Apparently, Pershing could be a strict disciplinarian at times.
Returning to West Point as an instructor, he served in Cuba during the 1898 Spanish American War, achieving the rank of Captain. In 1899, he was sent to the Philippines, to put down revolts by the Moros tribe.
11 things you probably didn't know about WWI General John 'Black Jack' Pershing from CoJMC on Vimeo. Pershing's hometown of Laclede, Missouri, was invaded by Confederate bushwhackers just before his 4th birthday. The guerillas were hunting for his father, who flew the Union flag above his general store. There was a time in U.S. History, and not so long ago, when General John 'Black Jack' Pershing was the most famous American alive.
In September 1904 President Theodore Roosevelt appointed him as a brigadier general, ahead of 862 other officers with more seniority. In 1914 Pershing was sent to the Mexican border. In 1916 and 1917 he entered Mexico itself, in a futile effort to catch Pancho Villa, who had been attacking Americans across the border.
World War I
Pershing became a major-general just before the United States entered World War I on April 6, 1917. This time he was appointed over the heads of 5 other major-generals, to become the commander of the AEF. On June 13, 1917, he landed in France, at Boulogne. Pershing's arrival in Paris was greeting by tens of thousands of well-wishers lining the streets, waving American flags and shouting 'Vive l'Amerique!'.
The American military at this time was a small, mostly inexperienced force, the result of decades of neglect and budget-cutting. It would take time to turn it into a professional force numbering in the millions, and able to fight a major war.
Meanwhile, there soon followed a major development that would increase the pressure on Pershing in particular and the western front in general. Germany had defeated Russia on the eastern front, imposing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in January 1918, whereby Germany occupied eastern Europe almost as far as Moscow, a continent-sized empire. This freed up a large number of German soldiers to send to the western front in France and Belgium.
Now the question was, could the Allies on the western front, bled white by 3 years of war, hold out until the Americans arrived in sufficient numbers to make a difference? Germany's spring offensive did push back the Allied lines to within some 50 miles of Paris, but the Allied lines held and did not break.
Needless to say, the British, French, and others were frantic to get as many American soldiers into action as possible, as soon as possible. They wanted to integrate American soldiers into their depleted units at once. Pershing, however, insisted on keeping his men under one unified command, which led to delays. Occasionally, he even had shouting matches on the subject with other Allied leaders.
General John Blackjack Pershing
But when the AEF got into action, it made a difference, pushing back the German army at places such as Catigny, Chateau-Thierry, St. Michiel, and Meuse-Argonne. By mid-1918 the German government was faced with 2 million American soldiers among the Allied ranks, and 2 million more on the way.
Germany agreed to surrender, doing so on November 11, 1918. It was called Armistice Day. (Armistice Day became a federal holiday in the United States in 1938, before being changed to Veterans Day in 1954).
Post-War
At this point there came what was probably the low point of Pershing's career. Pershing was of the opinion that the War should continue until Germany was fully occupied. Otherwise, they might convince themselves that Germany hadn't really lost, and might decide to try again.
In fact, in the 1920s and 1930s, just such a myth appeared, that Germany had not actually been defeated, but had been 'stabbed in the back' by the new Weimar republic. It made a useful rallying cry for demagogues such as Hitler.
General John J Blackjack Pershing
Nevertheless, Armistice Day was decided on as the end of World War I. But on November 11, Pershing still ordered his men into battle, resulting in an extra and avoidable 3500 casualties.
After World War I, Pershing lived quietly, unsuccessfully warning the Harding administration not to cut back the armed forces to a bare-bone level of 115,000, in case of another war someday. In 1922, Pershing was interviewed in the May 19 New York Times, warning: 'It is inconceivable that the lessons of the war, to learn which we paid such a tremendous price…have seemingly gone unheeded by the people of our country.'
In 1939 he paid a last visit to France, and lived to witness the new war he had been warning against.
There is now a statue of General Pershing in Pershing Park, gazing in the direction of the General Sherman equestrian statue across the street.
Aug 17, 2014
So why did the most famous commanding general of the US military in the First World War have the nickname 'Blackjack'?
Tempting fate has never been a hobby we at Blackjack Champ recommend. Certainly we're big fans of the occasional outrageous gamble, knowing precisely when to push your luck can be an extremely useful skill at the tables, however day-to-day it's probably best to avoid making rude gestures at the mystical powers that be. Thus I should have known better than to mention John Joseph 'Blackjack' Pershing the highest ranked military general ever in US history in a recent article about gambling in the trenches of World War One.
I should really have foreseen that I was likely to be approached by several people at Blackjack Champ HQ asking why General Pershing had the nickname 'Blackjack' in the first place, and that simple evasion tactics weren't going to work. General Pershing was all about the full frontal assault and apparently so are my colleagues. The final straw came when a fresh young face asked, with no trace of irony whatsoever, if he was so named because it was his favorite card game.
The Only Real Five Star US General In History
• Nicknamed 'Blackjack' after service with 10th Cavalry
• Cadets felt blackjack rules too harsh
• Good soldier with good connections
My answer, lest it be said, was somewhat peevish. Partly because I'm not entirely sure a general with a reputation such that he might be nicknamed 'Blackjack' after his gambling habits would be the sort of man soldiers would willingly obey under fire in combat, but mostly because if he had been named after the card game Blackjack I would almost certainly have already written an article about him for Blackjack Champ.
Since I haven't, as yet, written such an article we can deduce that there probably isn't all that much connection between the nickname of the only 5 star general in US history and the history of blackjack the card game. However since there seems to be some confusion, and it is the centenary of the start of hostilities in 1914, a conflict into which the United States would be inexorably drawn some years later under his command, I suppose a short explanation might not be entirely out of place.
Buffalo Soldiers Of The 10th Cavalry
The first thing to make clear is that John Joseph Pershing was a good soldier, a very good soldier. As a marksman alone he ranked second in the entire US military for accuracy with a pistol and fifth with a rifle and had been cited for bravery in some of his earliest military campaigns as a young officer with the 6th Cavalry against Indian opposition, particularly against the Apache. He also played some small role in the suppression of the last Sioux Indian uprisings in 1891.
Perhaps tellingly during his military career he also attended law school graduating in 1893 despite already having been promoted to first Lieutenant and being given command of a troop in the 10th Cavalry regiment, Buffalo soldiers as they were termed, that consisted of white officers leading black troops. Stationed at Fort Assinniboine he commanded an expedition using the smart strategies he'd advocated whilst Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Nebraska.
The expedition, that ranged across Montana, was responsible for the deportation of a large number of Cree Indians into Canada and deemed a success but Pershing would be recalled to his place of graduation, West Point, as an instructor which is an honor of some note in the ranks of the US military's officer corps. He was assigned to Cadet Company A and pretty much from the get go the cadets that were tutored under him came to an almost universal opinion of him. They hated his guts.
Far from being a term of endearment, or reference to his card playing recreations, the nickname 'Blackjack' was actually applied to John J. Pershing by his cadets at West Point who felt his strictness and rigidity of attitude were worthy of a derogatory title. Not that this was their first choice, oh no. No, these were soldiers in the late 19th century, and knowing that their new hard-ass training instructor had previously served with the 10th Cavalry, a regiment of black troops, they called him N*gg*r Jack.
General 'Blackjack' Pershing
Over his time at the academy this was toned down to merely 'blackjack', although apparently the reference and intent behind it was still hostile, and that particular incarnation stuck with him for the rest of his life. His tour up at the academy he returned to the 10th where he took part in the Cuban campaign being once again cited for bravery. He then also took part in the Philippine war which is perhaps where his abilities were noticed by President Roosevelt.
Roosevelt liked Pershing and wanted him promoted but the military had other ideas, and instead it was agreed he would become the military attache in Tokyo which would help his career nearly as much as marrying the daughter of a rather influential republican senator who just happened to be chairman of the US Military Appropriations Committee. The fact that upon his return to the US Roosevelt used his presidential powers to promote him to Brigadier General, a mere coincidence.
He'd skipped three ranks, over 835 other more senior officers and divided opinion within the military. There were some who said his rise was entirely due to his political connections, whilst others pointed to his distinguished service leading men in combat. Whichever it may be, and likely as not a bit of both, he was of sufficient rank in 1913 to command the so called 'Punitive' mission into Mexico and again three years later to try and capture Pancho Villa.
When the war in Europe broke out in 1914 America's slide into participation was all but a foregone conclusion. Pershing's role in World War One is a matter of record and that he was the only general ever promoted to 'General Of The Armies' says much for his service, and his connections. He did much to modernize the US military in light of the conditions in France but it did seem that full frontal attacks were the only tactic in the blackjack strategy book, his victories only matched by his losses.
So, now you know why General John Joseph 'Blackjack' Pershing was so nicknamed. Satisfied now?
Tags: 10th Cavalry, 6th Cavalry, Apache, Blackjack rules, blackjack strategy book, Buffalo Soldiers, Canada, Cree, Cuba, Fort Assinniboine, France, John J. Pershing, Pancho Villa, Philippines, Sioux, smart strategies, the history of blackjack, US Military, West Point, World War One
General John Blackjack Pershing Poster
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