Martin Blumenson, 1918-2005

Army, Jun 2005

Historian Martin Blumenson died on April 15 at the age of 86 at his home in Washington, D.C. The author of many books on World War II, Mr. Blumenson was best known as the foremost authority on the life of Gen. George S. Patton Jr.

Born in New York City, Mr. Blumenson graduated form Bucknell University in Pennsylvania in 1939 and earned master's degrees from Bucknell in 1940 and Harvard in 1942. He served as a historical officer of the Third and Seventh Armies in the European Theater in World War II. He stayed in France after the war, working as a historian and as a jazz pianist. He met his wife in Prance and lived there part of each year for most of his life.

When the Korean War broke out he was recalled to active duty and commanded the 3rd Historical Detachment in South Korea where he was attached to the IX Corps. Upon returning from Korea, he worked in the Office of the Chief of Military History, writing two of the official Army "green books," Breakout and Pursuit and Salerno to Cassino.

Mr. Blumenson worked in the Office of the Chief of Military History until 1967, when he served the Johnson administration as an advisor to the President's National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. He also taught or lectured at the U.S. Military Academy and the Naval Academy, the Army and Navy war colleges, the National Defense University, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Hofstra University, Acadia University, George Washington University, the University of Texas, The Citadel and Bucknell.

From 1959 to 2001 he published 17 history books, all on World War II in North Africa and Europe. He also wrote biographies of Dwight D. Elsenhower and Mark Clark. In the two-volume Pattern Papers, published in 1972 and 1974, he provided a superb narrative, which put Gen. Patton's writings in context. In 1985, he wrote Patton: The Man Behind the Legend, 1885-1945, a highly praised biography.

His last book, Heroes Never Die, was a compilation of articles, primarily from ARMY Magazine. His first article for AUSA appeared in ARMY Magazine's predecessor, Combat Forces Journal, in July 1952. It was a report on fighting medics he interviewed in Korea. His first article in ARMY Magazine, in 1956, focused on Gen. Douglas Mac Arthur's divided command in Korea during the last three months of 1950. Since then, he has written 236 articles and reviews for ARMY.

Even in his last days, Mr. Blumenson continued to write and speak on military topics. He was coauthoring a brief biography of Patton when he passed away. His wife of 55 years, Genevieve Adelbert Blumenson, died in 2000. Survivors include a son, John J-G. Blumenson, of Toronto.