Smedley Darlington Butler: Major General, United States Marine Corps
Military Service: May 1898 – October 1931
Birth and Education
Smedley Darlington Butler was born on July 30th, 1881 in West Chester, Pennsylvania to an esteemed Quaker family. The son of a Pennsylvania congressman, Butler received his primary education at the distinguished Haverford School in Philadelphia. Although he was raised a pacifist by his Quaker parents, Smedley Butler left Haverford just before his seventeenth birthday to join the US Marines, successfully lying about his age to get accepted.
Military Service and Combat
Having completed six weeks of basic training, Butler was immediately thrust into combat duty, first in Cuba to fight in the Spanish-American War in 1898. In 1900, he was sent to China to help quell the Boxer Rebellion. It was here, during the Battle of Tientsin, that Smedley Butler was wounded in action, shot in the leg while saving a fellow officer. This earned Butler a promotion to captain. He would be wounded again at the battle San Tan Pating before returning home. Butler next saw combat in Honduras, when an uprising threatened the US Consulate there. Bulter would go on to fight in the Battle of Veracruz during the Mexican Revolution (where he would earn his first of two Medals of Honor), the Banana Wars in the Caribbean and Central America, in Haiti, after the assassination of Haitian President, Vilburn Guillaume Sam, and in France during WWI, where, ironically, he did not see combat.
Recognition and Reputation.
Smedley Butler rose steadily through the ranks of the Marine Corps throughout his military career. After receiving a promotion for his bravery in China, he would go on to earn numerous other promotions, eventually becoming, at age 48, the youngest man to achieve the rank of Major General, the highest rank authorized by the Marine Corps at that time. When he retired in 1931, Butler was also the most decorated Marine in US history. In addition to being known for his outright fearlessness, Butler was much beloved by the men who served under him, because of his commitment to their care and wellbeing. They would follow him anywhere. Also known for his humility, Butler tried to return his first Medal of Honor, proclaiming that he hadn’t done anything to deserve it. The medal was sent back to him with orders to keep it and wear it. Butler’s reputation for pull-no-punches straight talk was respected, but also often got him into trouble with his superiors.
Disillusionment With Capitalism
After his retirement from the Marines in 1931, Smedley Butler began to reflect on his military career and became disillusioned with his role in American influence on world affairs. He gave a series of speeches in which he imparted a sobering view of what he saw as American imperialism. In 1934, Butler was approached by a fascist cabal of the country’s wealthiest industrialists, intent on a coup d’etat against newly elected President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Knowing Butler’s reputation of being highly regarded by his men, the conspirators offered him $30 million to lead an army of veterans (already enraged at the government for withholding bonus payments promised to military servicemen), to march on the White House to overthrow FDR. Butler pretended to go along with the plan while secretly relaying all aspects of the conspiracy, and those involved, to the Committee On UnAmerican Activities, Authorized to Investigate Nazi Propaganda and Certain Other Propaganda Activities.
Although the committee deemed Butler’s claims as a legitimate conspiracy and threat to the country, they refused to pursue any legal action against the conspirators. This left Butler furious and even further disillusioned. In a radio interview after the committee’s findings were published, he said, “The committee stopped dead in its tracks when it got near the top…Like most committees, it has slaughtered the little and allowed the big to escape. The big shots weren’t even called to testify…” (Simkin, 2014, para. 19) In an interview with the magazine Common Sense, Butler stated “I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism…” (Simkin, 2014, para. 17) Later in 1935, Butler would author and publish the book War Is A Racket, in which he would conclude “War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives…”. (Simkin, 2014, para. 35) Smedley Butler continued to speak out against war profiteering until his death on June 21st, 1940.
Personal Character
Fearlessness, honesty, care and appreciation for his men, truthfulness with others, and more importantly himself. These are all characteristics I could adopt in my role at work, and in my personal life. And to some extent, I believe I do, although perhaps not with the consistency I would like. But of all these, I believe truthfulness with others and myself is the most important. To speak your truth, especially truth to power, and to be honest with yourself about the job you are doing, is paramount in leadership. I think of how difficult it must have been for Smedley Butler to come to the realization of the true nature of his military service, and not only admit it to himself but to speak about it openly and publicly. Especially when you consider the yoke of tradition and honor that comes with being a Marine.