John J. Pershing, u potpunosti John Joseph Pershing, prezime Black Jack, (rođen 13. rujna 1860., Laclede, Missouri, SAD - umro 15. srpnja 1948., Washington, DC), general američke vojske koji je zapovjedio američkim ekspedicijskim snagama (AEF)) u Europi tijekom Prvog svjetskog rata.
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Pershing je 1886. diplomirao na Vojnoj akademiji Sjedinjenih Država u West Pointu u New Yorku. Zapoviješten je za drugog poručnika i raspoređen u 6. konjicu, koja je tada vodila operacije protiv Geronima i Chiricahua Apache na jugozapadu. Pershing je 1890. služio u kampanji za suzbijanje pokreta Ghost Dance i ustanka među Siouxima na teritoriju Dakote, ali njegova postrojba nije sudjelovala u masakru na Ranjenom koljenu. Godine 1891. postao je instruktor vojne znanosti na Sveučilištu u Nebraski u Lincolnu. Tamo je stekao i diplomu prava (1893). U West Pointu je 1897. godine postavljen za instruktora taktike.
Španjolsko-američki rat pružio je Pershingu priliku za brzo napredovanje. Služio je na Kubi kroz kampanju Santiago (1898) i postavljen je za časnika u pukovniju u čin bojnika. U lipnju 1899. godine postavljen je za generalnog pomoćnika. Organizirao je Biro za unutarnja pitanja u Odjelu za rat i nekoliko mjeseci bio na čelu tog biroa. Pershing je poslan na Filipine kao generalni pomoćnik odjela Mindanaoa u studenom 1899. Postao je kapetanom u redovnoj vojsci 1901. godine i vodio kampanju protiv Morosa do 1903. Godine 1905. poslan je u Japan kao vojni ataše u veleposlanstvo SAD-a, a tijekom rusko-japanskog rata proveo je nekoliko mjeseci kao promatrač s japanskom vojskom u Manchuriji. U znak priznanja za njegovu službu na Filipinima, pres.Theodore Roosevelt promaknuo je Pershinga u brigadnog generala iz čina kapetana 1906. godine, prešavši preko 862 više časnika. Pershing se vratio na Filipine i ostao tamo do 1913. godine, radeći kao zapovjednik odjela Mindanao i guverner provincije Moro. Potom je privukao pažnju kao zapovjednik kaznene ekspedicije upućene protiv meksičkog revolucionara Panča Vile, koji je 1916. izvršio raciju na Columbus u Novom Meksiku. Nakon smrti general-generala Fredericka Funstona 1917. godine, Pershing ga je naslijedio kao zapovjednika u SAD-u -Meksička granica.Potom je privukao pažnju kao zapovjednik kaznene ekspedicije upućene protiv meksičkog revolucionara Panča Vile, koji je 1916. izvršio raciju na Columbus u Novom Meksiku. Nakon smrti general-generala Fredericka Funstona 1917. godine, Pershing ga je naslijedio kao zapovjednika u SAD-u -Meksička granica.Potom je privukao pažnju kao zapovjednik kaznene ekspedicije upućene protiv meksičkog revolucionara Panča Vile, koji je 1916. izvršio raciju na Columbus u Novom Meksiku. Nakon smrti general-generala Fredericka Funstona 1917. godine, Pershing ga je naslijedio kao zapovjednika u SAD-u -Meksička granica.
After the United States declared war on Germany (April 1917), Pres. Woodrow Wilson selected Pershing to command the American troops being sent to Europe. The transition from the anti-insurgency campaigns that had characterized much of Pershing’s career to the vast stagnant siege of the Western Front was an extreme test, but Pershing brought to the challenge a keen administrative sense and a knack for carrying out plans in spite of adversity. With his staff, Pershing landed in France on June 9, 1917, and that month he submitted a “General Organization Report” recommending the creation of an army of one million men by 1918 and three million by 1919. Earlier American planning had not contemplated such a large army. Having assumed that the AEF could not be organized in time to support military operations on the Western Front, the Allies had asked only for financial, economic, and naval assistance. Pershing’s recommendations regarding the numbers and disposition of troops prevailed, however, especially after Allied fortunes worsened during 1917. By early 1918, American plans had called for concentrating an independent army on the Western Front, which Pershing hoped would spearhead a decisive offensive against Germany.
The exhaustion of the Allies, stemming from the setbacks of 1917, increased their dependence on U.S. arms. It also engendered pressure on Pershing to condone the “amalgamation” of small units of American troops into European armies, as the Allies desperately wanted replacements for their depleted formations to resist expected attacks. From the start, Pershing insisted that the integrity of the American army be preserved, making a firm stand against French tutelage and the French desire to infuse the new American blood into their ranks. Pershing also opposed proposals to divert some U.S. troops to secondary theatres. The Supreme War Council, an institution established to coordinate the political-military strategy of the Allies, continually recommended amalgamation and that diversionary operations be conducted elsewhere than in France, but Pershing remained unmoved. If Pershing’s stance imposed a strain on the exhausted Allies, it was justified by the oft-cited warning against “pouring new wine into old bottles.” Pershing also felt that such an arrangement would represent an unprecedented sacrifice of national prestige. He argued that the fielding of an independent American army would be a serious blow to German morale and provide a permanent uplift to American self-confidence.
The disasters of early 1918 seemed to demonstrate the great risk that had been taken in pursuit of Pershing’s ideal. The Germans, their Western Front armies having been strongly reinforced because of the armistice recently concluded between the German-led Central Powers and Russia, embarked on a fresh wave of attacks designed to break the Allies’ will before the Americans could deploy in strength. At the Second Battle of the Somme, German armies advanced 40 miles (64 km) and captured some 70,000 Allied prisoners. When the German offensives of March–June 1918 threatened Paris, Pershing placed all his resources firmly at the disposal of French Marshal Ferdinand Foch. These pressures subsided when the Allies assumed the offensive during the summer, however, and Pershing reverted to his previous policy.
Pershing’s army never became entirely self-sufficient, but it conducted two significant operations. In September 1918 the AEF assaulted the Saint-Mihiel salient successfully. Then, at Foch’s request, later that month Pershing quickly regrouped his forces for the Meuse-Argonne offensive, despite his original plans to advance toward Metz. Though incomplete preparations and inexperience slowed the Meuse-Argonne operations, the inter-Allied offensive in France destroyed German resistance in early October and led to the Armistice the following month.
Pershing was criticized for operational and logistic errors, but his creation of the AEF was a remarkable achievement. He returned home with a sound reputation, and, on September 1, 1919, he was given the rank of general of the armies of the United States. Pershing’s nickname, “Black Jack,” derived from his service with a black regiment early in his career, had come to signify his stern bearing and rigid discipline. His determination and dedication had gained him the respect and admiration of his men, if not their affection. Eschewing politics, Pershing remained in the army, serving as chief of staff from 1921 until his retirement three years later. Pershing’s memoirs were published as My Experiences in the World War, 2 vol. (1931).
