Douglas macarthur why fired

I believe that we must try to limit the war in Korea for these vital reasons: to make sure that the precious lives of our fighting men are not wasted; to see that the security of our country and the free world is not jeopardized; and to prevent a third world war. A number of events have made it evident that General MacArthur did not agree with that policy. I have therefore considered it essential to relieve General MacArthur so that there would be no doubt or confusion as to the real purpose and aim of our policy.

It was with the deepest personal regret that I found myself compelled to take this action. General MacArthur is one of our greatest military commanders. But the cause of world peace is more important than any individual. The change in commands in the Far East means no change whatever in the policy of the United States. We will carry on the fight in Korea with vigor and determination in an effort to bring the war to a speedy and successful conclusion.

We are ready, at any time, to negotiate for a restoration of peace in the area. But we will not engage in appeasement. We are only interested in real peace…. In the hard fighting in Korea, we are proving that collective action among nations is not only a high principle but a workable means of resisting aggression. The struggle of the United Nations in Korea is a struggle for peace.

The free nations have united their strength in an effort to prevent a third world war. That war can come if the Communist rulers want it to come. But this Nation and its allies will not be responsible for its coming. We do not want to widen the conflict. We will use every effort to prevent that disaster. And, in so doing, we know that we are following the great principles of peace, freedom, and justice.

World War II. Mass Effects in Modern Life. The Lights are Going Out. War Speech. A House of Many Mansions. Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat. Be Ye Men of Valour. We Shall Fight on the Beaches. War of the Unkown Warriors. Every Man to His Post. Neville Chamberlain. Third Inaugural Address The Old Lion. Wake Up America! MacArthur later gave a speech in which he threatened to use Taiwanese forces to fight in Korea.

Taiwan was once a part of China, but separated itself in order to avoid being under communist rule. Truman did not want Taiwan to get involved as it might provoke China. Hoping to avoid starting another world war, he ordered all military officers and diplomats not to make any statements to the press without first getting approval from the State Department. MacArthur had earlier believed victory was imminent, and he split his forces into two groups.

This weakened his defense and allowed Chinese forces to quickly advance and push U. MacArthur, however, began to say that he wanted to attack China.

Truman refused, believing this would lead widen the conflict and possibly start another world war. Slowly, the situation on the Peninsula became more stable. As the Truman administration began to prepare to send a ceasefire offer to the Chinese, MacArthur issued a statement to the press in which he personally threatened to bomb and invade China. Truman did not take this act of insubordination personally and he waited to hear the opinions of his military advisors.

Truman knew that removing the popular General MacArthur from his position would anger many in the public, but he still fired the military officer. He understood that the Constitution established a system where the president, a civilian, served as commander-inchief, not a military officer. In April , a poll revealed that 69 percent of Americans supported MacArthur.

Despite the attacks, Truman remained nearly silent, having made his decision. Truman decided to not run again as president, as he was looking forward to retirement as a private citizen.

He died on December 5, , at the ripe age of As one of the great military commanders of the twentieth century, and one of the most arrogant, MacArthur enjoyed tremendous public popularity. The featured document, located at the Harry S. Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, is a draft of the statement relieving MacArthur of his command. MacArthur had precipitated his own firing both by overstepping the bounds of his authority in the field and by taking his views to the public. The Korean conflict began as a civil war.

In , the Korean Peninsula was divided between a Soviet-backed government in the north and an American-backed government in the south, a division that had solidified at the end of World War II.

In an agreement during the last weeks of the war, a demarcation line along the 38th parallel was established to facilitate the surrender of Japanese troops to Allied forces. The Japanese subsequently surrendered to the Russians in the north and to the Americans in the south.

This line became more rigid after October , when the Soviets stopped interzonal travel and began fortifying the 38th parallel, and in , when Kim Il Sung organized a communist government in the north.

Both governments hoped to reunify the country under their own rule. With South Korean independence in place, U. The last U. Russia followed suit, simultaneously withdrawing the Red Army from the north. NKPA troops launched a coordinated attack at several strategic points along the 38th parallel and headed south toward Seoul.

In the absence of the Soviet representative, who had walked out of the United Nations Security Council earlier in the year, the Council condemned the invasion and called for UN member nations to assist South Korea. Although fifteen other UN nations contributed to the war effort, the United States took the lead both in strategy and firepower. MacArthur came to his Korean post a popular war hero.

He was promoted to General of the Army Five-Star General and chosen to command the proposed amphibious invasion of Japan, an invasion made unnecessary by the atomic bomb.

He oversaw the occupation of Japan as proconsul, behaving much like a head of state. One biographer, William Manchester, described him as follows:. The American people will come to understand that what I did had to be done. MacArthur was cheered by thousands in parades across the United States, including a ticker-tape parade in New York City with an estimated 7. Congress invited him to address a joint session. There, his dramatic and masterful speech held the nation spellbound as he gave a minute oration in which he was interrupted by applause 30 times.

These cooled some of the angry public sentiment. The Joint Chiefs supported the president and pointed out their disagreements with MacArthur. President Truman left office in as one of the most unpopular presidents in American history, but he is now regarded by most historians as a great or near-great president, in large part because of his resolute decision-making. MacArthur wanted to expand the war against China, which had entered the Korean fighting in late MacArthur complained that the president was tying his hands by forbidding the bombing of China, thereby sacrificing American lives and endangering American freedom.

The last thing Truman wanted was a wider war in Asia, which would weaken the American position in Europe. MacArthur, Douglas, Vorin E. Whan; U. Military Academy. Brands, H. The General vs.

New York: Doubleday, Ferrell, Robert H. Harry S. Truman: A Life. Hamby, Alonzo L. Liberalism and Its Challengers: From F. New York: Oxford University Press, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Herman, Arthur. Douglas MacArthur: American Warrior.

New York: Random House, Kaufman, Burton I. New York: McGraw Hill, Lee, Steven Hugh. The Korean Wa r.