American Valor Quarterly Issue 8 - Winter 2010/2011 | Page 15

Indispensable Men
Dwight Eisenhower and Andrew J. Goodpaster
The Third Annual Andrew J. Goodpaster Lecture
By Carlo D’Este
General Andrew J. Goodpaster is one of the U.S. Military’s
towering figures of the 20th century. A recipient of the
Distinguished Service Cross and Silver Star for valor during World
War II, he would go on to serve as staff secretary for President
Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, and
Superintendent of West Point. He was universally admired for
his intellect, devotion to duty, fairness, and sense of decency.

1994 visit to Europe to commemorate the 50th anniversary of
the invasion of Normandy.
The American Veterans Center is proud to have presented Carlo
D’Este with the 2010 Andrew J. Goodpaster Prize. The following
is the text of his lecture.
To follow two such distinguished
award recipients as Dr. Lewis Sorley
and Gen. David Palmer is a great
honor and privilege. In addition to
writing, one of my other duties for
the past fifteen years is to co-host and
now direct the William E. Colby
Military Writers’ Symposium at
Norwich University. It is a program
designed to expose students to great
authors and leaders. So, it should serve
as no surprise that two of our
participants have been my
predecessors in receiving this
distinguished prize.

Despite his battlefield heroics and rise
through the ranks, General
Goodpaster was at heart a scholar.
Having earned graduate degrees in
Engineering and International Affairs
from Princeton, Goodpaster was
most proud of his scholarly
achievements, and was often regarded
as the epitome of the “soldierscholar.”
From its founding, General
Goodpaster was a strong supporter
of the World War II Veterans
Committee and the American
Veterans Center until his passing in
2005. His advice in those early years
helped ensure that the Center would
not merely survive, but thrive, and we
owe him a debt that can never be
repaid.

Andrew J. Goodpaster as Supreme Allied Commander
of NATO, July 1, 1969.

To honor his legacy, the Center inaugurated the Andrew J.
Goodpaster Prize and Lecture in 2007, honoring achievements
of other “soldier-scholars.” Made possible by the Lynde and
Harry Bradley Foundation, this prize and lecture is our way of
spotlighting the finest in military scholarship and honoring one
of our military’s most noble soldiers, helping to ensure that his
legacy will live on. The first two recipients were Dr. Lewis Sorley
and Lt. General Dave Palmer.
The 2010 Goodpaster Prize recipient was Carlo D’Este. A retired
U.S. Army colonel who served on active duty for 20 years, D’Este
has since become one of America’s leading military historians,
authoring such best-selling books as Eisenhower: A Soldier’s Life,
Patton: A Genius for War, Decision in Normandy, and his most recent
work, Warlord: A Life of Winston Churchill at War.

It is fitting that I had a chance to meet
Gen. Goodpaster in two different
settings. In 1994 I was one of a group
of historians invited to the White
House to brief Pres. Clinton before
his trip to Europe to participate in the
50th anniversary of D-Day.

At his side that evening during both the briefings given the
President and later at a dinner was Gen. Goodpaster. Although
the audience included key White House staffers and the secretaries
of state and treasury, whenever the president wanted answers
throughout the evening he would invariably turn to the general.
It was perfectly fitting that a sitting president would turn to Gen.
Goodpaster for advice. By my reckoning Pres. Clinton was the
seventh president that he either served in ͽ