ABSTRACT
General George Marshall was Army Chief of Staff during the war. His reputation for exceptional character, leadership and organizational skills was already legend when President Truman appointed Marshall Secretary of State in 1947. Two previous post-war Secretaries had failed in their attempts to raise the Department of State from a malaise that prevented innovative thinking and the development of far-sighted policy responses to Europe's worsening conditions. The Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Europe was in fact the creation of George Kennen, the State Department professional Marshall had named as director of the new Policy Planning Staff. Kennen held this position for only ten days when he received the directive to devise an economic plan that would save war-torn Europe. The Marshall Plan conceived by the Department of State and approved by Congress was first and foremost a self-help program that necessitated a collective and cooperative response from the European community.
