“Can the Army win the war before the Navy loses it?”
The World Crisis, Vol 3, 1916-1918, Part I (1927), Churchill, Thornton Butterworth (London), p. 283.
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John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher 30
Royal Navy admiral of the fleet 1841–1920Related quotes
“The Government can lose the war without you; they cannot win it without you.”
Speech to the Trades Union Congress in Bristol (9 September 1915), quoted in The Times (10 September 1915), p. 9
Minister of Munitions
Source: Leviathan Wakes (2011), Chapter 46 (p. 467)
Mike Province, founder and president of The Patton Society http://www.pattonhq.com/ calls this an urban legend and in the Texas A&M Battalion (2 October 2006) http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2006/10/02/Aggielife/Traditionally.Speaking-2319058.shtml?sourcedomain=www.thebatt.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com is quoted as saying "I've gotten e-mails and questions regarding that quote for several years... People will use it with Texas Aggies, The Citadel, Virginia Military Institute and even Clemson. All of these schools want to be linked to Patton... Anything is possible... I honestly don't believe he said it, because I've heard too many people say that he said it about their school. But if anyone out there can find proof that he said it, I'd love to hear about it and get it out there." If any school has a claim, it is the Virginia Military Institute; Patton's grandfather, grand-uncles, and his father all were VMI graduates. Patton himself spent a year at VMI before going to West Point. VMI has many George Patton relics donated by his family in its museum. Please also note that the photo of Patton as a cadet has him wearing a VMI coatee and cap.
Misattributed
“The British Army should be a projectile to be fired by the British Navy.”
Quoted by Admiral 'Jacky' Fisher in Memories p.18 https://archive.org/stream/memoriesbyadmira00fishuoft#page/18/mode/1up (1919).
“It is not possible to foretell the reaction of certain elements in the Army and Navy.”
Quoted in "The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb" - Page 107 - by Dennis Wainstock - History - 1996.
“Russia has only two allies: the Army and the Navy.”
Source: Book of memories Appendix to Illustrated Russia for 1933 by Alexander Mikhailovich http://www.rummuseum.ru/lib_a/al_mih05.php
To Gen. Richard Sutherland after their flight over Japanese held territory to reach Australia (17 March 1942), as quoted in MacArthur and the War Against Japan (1944) by Frazier Hunt, p. 71
Camp Columbia, Havana (Jan. 8th, 1959), Fidel Castro Reader, pp. 133