James Vincent Forrestal (February 15, 1892 – May 22, 1949) was the last Cabinet-level

United States Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

and the first

United States Secretary of Defense The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces, and is a high ranking member of the federal cabinet. DoDD 5100.1: Enclosure 2: a The ...

. Forrestal came from a very strict middle-class Irish Catholic family. He was a successful financier on Wall Street before becoming Undersecretary of the Navy in 1940, shortly before the United States entered the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. He became Secretary of the Navy in May 1944 upon the death of his superior,

Frank Knox William Franklin Knox (January 1, 1874 – April 28, 1944) was an American politician, newspaper editor and publisher. He was also the Republican vice presidential candidate in 1936, and Secretary of the Navy under Franklin D. Roosevelt durin ...

. President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

requested that Forrestal take the lead in building up the Navy. In 1947, after the end of the war, President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

appointed him the first secretary of the newly created Department of Defense. Forrestal was intensely hostile to the Soviet Union, fearing Communist expansion in Europe and the Middle East. Along with Secretary of State

George C. Marshall George Catlett Marshall Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the US Army under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry ...

, he strongly opposed the United States' support for the establishment of the State of Israel, fearing that this would alienate Arab nations which were needed as allies, and whose petroleum reserves were vital for both military and civilian industrial expansion. Forrestal was a supporter of naval battle groups centered on aircraft carriers. He tried to weaken the proposed Department of Defense for the Navy's benefit, but was hard pressed to run it from 1947 to 1949 after Truman named him Secretary of Defense. The two men were often at odds, and Truman forced Forrestal's resignation. Thereafter, Forrestal's mental health rapidly deteriorated, declining to the point in which he underwent medical care for depression. While a patient at

Bethesda Naval Hospital The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), formerly known as the National Naval Medical Center and colloquially referred to as the Bethesda Naval Hospital, Walter Reed, or Navy Med, is a United States' tri-service military medi ...

, Forrestal died by suicide from fatal injuries sustained after falling out a sixteenth floor window. In 1954, the USN's new

supercarrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a n ...

was named in his honor, as is the James V. Forrestal Building, which houses the headquarters of the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United Stat ...

. He is the namesake of the Forrestal Lecture Series at the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

and of the James Forrestal Campus of his alma mater

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

Life and career

Early life

Forrestal was born in Matteawan, New York, (now part of Beacon, New York), the youngest son of James Forrestal, an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrant who dabbled in politics. His mother, the former Mary Anne Toohey (herself the daughter of another Irish immigrant) raised him as a devout

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. During his youth, Forrestal was an amateur boxer."James Vincent Forrestal." ''

Dictionary of American Biography The ''Dictionary of American Biography'' was published in New York City by Charles Scribner's Sons under the auspices of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS). History The dictionary was first proposed to the Council in 1920 by hi ...

'', Supplement 4: 1946–50. American Council of Learned Societies, 1974. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Michigan:

Gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).galenet.galegroup.com
/ref> After graduating from high school at the age of 16, in 1908, he spent the next three years working for a trio of newspapers: the ''Matteawan Evening Journal'', the ''Mount Vernon Argus'' and the ''

Poughkeepsie Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie ...

News Press''. Forrestal entered

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

in 1911, but transferred to

in his sophomore year, where he served as an editor for ''

The Daily Princetonian ''The Daily Princetonian'', originally known as ''The Princetonian'' and nicknamed the Prince, is the independent daily student newspaper of Princeton University. Founded on June 14, 1876 as ''The'' ''Princetonian'', it changed its name to ''T ...

''. His senior class voted him "Most Likely to Succeed", but he left just prior to completing work on a degree. Forrestal was a member of

University Cottage Club The University Cottage Club or simply Cottage Club is one of eleven current eating clubs at Princeton University, in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. It is one of the six bicker clubs, along with The Ivy Club, Tiger Inn, Cap and Gown Club ...

while he was a student at Princeton. Forrestal married the former Josephine Stovall (née Ogden), a

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

writer, in 1926. She eventually developed a dependence on alcohol and suffered various mental health issues.

Wall Street financier

Forrestal went to work as a bond salesman for William A. Read and Company (later renamed Dillon, Read & Co.) in 1916. When the US entered the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he enlisted in the Navy and ultimately became a Naval Aviator, training with the Royal Flying Corps at

Camp Borden Canadian Forces Base Borden (also CFB Borden, French: Base des Forces canadiennes Borden or BFC Borden), formerly RCAF Station Borden, is a large Canadian Forces base located in Ontario. The historic birthplace of the Royal Canadian Air Force, C ...

and

Deseronto Deseronto is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, in Hastings County, located at the mouth of the Napanee River on the shore of the Bay of Quinte, on the northern side of Lake Ontario. The town was named for Captain John Deseronto, a n ...

in Canada. During the final year of the war, Forrestal spent much of his time in Washington, at the Office of Naval Operations while completing his flight training and reached the rank of lieutenant. After the war, Forrestal resumed his career in finance and made his fortune on Wall Street. He became a partner in 1923, was appointed vice president in 1926, and by 1937 was president of the company. He also acted as a publicist for the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

committee in

Dutchess County, New York Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later or ...

, helping politicians from the area win elections at both the local and state level. One of the individuals aided by his work was a neighbor,

. Forrestal was a compulsive

workaholic A workaholic is a person who works compulsively. A workaholic experiences an inability to limit the amount of time they spend on work despite negative consequences such as damage to their relationships or health. There is no generally accepted ...

and skilled administrator. He was described as pugnacious, introspective, shy, philosophic, solitary, and emotionally insecure. He took no part in national politics, though he usually voted for Democrats, but did not support New Deal liberalism.

Political career

Secretary of the Navy

President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Forrestal a special administrative assistant on June 22, 1940. Six weeks later, he nominated him for the newly established position, Undersecretary of the Navy. In his nearly four years as undersecretary, Forrestal proved highly effective at mobilizing domestic industrial production for the war effort. Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral

Ernest J. King Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the Un ...

, wanted to control logistics and procurement, but Forrestal prevailed. In September 1942, to get a grasp on the reports for materiel his office was receiving, he made a tour of naval operations in the

Southwest Pacific The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

and a stop at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

. Returning to Washington, D.C., he made his report to Roosevelt,

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

Henry L. Stimson Henry Lewis Stimson (September 21, 1867 – October 20, 1950) was an American statesman, lawyer, and Republican Party politician. Over his long career, he emerged as a leading figure in U.S. foreign policy by serving in both Republican and D ...

, and the cabinet. In response to Forrestal's elevated request that materiel be sent immediately to the Southwest Pacific area, Stimson (who was more concerned with supplying Operation Torch in North Africa), told Forrestal, "Jim, you've got a bad case of localitis." Forrestal shot back in a heated manner, "Mr. Secretary, if the Marines on Guadalcanal were wiped out, the reaction of the country will give you a bad case of localitis in the seat of your pants". He became

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

on May 19, 1944, after his immediate superior, Secretary

, died from a heart attack. Knox had been a figurehead as secretary and Forrestal was highly energetic. Forrestal led the Navy through the closing year of the war and the early years of demobilization that followed. Forrestal ordered that a

Naval Court of Inquiry Naval Board of Inquiry and Naval Court of Inquiry are two types of investigative court proceedings, conducted by the United States Navy in response to an event that adversely affects the performance, or reputation, of the fleet or one of its ship ...

be convened to investigate the facts surrounding the Japanese

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

and to assess any culpability borne by members of the Navy. The Court consisted of Admiral Adolphus Andrews; Admiral Orin G. Murfin, who served as President of the Court and Admiral Edward C. Kalbfus. The court convened on July 24, 1944, and held daily sessions in Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Pearl Harbor. After interviewing numerous witnesses, it completed its work on October 19, 1944. Its report to the Navy Department largely exonerated Rear Admiral

Husband E. Kimmel Husband Edward Kimmel (February 26, 1882 – May 14, 1968) was a United States Navy four-star admiral who was the commander in chief of the United States Pacific Fleet (CINCPACFLT) during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was removed fr ...

, commander in chief of the Pacific Fleet at the time of the attack. The court found that Kimmel's decisions had been correct given the limited information available to him, but criticized then-Chief of Naval Operations Harold R. Stark for failing to warn Kimmel that war was imminent. The court concluded that "based upon the facts established, the Court is of the opinion that no offenses have been committed nor serious blame incurred on the part of any person or persons in the naval service." Because the court's findings implicitly revealed that

American cryptographers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

had broken the Japanese codes, a critical wartime secret, the court's report was not made public until after the end of the war. Upon reviewing the report, Forrestal felt that the court had been too lenient in assigning blame for the disaster. The court had found that the Army and Navy had adequately cooperated in the defense of Pearl Harbor; that there had been no information indicating that Japanese carriers were on their way to attack Pearl Harbor; and that the attack had succeeded principally because of the aerial torpedo, a secret weapon whose use could not have been predicted. Forrestal disapproved all of these findings, judging that Kimmel could have done more with the information he had had to prevent or mitigate the attack. Forrestal concluded that both Kimmel and Stark had "failed to demonstrate the superior judgment necessary for exercising command commensurate with their rank and their assigned duties." 80-G-702670 (42459474961)

As Secretary, Forrestal introduced a policy of racial integration in the Navy. Forrestal traveled to combat zones to see naval forces in action. He was in the South Pacific in 1942, present at the

Battle of Kwajalein The Battle of Kwajalein was fought as part of the Pacific campaign of World War II. It took place from 31 January – 3 February 1944, on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Employing the hard-learned lessons of the Battle of Tarawa, the Un ...

in 1944, and (as Secretary) witnessed the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. After five days of pitched battle, a detachment of Marines was sent to hoist the American flag on the 545-foot summit of Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima. This was the first time in the war that the U.S. flag had flown on Japanese soil. Forrestal, who had just landed on the beach, claimed the historic flag as a souvenir. When Forrestal witnessed the sight of the Stars and Stripes atop Mount Suribachi, he turned to Major General

Holland Smith Holland McTyeire "Howlin' Mad" Smith, KCB (April 20, 1882 – January 12, 1967) was a general in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. He is sometimes called the "father" of modern U.S. amphibious warfare. His nickname, "Howl ...

and said, "the raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next 500 years." A second, larger flag was run up in its place, and this second flag-raising was the moment captured by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal in his famous photograph. In the early months of 1945, Forrestal, along with Stimson and Under Secretary of State

Joseph Grew Joseph Clark Grew (May 27, 1880 – May 25, 1965) was an American career diplomat and Foreign Service officer. He is best known as the ambassador to Japan from 1932 to 1941 and as a high official in the State Department in Washington from 1944 to ...

, strongly advocated a softer policy toward Japan that would permit a negotiated armistice, a face-saving surrender. Forrestal's primary concern was not the resurgence of a militarized Japan, but rather "the menace of Russian

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

and its attraction for decimated, destabilized societies in Europe and Asia," and, therefore, keeping the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

out of the war with Japan.Hoopes and Brinkley, pp. 205–214. The quoted line is from p. 208 So strongly did he feel about this matter that he cultivated negotiation efforts that some regarded as approaching insubordination. His counsel on ending the war was finally followed, but not until the atomic bombs had been dropped on

Hiroshima and Nagasaki The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the onl ...

. On 10 August 1945, the day after the Nagasaki attack, the Japanese sent out a radio transmission saying that it was ready to accept the terms of the Allies'

Potsdam Declaration The Potsdam Declaration, or the Proclamation Defining Terms for Japanese Surrender, was a statement that called for the surrender of all Japanese armed forces during World War II. On July 26, 1945, United States President Harry S. Truman, Uni ...

, "with the understanding that said declaration does not comprise any demand which prejudices the prerogatives of His Majesty as a sovereign ruler." That position still fell short of the U.S. "unconditional surrender" demand, retaining the sticking point that had held up the war's conclusion for months. Strong voices within the administration, including Secretary of State

James F. Byrnes James Francis Byrnes ( ; May 2, 1882 – April 9, 1972) was an American judge and politician from South Carolina. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in U.S. Congress and on the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as in the executive branch, ...

, counseled fighting on. At that point, "Forrestal came up with a shrewd and simple solution: Accept the offer and declare that it accomplishes what the Potsdam Declaration demanded. Say that the Emperor and the Japanese government will rule subject to the orders of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. This would imply recognition of the Emperor while tending to neutralize American public passions against the Emperor. President

liked this. It would be close enough to 'unconditional.'" After the war, Forrestal urged Truman to take a hard line with the Soviets over Poland and other issues. In furtherance of the anti-Soviet position, he was the primary promoter of the famous "

long telegram The "X Article" is an article, formally titled "The Sources of Soviet Conduct", written by George F. Kennan and published under the pseudonym "X" in the July 1947 issue of ''Foreign Affairs'' magazine. The article widely introduced the term " ...

" by State Department official

George Kennan George Frost Kennan (February 16, 1904 – March 17, 2005) was an American diplomat and historian. He was best known as an advocate of a policy of containment of Soviet expansion during the Cold War. He lectured widely and wrote scholarly histo ...

. " verellHarriman thought Forrestal's reaction o the Kennan documentwas a 'decisive' catalyst in shaping American opinion on the issue." He also strongly influenced the new Wisconsin Senator, Joseph McCarthy, concerning infiltration of the government by Communists. Upon McCarthy's arrival in Washington in December 1946, Forrestal invited him to lunch. In McCarthy's words, "Before meeting Jim Forrestal I thought we were losing to international Communism because of incompetence and stupidity on the part of our planners. I mentioned that to Forrestal. I shall forever remember his answer. He said, 'McCarthy, consistency has never been a mark of stupidity. If they were merely stupid, they would occasionally make a mistake in our favor.' This phrase struck me so forcefully that I have often used it since."

Secretary of Defense

80-G-704442 James Forrestal swearing in ceremony (cropped)

In 1947, Truman appointed him the first

. Forrestal continued to advocate for complete racial integration of the

services Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a p ...

, a policy eventually implemented in 1949. During private cabinet meetings with Truman in 1946 and 1947, Forrestal had argued against

partition of Palestine The United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine was a proposal by the United Nations, which recommended a partition of Mandatory Palestine at the end of the British Mandate. On 29 November 1947, the UN General Assembly adopted the Plan as Re ...

on the grounds it would infuriate

Arab countries The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western As ...

who supplied oil needed for the U.S. economy and national defense. Instead, Forrestal favored a federalization plan for Palestine. Outside the White House, response to Truman's continued silence on the issue was immediate. Truman received threats to cut off campaign contributions from wealthy donors, as well as

hate mail Hate mail (as electronic, posted, or otherwise) is a form of harassment, usually consisting of invective and potentially intimidating or threatening comments towards the recipient. Hate mail often contains exceptionally abusive, foul or otherwi ...

, including a letter accusing him of "preferring fascist and Arab elements to the democracy-loving

Jewish people Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

of Palestine." Appalled by the intensity and implied threats over the partition question, Forrestal appealed to Truman in two separate cabinet meetings not to base his decision on partition, whatever the outcome, on the basis of political pressure. In his only known public comment on the issue, Forrestal stated to

J. Howard McGrath James Howard McGrath (November 28, 1903September 2, 1966) was an American politician and attorney from Rhode Island. McGrath, a Democrat, served as U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island before becoming governor, U.S. Solicitor General, U.S. Sen ...

, Senator from

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

...no group in this country should be permitted to influence our policy to the point it could endanger our national security.

Forrestal's statement soon earned him the active enmity of some congressmen and supporters of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. Forrestal was also an early target of the

muckraking The muckrakers were reform-minded journalists, writers, and photographers in the Progressive Era in the United States (1890s–1920s) who claimed to expose corruption and wrongdoing in established institutions, often through sensationalist publ ...

columnist and broadcaster Drew Pearson (journalist), Drew Pearson, an opponent of foreign policies hostile to the Soviet Union, who began to regularly call for Forrestal's removal after Truman named him Secretary of Defense.Time Magazine, ''Washington Head-Hunters'', New York: Time Publications, 24 January 1949 Pearson told his own Mentorship, protege, Jack Anderson (columnist), Jack Anderson, that he believed Forrestal was "the most dangerous man in America" and claimed that if he was not removed from office, he would "cause another world war." Upon taking office as Secretary of Defense, Forrestal was surprised to learn that the administration did not Military budget of the United States, budget for defense needs based on military threats posed by enemies of the United States and its interests. According to historian Walter LaFeber, Truman was known to approach defense budgetary requests in the abstract, without regard to defense response requirements in the event of conflicts with potential enemies. The president would begin by subtracting from total receipts the amount needed for domestic needs and recurrent operating costs, with any surplus going to the defense budget for that year. The Truman administration's willingness to slash conventional readiness needs for the Navy and Marine Corps soon caused fierce controversies within the upper ranks of their respective branches.Blair, Clay, ''The Forgotten War: America in Korea, 1950–1953'', Naval Institute Press (2003) During the Reagan years, Paul Nitze reflected upon the qualities which made a Secretary of Defense great: the ability to work with Congress, the ability for "big-time management," and an ability at war planning. Nitze felt that Forrestal was the only one who possessed all three qualities together.

Post-war

At the close of World War II, millions of dollars of serviceable equipment had been scrapped or abandoned rather than having funds appropriated for its storage costs. New military equipment ''en route'' to operations in the Pacific theater was scrapped or simply tossed overboard. Facing the wholesale demobilization of most of the US defense force structure, Forrestal resisted Truman's efforts to substantially reduce defense appropriations, but was unable to prevent a steady reduction in defense spending, resulting in major cuts not only in defense equipment stockpiles, but also in military readiness. By 1948, Truman had approved military budgets billions of dollars below what the services were requesting, putting Forrestal in the middle of a fierce tug-of-war between the President and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Forrestal was also becoming increasingly worried about the Soviet threat.See Whittaker Chambers to confirm that his concerns on the domestic front were quite legitimate His 18 months at Defense came at an exceptionally difficult time for the U.S. military establishment: Communist governments came to power in Czechoslovakia and China; the Soviets imposed a Berlin blockade, blockade on West Berlin prompting the U.S. Berlin Airlift to supply the city; the 1948 Arab–Israeli War followed the establishment of Israel; and negotiations were going on for the formation of NATO. Dwight D. Eisenhower recorded he was in agreement with Forrestal's theories on the dangers of Soviet and International communist expansion. Eisenhower recalled that Forrestal had been "the one man who, in the very midst of the war, always counseled caution and alertness in dealing with the Soviets." Eisenhower remembered on several occasions, while he was Supreme Allied Commander, he had been visited by Forrestal, who carefully explained his thesis that the Communists would never cease trying to destroy all representative government. Eisenhower commented in his personal diary on 11 June 1949, "I never had cause to doubt the accuracy of his judgments on this point." Forrestal also opposed the unification of the military services proposed by the Truman officials. Even so, he helped develop the National Security Act of 1947 that created the National Military Establishment (the United States Department of Defense, Department of Defense was not created as such until August 1949). With the former Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson retiring to private life, Forrestal was the next choice. Michael Hogan (academic), Michael Hogan downplays Forrestal’s achievements: :Forrestal was not in FDR's inner circle, was not apprised of the Manhattan Project, and did not attend the major wartime conferences....Forrestal also ended up on the wrong side of the struggle to unify the armed forces....He slowed but did not stop the unification process as secretary of the navy and then had to live with legislation that prevented him from managing the military establishment efficiently as the country's first secretary of defense. In that capacity, however, Forrestal was unable to devise an integrated defense budget, work out a joint war plan, or compel the Joint Chiefs of Staff to accept presidential directives they did not like.

Resignation as Secretary of Defense

Governor of New York Thomas E. Dewey was expected to win the 1948 United States presidential election, presidential elections of 1948. Forrestal met with Dewey privately, and it was agreed he would continue as Secretary of Defense under a Dewey administration. Unwittingly, Forrestal would trigger a series of events that would not only undermine his already precarious position with Truman but also contribute to the loss of his job, his failing health and eventual demise. Weeks before the election, Pearson published an exposé of the meetings between Dewey and Forrestal. In 1949, angered over Forrestal's continued opposition to his defense economization policies, and concerned about reports in the press over his mental condition, Truman abruptly asked Forrestal to resign. By March 31, 1949, Forrestal was out of a job. He was replaced by Louis A. Johnson, an ardent supporter of Truman's defense retrenchment policy.

Psychiatric treatment

In 1949, exhausted from overwork, Forrestal entered psychiatric treatment. The attending psychiatrist, Captain (naval), Captain George N. Raines, was handpicked by the Surgeon General of the United States Navy, Navy Surgeon General. The regimen was as follows: # 1st week: Truth drug, narcosis with Amobarbital, sodium amytal. # 2nd – 5th weeks: a regimen of insulin shock therapy, insulin sub-shock combined with psycho-therapeutic interviews. According to Dr. Raines, the patient overreacted to the insulin much as he had to the amytal and this would occasionally throw him into a confused state with a great deal of agitation and confusion. # 4th week: insulin administered only in stimulating doses; 10 units of insulin four times a day, morning, noon, afternoon and evening. According to Dr. Raines, "We considered electroconvulsive therapy, electro-shock but thought it better to postpone it for another 90 days. In reactive depression if electro-shock is used early and the patient is returned to the same situation from which he came there is grave danger of suicide in the immediate period after they return... so strangely enough we left out electro-shock to avoid what actually happened anyhow".

Death

Although Forrestal told associates he had decided to resign, he was reportedly shattered when Truman abruptly asked for his resignation. His letter of resignation was tendered on March 28, 1949 and his condition steadily deteriorated.Hoopes and Brinkley, pp. 446–468. On the day of Forrestal's resignation from office, he was reported to have gone into a daze and was flown on a Navy airplane to the estate of Under Secretary of State Robert A. Lovett in Hobe Sound, Florida, where Forrestal's wife, Josephine, was vacationing. Dr. William C. Menninger of the Menninger Clinic in Kansas was consulted and he diagnosed "severe depression" of the type "seen in combat stress reaction, operational fatigue during the war". The Menninger Clinic had successfully treated similar cases during World War II, but Forrestal's wife, his friend and associate Ferdinand Eberstadt (policy advisor), Ferdinand Eberstadt, Dr. Menninger, and Navy psychiatrist Captain Dr. George N. Raines decided to send the former Secretary of Defense to the National Naval Medical Center (NNMC) in Bethesda, Maryland, where it would be possible to deny his mental illness. He was checked into NNMC five days later. The decision to house him on the 16th floor instead of the first floor was justified in the same way. Forrestal's condition was officially announced as "nervous and physical exhaustion"; his lead doctor, Captain Raines, diagnosed his condition as "depression" or "reactive depression". As a person who prized anonymity and once stated that his hobby was "obscurity", Forrestal, with his policies, had been the constant target of vicious personal attacks from columnists, including Drew Pearson (journalist), Drew Pearson and Walter Winchell. Pearson's protégé, Jack Anderson (columnist), Jack Anderson, later asserted that Pearson "hectored Forrestal with innuendos and false accusations". Forrestal seemed to be on the road to recovery, having regained since his admission into the hospital. However, in the early morning hours of May 22, his body, clad only in the bottom half of a pair of pajamas, was found on a third-floor roof below the sixteenth-floor kitchen across the hall from his room. Forrestal's alleged last written statement, touted in the contemporary press and later biographers as an implied suicide note, was part of a poem from Winthrop Mackworth Praed, W. M. Praed's translation of Sophocles' tragedy ''Ajax (Sophocles), Ajax'':

Fair Salamis Island, Salamis, the billows' roar, Wander around thee yet, And sailors gaze upon thy shore Firm in the Ocean set. Thy son is in a foreign clime Where Mount Ida, Ida feeds her countless flocks, Far from thy dear, remembered rocks, Worn by the waste of time– Comfortless, nameless, hopeless save In the dark prospect of the yawning grave.... Woe to the mother in her close of day, Woe to her desolate heart and temples gray, When she shall hear Her loved one's story whispered in her ear! "Woe, woe!" will be the cry– No quiet murmur like the tremulous wail Of the lone bird, the querulous nightingale–

The official Navy review board, which completed hearings on May 31, waited until October 11, 1949, to release only a brief summary of its findings. The announcement, as reported on page 15 of the October 12 ''New York Times'', stated only that Forrestal had died from his fall from the window. It did not say what might have caused the fall, nor did it make any mention of a bathrobe sash cord that had first been reported as tied around his neck. The full report was released by the Department of the Navy in April 2004. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia.

''The Forrestal Diaries''

Forrestal's diaries from 1944 to March 1949 were serialised in the ''New York Herald Tribune'' in 1951, and published as a 581-page book ''The Forrestal Diaries'', edited by Walter Millis in October 1951. They were censored prior to publication. Adam Matthew Publications Ltd. published a Microform, microfilm of the complete and unexpurgated diaries in 2001, from the originals preserved in the Princeton University Library, Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library,

; a digital edition was released in January 2020. An example of censorship is the removal of the following account of a conversation with Truman: "He [the President] referred to Hitler as an egomaniac. The result is we shall have a Slav Europe for a long time to come. I don't think it is so bad."

Possible conflicted personality

Biographer Arnold Rogow explores the pathos and tragedy of Forrestal's tormented life. He was brought up in a rigidly Catholic environment where harsh discipline gave the boy doubts about himself that were never overcome by his many achievements. He compensated by emphasizing toughness in terms of physicality and morality – he had no use for slackers or cowards. He felt war was a necessity and negotiation was possible only alongside military's parity or superiority. This intensity alienated his colleagues, as he focused his fears on Communists and Zionists. He abandoned his religion and his Irish community, but was never at ease on Wall Street, where he suspected and envied its rich and wellborn White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, WASP elite. Although his brilliance and energy made him a favorite of President Roosevelt, he profoundly distrusted liberalism and never championed the New Deal.Arnold A. Rogow, ''James Forrestal,: A study of personality, politics, and policy'' (1963).

Awards

Forrestal was awarded both the Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army), Distinguished Service Medal and the Medal for Merit, Medal of Merit by President Truman.

In popular culture

The James V. Forrestal Building in Washington, D.C., completed in 1969, is named for him. The J. V. Forrestal Elementary School at 125 Liberty Street in Beacon, New York, his hometown, is named for him. Forrestal Elementary School in the Great Lakes military housing area is named for him. In the 1994 television movie ''Roswell (film), Roswell'', Forrestal is portrayed by Eugene Roche. He is depicted as sitting on a commission concerning the Roswell UFO incident and advocating the eventual release of information to the public. The film treats his death and classified diary as highly suspicious. An opera concerning the conspiracy theories behind Forrestal's death, ''Nightingale: The Last Days of James Forrestal'' composed by Evan Hause with a libretto by Gary Heidt, premiered in New York City at the Present Company Theatorium on May 19, 2002. In ''The Golden Age (comics), The Golden Age'', a DC Comics ''Elseworlds'' "imaginary story" four-issue prestige format mini-series by James Robinson (comics), James Robinson (writer) and Paul Smith (comics), Paul Smith (artist), Forrestal's death is shown to have been a murder. Forrestal is pushed from the window of his Bethesda Naval Hospital room by the Golden Age Robotman (Robert Crane), Robotman. In the PC game ''Area 51 (2005 video game), Area 51'' one of the secret documents the player can collect talks about the Majestic 12 initiative being threatened with "receiving the same punishment as his last secretary, Forrestal", implying the murder of Forrestal was to cover his operation from the public. In the anime OVA series ''Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory,'' a secret document is briefly viewable in the eighth episode that mentions the death of a Secretary Forrestal. It goes on to say that a "vacancy" was left due to his death until he was replaced by an unnamed general. In the 2002 HBO TV movie ''Path to War'', Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (portrayed by Alec Baldwin) hauntingly recounts the story of James Forrestal's dismissal and suicide to speechwriter Richard Goodwin (portrayed by James Frain). In the 2006 film ''Flags of Our Fathers (film), Flags of Our Fathers,'' Forrestal was played by Michael Cumpsty. The story of James Forrestal is prominently featured in Chapter 4 of the Oliver Stone popular documentary series ''Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States,'' which aired on Showtime in 2012–13. The later part of Forrestal's life, including his marriage and his death, is a large part of ''Majic Man'' by Max Allan Collins. In 2017, the final episode of the Netflix miniseries ''Wormwood (miniseries), Wormwood'' implies that Forrestal's death may have been one of a series of deaths labeled as suicides that were actually covert assassinations by the CIA. The 2020 film ''The 11th Green'' suggests that in 1949, Forrestal was preparing to make public proof of alien visitations and technology, and was forced by two Men in black, Men in Black to choose between committing suicide or seeing his entire family killed. A title slide over the last shot of the movie says "Dedicated to the Memory of James V. Forrestal (1892-1949), who understood the significance of the events and sought to act honorably amid treachery."

References

External links

DoD biography
(includes more details of DoD formation process and budget negotiations)
Annotated bibliography for James Forrestal from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues

by B. C. Mossman and M. W. Stark. United States Army Center of Military History.
Admiral M.D. Willcutts Report, 1949 (pdf).

Diaries of James V. Forrestal, 1944–1949

James V. Forrestal Papers at the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University

Arnold A. Rogow Papers on James V. Forrestal at the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University
* ;Media * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forrestal, James V. 1892 births 1949 suicides People from Beacon, New York Military personnel from New York (state) New York (state) Democrats United States Secretaries of Defense United States Secretaries of the Navy United States Under Secretaries of the Navy Truman administration cabinet members Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Navy officers United States Naval Aviators United States Navy personnel of World War I American people of World War II Battle of Iwo Jima Dartmouth College alumni Princeton University alumni American people of Irish descent American politicians who committed suicide Suicides by jumping in the United States Suicides in Maryland American investment bankers American diarists Anti-Zionism in the United States Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Franklin D. Roosevelt administration cabinet members 20th-century American politicians People from Hobe Sound, Florida Civilian recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (United States) 1949 deaths American anti-communists 20th-century diarists