General George C. Marshall and the atomic bomb

Description

This book details the evolution of General George Marshall's relationship with the atomic bomb―including the Manhattan Project and the use of atomic weapons on Japan―as it emerged as the ultimate weapon of mass destruction. • Presents a clear and concise narrative of Marshall's interactions with nuclear weapons, from his appointment to President Roosevelt's advisory committee in 1941 to his tenure as President Truman's secretary of defense in 1950 • Documents Marshall's role in pulling together the financial, material, and human resources required for the Manhattan Project as well as his collaboration with Secretary of War Henry Stimson and Manhattan Project leader General Leslie Groves to produce the atomic bomb • Derives an accurate account of Marshall's involvement with nuclear weapons through official documents, his correspondence, the opinions of his peers, and personal interviews he granted later in his life Content: The beginnings -- The discovery of fission and Einstein's letter -- Marshall and the geneses of the Manhattan Project -- Organizing the Manhattan Project -- Intelligence operations -- Uncertainty, the bomb, and the Interim Committee -- Unconditional surrender and a planned invasion -- Potsdam and Trinity -- Japan's response to the Potsdam Declaration, Hiroshima and Nagasaki -- Japan surrenders -- A new age -- Marshall as a diplomat: secretary of state -- The final call to duty: secretary of defense