I Was There: The Personal Story of the Chief of Staff to Presidents Roosevelt and Truman Based on His Notes and Diaries Made at the Time

Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy

Jun 2024 · Plunkett Lake Press

About this ebook

“This sturdy volume does not present a series of reflections after the event. It is assembled from notes made at the time... If any author ever left the seal of his own personality on his written words, Admiral Leahy has done so in I Was There. These pages are as salty as the sea, as direct as a gun barrel, terse with the economy of orders given or opinions uttered... The views expressed one often uncompromising, sometimes mistaken, as the author freely admits, and, one is sure, always honest... It is fascinating to read Admiral Leahy’s assessments of the men of Vichy with whom he had to deal as the American Ambassador... [The book’s] great merit lies in the clear, intermittent light it flashes on the men and things the Admiral knew firsthand. And it is a beautiful self-portrait. This good and faithful public servant shows himself without and above affectation or self-interest. He served his country and his Commander-in-Chief day and night, irrespective of fatigue, illness, or private, grief.” — The Atlantic

“[T]his volume... throws valuable new light on American military planning, organization of the armed forces, and relations with the Soviet Union. His comments on Vichy and De Gaulle are perhaps most useful for their clear expression of the Admiral’s own attitude.” — Foreign Affairs

“In the abundance of war records, this has its own place in its comprehensive view of a large panorama.” — Kirkus

“Leahy kept a meticulous diary and also wrote an invaluable memoir.” — The Christian Science Monitor

“I Was There adds useful detail to our picture of the military planning of the war. It also throws important light on the development of our relations with the Soviet Union... it is a valuable addition to the mosaic of reminiscence out of which future historians will construct a picture of Franklin D. Roosevelt and of the Second World War.” — Saturday Review

“I Was There must be accorded a place among the records of major significance for World War II.” — Political Science Quarterly

About the author

Born in Hampton, Iowa, William Daniel Leahy (1875-1959) graduated from the US Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland in 1897 and was a midshipman on the battleship Oregon which dashed from the Pacific coast around Cape Horn to join the US fleet off Cuba during the 1898 Spanish-American War. In 1899, Leahy was assigned as an ensign to the Asiatic Station, where he saw active service during the Philippine insurrection (1899-1901) and the Boxer Rebellion in China (1900). In World War I he commanded the navy transport Princess Matoika and formed a lasting friendship with assistant secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In 1921, Leahy commanded the cruiser Chattanooga, then the cruiser St. Louis, flagship of the naval detachment in Turkish waters during the Greco-Turkish War, and the minelayer Shawmut while also commanding Mine Squadron One. Back in Washington, he headed Officer Personnel in the Bureau of Navigation (1923-1926) and then commanded the battleship New Mexico which won three biennial competitions in gunnery, engineering and battle efficiency in 1927-1928. Leahy’s ability brought steady advancement, to rear admiral (1930), vice admiral (1935) and admiral (1936). A talented organizer, he held three of the Navy’s highest administrative offices: Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance (1927-31), Chief of the Bureau of Navigation (1933-35), and Chief of Naval Operations (1937-39).

Leahy retired because of age in August 1939 but a few months later, President Roosevelt named him governor of Puerto Rico, a post he held until December 1940, when he was appointed ambassador to occupied France’s Vichy government. He was recalled in 1942 to fill the newly created position of Chief of Staff to President Roosevelt. As liaison between the president and the armed services, Leahy conferred with Roosevelt daily, presided over the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and participated in almost all major military and diplomatic decisions and Allied conferences during World War II. He was made Fleet Admiral in December 1944.

After Roosevelt’s death (April 1945), Leahy was asked by President Harry S. Truman to continue as his personal Chief of Staff. He retired from that position in 1949. The following year, he published his war memoirs, I Was There.