cism and went on with his work, trying not to make the
same mistakes that had bogged down Soviet forces in
Afghanistan for nearly a decade. Afghanistan was unlike
any war before it: It was part military operation, part
hunt for terrorists, part humanitarian relief. Franks used
a delicate touch, relying on Afghan allies to carry out
“sensitive” operations, including clashes with al-Qaeda
fighters at the Tora Bora mountains.
In late 2002, after he had led the effort that forced
the collapse of the Taliban and the flight of al-Qaeda
leaders and fighters into neighboring Pakistan, Franks
was called upon by the Bush administration to plan
an invasion of Iraq. For years since Operation Desert
Storm (1990–91), Iraq’s tyrannical leader, Saddam Hus-
sein, had managed to circumvent United Nations sanc-
tions, and many believed that he was reconstructing
his program of weapons of mass destruction. Though
President Bush tried to get a unified front to force Sad-
dam to allow UN inspectors into Iraq, many countries,
including France, refused to allow any military action
to be pursued. Bush asked Franks to design a war plan
for a coalition of several nations, including the United
Kingdom and Australia, to carry out an invasion of Iraq.
Franks’s plan called for invading from Turkey, which did
not come off. Nevertheless, after Russian intelligence
showed that Saddam was planning a terrorist attack
on the United States, an invasion, codenamed Opera-
tion Iraqi Freedom, was launched on 20 March 2003.
The coalition forces began with an attack—termed
shock and awe—involving destructive air strikes meant
to destroy Saddam’s government machinery and at the
same time soften up military targets for the ground in-
vasion. Franks’s plan of quickly routing the Iraqi Re-
publican Guard, while at the same time speeding his
troops northward from Kuwait to the Iraqi capital of
Baghdad, worked better than many had expected. On
3 April 2003, just two weeks after the operation began,
American forces reached Saddam International Airport,
just 10 miles outside of Baghdad. Six days later, on 9
April, American troops moved into Baghdad, took con-
trol of the city, and, in a televised celebration, brought
down a huge statue of Saddam Hussein. The operation
had gone so fast that there were not enough troops in
the area to handle the outbreak of looting and civil dis-
order which gripped the city after Saddam’s regime fell.
Nonetheless, Franks’s plan had worked.
Franks’s retirement from the CENTCOM com-
mand was announced on 22 May 2003. Secretary of De-
fense Rumsfeld had offered him the post of army chief
of staff, but Franks refused the offer. In 2004, he pub-
lished his memoirs, American Soldier, and campaigned
for the reelection of President George W. Bush, who, in
December 2004, awarded him the Presidential Medal of
Freedom.
During his military career, Franks has earned the
Defense Distinguished Medal; twice won the Distin-
guished Service Medal; four times won the Legion of
Merit; and won the Bronze Star for bravery with a “V”
for Valor, three Purple Hearts (for wounds suffered
in action), the Air Medal, and the Army Commenda-
tion Medal, among many other military awards from
the United States and other nations around the world.
His role in history is still being assessed as the two wars
he fought are not yet fully over as of this writing. But
his leadership role in two important campaigns means
he will be remembered as a commander for some
time.References: Franks, Tommy, American Soldier (New York:
Regan Books, 2004); Ricks, Thomas E., and Vernon Loeb,
“U.S. Commander Shuns Spotlight; Franks Criticized on
Pace of War,” The Washington Post, 9 November 2001,
A1; Cornwell, Rupert, “Profile: Tommy Franks,” The In-
dependent [London], 8 March 2003, 17; McCombs, Phil,
“Blood and Guts and Brains and Spirit: After 38 Years,
Gen. Tommy Franks is Ready to Take Off His Boots,”
The Washington Post, 23 June 2003, C1; additional Franks
biographical information courtesy of the Department of
Defense, Washington, D.C.Frederick II (Frederick the Great) (1712–1786)
king of Prussia
Frederick was born in Berlin on 24 January 1712, the
son of the Prussian king Frederick-William I and So-
phia-Dorothea, daughter of George I of England. His
childhood was unhappy since his father insisted on
his undergoing strict military training from his earliest
years, combined with a rigid education regime. At age
18, Frederick attempted to escape to England, but he
was found out and his father would have executed him
on charges of military insubordination if the German
emperor, Charles VI, had not intervened on his behalf.
Frederick was kept under guard and forced to watch the
execution of a young officer friend to whom he had con-
fided his intention to escape.FReDeRick ii