Norstad: Cold-War Supreme Commander

Lauris Norstad was NATO's most influential general during the 'High Cold War' of the late 1950s and early 1960s. After a brilliant career as a planner and commander in World War II, he succeeded equally brilliantly in the inter-Service politics of postwar Washington. Rising rapidly to high rank at a very young age, the youthful Norstad was one of Eisenhower's 'rising stars' by the time Ike picked him to help create a NATO and American 'sword and shield' to defend Western Europe. He became the dominant personality in NATO while Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR), during the protracted and dangerous Berlin crises. As the chief military spokesman for NATO to his own government, Norstad rallied behind the European Allies in their reluctance to embrace the Kennedy Administration's doctrine of 'flexible response' as the best way to avoid, or at least delay, a nuclear Armageddon. While not categorically opposed to nuclear gradualism, Norstad feared that this new doctrine would weaken the Alliance's political cohesiveness and resolve. As he approached retirement, he relearned that the SACEUR must first of all retain the confidence of his own government even while 'speaking for Europe' in Washington.