What happened when George S. Patton encountered Private Paul Bennett in a Sicily hospital?

On August 10, 1943, at the 93rd Evacuation Hospital near San Stefano, Sicily, General George S. Patton encountered Private Paul Bennett, who had been diagnosed with combat fatigue. Upon seeing the soldier crying, Patton cursed at him, repeatedly slapped him, and threatened to either send him to the front lines or have him executed by a firing squad.1

This incident was one of two similar events in August 1943 where Patton physically struck hospitalized soldiers. These actions were widely condemned as abusive and unprofessional, as they targeted men suffering from the psychological and physical toll of war. Such conduct is fundamentally inconsistent with the ethical duty of military leadership to protect and support the well-being of subordinates.1