The design was adapted to the medium of stained glass from an original needlepoint embroidery on which Mrs. Totten was working at the time of her father's accident in Germany. General Patton showed great interest in this tapestry, which Mrs. Patton described to him during the fatal illness resulting from his accident.
The main figure is Saint George conquering the dragon. The scales of the dragon are the Nazi swastika. The blanket on the horse has a pattern made up of the insignia of the 4th, 9th, 11th, 13th, 14th, and 16th Armored Corps which were under the General's command during his dramatic sweep across war-torn Europe. Saint George's shield is emblazoned with the insignia of the Third Army -- the General's command.
In cloud formations, below the figure of Saint George, appear what General Patton considered to the the three main battles of World War II -- Metz, Coblentz and Bastogne. The four important cities of Rennes, Frankfort, Weimar, and Regensburg are shown being released from the stifling clutch of the Nazi dragon's claw.
Surrounding the window is a decorative border topped by the insignia of the four corps under the General's command during his final thrust into the heart of Germany. They are: the Pentagonal Wheel of the 5th Army Corps, the Windmill Blades of the 12th, the Triangles of the 3rd, and the Crosses of the 20th. Also shown in the border are the shoulder patches of the twelve divisions in his army: the Poleax of the 65th, the '71' or the 71st, the Mountains of the 80th, the Four Leaves of the 4th, the Axe and Tree of the 70th, the Checkerboard of the 99th, the TO brand of the 90th, the YD brand of the 26th, the Diamond of the 5th, the Trident of the 97th, the Star-Indian of the 2nd, and the '1' of the 1st. These are all bound together by a decorative treatment of the rivers that General Patton crossed in his German Campaign: the Innsi, the Iser, the Ems, the Rhine, the Somme, the Danube, the Saar, the Kill, the Sauer, the Mosell, and the Meuse.
The window is surmounted by the American Flag. In the bottom left-hand corner is the shield of the United States Military Academy at West Point. At the lower right General Patton is seen mounted in his tank wearing the redesigned Armored Force shoulder patch.
The verse on the window is from II Timothy 4:7: I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.
The inscription reads, simply: "In Loving Memory, General George S. Patton, Jr. 1885 - 1945."
Please click this picture for a larger version of it.
Please click this picture for a larger version of it.
Text and picture from a publication of The Church of Our Saviour, San Gabriel, California, and used by permission.
