Editing Alexander Patch (section)

==Early life and military career==
Patch was born at [[Fort Huachuca]], [[Arizona Territory]] and raised in [[Pennsylvania]]. His father, Captain Alexander M. Patch, was a former [[cavalry]]man in the [[United States Army]] and a graduate (1877) of the [[United States Military Academy]] (USMA) at [[West Point, New York|West Point]], and his mother was Annie Moore Patch, the daughter of [[43rd United States Congress|Congressman]] [[William S. Moore]] of [[List of United States Representatives from Pennsylvania|Pennsylvania]].{{sfn|English|2009|p=166}}<ref name="Officers of the United States Army" />

[[File:Alexander McCarrell Patch (1889–1945) at West Point in 1913.png|thumb|right|150px|At West Point in 1913]]

Of [[German Americans|German]], [[Scottish Americans|Scottish]], and [[Irish Americans|Irish]] descent, Patch attended [[Lehigh University]] for a year, then received an appointment to West Point in 1909. His eldest brother [[Joseph D. Patch|Joseph Dorst Patch]], commonly known as "Dorst", also enlisted in the army the same year. Originally interested in joining the [[United States Cavalry|cavalry]], but realizing that it was becoming obsolete, Alexander Patch chose the [[Infantry Branch (United States)|Infantry Branch]] of the [[United States Army]] and was [[Officer (armed forces)|commissioned]] in [[1913]] on 12 June that year, ranked 75th in a graduating class of 93.{{sfn|English|2009|p=166}}

Upon being commissioned, Patch's first assignment was with the [[18th Infantry Regiment (United States)|18th Infantry Regiment]], then based in [[Texas City, Texas]]. He later saw action in the [[Pancho Villa Expedition]] into [[Mexico]] in 1916, and was later promoted to [[first lieutenant]]. In November that year he married Julia A. Littell, the daughter of an army general, whom Patch had met while he was a cadet at West Point.{{sfn|English|2009|p=166}}

In June 1917, two months after the [[American entry into World War I]], Patch was promoted to the rank of captain and was, along with his brother Dorst, sent overseas with his regiment, which became part of the [[1st Infantry Division (United States)|1st Division]], to join the [[American Expeditionary Forces]] (AEF) on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] where he remained until November.{{efn|Joseph Dorst Patch attained the rank of major general as commander of the [[80th Infantry Division (United States)|80th Infantry Division]] during World War II.<ref>{{cite news |date=8 October 1945 |title=Hero's Welcome For Gen. Patch |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-news-welcome/151246445/ |work=Lebanon Daily News |location=Lebanon, PA |pages= 1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-news-patch/151246494/ 3] |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>}}

He then attended the [[British Army]]'s Machine Gun School in [[England]] and commanded the 3rd Machine Gun Battalion of the 1st Division until April 1918, when he then went on to direct the U.S. Army's Machine Gun School until October. Towards the end of 1918, returning to the 18th Infantry, he fought in the [[Second Battle of the Marne]], the [[Battle of Saint-Mihiel]] and the [[Meuse–Argonne offensive]], the largest battle in the [[history of the United States Army]]. 

His leadership came to the attention of [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]] [[George C. Marshall]], then a member of [[General (United States)|General]] [[John J. Pershing]]'s staff. The war came to an end on [[Armistice of 11 November 1918|11 November 1918]], at 11:00 am, by which time Patch was a [[Lieutenant colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]], having been promoted to the rank a month before, and [[Major (United States)|major]] the previous January. In February 1919, he reverted to the rank of captain and was a [[Staff (military)|staff officer]] at AEF Headquarters.{{sfn|English|2009|p=166}}