Second Armistice at Compiègne
In mid-1940, following the Second Armistice at Compiègne, McCarthy enlisted in the United States Army Reserve. By 1941, McCarthy had attained the rank of colonel and was aide-de-camp to the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, General George Marshall. According to Andrew Roberts' book "Masters and Commanders" (HarperCollins, 2009) McCarthy was a homosexual, a fact unknown to Marshall who kept on introducing him to attractive young women. Roberts cites no source for this.