My favorite commanders (1 Viewer)

[Currahee Chris]

Ok guys- I have taken enough cheap shots against you Nap fans in the past without throwing out some of my own opinions. Here is my list of my favorite commanders so you can consider yourselves armed with ammo to take shots back at me

1.) Ike
2.) Washington
3.) PATTON
4.) Black Jack
5.) Hal Moore
6.) Mac
7.) Maxwell Taylor
8.) Robert Sink
9.) Rommel
10.) Guederian


999,999.) Pvt Martin Martinson- ZZ Company, 103rd Airborne

1,000,000.) Napoleon Bonaparte

No scientific thought went into this whatsoever, just simply my faves......

STANDS ALONE!!
CC

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Chris

Very interesting list it shows surprising depth for an Airborne Type...

I have the following list:

1 Gen Patton
2 Gen Harmon
3 Gen O'Conner
4 Gen Truscott
5 Gen Abrams
6 Gen JFC Fuller
7 Churchill
8 MG Sir Swinton
9 Guderian
10 FM Rommel

Honorable mention,

Wellington
Grant
Sherman
Sheridan
Frederick the Great
Cromwell

There are others but I thought this would probably stimulate some discussion.

Dave

 

[Currahee Chris]

Dave-

Interesting that you took Guderian over Rommel.

 

[OzDigger]

There have certainly been a number of famous Commanders. However I feel many have been over-rated, especially when you take into consideration their egos and treatment of their men together with their relative military ability.

Therefore imo, favorites should be based on the commander as a person as much as their military achievements. The following are my favourite WWII commanders.

Australian - Lt Gen Leslie Morshead: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Morshead
British - FM William J Slim: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Slim
American - Lt Gen James Gavin: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_M._Gavin
German - F M Erich von Manstein: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_von_Manstein

 

[Capitolron]

Here is my Top Ten List with no certain order:

Napoleon
Washington
Henry V
Alexander
Caesar
Lee
Jackson
Patton
Rommel
Genghis Khan

well maybe a little special order for you know who...............

 

[jazzeum]

Where's the British lot on this subject? C'mon Kevin, Rob, Eazy and the gang, weigh in. Let's name Louis' favorite commander!

 

[Louis Badolato]

There have certainly been a number of famous Commanders. However I feel many have been over-rated, especially when you take into consideration their egos and treatment of their men together with their relative military ability.

Therefore imo, favorites should be based on the commander as a person as much as their military achievements. The following are my favourite WWII commanders.

Australian - Lt Gen Leslie Morshead: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Morshead
British - FM William J Slim: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Slim
American - Lt Gen James Gavin: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_M._Gavin
German - F M Erich von Manstein: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_von_Manstein

I'm with you 100% Oz. Great Calls.

 

[debrito]

Zhukov

&

Von Manstein

 

[jazzeum]

I'm not really going to give a list but General Wavell deserves some sort of honorable mention here. He had a very difficult job as he was responsible for the Mediterannean, North Africa and parts of northeastern Africa, with very few troops against a huge force of Italians but managed to hold his own and took it to the Italians by crossing the "wire."

I'm also somewhat amused that no one has mentioned Ike or Marshall. While not battlefield commanders in their own right, they were as Forrest Pogue, Marshall's biographer, has called him organizers of victory.

 

[OzDigger]

Zhukov

&

Von Manstein

Whoops, I forgot about the Russians, not unusual for us capitalist allies I guess Zhukov would be my pick as well.

 

[Currahee Chris]

I'm also somewhat amused that no one has mentioned Ike or Marshall. While not battlefield commanders in their own right, they were as Forrest Pogue, Marshall's biographer, has called him organizers of victory.

Brad- aren't attorneys supposed to be meticulous and pay attention to detail-Ike was the top of my list

Great point about Marshall- for some reason, I guess since he was in Washington, the guy doesn't get a lot of due outside of academia. He was certainly a great one.

 

[jazzeum]

Chris,

Not when they're relaxing I guess you could also put CIGS Brooke in the same class as Marshall: a moderating influence on their leaders.

 

[Currahee Chris]

There have certainly been a number of famous Commanders. However I feel many have been over-rated, especially when you take into consideration their egos and treatment of their men together with their relative military ability.

Therefore imo, favorites should be based on the commander as a person as much as their military achievements.

Hey Oz-

not trying to be confrontational - I guess I just don't follow you when you mention "of their men together with their relative military ability."Who's relative ability?? The troops or the commanders??

Comparing a "favorite" versus an "effective" military leader can create two lists- we all root for the "good guy" to win but more often than not, it's the SOB who pushes his troops into the jaws of death without much regard for anyone or anything. There is a mantra in the US Army- Mission First and that superseeds everything. That is the guiding principle behind every order that is issued. You just hope you aren't the poor guy who is being led into the meat grinder at the end of the day.

There were two types of officers I served under when I was in- the kind I would dive on the grenade for (which Dave- you would have probably been one of those) and the one I would have thrown a grenade at. The "Dive ons" were fantastic people who I really worked hard to impress but, nontheless, they had some kind of flaw along the way which would tend to hold them back- probably compassion. The "Thrown ats" were the guys I was constantly fighting with, getting written up with, etc. Still, they were the ones who got the promotions.

It's a hard call- effective versus favorite. Good talking to you fellas!!

 

[damian]

Custer
Chelmsford
Percival
Raglan
Hicks Pasha
Elphinstone
Haig


Without these plonkers we would not have any great military history to commemorate in our collections

Regards
Damian

 

[Currahee Chris]

plonkers

HA!!! Can I have permission to add that word to my already colorful vocabulary!!???

 

[damian]

Absolutely

Unfortunately it is the disasters that attract us.

I am sure Pierre can give us the correct Frence but what did the French commander say after witnessing the charge of teh light brigade,
It is magnificent, but it is not war
Regards
Damian

 

[sirsydney]

My favorites in no special order:

OVERALL CAMPAIGNS:
Grant/Sherman
Lee/Jackson
General Vo Nguyen Giap
Rommel
Wellington
Napoleon
Washington
Winfield Scott
Wolfe

SPECIFIC BATTLES:
Winfield Scott Hancock
John Buford
Sheridan
Greene

 

[Louis Badolato]

Gentlemen,

I think we have not even named any of the true top five commanders of all time yet. How about:

Alexander the Great
Julius Ceasar
Atilla the Hun
Ghengis Khan
Salah ed Din (Saledin)

The first four named above literally conquered the known world, and made it stick. The last kicked all of Christendom's butt.

 

[Capitolron]

Gentlemen,

I think we have not even named any of the true top five commanders of all time yet. How about:

Alexander the Great
Julius Ceasar
Atilla the Hun
Ghengis Khan
Salah ed Din (Saledin)

The first four named above literally conquered the known world, and made it stick. The last kicked all of Christendom's butt.

Louis

Three of those who you listed were in my list already

Ron

 

[Louis Badolato]

Sorry Ron, I must have missed your list.