Rourke's Drift or Alamo.... (1 Viewer)

[Aleš]

Well who do you think were more brave?
We all know that English win at the Rourke's Drift and that Texans lost at the Alamo.
But we also know that English have only sand bags to protect them,when Texans have walls.
But we know that Zulu have spears when Mexicans have cannons,...
But anyway who do you think were more brave,more better soldiers(english or texans)?
If you can choose which battlefield will you rather choose and fight?

 

[marco55]

I think that all the combatants on all sides were equally brave.
Mark

 

[Lewey Gun Vick]

I think that all the combatants on all sides were equally brave.
Mark

Agreed...Regards, Vick

 

[Bellerophon]

Agreed...Regards, Vick

I also agree,

Both the English and Texans fought with everything they had, both were outnumbered and surrounded. I rather have one steady volunteer standing next to me,then a dozen pressed men.



Best wishes Mark

 

[Deitz]

Well who do you think were more brave?
We all know that English win at the Rourke's Drift and that Texans lost at the Alamo.
But we also know that English have only sand bags to protect them,when Texans have walls.
But we know that Zulu have spears when Mexicans have cannons,...
But anyway who do you think were more brave,more better soldiers(english or texans)?
If you can choose which battlefield will you rather choose and fight?

Why would one side be more brave than the other. I think both side were very brave and let's not forget the attackers, who were very brave in their own right.

 

[lancer]

A question with no answer. Any man or men who face death in battle (a situation beyond their control) are all equally brave in my opinion. -- lancer

 

[Rob]

There is no answer to this question,they were equally brave.Would be an insult to the memory of these men to say one group was braver than the other.

Rob

 

[The Military Workshop]

If the question is
"If you can choose which battlefield will you rather choose and fight? "

Then since I know the ending then If an attacker I would choose to be the Mexicans at the Alamo and if a defender then the Briitish at Rorkes Drift.

Both were great examples of bravery. On the Alamo side if I recall correctly they had plenty of time to withdraw whicvh makes their acts all the more brave than if they were attacked suddenly.

Either way both defenders can not be faulted for their strong resistence and bravery.

Regards
Brett

 

[Aleš]

Well i think the English at Rourke Drift were more brave,not because they win but because they stay and fight even they know,that just a little time ago 1500 english army was wipe out in the Islandwadab.They stay.
Even when their black allies run away,they stay.
Even when some cavalry(which they think will reinforce them) go away,they stay.
They didnt know how many Zulus will come,but they know it will come a lot and they stay.
I think they didnt stay because they think they can win,they just stay because they are English army.
When an english soldier ask his sargent:"why us"?
His sargeant tell him:"because we are the only one here".
The reason they win is that they are train soldiers,who do not think twice to obey the orders.
In the Alamo i think they were just a group of volouters with no big fighting expirience,some of them are outlaws,trappers,saloon drinkers,adventures,poets,...they sure were brave to stay but they have walls to protect them and a lot of them stay because they think General Houston will come back on time.When it was obvioustly that he is not comming they stay(no one cross the line) but they know if they leave a mission they will be hang or shoot by the Mexicans,so they didnt have no big choice.

 

[damian]

I also agree,

Both the English and Texans fought with everything they had, both were outnumbered and surrounded. I rather have one steady volunteer standing next to me,then a dozen pressed men.



Best wishes Mark

I don't think I would go around the valleys of Wales saying it was the English at Rorkes Drift.

 

[BeaconsAl]

I don't think I would go around the valleys of Wales saying it was the English at Rorkes Drift.

Oh. We would'nt mind really! Although the 24th Foot was based in Wales at that time, it was actually the 2nd Battalion Warwickshire Regiment [24th] at Rorkes Drift and they became the South Wales Borderers soon afterwards.
All brave men as were the Texans.

Alan

 

[Rob]

What amazes me is the tone and style of writing the survivors of Rorkes Drift explain their life or death actions.Its all very dignified and even subdued,the most life threatening events are so calmy reccounted with hardly any excitement in their descriptions,wonderful stuff,they make it sound like just another day at the office.For another example of this just read Sgt Ewarts account of capturing the French Eagle at Waterloo,he describes dealing with three french cavalrymen calmy and with ice cold effiency.

Rob

 

[thebritfarmer]

What amazes me is the tone and style of writing the survivors of Rorkes Drift explain their life or death actions.Its all very dignified and even subdued,the most life threatening events are so calmy reccounted with hardly any excitement in their descriptions,wonderful stuff,they make it sound like just another day at the office.For another example of this just read Sgt Ewarts account of capturing the French Eagle at Waterloo,he describes dealing with three french cavalrymen calmy and with ice cold effiency.

Rob

It's that British stiff upper lip Rob

 

[Rob]

It's that British stiff upper lip Rob

I guess so

Rob

 

[Spitfrnd]

There is no answer to this question,they were equally brave.Would be an insult to the memory of these men to say one group was braver than the other.

Rob

I think there is an answer and it is no insult to either. The simple facts are that the Rourke's Drift soldiers were there by orders and almost all of the Alamo defenders were there by personal choice. There is no question that most British soldiers at the Drift were brave and fought bravely but really they had little choice but to follow their officers, who also had limited choices under the circumstances. British army disipline was rather unforgiving of desertion in the face of the enemy. So if the question is whether, given a choice, the act of standing and fighting at the Alamo manfested more bravery than doing the same at the Alamo, the answer would be that they are about the same. However, since the Drift's defenders had no such choice there seems little doubt that the actions of the Alamo defenders displayed the greater bravery.

 

[Aleš]

Well people in the Alamo was brave,people in the Rourke Drift was brave,but the most brave of them all were the SPARTANS.
If we talking about the size of the army or the equipment,...no matter what it is all on the side for Spartans.
There was a battlefield in Greece call Thermopile and there was 300 Spartans against one million Persians.
They stand in the canyons where the size of this Persian army didnt have such a big advantage and they fight for some time.
It was all with swords and spears,...I think killing people with guns,canons,pistols,....is more easy because you do not look at the man eyes and knowing that you will take his live and than you have this image of his face in to your brain.You just pull the trigger and it is more easy than look at the man in the face,killing him with your sword,look at his eyes rolling,his face changing ways,you hear him how he is in pain and you need to take your sword out of his body and go forward....
But that what the Spartans do,they fight with the spears and swords,killling them tousands and tousands of the enemy before they all 300 die.
They are buying time for the Sparta so that later This Persians survivers which was very outnumbered get defetaed by 20000-60000 tousands Spartans,and i am sure they were demoralize when they know that 300 Spartans fight so brave how it will be when there will be 20000 of them,even that the Persian army have 1 million fighters they lost.
Now that was brave!

 

[Scott]

.............However, since the Drift's defenders had no such choice there seems little doubt that the actions of the Alamo defenders displayed the greater bravery.

Plus you had the Gonzales unit that came in during the siege knowing the danger.

The 24th had to be there, while the Alamo defenders thought they had to be there. A successful outcome could have been good for all the Alamo defenders, not a far off ruler.

 

[DCN1898]

Well people in the Alamo was brave,people in the Rourke Drift was brave,but the most brave of them all were the SPARTANS.
If we talking about the size of the army or the equipment,...no matter what it is all on the side for Spartans.
There was a battlefield in Greece call Thermopile and there was 300 Spartans against one million Persians.
They stand in the canyons where the size of this Persian army didnt have such a big advantage and they fight for some time.
It was all with swords and spears,...I think killing people with guns,canons,pistols,....is more easy because you do not look at the man eyes and knowing that you will take his live and than you have this image of his face in to your brain.You just pull the trigger and it is more easy than look at the man in the face,killing him with your sword,look at his eyes rolling,his face changing ways,you hear him how he is in pain and you need to take your sword out of his body and go forward....
But that what the Spartans do,they fight with the spears and swords,killling them tousands and tousands of the enemy before they all 300 die.
They are buying time for the Sparta so that later This Persians survivers which was very outnumbered get defetaed by 20000-60000 tousands Spartans,and i am sure they were demoralize when they know that 300 Spartans fight so brave how it will be when there will be 20000 of them,even that the Persian army have 1 million fighters they lost.
Now that was brave!

The Spartans were brave and the odds phenomenal, but there were 1800 other Greek fighters at Thermopile. The Athenians also managed to control the sea so that the Persians had to go through Thermopile.

 

[wds0855]

I think all were equally brave, British and Texan.

What about the Zulus? Charging into massed firepower. They were surely brave as well.