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Who Were the Greatest Military Commanders (Of All Time) ?

Posted on 11/14/2004 5:23:06 PM PST by Cyropaedia

In light of the upcoming film Alexander (the Great), who in your opinion were actually the greatest military commanders our world has known...?

Mine are Genghis Khan, Alexander, and U.S. Grant.


TOPICS: Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: milhist; militarycommanders; militaryhistory
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To: NobleEagle2004

You Are The First Brigade!!


521 posted on 01/04/2005 11:31:50 AM PST by NobleEagle2004 ("You Are The 1st Brigade!"StoneWall Jackson)
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To: ReadyNow
"John F. Kerry"
I hope you were joking.
For a newbee to say John Fing. Kerry makes me thank you are a stupid troll.
522 posted on 01/04/2005 11:34:15 AM PST by HuntsvilleTxVeteran (If someone says "sak", you should sak.)
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To: fish hawk

I'm no Reb...Yankee born and raised from Joshua Chamberlain country...


523 posted on 01/04/2005 12:33:10 PM PST by matymac (The NEA = Neo Elitist A*sholes)
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To: matymac
Chamberlain, one of my favorite American Heroes. Love the movie "Gettysburg"
524 posted on 01/04/2005 1:33:38 PM PST by fish hawk
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To: fish hawk

I know no one wants to give him credit but one has to admit that Hitler was pretty good. He was successful at taking over most of Europe, and was able to get his soldiers to do unspeakable acts in the name of his cause. That is pretty noteworthy when discussing military commanders.


525 posted on 01/04/2005 1:40:31 PM PST by shoffma1999
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To: shoffma1999
Wouldn't you say, though, that Rommel was actually a better commander?
526 posted on 01/04/2005 1:55:05 PM PST by fish hawk
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To: Cyropaedia; Guillermo

Douglas MacArthur is the one.


527 posted on 01/04/2005 1:58:36 PM PST by Rider on the Rain
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To: clee1

Sherman


528 posted on 01/04/2005 2:00:42 PM PST by superfries
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To: Cyropaedia

I've only scanned a couple of hundred but I haven't seen Winfield Scott's name anywhere...he deserves at LEAST an honorable mention.


529 posted on 01/04/2005 2:06:51 PM PST by gorush (Exterminate the Moops!)
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To: gorush

I shall always believe that Lt. General Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson was the greatest general. All I have to say is Second Manassas. Argue if you want, but I will live in my own little world, believing what I want...forever :)

LTG


530 posted on 01/04/2005 2:12:08 PM PST by LTGStonewall
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To: LTGStonewall

I'm not saying that Scott was the best, just that he should be mentioned as being among that elite group. Jackson served under Scott in the Mexican-American war, each had great respect for the other.


531 posted on 01/04/2005 2:18:25 PM PST by gorush (Exterminate the Moops!)
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To: No Truce With Kings
George Washington has to rank up there.

Thank you! I'm shocked it took 24 replies to get to General Washington. With absolutely no formal training he became the adjutant general of the Virginia militia at age 20, and during the Seven Years War he learned the lessons of continental-scale warfare that were completely lost on the British, during that war and during the entire American Revolution.

What Washington did during the Revolution is nothing short of incredible, when you consider the political, strategic, tactical, and spiritual roles he fulfilled. Very few men would have inspired freezing, starving, unpaid citizens to remain at Valley Forge just to face the most powerful army again the following spring. Very few men could have convinced his men to cross the ice-strewn Delaware like they did. Very few men could have conceived of victory awaiting the ragamuffin colonials on the other end of years of toil, defeat, disease, and everything else they faced.

Every bit of the near-religious fervor with which his countrymen adored him was earned and deserved. Washington was nothing short of Providential.

532 posted on 01/04/2005 2:25:29 PM PST by HenryLeeII (Democrats have helped kill more Americans than the Soviets and Nazis combined!)
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To: LTGStonewall

p.s. The War of 1812 could easily have gone the other way had it not been for Scott...I can't recall for sure, but I think Scott and Jackson first met during that war.


533 posted on 01/04/2005 2:27:20 PM PST by gorush (Exterminate the Moops!)
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To: shoffma1999
"I know no one wants to give him credit but one has to admit that Hitler was pretty good."

Hitler was good as a corporal in WWI. He was a good rabble-rouser and he succeeded in taking over and Nazifying Germany. He succeeded at starting the most horrible war ever seen on earth, and had some initial success because he had good Generals working for him - at first. Some of those same Generals tried to kill him later in the war.

He was a psychotic SOB at best, and is no doubt doing eternity in the hottest furnace in hell and should never be mentioned in the same sentence as honorable men.

Welcome to FR, BTW.

534 posted on 01/04/2005 2:28:20 PM PST by OKSooner
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To: Cyropaedia

bookmark for later read


535 posted on 01/04/2005 2:30:03 PM PST by capitan_refugio
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To: Cyropaedia

Captain John Chard commanding, Rourk's Drift.


536 posted on 01/04/2005 2:35:18 PM PST by TET1968
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To: Cyropaedia

King David


537 posted on 01/04/2005 2:36:15 PM PST by madison10
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To: clee1

Not Montgomery or McArthur. Monty was largely responsible for the Battle of the Bulge by allowing the Germans to escape in 1943. He made mistakes all over N. Africa too.

McArthur gambled the farm on Inchon and won. Had the weather been anything other than perfection, he would have been among the worst.

Patton never lost period. He showed the world how to use armor and air power with almost precision coordination.

Washington did a whole lot with a very little. I'd have to say he's got to be up there.


538 posted on 01/04/2005 2:37:57 PM PST by RinaseaofDs (The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money.)
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To: JasonC; Verginius Rufus

Like Verginius said, Machiavelli probably got his information from the Roman historians that villified him.


539 posted on 01/04/2005 2:38:13 PM PST by Pyro7480 ("All my own perception of beauty both in majesty and simplicity is founded upon Our Lady." - Tolkien)
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To: Defiant

bump for later


540 posted on 01/04/2005 2:38:30 PM PST by Rebelbase (Who is General Chat?)
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