10 greatest military commanders of all time

freerepulic ^ | August 31, 2002 | zapiks44

[zapiks44]

Who do you think are the 10 best military commanders of all time? (By military commander, I mean someone who actually commanded armies and orchestrated the attacks, not politcal leaders, such as Churchill) Here are my picks:

1.Alexander the Great (The undisputed greatest military genius who ever lived)

2.George S. Patton ( Can't forget him)

3.Napoleon (Obvious, but the French don't get credit since he's techincally Italian!)

4.Julius Ceasar (Veni, Vetti, Vecci)

5.Richard the Lionheart/Saladin (The two men who've probably shaped the Middle-East more than anyone else)

6.Georgi Zhukov (Main architect of Stalingrad victory)

7.Erwin Rommel (The real "Desert Fox")

8.Hannibal (Coined the term (Crossing the Alps)

9.Stonewall Jackson (Of course)

10. Horatio Nelson (Stopped Napoleon from invading Britain and spreading to South America)

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

MacArthur at Inchon

[RightOnline]

William Bedford Forrest.

[RightOnline]

NATHAN Bedford Forrest, idiot, ROL..........sheesh..........never type while talking to someone..................

[billbears]

Nathan Bedford Forrest, Stonewall Jackson, and Erwin Rommel would be my top three. And thank you for setting the record straight on Forrest. I can not stand that lie still is accepted as historical fact

[RightOnline]

I gotta go with Julius Caesar over Alexander the Great.......even if just barely. Both were incredible geniuses at their craft; both were powerful motivators of men.......both ended badly...........

[lexington minuteman 1775]

Grant would have to be in here.He was like the third commander of the Union armies.I once heard a story that someone was badmouthing Grant to Lincoln and complaining about his drinking habits and Lincoln was suppose do have said."Send a case of whatever Grant drinks to the rest of my generals."Doggone good general, but Grant made a lousy President.And by the way i might add;Bush will be a great President, because he knows how to lead.But he would make a lousy General.

[Faraday]

Ghengis Khan/Kublai Khan: They conquered until there was insufficient grass to feed their horses (central Europe & Palestine). No one else has ever been as successful.

[kms61]

I would add Genghis Khan. Patton was a good commander, but I think he's overrated. Certainly there were other commanders who were as good but got less publicity...Lightning Joe Collins comes to mind. If you're going to put a WWII era American on the list I vote for Nimitz.

And I wouldn't put Stonewall Jackson, or NB Forrest in a list of the world's top 10 commanders simply because their track records weren't long enough. Maybe Lee, but I think the one commander from the American Civil War who should definitely make the list is Sherman, because he was the first to understand and implement the tactics of modern full scale warfare.

[bandleader]

I think that you refer to J E B Stuart.

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

I am SPARTACUS

[zapiks44]

I've heard that there was a Roman peasant who became Emperor of Rome literally overnight. He took command of some armies, turned back the invaders, renounced the throne, and went back to peasant life, all within three days or so. Anyone know who this is?

[TheEngineer]

I'm going to throw in my vote for George Washington. Although arguably not a great tactical general, but you have to give him credit for his perseverance under great hardship. And he did his best with what he had to work with. Perhaps the greatest "man" in world history.

[vbmoneyspender]

Cincinnatus - he was a citizen and a farmer and he was appointed dictator for 6 months. The was something the Romans did in the days of the Republic when they were confronted with an emergency.

[laconic]

William Tecumseh Sherman (never panic) and Kemal Ataturk (smashed the Allies at Gallipoli, drove the Greek Army from defeated Turkey and remade an ancient empire in his image) beat Patton easily. Also, George Washington who may not have won battles but he knew how to win a war against the then-greatest military empire. And Douglas MacArthur who conquered more territory than Eisenhower and Patton with ten percent of the resources and ten percent of the casulaties. And General Suvorov of Russia who was wounded seven times and never lost a battle because unlike modern generals, he was on the front line constantly. Otherwise, your list is pretty accurate in my view, unless you want to include Genghis and Kublai Khan.

[bandleader]

I know that you only picked 10(11),but surely "Stonewall'Jackson should be among them.Also,Robert E.Lee.U S Grant was a wonderful conbat/general but imagine what Lee could have accomplished with the limitless resources of Grant!!I believe that your choice of George S.Patton Jr.is excellent though!!!The ONLY command that he had was ATTACK,ATTACK,and ATTACK!!!!Once again,it's the TOP TEN.Where would Douglas A.MacArthur place??

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

Joan of Arc and George Washington

[bandleader]

That's right!Georgie Patton was an avid student of Frederick The Great!!L'audace,L'audace,Toujours L'audace!!!

[vbmoneyspender]

I agree with you about George Washington being one of the great men of world history. Since the time of the Roman Republic, no one had ever done what he did, which was gain power and then voluntary renounce at the appointed time.

[dogbyte12]

I might add in Thutmosis III, Pharoah of Egypt and Julian Augustus, Great nephew of Constantine, in the 4th century A.D.

[medved]

One and two would be Chengis Khan and his general Subudai. Whoever's in third place is way, way back in third.