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Crazy Horse eh Jack? As Indians go I kind'a favor Little Turtle, he whipped Harmar at Kekionga (now Fort Wayne Indiana) and on the Wabash handed St. Clair the worst defeat The United States ever suffered at the hands of Indians. Then when his son in law William Wells convinced him defeat was inevitable he had the good sense to position himself well for the peace that followed and his descendants still live in Indiana.
Besides the Americans you mentioned I think William Henry Harrison, Nathaniel Greene, Andy Jackson, Zachary Taylor, Winfield Scott and Nelson Miles deserve mention. Mad Anthony Wayne too, he won the most important Indian war in our history.
Crazy Horse eh Jack? As Indians go I kind'a favor Little Turtle, he whipped Harmar at Kekionga (now Fort Wayne Indiana) and on the Wabash handed St. Clair the worst defeat The United States ever suffered at the hands of Indians. Then when his son in law William Wells convinced him defeat was inevitable he had the good sense to position himself well for the peace that followed and his descendants still live in Indiana.
Besides the Americans you mentioned I think William Henry Harrison, Nathaniel Greene, Andy Jackson, Zachary Taylor, Winfield Scott and Nelson Miles deserve mention. Mad Anthony Wayne too, he won the most important Indian war in our history.
I've heard of 'Little turtle'. Michikinikwa was his name. Miami peoples. A real bad ass. I just didn't know enough about him to 'admire' him, but there are many Indian Warrior Chiefs that were superior leaders and generals.
Same goes for the Americans you mentioned. Just didn't make the 'top ten'.
For the U.S.,I'll 2nd 'ol Stonewall. McClelland would pop up, too. Add Bradley, Eisenhower, McArthur, Nimitz, and Schwartzkof.
Jackson was an excellent corps commander but no better than fellas like Longstreet, Thomas, McPherson and Wright.
McClellan was a total nincompoop and I fail to see how one can justify rating him highly.
Bradley was competent but no better than that and MacArthur swang back and forth between idiocy and genius; his defense of the Phillipines was very poor and he got himself whipped by an army smaller than his own. Not to mention that he got his air force destroyed on the ground several hours after he knew about the attack on Pearl Harbor. Mac's reconquest of the Phillipines was also marked by several dubious decisions such as sending his best general, Eichelberger on a senseless campaign to retake the southern islands while Krueger plodded along on Luzon.
McClellan was a total nincompoop and I fail to see how one can justify rating him highly.
... MacArthur swang back and forth between idiocy and genius...
Agreed about McClellan.
As for MacArthur, I thought he always had some ulterior motive to the decisions he made, even though some were bold as at Inchon. Either caution? or possibly idocy as you suggest? He really floored many with his insistance on taking the entire Korean pennusula and wanting to push into China. I can't place him in my top 50.
For the U.S.,I'll 2nd 'ol Stonewall. McClelland would pop up, too. Add Bradley, Eisenhower, McArthur, Nimitz, and Schwartzkof.
McClellan? You've GOT to be kidding me.
At the Battle of Antietam, he outnumbered the Confederates 2-1. He had the Confederate battle plans, plans where Lee split his force into three different forces.
Yet, despite all that, he could only fight Lee to a draw.
Lee was an incompetent boob. Lincoln was right to have fired him.
Lee was an incompetent boob. Lincoln was right to have fired him.
I gather you meant to write that Lincoln was right to fire McClellan?
With respect to R.E. Lee, I doubt he would be considered a 'boob' or 'incompetent' by any estimation. He was a West Point grad, was the Superintendant of the Military Academy, and when Gen Scott asked him to take command of the entire Union Army he declined because his native state was going to seceed. He chose honor to his roots over duty to what he was schooled to do.
That takes conviction.
His reputation was one of a 'crafty and daring' tactician, but I grant you his decision to invade the North was ill founded - But I still wouldn't call him an 'incompetent boob'.
He led a poorly supplied rag tag group of 'rebels' to many victories against the North. He carried the respect and admiration of his men with great pride. He is still revered in many quarters. Too bad he's not revered in your's.
Leonidas, who has inspired the Western Way of War for 2500 years.
Plus, his movie 300 is way cool...
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