Who do you think is/was the greatest military commander/conqueror of all time, and why?

Question

I believe some of the greatest include:

King David
Julius Caesar
Alexander the Great
Augustus Caesar
Trajan
Hannibal
Attila the Hun
Constantine I
Ghengis Khan
Napoleon
George Washington
Andrew Jackson
Robert E. Lee
Adolf Hitler
George Patton
Douglas Macarthur
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Horatio Nelson
Winston Churchill
Lt. Col. Hal Moore
Norman Schwarzkopf

Timothy B. - I stand corrected about Hal Moore. Thanks for the heads up. Regarding Hitler, I only listed his name due not to his command but for his extraordinary feats of conquer. Under his leadership, he facilitated and planned the strategic expansion of Germany into most of Europe. The fact that he was able to convince the majority of the people of Germany to join in his cause made him an extraordinary man, despite the fact that he was the epitome of evil.

Answer 1

Leonidas, for the simple fact that when him and the other Spartans were facing the million soldier army at Thermopylae, and one of his subordinates noted that the Persians would shoot so many arrows that it would block out the sun, he replied,"all the better, then we will fight in the shade"

Then there's Chesty Puller, anyone with 5 navy crosses and a DSC deserves to be at the top.

Alexander the great because he conquered most of the known world at the time and the fact that he was never defeated in battle.

I could go on for hours, but these three come to mind right off the bat.

and a correction on "Lt Col" Hal Moore. He ended up becoming a Lieutenant General by the time he retired. And Hitler was not a military commander and was essentially the reason the Germans lost WWII so I don't think we should disgrace these other brilliant commanders by having his name among them.

Answer 2

Alexander the great was the best, though I like RE Lee. Hitler was not a general, ever. Too bad the movie about Alexander was so bad. If it had been half as good as Pvt. Ryan you'd almost have a gist of how great he was. Not too many generals conquered their entire known world and then try to let the locals rule themselves.

Answer 3

Spartacus,

who was believed to be a Thracian (born in what is now Sandanski in present-day Bulgaria), was enslaved by the Romans and led a large slave uprising in what is now Italy during the period 73 BC to 71 BC. His army of escaped gladiators and slaves defeated many Roman legions in several engagements. This conflict is known as the Third Servile War or the Gladiator War and is one of the three slave rebellions of ancient Rome.

Answer 4

Erwin Rommel - He was a master tactician

General Guiderion - He designed the Blitzkrieg that took Germany to where they were militarily

It was only through the blunders of Hitler and Goering that the war was lost

Answer 5

All commanders/conquerors have one basic common factor! They've caused the deaths of thousands if not millions of others. They still exist today under different banners waving different books and exuding he same old story - to conquer, rule and change the world by imposition and not by democracy

Answer 6

My vote goes to Ghengis Khan, 12 million square miles of territory, bigger than the Roman empire, Alexander's conquests and Hitler's occupation combined.

For small battles, the tactical best was Paul Hausser, SS tank commander, especially for his defeat of the red army at the 3rd battle of Kharkov, 7-1 odds against him. He wasn't on your list, but his tactical exploits against superior numbers rates him pretty high. He was one of the few german commanders who defied hitlers order for 'no retreat' and was never 'sacked' because of disobeying the fuhrer's command.

Answer 7

Caesar... shoot look at how many 'tribes' he took over. He just got power crazy. If he had stopped while he was ahead the world would be completely different today.

Answer 8

Saddam Hussein = the Caliph of Islam!!!!

Answer 9

G.S.P. patton if the had let him do it the war would have been shorter