Battles we were outnumbered, yet won.?

Question

I'm doing a paper.
Can anyone tell my any examples of battles that the U.S. was totally outnumbered in , and won? All I can think of is Midway. Ok, it may be cheating to ask, but what is a comuuter for anyway?
Thanks.

Answer 1

The battle of bunker hill
The battles of Lexington and Concord

You can pretty much rely on any battle during the revolutionary war. If you want to you can check into any battle of WWI and WWII alot of those we were outnumbered in!

Answer 2

Bodian gave part of my of my answer. "We were soldiers" shows that battle and is fairly accurate.

But there was also the battle of the Bastogne (the battle of the bulge) completely surrounded, low on supplies and lacking heavy tanks and Air power, American forces held the town for almost two weeks until they were relieved.

Battle of Tripoli, a small unit of Marines raided and captured a fort on the shores of Libya after marching across the desert.

Also look up the "Lost Battalion" a battalion of US soldiers get trapped behind German lines for six days during ww1 and hold out during the battle of Argonne.

Answer 3

As far as being outnumbered goes its hard to find a better example than during the Korean war when U.S. Marines and Army Units were surprised by the unexpected Chinese attacks just before Christmas. U.S. forces were outnumbered by massive Chinese units. It might be hard to argue we won but tell someone that who was at Chosin Resevoir.

By far one of the most heroic episodes in the Viet Nam has to be the efforts of a single marine. It may be lengthy but take a look at what a single marine pulled off at the Dong Ha Bridge.

By 1971, John Ripley had done almost everything a Marine captain could accomplish commensurate with his rank. Having already successfully served in Vietnam as an infantry company commander in 1967, during which time Ripley was decorated and wounded, he had had subsequent tours with Marine Force Recon and as an exchange officer with the British Royal Marines. (Postings with the Royal Marines are extremely competitive and go only to the most promising officers.) Happily married and the father of three very young children, Ripley did not really need to be back in Vietnam. But he was.

The ferocity of the NVA offensive caused all manner of problems with allied command and control. Due to the extreme emergency, Lt. Col. Gerry Turley, who had recently arrived to serve as the senior covan in the northern region, was ordered to also assume control of the Third ARVN Division Forward. Recognizing the need to destroy the bridge, even though higher headquarters (who were unaware of the deteriorating tactical situation) ordered him not to, Turley gave the order. He was certain he was sending Capt. Ripley to his death.

With some cover fire provided by the men of the Third Marine Battalion and aided by U.S. Army Maj. John Smock, Capt. John Ripley accomplished what was not possible: He went out and blew up the bridge.

There is no sports analogy for what Ripley did. It was not like running a three minute mile, bench pressing 700 pounds, or pulling out a come-from-behind Super Bowl upset victory. There were no adoring crowds. What Ripley did was simply impossible. Had he failed while attempting to do it, his peers would have only thought him noble and brave for trying.

The significance of the timely destruction of the bridge at Dong Ha cannot be overstated – both in terms of Ripley's personal heroism and the impact it had on the entire communist offensive. Those who ponder alternative history could easily argue that had the NVA been able to secure the bridge and the town at that time, the unfortunate end of the Republic of Vietnam on April 30, 1975, might have been markedly speeded up.

Built by U.S. Navy Seabees in 1967, the bridge was a 200-meter concrete and steel leviathan. Its destruction required deliberate planning, intellect and guts. Mostly guts. Ripley would provide all three as he needed to distribute 500 pounds of dynamite on the structure's underside.

Making a dozen-odd trips between the southern bank of the river and the belly of the bridge, each time he shuttled roughly 40 pounds of explosives as he swung, hand-over-hand, out to the various spans and stringers, all the while exposed to enemy fire from the northern side. Placement of the dynamite and requisite wiring took more than two hours.

With the rigging complete, and without fanfare, Smock and Ripley blew the bridge. (For a superbly chronicled read of the entire action, see "The Bridge at Dong Ha" by Ripley friend and fellow covan U.S. Marine Corps Col. John Miller. For the view from the senior adviser who effectively ran the entire show during this period of the war, pick up Col. Gerry Turley's compellingly honest and painstakingly fair "The Easter Offensive." Both available at the U.S. Naval Institute or the Marine Corps Association.)

Ripley's performance that day continues to fascinate. These were not the deeds of a regular man. His bravery was not some gut reaction or counterpunch to a blow struck by an enemy. His actions in that three-hour window – with the world collapsing around him – were deliberate, willful, premeditated. Every ounce of his spiritual and physical fiber was focused on mission accomplishment. Anything less and he surely would have failed. Exhausted prior to the start, when he was finished he was way past empty.

Answer 4

Some of the best examples of Americans with smaller forces winning in battle include Lee's victory at Chanclorsville and T Jacksons Shenandoah campaign. My favorite small unit leader, however, was Geronimo.

When you ask "we", that includes all of us Americans, right?

Answer 5

The Battle of Mogadishu, Somaila, in October 1993.

Answer 6

Ia Drang Valley, November 1965 , vietnam


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Most battles the us is outnumbered, they have a very small army, but they are rarely out gunned is the thing

Answer 7

The first Gulf war.

The invasion of Grenada.

Answer 8

none