Pound for pound, what are the top 5 strongest armies of all time?

Question

Factors to take into consideration (relatively speaking): - How much were they feared?
- How much devastation did they cause?
- How many battles they won?
- How long did their respective governments hold power because of them?
- Their influence on other countries.

Just a few examples: Napoleon's army, Hannibal's army, the army of Ancient Rome at it's peak, The Nazi war machine, The post WW2 U.S. Army, The Soviet Union Army, Alexander the Great's army, the army of Darius the Great, the Ottoman Empire army...

Answer 1

1) German Panzer Army
2) Russian Tank Army
3) U.S. Army of WW2
4) Alexander's Army
5) Mongol Army of 1200's.

Answer 2

Alexander the Great

The Spartans

The Roman Legions

The Greeks

The Mongol Empire

Answer 3

The Nazi War Machine ??? A ninety Day Wonder that Blundered its way to Victory against the Poles & the French and then died a slow agonizing death in the deserts of Africa the steppes of Russia and finally across the breadth of their home nation???
By measurement of Battles Won, then that honor goes to the New Model Army of Oliver Cromwell wins hands down and the devastation done to Ireland is the stuff of legend. As for influence. Though Cromwell's body was defiled after Death and his reputation trashed, never again would an English King stand up against Parliament and England endures to this day (2007).....

The US Army during World War Two secured 'the Peace' and the postwar US Army maintained the Peace more or less until recently.....

The USSR Army combined the inherent fighting stamina of the Russians with the economic/industrial genius of Stalin.

The British Army of any era because Brits & Celts know how to fight and have proven it since the days of Alfred the Great.

The Prussian /German of WIlhem the First & Otto Von Bismark, what they did in the Franco Russian War of 1870's set the standard for future wars and anticipated many of the innovations of 1900 the decade of the double zeroes; airplanes & autos & undersea boats.....

///---------- 0 . ) ( . O ----------\\\ Peace......................

Answer 4

Your question asked "pound for pound" what was the toughest armies of all time, and you also asked what their impact was on history.

Consider the American fascination with Leonidas and his Spartans. Admittedly, there were only 300 Spartans in the Greek force that held Thermopylae, but there were well over a thousand additional Greeks in the defensive force. We seem to forget that their sacrifice would have been meaningless without the extraordinary Athenian naval victory over the Persians at Salamis. And, after the Greeks were defeated at Thermopylae, the Persians did advance into Greece and burned Athens and other Greek cities to the ground.

By contrast, in the American Revolutionary War, there was an army of less than 200 Americans, which is largely unknown today. It accomplished what were considered miraculous military feats at the time, including a multi-week winter march across hundreds of miles of flooded terrain, ending in a cunning conquest of a key fort.

Like the Romans, this small army earned its success partially with extraordinary diplomatic and political skills, backed up by its military prowess and a reputation for viciousness.

As a result of the efforts of this tiny force, the nascent American republic gained control of the Northwest Territory, which eventually encompassed Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnestota.

This tiny army of frontiersmen was led by George Rogers Clark.

http://www.revolutionarywararchives.org/vincennes.html

Sherman's army that marched across Georgia and through the swamps north of Savannah, making its own roads and covering many miles per day, was considered one of the great armies of its day, especially by its Confederate opponents. It was instrumental in winning the Civil War.

Admittedly, the American Army in World War II easily was the greatest in history vis-a-vis its peers, largely because of its air power, global operations, superb use of artillery, extraordinary logistics, and, of course, its eventual monopoly on nuclear weapons. Ex nuclear weapons, the American Army probably wouldn't have had an easy time with the Soviet Army in its areas of operation in Europe and Asia, however.

Most importantly, considering the American political operations in Japan (Douglas MacArthur, the "American Caesar") and Europe, the American army's impact on civilization is unequaled in modern history, with one exception IMO. Would Japan be a functioning democracy today if it had been conquered by the Soviet Union? Would the European Union exist today without American influence and federation political example?

In modern history, Napoleon not only conquered most of Europe, but actually had a tremendous impact on European civilization.

Yet the modern champion has to be the British Army, although probably much of its success would have been impossible without the British Navy. Just consider, if nothing else, that English is the new Latin, and that English not only is the dominant language in Europe, but also North America, Australia, India and South Africa. The British Navy did not achieve this influence. And modern democracy certainly has its roots firmly planted in the Britain.

While, it's hard to dismiss the influence and power of the Roman legions, especially as Rome gave birth to Europe and the Roman influence extended over centuries, my vote vote for toughness and impact on civilization must go to the British Army due to its global impact, and especially as British civilization is the precursor to American civilization, and the two perhaps are irrevocably linked.

The great Mongol armies and the Greek army of Alexander obviously were brilliant, but their impacts on civilization seem minimal compared to that of the British, the Romans, or the Americans, who arguably are an extension of British culture.

Answer 5

You forgot about the civil war army..... XXX