Most impressive military achievement in the 20th Century?

Most impressive military achievement in the 20th Century?


  • Total voters
    178
Battle of Britain

In my opinion, the Battle of Britain, against a vastly numerically superior and better trained force.
If Britain had fallen, WW2 could have gone on for a lot longer. Hugh Dowding and Keith Parks handled the battle brilliantly.
 
The Englanders were able to beat the Italians because they were able to identify their aircraft since they had hair under their wings. :smile::sarc:
 
The Englanders were able to beat the Italians because they were able to identify their aircraft since they had hair under their wings. :smile::sarc:

From what I understand, the Italians only came over Britain once, the RAF got among em and cut em to pieces.
 
In my opinion, the Battle of Britain, against a vastly numerically superior and better trained force.
If Britain had fallen, WW2 could have gone on for a lot longer. Hugh Dowding and Keith Parks handled the battle brilliantly.


This effort is greatly underestimated; I lived through it, I remember the tension, I survived, thanks to others and the strategies and their determination. My father's generation - fantastic; two world wars!

(I am reminded of the time when De Gaulle took France from NATO, and insisted that all American personnel were withdrawn from France. When President Lyndon Johnson was told, he instructed his ambassador to ask De Gaulle if that included the 60,000 American troops buried in France from two world wars; when the ambassador did so, De Gaulle did not answer!

Another great under-estimation - to this day! Am I still pro Churchill & pro-American - for sure. And I have no time for ingrates, because WW11 in Europe was a close-run thing.)
 
Too tough, several different ones spring to mind.

1. The Falklands War, sheer guts and determination to tab across the East FI.
2. The Ho Chi Minh trail & its continued use, despite intense air attack.
3. German invasion of Crete 1941.
4. Rhine Company thrashing the cadets of St Cyr at Beerhunter & Centurion (not yet in the history books, but one day...)

However I think that I will have to go for 14th Army at Kohima & Imphal.
 
(I am reminded of the time when De Gaulle took France from NATO, and insisted that all American personnel were withdrawn from France. When President Lyndon Johnson was told, he instructed his ambassador to ask De Gaulle if that included the 60,000 American troops buried in France from two world wars; when the ambassador did so, De Gaulle did not answer!

I remember a story about an elderly American chap visiting France who got into bit of an argument with a French Passport control officer.

It went something along the lines of.

American “Last time I was in France I didn't have to show a passport.”

French Passport Officer “Impossible, people always have to show a passport, no matter where they come from!”

American, “On D Day in 1944 I didn't show any passport when I landed on the beaches!”
 
This is rubbish, the only true impressive achievements here are the Finns and Nazi victories, Jews have no place here at all given the state of their enemy and the length of American support, the Allied victory in WW2 is actually a bit humiliating given how much hard time Germany has given them and "relative Arab victory" if a victory is relative its not impressive.


I assume through horrible lack of basic historical knowledge you failed to add the following.

Stalingrad.
Moscow counteroffensive.
Kursk.
Polish victory in 1920 (personally i believe this was the most impressive just after what Finnland pulled off but being Polish i might be biased).
Allied defence of Bastogne.
 
Your point?


Although I can't speak for DelBoy... This thread is based on opinion, therefore no one is wrong. (Although they can be misinformed and can learn a thing or two.)

On a personal note, I fall into the "horrible lack of basic historical knowledge" and therefore, have not voted for any of them. If I did, it would be for the Allied victories based on patriotic pride...
 
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Actually both Western allies and Soviet Union generally sucked and humiliated themselves at every turn, Allies could not for the hell of it break out of Normandy and Germany put up a heck of a fight despite being horribly outclassed in everything but quality of personnel and Russia was just a horrible mess that won through trowing enough stuff at Germans to drown them in it.

Whats not said today is that Western Allies typically needed 3-1 odds to take on their Germans counterparts, there were battles and operations for the Allies that were impressive but ultimately there's nothing impressive about Allied victory in WW2.
 
Actually both Western allies and Soviet Union generally sucked and humiliated themselves at every turn, Allies could not for the hell of it break out of Normandy and Germany put up a heck of a fight despite being horribly outclassed in everything but quality of personnel and Russia was just a horrible mess that won through trowing enough stuff at Germans to drown them in it.

Whats not said today is that Western Allies typically needed 3-1 odds to take on their Germans counterparts, there were battles and operations for the Allies that were impressive but ultimately there's nothing impressive about Allied victory in WW2.

My family fought in both wars, I have never heard that type of opinion from an American (you show a US flag for your country).

Please explain your views.
 
My family fought in both wars, I have never heard that type of opinion from an American (you show a US flag for your country).

Please explain your views.

Did not bother with the flag, i'm Polish-Ukrainian, as for explanation in regards to the allies, just look at every major engagement from Monte Cassino, battles in France up to Calais, German defence of the harbors or even Siegfrieds line.

In every of these engagements Germans were outgunned, outnumbered and yet they've put extremely strong defence to a point where to overtake German positions significantly greater numbers were required, that hardly makes allied effort impressive.

As for Russia? It was a tactical mess, squandering lives and equipment at horrible rates throught the war, so its not a particulary impressive victory either.

Personally i view victory as impressive if you won against the odds, not when you stomped down an enemy who despite being outgunned gave you a run for your money.
 
Actually both Western allies and Soviet Union generally sucked and humiliated themselves at every turn, Allies could not for the hell of it break out of Normandy and Germany put up a heck of a fight despite being horribly outclassed in everything but quality of personnel and Russia was just a horrible mess that won through trowing enough stuff at Germans to drown them in it.

Whats not said today is that Western Allies typically needed 3-1 odds to take on their Germans counterparts, there were battles and operations for the Allies that were impressive but ultimately there's nothing impressive about Allied victory in WW2.

Just to clarify, most doctrines reckon on a 3:1 ratio on attacker v defender, this goes up depending on the environment, more built up or covered, more troops.

For sheer strategic genius let's not forget opening a war on 2 fronts, switching targets in the Battle of Britain or fight to the last man for the Sixth Army.

Warfare is confusion & chaos, inevitably no one really gets covered in glory, just a thinner film of pooh, especially when viewed in hindsight by us armchair generals.
 
The Battle at Normandy, it was a meat grinder of a battle where the Germans were worn down and destroyed, once the break out occurred they had little or nothing left to stop it rolling right across France and Belgium. Yes the German troops fought well and gave away little ground until they were almost destroyed
 
Just to clarify, most doctrines reckon on a 3:1 ratio on attacker v defender, this goes up depending on the environment, more built up or covered, more troops.
On both fronts Germans could consider themselves lucky if it was 5:1, typically it was more.
For sheer strategic genius let's not forget opening a war on 2 fronts, switching targets in the Battle of Britain or fight to the last man for the Sixth Army.
Warfare is confusion & chaos, inevitably no one really gets covered in glory, just a thinner film of pooh, especially when viewed in hindsight by us armchair generals.
True but compare allied victories to Napoleon for example and you get the idea, smaller forces at disadvantage attack and win over a much larger enemy, and that is impressive, winning a hard contested battle against someone you seriously outgun just isnt.
 
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