Der Alte
Banned
Who in your opinion were the most talented commanders in the German armed forces during World War II
Remember this is no competition. I just want to know who you admire or respect and why.
I personally think that Erich von Manstein was our greatest strategist. He was a master of strategic planning, operational command, and tactical boldness. A master of maneuver warfare in the context of modern technology.
Also I think that Hermann Balck has strong claims to be regarded as our finest field commander. There was no single characteristic that made Balck such an outstanding combat leader. What really made him great in the end was a consistent ability to assess a situation almost instantly, decide what had to be done, and then carry it out. In any specific situation Balck almost always did what would have been expected of a typical well-trained and experienced German senior officer—and he always did it consistently and unwaveringly, time after time. He never lost his nerve and he almost never made a tactical mistake. He was always one step ahead of his enemy, even in the relatively few situations when he was initially taken by surprise.
In December 1942 Hermann Balck wiped out a force ten times his size in the most brilliantly fought divisional battle in modern military history when in three short weeks his lone 11th Panzer Division virtually destroyed the entire Soviet Fifth Tank Army.
Remember this is no competition. I just want to know who you admire or respect and why.
I personally think that Erich von Manstein was our greatest strategist. He was a master of strategic planning, operational command, and tactical boldness. A master of maneuver warfare in the context of modern technology.
Also I think that Hermann Balck has strong claims to be regarded as our finest field commander. There was no single characteristic that made Balck such an outstanding combat leader. What really made him great in the end was a consistent ability to assess a situation almost instantly, decide what had to be done, and then carry it out. In any specific situation Balck almost always did what would have been expected of a typical well-trained and experienced German senior officer—and he always did it consistently and unwaveringly, time after time. He never lost his nerve and he almost never made a tactical mistake. He was always one step ahead of his enemy, even in the relatively few situations when he was initially taken by surprise.
In December 1942 Hermann Balck wiped out a force ten times his size in the most brilliantly fought divisional battle in modern military history when in three short weeks his lone 11th Panzer Division virtually destroyed the entire Soviet Fifth Tank Army.
