Joachim Boaz

Simply the most skilled defender in the history of war.
Statistically he has no peer.

Comments?

Boaz

Gun Grape

Go read the WAB survival guide and stop posting BS.

troung

Give us a little background at least, explain why, some facts, an article, his first name and rank, something...

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To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

Shek

What about the Spartan commander at Thermopylae? Seems like a movie was just made that gave him a pretty good statistical record.

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"So little pains do the vulgar take in the investigation of truth, accepting readily the first story that comes to hand." Thucydides 1.20.3

Bigfella

Without defined criteria it is a trifle hard to establish what a 'good' defensive commander is (or was).

For my 2 cents I'll throw in de Lattre de Tassigny in the first Indochina War for his brilliant defence of the Red River Delta and Le Minh Dao for his defence of Xuan Loc in the dying days of the 2nd Indochina War. I'm sure there are plenty of others at least as well qualified.

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Win nervously lose tragically - Reds C C

zraver

Kesselring in Italy comes to mind as well. Classic use of terrain to even the odds vs a numerically superior foe. Brigadier Sir Robert Sale at the siege of Jellabad in the First Afghan War, Julius Caesar at Alesia, Vatutin who danced around Mainstein and crushed Hitler's hopes with the death of the 6th Army at Stalingrad and the strategic defeat he handed the Germans at Kursk. There are also other generals who uses the offense defensively like Patton at Kasserine and the Bulge, Grant's defense of the Union. Czar Alexander I's retreat before the Grand Armee....

Although if we have to pick just one man, and award just one crown based on earth shattering importance to the future of humanity. I think the award must go to either Grant, Alexander I or Arthur Wellesley for his escapades in Spain and Portugual.

Joachim Boaz

Well the replies put your comment where it belongs.. There is something in my eye.
Read the WAB? I WRITE wabs. Or cannot you understand what overclocking a westinghouse LWR is. [naval thread]
Do you know what an LWR is? Nimitz has 2 ,. yes 2.. and not in the rec room.
They make the ship go forward... Even jarhead should get that. professional what.. jarhead?
Get a grip on your pucker factor marine...As they say this is the USN, there are no WRONG HOLES
My profession is a consulting stochastic statistician. As you will need google to find out what that is..
Who is the turkey in sgt yorks sights?
I can say this because if i HAD of gone to duntroon.. [not if, i already passed the grades]
I would now be at least a bird colonel or higher. Just for data/intel work alone
You know it , i know it.
But i went civ and now am worth several mil... thats life

Boaz
wow that was a good bitch session even for me

Joachim Boaz

True

Why you think i post such an outrageous comment... To get replies.
To get exactly the sort of unbiased reply you have given.
This is called intelligent people talking. Tho i question the kursk refference. The soviets knew the german battleplan better tan the germans..lol
All the 'scholars' will tip back in their nice chairs.. the soldiers will think,
Heinrici blunted several huge soviet attacks at the seelow heights.
Outnumbered 15-1 in tanks and nearly as tragic in other arms.. he held.. no panic... THAT is what i speak of.

Boaz

Heres a good one
Monty won at el alamein with only 6-1 superiority in numbers.
Befits his skill... I agree [to a point,, lol you cant pin me down. im a slippery MF'r]

Joachim Boaz

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotthard_Heinrici
From wiki
On 16 April, the first stage of the Battle of Berlin, the Battle of the Oder-Neisse, began. Combined, the Soviets attacked with over 1,500,000 men for what they called the "Berlin Offensive Operation". In the early morning of 18 April, Zhukov's front crossed the Oder and assaulted Heinrici's positions on the western bank. Simultaneously, Konev's front attacked Field Marshal Ferdinand Schörner's Army Group Center further south. By 19 April, the Soviets had broken through and the Battle of the Oder-Neisse was over. Now began the second stage of the Battle of Berlin, the battle for the city itself.

Sounds like a big failure
those few days in april cost the soviets
Um die bevorstehende Offensive der Sowjets direkt abfangen zu können, fehlten Heinrici die Möglichkeiten. Also nahm er seine Truppen in der Nacht vor dem (richtig) angenommenen Angriffsbeginn eigenmächtig zurück und gab die vordersten Frontstellungen auf. Als am Morgen des 16.04.45 über 20.000(!) russische Geschütze aller Kaliber diese Stellungen mit mörderischem Trommelfeuer belegten, verloren die deutschen Truppen keinen Mann - die nachfolgenden sowjetischen Infanterieverbände stießen ins Leere und gerieten entlang der neu aufgebauten Verteidigungsstellungen auf den Seelower Höhen in verlustreiches Abwehrfeuer! Erst nach drei Tagen konnten sie Heinricis Truppen von den Höhen vertreiben und die Offensive gegen Berlin beginnen. Wenig später brach die Rote Armee bei Eberswalde bzw. Fürstenwalde durch die Linien der sich tapfer wehrenden 9. Armee und begann mit der Einkesselung der Reichshauptstadt. Die Angriffskeile trafen sich westlich von Berlin - im Kessel standen etwa 100.000 Mann unter Schwerterträger General der Artillerie Weidling.

And over 500 tanks
The~of 2 entire tank divisions lost to At placement under sighted fire of 10000 artillery pieces, This was the true day of the 88. They took soviet armor like cherries at 2000+ meters.. near as good as abrams in iraq.
with nothing but optics.
His real skill was the quiet confidence of the engineer.. All saw he would in these last days as everyone knew they were.
Bring woe appon the enemy with minimised casualties to the defenders. Superlatve in elastic defence.
The soviets bled hard facing a foe 25% there size...

Boaz

Gun Grape

Just offering a little advice on how to be a member in good standing on the WAB (World Affairs Board).

By reading your reaction, I see you decided not to take it. Doubt you will be around long.

Parihaka

Go away child

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There's only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences.

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Parihaka

That would be right

Officer of Engineers

Horse puckey! No one makes rank writing the way you write. You'll flunk as a Cadet long before you get a commission.

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Chimo

zraver

First off you really should read the WAB survival guide, as the principle author of it, it was written to allow newbies a better chance of sticking around longer. This place bans quick and comments like the one that opened this thread are quick paths to bans. The rank you might have recieved, the money you might be worth and the stuff you might write won't amount to a hill of beans here if you attitude gets you banned.

You claim you would have made bird colonel based off of your analysis work. Excuse me but I am not following you. First is of course telling Gun Grape off, there were several clues in his post and you missed all of them. Secondly is your blind assertion about Heinrici, again several clues and you missed all of them.

Gun Grape, has blue military professional on his name, high post count, long standing member, said go read the WAB survival guide. Now there might be other things called wabs, but W (world) A (affairs) B (board) survival guide seems to be the top contender here on this site. You didn't cue on any of it.

Now on to your pet general,Heinrici failed, he had no measurable impact on the war and could not keep the Soviets out of Berlin. At the end of the day the judgment must be based on success. For example, Kesselring completely borked Churchill's plans and so we can say he had an impact on the course of the war. Other commanders changed the course of history for the entire planet. Winning a single battles numbers but losing the objective does not a great commander make.

I listed several great captains including those who I think are the best. yet they apparently didn't enter into your consideration and should have for obvious reasons.

Your not off to a good start.

zraver

oops, stopping mid post to walk the dogs and I missed getting in before the hammer.