Spartan JKM
09-15-2007, 22:30
Hello everyone.
I had a lot of fun, my primary aim, in compiling my own 'military leaders list', which I constantly revise thanks to the contributions and suggestions of other posters, whom I thank. There really is no such veritable title as the 'greatest commander of all time'; it's akin to assessing what the best doughnut is, or which mountain range is the most breathtaking. But it's fun to make a list, and enjoy the debates.
I would like to stress that I am merely an amateur, and my knowledge of military history is much more thorough with the history of war in the West, so I apologize in advance if anyone feels I am too western-centric in my rankings, and/or if certain greats from the East are understated. I have done my best, and many should add to the list etc., as well as suggest changes of all sorts to this piece of subjective work.
War is not something to be happy about, but it is a powerful reality of history. Messiahs, diplomats, intellectuals, and philosophers have contributed to the twists and turns of history every bit as much as military leaders, but they have flourished only when protected by those very military leaders who could ensure the survival of their way of life. For the most part, the most significant and affecting leaders in world history have come not from the church, the governments, or the scholastic centers, but from the ranks of soldiers and sailors.
Perhaps a list of great (and not so great) could be broken up into two major TIERS - before gunpowder, which would comprise all the commanders before the 1420s or so, and after gunpowder. However, it can be argued that firepower was more a moral factor in affecting the conditions on the battlefield than a material one. But what difference does it make, if the commander utilizing such a condition brings victory?
Gunpowder did indeed exist in China as early as the 9th century or earlier (potassium nitrate, the primary oxidising component of black powder gunpowder, was extant as early as the 1st century A.D.), but it was used almost exclusively for pyrotechnics. The knowledge and technology of gunpowder was transmitted to Europe via the Middle East. The first known use of fire-lances, indeed occuring in China, became prevalent during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The Arabs produced the first known working gun in the early 14th century - the madfaa. The French improved upon this cannon, which the Moors utilized, with the pot-de-fur. Gunpowder became instrumental in warfare in the late 14th century but it was not generally adapted to civil purposes until the 17th century, when it began to be used in mining. When Henry V's artillery battered down the formidable fortress of Harfleur in 1415, at which 12 guns were a part of his siege-train, the era of impregnable fortresses seemingly ended. But it was at Constantinople, in 1453, where Muhammed II's massive bombards demonstrated the first substantial display of the potential of artillery power. The Hussites, under the brilliant Jan Zizka and Andrew Procop, showed what gunpowder could do on the battlefield if employed with bold imagination (they still thrived with their crossbows); they employed siege guns mounted on wheels (the Wagenburg), giving them an advantage of fortified mobility. Moreover, their asset of artillery effectuated an orderly retreat if surprised, as they could break through the enemy's lines when before a force would be doomed. This happened in 1419 in western Bohemia, at Nekmir (near Pilsen). Guns mounted on wheeled carriages became more prevalent in the mid-15th century, mainly with ordinances of Charles VIII of France, whose campaign in Italy in the 1490s was emblematic of mobile gunnery with guns designed for easy transportation in an improved siege train.
One Bartolomeo Colleoni is credited by some with being the first captain to implement a true field artillery tactic, perhaps amid the wars in Lombardy; apparently, he positioned his 'light' guns in the rear of his other army units and fired at the enemy through gaps provided at a given signal. Colleoni, in my opinion, may be one of those figures who layed down crude precedents for future greats to thrive from. Another example is Henri IV, the dashing cavalry expert of the Hugeunots, whose tacics of interspersed infantry and cavalry in the French Wars of Religion were paving the way for combined-arms working together.
In the mid-16th century, Charles V of Spain, Henry II of France, and Henry VIII of England took keen interests to improve artillery, issuing edicts to standardize and improve cannons. But the science of ballistics came out of Italy, with the ingenious works of the mathemitician Niccolo Tartaglia. But 'moblile field artillery' in the pre-Gustavian time simply meant the hauling of guns onto a field and, in a stationary position, used to fire on enemy formations. In the Thirty Years War, after survivng a slogfesting apprenticeship in Polish Prussia in the 1620s, Gustavus' regimental 3-lb field gun marked the first permanent allotment of artillery to infantry units. By the next century, Marlborough used batteries of guns for close support, then Frederick the Great (one of the mercurial military geniuses whom I find fascinating), went beyond preliminary bombardments with his heavier guns, implementing horse artillery as a mobile reserve, which allowed him to occupy high positions to deliver blasting openings upon the enemy formations. A little earlier in the Near and Middle East, the great Nader Shah dominated his opponents with superior arms of gunfire, including camel-gunners (as well as his superior generalship).
In 1503, Don Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, El Gran Capitan, and perhaps the father of 'trench warfare' (in a modern sense with gunfire), occupied the heights at Cerignola (Apulia, Italy) with his Coronelias (the seed of the famed tercios), and defeated the much larger French army of cavalry and pikemen; it was the dawn of the firarm. The French commander here, Louis d'Armagnac, was probably the first commander to be killed by enemy firearms in battle.
Like all military doctrine, this was all evolutionary, and many engineers etc. improved upon their predecessors' trials and errors. Forgive me if I deviated off subject of the leaders themselves, but geography and technology greatly affected the nature of command. Moreover, there's much a more thorough expert would certainly tell me I overlooked etc.
The Dutch under Mauritz (Maurice) van Nassau developed an excellent system of drill to train soldiers amid their war against the might of Spain, and it was the great Gustavus Adolphus, enjoying the support of both the commons and government of Sweden, who innovated every branch of his national army (and of the finest mercenaries) to render his forces superior to anything his enemies could counter him with; discipline was supreme throughout his soldiers, even his mercenaries, and his engineers developed regimental pieces which revolutionized field artillery. Gustavus synthesized existing practices into a coherent tactical method of combined arms never fully seen before: the co-existence of his flexible reformed infantry (mobility over weight), cavalry (the caracole tactic replaced by pistol fire followed by shock action with cold steel), both disposed in smaller units, and field artillery ushered in a new age of warfare. There were limits though, as the vaunted Wallenstein showed a patient strategy of attrition will neagte much of the mobile aggressiveness of an opponent. But Gustavus' men, following his death in battle, still drove him from the field in a slogging and bloody day at Lutzen, in November of 1632, and the reformed tercios of the vaunted Spaniards, assisting immeasurably at Nordlingen in 1634, still showed that modified traditional practices could win over the new ones with superior organization.
Moreover, a vast list could be piecemealed under specifics: strategic, tactical, operational, revolutionary, guerilla and artillery leaders etc. How much credit do monarchs merit in certain campaigns? Edward III and Henry V, 2 superb Medieval warrior-kings, surely deserve most of the credit for the tactical brilliance of their campaigns (though the lon-term strategic gains were slight). Was Shih Huang-ti a military commander? Augustus? Elizabeth I? Maybe, but probably not. Philip II of Spain, Otto von Bismarck, and Josef Stalin? I don't think so, in my opinion (this is arguable).
But I think I will bunch it together; the circumstances of war may never be repeated, but the essence of major tactics and strategy have not changed. It is the methods of their applications, due to the changes in technology, that have altered. Thus we can indeed compare the ancient commanders with the modern ones (IMHO) from this point of view. It must be understood, however, that modern commanders did not directly lead into action (modern meaning since, let's say, the time of Napoleon, and I mean this very broadly); they directed affairs from far away, and direct leadership was delegated to not just senior officers, but the junior ones. Thus tactical prowess was more significant in ancient and medieval times. Moreover, commanders who possessed autocratic power, such as Alexander, answered to no government or other ruler, which certainly facilitated his situation for conquest, in terms of decision-making. What if a Barcid had been the absolute ruler of Carthage? He merely could have ordered supplies and troops to be sent to Hannibal in southern Italy, something that proved could be effected (though only in detachments) soon after his devastating victory at Cannae, which cracked the solidarity of Rome's federation. The pressure might have been too much for the Rome, whose sound body-politic was the overall reason for her ultimate triumph in the titanic struggle against Hannibal. We'll never know.
So, what makes a great general? Many things, of course, and no man is infallible. Adaptation? Improvisation? Panache? Implementing sound policy (a morale objective) etc.? Magnanimity in winning over allies? Non-hesitation? Flexibility? Decisiveness? Exerting discipline and iron will into his troops? Possessing the balance of the skillful execution of strategy and tactics? When not to be rash? Knowing not only what to do, but what not to do? A political understanding to support one's war? Luck? Advancing one's state's cause for many generations to come? All great ideas are simple (at least to a genius). Perhaps the biggest, if one is most paramount, attribute to a great commander is his ability to identify a 'simple' solution to victory before his opponent in battle. Logistically, exploiting the terrain and weather is invaluable. The greats had them all. B.H. Liddell Hart, the renowned theorist (among many things he was), says the most important quality is to strike at an opponents' Achilles Heel. But one must find that weak point. A good soldier will conceal his weak point the best he can. For the most part, the great generals possessed the vision to identify the obvious and most viable situation to victory than his opponent.
With all things considered, such as the synthesized innovations (or improved reforms) of Epaminondas and Gustavus Adolphus (appropriately Gustaf II, or Gustav II, of Sweden), the tactical brilliance of Hannibal and Narses, the scope of the conquests of Chinggis Khan (he had others to directly carry out many of the conquests), the overall greatness in every facet of war of Marlborough (he benefited greatly from Eugene) etc., I consider Alexander the Great to be the towering figure of military history. His ability to successfully adapt strategy and tactics to virtually every branch of warfare sets him apart from every other great commander. He took his army some 20,000 miles in thirteen years, not once suffering a major setback (the action at the Persian Gates was very ominous for him, though), let alone a defeat. His opponent always chose the battlefield and ususally heavily outnumbered him. For what it merits, no other has successfully 'linked' the East and West, thus he was an immense cultural reformer, which is what he wanted to do. He indeed commanded an army much superior than what he faced, but he was outnumbered considerably and his battle dispositions at Gaugamela were perfectly planned to accord with what Napoleon described as 'a well reasoned and extremely circumspect defensive followed by rapid and audacious attack'. Besides, the advantage of a superior force is merely potential. It is the commander that must effectively utilize what he/she has and lead it to victory. In this regard, Alexander shined as well as any other in military history (IMHO of course). Alexander took what he wanted when he wanted, could be conciliatory if it was suitable for his needs, and his deeds, in the long run, were all about his intoxication for supreme power - something which never comes without cost. But amid that endeavor of power, he was also far-seeing in what many Greeks weren't, or simply didn't care to be: despite elements of megolamania on his part, he possessed a vision which Rome later conformed towards - a policy of bridging the gap between 'us' and 'them' entailing a knitting of appeasement. He treated his 'subjects', on whole, as allies and friends, and was attempting to 'Hellenize' the eastern peoples, something many of them (seemingly) hardly scoffed at. But it also involved his proposed (or insisted) practice of Proskynesis. This was fine with the Asiatic peoples, who submitted to people of higher rank with god-like reverance, but not to Greeks, who belived such an act was for the gods only; this cost him the respect of his fellow Hellenes, and his empire wasn't sustained only in fragments by his bickering successors, and only for some five decades.
But in conjunction for all Alexander's divine and adventurous quests for power and glory, there was a strategic end to all his actions. In Egypt, for example, he endeavored to Siwa for symbolic and personal reasons of deification, but he secured important sea communications throughout the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean, which stimulated economic interaction in his realm from the home base to Egypt (ie, he now controlled a primary source of grain).
The venerable Chandragupta, founder of the Mauryan Empire and considered perhaps the first 'emperor' of a unified India (perspective, of course), solidly kicked the Macedonian satrapies out of NW India following Alexander's death, and overcame the Nanda realm of the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent; subsequently, Selecus I, politically and perhaps militarily overcome by Chandragupta, acquiesced much territory to Chandragupta (a matrimonial contract was also involved), who in turn provided Selucus with some 500 war elephants, the asset which greatly helped in his victory, along with Lysimachus, at the ultra-decisive Battle of Ipsus in 301 B.C., which saw the defeat and death of Antigonus I; this resulted in not a re-unification of Macedonain power, but its break-up.
The military machine left to Alexander from his father Philip II was the world's first standing army (probably after the armies of ancient Sumer and Akkad), raised by the world's first universal military service. Philip also established the base of power for Alexander's great conquest (the League of Corinth). But Philip's son took his machine and succeeded, perhaps, beyond the Macedonian king's wildest dreams. A brilliantly constructed army is just potential; it is the commander that must lead it to victory, and advantages in troop quality and technology only produce advantages if used effectively. Alexander innovated the efficacy of combined arms to a much higher scope than his great father did (though there is nothing to indicate Philip could not have done so, had he lived). He also introduced the use of reserves on the battlefield that could take advantage of any unforeseen opportunities or reverses against the front lines. Moreover, he was the first great commander to use catapults tactically on the battlefield (it may have actually been Onomarchus, the Phocian leader, who first used non-torsion battlefield catapults against Alexander's father, but seemingly in a well-conceived ambush in 353 B.C.), and successfully undertook a counter-insurgency in the lands of Bactria and Sogdiana, where a nationalistic movement sprung up against him. In the Balkans, Alexander lined the machines hub-to-hub along the bank of the Apsus River to cover the crossing of his withdrawing troops against the attacks upon him by the Illyrian tribes under Cleitus and Glaucius. Contrarily, more than 2,000 miles away and six years later in 329 B.C., he effectively used catapults to drive the Scythians from the riverbank of the Jaxartes as he conducted an amphibious assault against them, and then created a sophisticated situation by which their steppe-style tactics were neutralized: under a brilliant commander, a brilliant instrument of combined arms could indeed defeat the best steppe horse archers at the time. There has perhaps been no greater practitioner of a great system than Alexander.
Hannibal, Scipio Africanus, Chinggis Khan, Subotai, and Napoleon, among many others, were certainly comparable in thier great martial works; Hannibal and Scipio implemented fine use of offensive reserves in their great victories, and the first 'true' reserve deployed on the battlefield may have been Hannibal's retention of his third line at the Battle of Zama. Hannibal also seemingly achieved military history's first great turning movement, which led to the splitting of two Roman armies and the smashing ambush of one of them at Lake Trasimene, in June of 217 B.C. In a wider strategic manner, Napoleon's Ulm Campaign in October of 1805 was a supreme example of such military doctrine.
Heinz Guderian was probably the greatest exponent of 'Blitzkrieg' at the start of WWII, which proved incredibly effective, at least initially. George Patton was a master of mobility and of armored warfare towards the end of WWII, albeit more in theory than practice.
When on top of his game, Napoleon was as impressive as any other commander in history. But his colossal ambition was ultimately beyond his, or any man's, reach. When he commanded relatively smaller armies, he was simply awesome, even in his later career. It seems he denied being a greedy conqueror who was merely intoxicated with power; he argued that he was building a federation of 'free states' in Europe, to be united under a liberal government under the aegis of France. But if this was his goal, he clearly went about it by taking power in his own hands. However, in the 'states' he created, Napoleon granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, created efficient governments and fostered education, science, literature and the arts. But the last few years of his career saw his derriere handed to him. But it reached a point where his hands were extended to the moon, and he was extant in a time when no Alexander could completely thrive. Adolf Hitler, hardly in Napoleon's league, would also learn the world was too big to have. Man cannot be God. But like Cannae, Austerlitz was a lesson in the art of war. Whether one admires him, is indifferent about him, or hates him, Napoleon Bonaparte was a genius.
Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan) was born in a tent and began with practically less than nothing; he rose to impacted the world greatly. Many think of him in connection with 'apocalyptic slaughter' etc., but he was a leader of his harsh times. I believe the truth of him is he was a visionary leader, whose policies incuded appeasement, and whose conquests joined a comparitively backward Europe with the flourishing cultures of Asia to trigger a global awakening, which resulted in an unprecedented explosion of technologies, trade, and ideas, all filtered via the Silk Road. He was as great a civil administrator as he was an organizer of arms, which was limited to cavalry and corps of engineers. Infantry was hardly ever used, which would not only hinder the Mongols' need for extreme celerity, but for the reason that a nomad fighter without a horse was unthinkable. Chinggis was also as adept as any commander in history at psychological warfare; many of his enemies were subdued without a shot being fired against them. He surpasses Alexander in the manner he organized his empire, and his command structure was based on ability, not any bloodline (even his own). That is the mark of a brilliant commander. His great general, or orlok, Subedei, was perhaps history's greatest grand strategist, as he effectively used armies to screen others' flanks, thus co-ordinating multiple armies across multiple mountain ranges etc. In 1220, traversing hundreds of miles of reputedly impassable desert, Chinggis and four armies (tumans) turned Muhammed II of Khwarez's entire line and severed the shah from his western domains, as part of the expeditionary force debouched south through the Kyzyl Kum ('Red Sand Desert') upon the enemy's rear, while Jebe distracted the enemy's attention to his forces on the eastern flank of the shah's center of power between Bukhara and Samarkand. The entire operation was a paradigm of strategic reconnaisance and surprise upon the rear of an enemy's position (not just that of an army, but an an entire region of the enemy's power!).
Though Alexander's empire did not endure as Rome's did or was as vast as that of the Mongols, his legacy probably outlasts any other military figure, other than perhaps the Prophet Mohammed (and maybe Constantine I), and his work was one of near cosmogony. He was a genius. He was a madman. He was a visionary. He was a mass-murderer. He was a liberator. He was intoxicated with power. He was chivalrous when not opposed. Was he all of these? Was he any of these? Militarily, he could smash his enemy. Diplomatically, he could win over numerous peoples with his panache. Scipio Africanus, probably Rome's greatest field commander, also succeeded with these great attributes. It is probable he couldn't have known at the time the extent of his immenince, but the fact we speak of him today in the manner in which we do means he got exactly what he wanted.
"If anyone has the right to be judged by the standards of his time, and not by the standards of our time, it is Alexander".
-Hermann Bengtson
Judged as an exponent in the art of stratagem, and as a field general who sustained his army in enemy territory so adeptly, with his Roman enemy assiduously dogging him once they found his tactical measure, and with but grudging material support from his own state, who could have sent him more troops and supplies from 215-208 B.C. from Africa or even Sicily (Syracuse had revolted from Roman rule, and Carthage held the southern coast fro some a few years), Hannibal may have no equal. His great campaign against Republican Rome was the significant first in which strategic actions played the pivotal role (attrition, indirect approaches etc.), finally resulting in Rome's victory. Rome adapted brilliantly, and won with his applied concept, basically of attempting to politically break an opposing state by detaching her protectorates. Moreover, their corporate heroism and sound body-politic ultimately matched his genius. Hannibal showed the Romans the value of security on the march, administered military history's first great turning movement in the actions leading to the smashing ambuscade at Lake Trasimene in 217 B.C., and provided the posterity of warfare with a textbook display of tactical perfection in the great battle at Cannae in 216 B.C. He did ultimately fail, but mostly because of circumstances and events which were simply out of his control. Rome won both Sicily and Sardinia quite by good luck and chance. He was simply fantastic, and understood fully that policy is what it took to win the nature of the war he undertook. He must be held responsible as the strategos of Carthage, but his subordinates in Iberia and Sicily failed miserably. Carthaginian folly, particularly in Iberia, was more responsible for his ultimate failure than any major mistakes on his part. His grand strategy to overcome Rome, once they didn't play by traditional ruled after Cannae, was dependent on an encirclement of Italy from his allies in Greece, Sicily, Africa, and Iberia, and then to comple the allies of Rome to forsake the great mother-city; by 208-207 B.C., they were indeed quite temeperamental. Rome simply checked or defeated Carthage's allies where Hannibal wasn't present, and the Carthaginians proved not to be the determined martial nation-state Rome was, willing to sacrifice more than come to the table. Given time under peril, Rome produced great men who adapted and implemeted away from Rome's traditional ways in a certain time of need: Scipio Africanus was such a man.
Chinese warlords of the steppes of Asia, such as Maodun (Mete Han) (late 3rd century to early 2nd century B.C.) and Ran Min (mid 4th century A.D.), carried out devastating campaigns of destruction with their indefatigable armies of horsemen. Cao Cao, a warlord who had been an important member of the previous Han Dynasty, had first established his power in northern China by defeating his rival, Yuan Shao, in the Battle of Guandu in 200 A.D. This made Cao Cao the most powerful ruler in northern China. Records seeem a little exiguous within the Three Kingdoms era, but in this battle, Cao Cao was outnumbered significantly. Wanyan Min, or Wanyan Aguda, the great Jurchen leader and founder of the Jin Dynasty, defeated 700,000 Liao (Qidan) troops with 20,000 (this is not a typo) of his superbly armored and skilled Jurchen cavalrymen at the Battle of Hubudagang in 1115. The Liao Dynasty by this time was very decadent, but those odds are ridiculous! The following year, Aguda completed the conquest of the entire Liaodong Peninsula (northeastern China). Between 1119 and 1122, Aguda's army repeatedly defeated Liao armies and captured all of Liao's five capitals. The Mongols destroyed the Jin in 1234. By this time, however, the Jin was seriously weakened by internal strife.
Gideon was one of the first great military craftsmen we can trace details to; in his famous attack upon the Midianites in the Plain of Esdraelon (Jezreel Valley) around 1200 B.C. It seems Gideon layed down precedents of a professional force, staff work, reconnaisance, a night attack, skillful use of deception and ruse, pursuit following victory, and knowing capabilies and limitations etc.
Xenophon was the originator, perhaps, of the rearguard action, exemplified in his legendary and disciplined retreat back home with the '10,000', in 401 B.C. following the defeat of his employer Cyrus the Younger.
Julius Caesar was untouchable (being assassinated notwithstanding). He was both a man of the people and a demagogue. As a conqueror, reformer, and politician, Caesar stands out as one of the giants of all time (for better or worse). His genius in other affairs of politics and administration etc. was probably as versatile as any other commander in history, even taking into consideration that history has seemingly made him larger than life (he was also probably the greatest of all generals on writing memoirs). But judged by his battlefield conduct, he seemingly can rank as one of the best ever, but certainly not without controversy.
Some were the best in the forest, some on sand, some at sea, some in the snow, some in the jungle, some on the beach, and some in city-fights; those like Alexander excelled almost in every branch, thus from this criterion, he seems to come out on top. But again, only if one must be chosen for teh fun of a debate of 'greatest general'. In more pedantic reality, there is no such thing.
I have categorized my compilation into three TIERS.
TIER 1 - The very best generals in military history. I have added in parantheses each commander's great military victory. This gets difficult; I am steadfast about the top 4, but how can one discern that Marlborough was indisputably better than Gustavus Adolphus?. It comes down to our own subjective preferences. Remeber, too, history is written by the winners.
Furthermore, the captains we discuss can only do things under the cards that were dealt. Frederick the Great's tactical conduct amid interior lines was astounding, but the circumstances couldn't avoid setbacks: facing a coalition that practically encompassed Prussia, he and his great subordinates would swiftly maneuver their disciplined army into positions and blast them positions with tremendous firepower (points achieved due to an innovation of horse artillery), and achieve flank attacks upon their numerically superior foes. This could be stupendously impressive, but also result in defeats, as commanders like Daun could adapt to a genius.
The quality of one's work is a little more important than the breadth (who am I to judge the 'quality', right?). This doesn't necessarily mean final victory for one's cause. For example, Epaminondas and Philip II of Macedon won just 3 major victories between them, smashing ones, which displayed tactical innovation. But it seems to me they were military geniuses above others who may have conquered more people and territory, such as Tamerlane and Hernan Cortes. Moreover, one can be superior to another without necessarily being the more innovative.
TIER 2 - The next level. These commanders could very well have possessed genius on par with the TIER 1 leaders, but something, from my view, precludes them from being ranked with the others. For example, Tamerlane, an amazing leader, was no fool, but basically a conqueror on a massive scale with no political foresight. He simply conquered, not settled; but that doesn't militate against his skill as a commander. Maybe indiscriminate conquest is all it takes to be considered a great military leader, particularly if that was one's goal (though Tamerlane clearly appreciated culture). I guess one might argue with "who cares?"; the breadth of Tamerlane's conquests rival that of Chinggis Khan and his successors. Superfluous to say, this is all debatable. I may have shown a little too much impressionability for the Christian Crusaders, who have been the subject of much romanticism. Let me know what you think. Needless to say, I feel the expected debates should not be contentious (at the risk of sounding like a moderator), but academic.
TIER 3 - These commanders, in some form or another, warrant attention more positively than negatively. I may have underrated some, such as Attila, Edward I, and Nathan Forrest, and the likes of Crassus and McClellan were moderate commanders at best. I include 'bandits', revolutionists, and operational commanders. I realize TIER 3 may be too broad, and many more could easily be included (and excluded) - ie, any commander who won a battle of some sort. Perhaps there should be a 4th? A 5th?
I do not include many monarchs, emperors, or presidents, such as Elizabeth I, Queen of England or Abraham Lincoln, as they cannot be given credit for the military successes, in battle, of their nation's armies. That credit goes to their subordinates. They certainly merit credit (or accountability) for their influence upon human history. However, I included the likes of Georges Clemenceau and Gustav III of Sweden, as they seemed to direct their war efforts more directly. But it's debatable, and there are many that may 'fit in' to that criteria I overlooked (forgive me in advance).
Despite what many probably feel, Adolf Hitler was a student of military history, and the supreme commander of one of the greatest military forces ever developed. Despite his failings and ideological perfidy, he was at times an enterprising commander, not to mention entirely Frederician in military outlook. His faith in fanaticism was not always completely misplaced, in terms of military success. But he barely makes this list, thus I am aware how incomprehensibly unrealistic he did become as WWII dragged on.
I hope I haven't expounded too much. By all means, I would love approvals, reprovals and suggestions etc., etc. Remember, this is all my opinion, and I am just an avocational amateur. This list is one of military leaders, not inclusive of great thinkers or engineeres, such as Alfred Mahan or Jean Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval. Sun Tzu was actually a general, but Carl von Clausewitz, though a fine soldier, did not hold a position of higher command. But Archimedes directly led the defense of Syracuse against the Romans with his brilliant machines (though he wasn't really a military commander). By all means, I would love approvals, reprovals, and suggestions etc., etc.
I don't think ancient commanders were better artists of war per se, but it seems the great commanders of way back displayed more overall direction of operations etc., thus most of the vaster variables of strategy and tactics in later times were drawn from the perceptiveness of great military leadership of fewer individuals of antiquity which history has written more about, than many great leaders of modern conflicts who won with many contributions to the evolution of strategy and tactics. For example, I don't think Alexander could have possessed a superior understanding in the art of war than the Austrain commander Radetzky of the mid 18th century. I feel we must mostly gauge by the actions. But it's not that simple, and I may be a sucker for romanticism!
One more thing: because a commander left a 'legacy' that shaped history because of his military success is not necessarily an important criterion to adopt. There is no way William the Conqueror, Francisco Pizarro, and Julius Caesar, to name a few, could have known their successes were going to affect Western civilization to the degree they did. I judge a commander by his/her actions, both on and off the battlefield, more than any enduring legacy left behind by a leader.
TIER 1
This is my 'top 10' list (16, actually).
Alexander III King of Macedon 'the Great' ('Megas Alexandros') (Gaugamela, 331 B.C.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/a/a2/180px-AlexanderTheGreat_Bust.jpg
Hannibal (Hannibal Barca) (Cannae, 216 B.C.)
http://alainhubler.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/bust_of_hannibal.jpg
Napoleon I (Napoleone Buonaparte) Emperor of France (Austerlitz, 1805 A.D.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en-commons/thumb/2/22/240px-Napoleon_Bonaparte.jpg
Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan, b. Temujin Baghatur) Mongol Conqueror 'Universal Ruler' (Indus River, 1221 A.D.)
http://www.s9.com/images/portraits/11096_Genghis-Khan.jpg
Publius Cornelius Scipio Scipio Africanus Major (Ilipa, 206 B.C.)
http://www.the-romans.co.uk/gallery2/full/republic08.jpg
John Churchill 1st Duke of Marlborough 'Corporal John' (Blenheim, 1704 A.D.)
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/mss/online/biographies/images/churchill-duke1-marlborough.jpg
Gustav II Adolf (Gustavus Adolphus) King of Sweden 'the Lion of the North' (Breitenfeld, 1631 A.D.)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/Gustav_II_Adolf_by_Merian.jpg/200px-Gustav_II_Adolf_by_Merian.jpg
Arthur Wellesley 1st Duke of Wellington 'the Iron Duke' (Salamanca, 1812 A.D.)
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40877000/jpg/_40877773_wellington220.jpg
Subu'atai (Subutai, Subedei etc.) the Valiant (Kalka River, 1223 A.D.)
http://www.hexagonal.net/anachronism/img/art/anachronism_art_112.jpg
Gaius Julius Caesar (Pharsalus, 48 B.C.)
http://www.incwell.com/Biographies/Caesar,Julius.jpg
Belisarius (Flavius Belisarius) (Daraa, 530 A.D.)
https://img125.imageshack.us/img125/3014/belisarius1rq.jpghttp://www.dialogus2.org/IMAGES/belisaire.jpg
Han Xin (Jingxing, 205 B.C.)
https://img20.imageshack.us/img20/4839/hanxin8ay.th.jpg
Frederick II King of Prussia 'the Great' (Leuthen, 1757 A.D.)
http://strangevistas.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/fryderyk_2.jpg
Epaminondas (Leuctra, 371 B.C.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/9/93/280px-Epaminond.mors.jpg
Jan III Sobieski (John) King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (Vienna, 1683)
http://www.nyc24.org/2002/issue01/story02/images/sobieski.jpg
Philip II King of Macedon (Chaeronea, 338 B.C.)
http://www.alanfildes.com/images/philipmacedon.jpg
Timur-i Leng Turco-Mongol Conqueror (Barlas tribe) 'Tamerlane' (Ankara, 1402 A.D.)
http://www.geocities.com/go_darkness/god-timur.jpg
Khalid ibn al-Walid the Drawn Sword of Allah (Yarmuk River, 636 A.D.)
http://www.snrt.ma/photo/473130-579035.jpg
Probably the greatest admirals:
Themistocles (Salamis, 480 B.C.)
http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Portraits/Art/Themistocles.jpg
Yi Sun-shin (Yi Soon-shin) (Myeongnyang, 1597 A.D.)
http://medieval2.heavengames.com/m2tw/history/historical_figures_folder/admiral_yi_sun-shin/yss2.jpg
Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (Texel 1673, A.D.)
http://educatie.coevordenmuseum.nl/picture_library/MichieldeRuyter.jpg
Horatio Nelson Viscount Nelson (Trafalgar, 1805 A.D)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/2/26/270px-Nelson1.jpg
Chester Nimitz (Midway, 1942 A.D.)
http://www.thc.state.tx.us/images/museums/musnimitz_clip_image002.jpg
TIER 2
These commanders are the next level. I do not rank these; they are listed chronologically by their deaths.
Tuthmose III (Thutmosis or Tuthmosis) Egyptian Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty
Cyrus Achaemenid King of Persia 'the Great'
Seleucus I Diadochi and Seleucid Founder 'Nicator'
Pyrrhus Molossian King of Epirus
Gaius Marius
Trajan (Marcus Ulpius Trajanus) Roman Emperor 'Optimus Princeps'
Cao Cao (Cao Mengde) Emperor of the Later (Eastern) Han Dynasty and King of Wei
Aurelian (Lucius Domitius Aurelianus) Roman Emperor 'Restitutor Orbis'
Constantine I (Flavius Valerius Constantinus) Roman Emperor 'the Great'
Narses (Narseus)
Heraclius (Flavius Heraclius Augustus) Byzantine Emperor
Charles Martel (Carolus Martellus) Frankish Mayor of the Palace 'the Hammer'
Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus, Charles I) King of the Franks 'the Great'
Alfred King of Wessex 'the Great'
Wanyan Aguda Jurchen Chieftain and Jin Founder 'Taizu'
Yue Fei
Saladin (Salah al-Din Yusuf bin Ayyub) Kurdish Muslim Leader
Richard I King of England 'Coeur de Lion'
Tran Hung Dao (Hung Dao Dai Vuong)
Edward III King of England
Henry V King of England
Jan Zizka
Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba Prince of Maratra 'El Gran Capitan'
Selim I Ottoman Sultan 'the Grim'
Babur (Zahiruddin Muhammed Babur) Moghul Founder 'the Tiger'
Sulayman I (Suleiman) Ottoman Sultan 'the Magnificent', or 'Kanuni'
Takeda Shingen (Katsuchiyo) Japanese Daimyo 'the Tiger of Kai'
Oda Nobunaga Japanese Daimyo
Jan Karol Chodkiewicz Grand Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Stanislaw Koniecpolski Grand Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Mauritz van Nassau (Maurice of Nassau) Prince of Orange
Ambrogio Spinola Marques de Balbases
Albrecht von Wallenstein (Albrecht Vaclav Eusebius z Valdstejna) Duke of Friedland and Mecklenburg
Oliver Cromwell Lord Protector of the Commonwealth
Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne Vicomte de Turenne
Louis II de Bourbon Duc d'Enghien and Prince de Conde 'the Great Conde'
Karl XII (Charles) King of Sweden
Eugene Prinz Francois-Eugen of Savoy-Carignan
Nader Shah Afshar (Nadir Qoli Beg, or Tahmasp Qoli Khan) Afsharid Founder and Shah of Persia
Maurice de Saxe (Hermann Moritz)
George Washington
Aleksandr Vasilevich Suvorov Generalissimus of Russia
Louis Nicolas Davout Duc d'Auerstadt and Prince d'Eckmuhl 'the Iron Marshal'
Charles (Karl Ludwig Johann Josef Lorenz) Archduke of Austria and Duke of Teschen
Johann Josef Wenzel Radetzky Graf von Radetz 'Vater Radetzky'
Thomas Jonathen Jackson Stonewall Jackson
Robert E(dward) Lee
Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke Count von Moltke 'the Elder'
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (Ali Rıza oglu Mustafa) Founder of the Republic of Turkey
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel the Desert Fox
George Smith Patton Old Blood and Guts
Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim
Heinz Wilhelm Guderian
Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck
William (Joseph) Slim 1st Viscount of Yarralumla and Bishopston
Erich von Manstein (Fritz-Erich von Lewinski)
Georgi Konstantinovich Zhukov
Moshe Dayan
Vo Nguyen Giap
TIER 3
If titles of monarchy etc. are not specified, the commanders were merely generals of their respected states. Again, the captains are listed in chrononlogical order by their deaths.
BEFORE CHRIST
Lugalzagesi Sumerian King of Umma, Sargon King of Akkad 'the Great', Naram (Haram)-Sin King of Akkad, Hattusili I (Labarna) Hittite Founder, Mursilis I Hittite King, Tuthmosis (Thutmose) I Pharaoh of Egypt, Tuthmosis (Tuthmose) IV Pharaoh of Egypt, Tudhaliya I Hittite King, Suppiluliumas Hittite King, Mursilis II Hittite King, Muwatallis Hittite King, Rameses II Pharaoh of Egypt, Merneptah Pharaoh of Egypt, Gideon (Jerub-baal) Judge of the Israelites, Wu Wang (Chi Fa) Founder of the Chou Dynasty 'the Martial King', Tiglath Pileser I King of Assyria, Chou Kung (Chi Tan) Duke of Chou, David King of the Kingdom of Israel, Ashurnasirpal II King of Assyria, Shalmaneser III King of Assyria, Tiglath-Pileser III King of Assyria, Sargon II King of Assyria, Sennacherib King of Assyria, Esarhaddon King of Assyria, Ashurbanipal King of Assyria, Ji Zhonger Duke Wen of Jin, Nabopolasser King of Babylonia, Cyaxeres (Hvakhshathra) King of Media, Nebuchadnezzar II King of Babylonia, Harpagus (Arbaku), Wu Zixu (Wu Yun), Sun Tzu (Sun Wu) Honorable Sun, Cleomenes I King of Sparta, Darius I Achaemenid King of Persia 'the Great', Callimachus, Miltiades the Younger, Artaphrenes the Elder, Leonidas I King of Sparta, Gelon Tyrant of Syracuse, Pausanius, Leotychides, Xerxes I Achaemenid King of Persia, Cimon, Teres I 1st Odrysian King, Myronides, Nicodemes, Cincinnatus (Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus), Pericles (Perikles), Gaius Servilius Ahala, Phormio, Sitalkes Odrysian King 'the Great', Pagondas, Brasidas, Demosthenes Son of Alcisthenes, Hannibal Son of Gisgo, Gylippus, Alcibiades, Agis II King of Sparta, Himilco, Lysander, Wu Qi (Wu Ch'i), Agesilaus II King of Sparta, Iphicrates, Conon, Dionysius I Tyrant of Syracuse, Marcus Furius Camillus, Pelopidas, Datames, Artaxerxes II King of Persia 'Memnon', Xenophon, Philomelus, Onomarchus, Dionysius II Tyrant of Syracuse, Sun Bin, Marcus Valerius Corvus, Titus Manlius Torquatus Imperiosus, Timoleon, Memnon of Rhodes, Parmenio the Old General, Coenus, Leosthenes, Craterus Diadochi of Alexander, Perdiccas, Sun Bin, Antipitar Diadochi of Alexander, Antigonus I Diadochi of Alexander 'Monophthalmos', Chandragupta Maurya Mauryan Founder 'Sandracottus', Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus, Agathocles Tyrant of Syracuse, Ptolemy I Diadochi of Alexander 'Soter', Demetrius I (Demetrius Poliorcetes) Diadochi of Alexander, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Lysimachus Diadochi of Alexander, Olympiodorus, Ptolemy King of Macedon 'Ceraunus', Spurius Carvilius Maximus, Appius Claudius Caudex, Manius Curius Dentatus, Antiochus I King of Syria 'Soter', Bai Qi, Wang Jian, Li Mu, Lian Po, Xanthippus, Marcus Atilius Regulus, Asoka Mauryan Emperor, Adherbal, Gaius Lutatius Catalus, Hamilcar Barca Lightning, Gaius Duilius, Wang Jian, Ming T'ien, Chao T'o, Lucius Aemilius Papus, Gaius Atilius Regulus, Lucius Caecilius Metellus, Cleomenes III King of Sparta, Publius Cornelius Scipio the Elder, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus, Gaius Flaminius, Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, Titus Otacilius Crassus, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Hasdrubal Barca, Gaius Claudius Nero, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, Mago Barca, Syphax King of the Masaesylii, Titus Manlius Torquatus, Marcus Valerius Laevinus, Marcus Livius Salinator, Attalus I King of Pergamum 'Soter', Hsiang Yu (Xiang Yu), Liu Bang (Gaozu) Han Founder, Manius Acilius Glabrio, Muttines (Mottones), Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiagenes, Manius Acilius Glabrio, Antiochus III King of Syria 'the Great', Prusias I King of Bithynia 'Cholos', Philopoemen the Last of the Greeks, Marcus Fulvius Nobilior, Mete Han Shanyu of the Xiongnu 'Maodun', Lucius Valerius Flaccus, Titus Quinctius Flamininus, Philip V King of Macedon, Antiochus IV King of Syria 'Epiphanes', Judas Maccabaeus the Hammer, Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, Gaius Laelius, Eumenes II King of Pergamum 'Soter', Masinissa King of the Massylii, Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus Minor, Viriathus, Aristonicus, Lucius Caecilius Metellus Dalmaticus, Wei Qing, Ho Qu-bing, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus, Decimus Junius Brutus (Callaicus), Gaius Tuditanus Sempronius, Liu Che (Wu Di) Han Emperor, Jugurtha King of Numidia, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus, Sulla (Lucius Cornelius Sulla) Felix, Quintus Sertorius, Spartacus, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius, Mithridates VI (Eupator Dionysus) King of Pontus 'the Great', Ariovistus King of the Suebi 'Friend', Lucius Licinius Lucullus Ponticus, Ambiorix Chief of the Eburones, Tigranes II King of Armenia 'the Great', Cassivellaunus (Cassibelanus) King of the Catuvellauni, Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius) Magnus, Gaius Scribonius Curio, Publius Licinius Crassus, Marcus Licinius Crassus Dives, Surena (Rustaham Suren-Pahlev) Eran Spahbodh, , Vercingetorix King of the Arverni, Juba I King of Numidia, Pharnaces II King of Pontus, Orodes II (Hyrodes) King of Parthia, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Pacorus I King of Parthia, Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), Publius Ventidius Brassus, Titus Statilius Taurus, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and Nero Claudius Drusus (Decimus Claudius Nero).
ANNO DOMINI, 0-1500
Marcus Plautius Silvanus, Germanicus Julius Caesar (Nero Claudius Germanicus), Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, Arminius (Hermann der Cherusker) Chief of the Cherusci, Gaius Silius, Juba II King of Numidia and Maueritania, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Tiberius (Tiberius Claudius Nero) Roman Emperor, Cunobelinus (Cynfelyn) King of the Catuvellauni, Caratacus (Caradoc) King of the Catuvellauni, Publius Ostorius Scapula, Liu Xiu (Han-Guang Wu Di) Han Emperor, Aulus Plautius, Boudicca (Boadicea) Queen of the Iceni, Gaius Paulinus Suetonius, Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, Vespasian (Titus Flavius Vespasianus) Roman Emperor, Eleazar ben Yair, Cerialis (Quintus Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus), Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Flavius Josephus (Joseph ben Matthias), Decebalus Dacian King, Bar Kochba (Simon bar Kochba), Marcus Aurelius, Sun Jian (Wentai) the Tiger of Jiang Dong, Yuan Shao Benchu, Severus (Lucius Septimius Severus) Roman Emperor, Zhang Liao (Wenyuan), Zhuge Liang (Chu-ko Liang) Founder of the Shu Kingdom 'the Hidden Dragon', Liu Bei Shu Emperor, Maximinus I (Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus) Roman Emperor 'Thrax', Ardashir I Sassanid Founder of Persia, Lu Xun (Boyan), Sun Quan (Zhongmou) Founder of the Wu Kingdom, Gallienus (Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus) Roman Emperor, Publius Septimius Odaenathus Prince of the Roman Colony of Palmyra, Postumus (Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus) Emperor of Gaul, Iberia, and Britian, Claudius II (Marcus Aurelius Claudius) Roman Emperor 'Gothicus', Shapur I Sassanid King of Persia, Septimia Zenobia (Znwbya Bat Zaddai) Queen of Palmyra, Liu Can (Shiguang) Emperor of the Han Zhao State, Constantius II (Flavius Julius Constantius) Roman Emperor, Shi Le (Shilong) Founder of the Jie State (Later Zhao), Ran Min (Yongzeng)) Emperor of the Ran Wei State 'Jinu', Julian (Flavius Claudius Julianus) Roman Emperor 'the Apostate', Shapur II Sassanid King of Persia, Maximianus (Magnus Maximus), Fritigern (Frithugairns) King of the Visigoths, Athanaric (Apanareiks), Arbogast (Flavius Arbogastes), Theodosius I (Flavius Theodosius) Roman Emperor 'the Great', Flavius Stilicho, Alaric I King of the Visigoths, Ataulf (Atawulf) King of the Visigoths 'Father Wolf', Wallia (Valia) King of the Visigoths, Coel Hen Duc Brittanniarum 'Old King Cole', Rua (Rugila) the Hun, Breda the Hun, Attila the Hun 'the Scourge of God', Flavius Aetius, Ardaric King of the Gepids, Cunedda ap Edern Wledig, Majorian (Julius Valerius Maiorianus) Western Roman Emperor, Ricimer, Geiseric King of the Vandals, Childeric I King of the Salian Franks, Odoacar (Odavacer) King of the Heruli 'Rex Italiae', Ambrosius Aurelianus (Aurelius Ambrosius), Riothamus (Riotimus) King of the Brittones, Clovis I King and Unifier of the Franks, Theodoric King of the Ostrogoths 'the Great', Arthur 'Dex Bellorum' (legendary; yes, the legendary figure we know so well, and perhaps the same leader known as Owain Ddantgwyn (Owain Danwyn)), Cadwallon I (Cadwallon ap Einion King of Gwynedd 'Long Hand', Azarethes, Eran Spahbodh, Mundus, Priscus General Priscus, Totila (Baduila) King of the Ostrogoths, Ceawlin Saxon Bretwalda of Wessex, Bayan Avar khagan, Rhydderch Hael Brythonic hero 'the Generous', AEthilfrith King of Northumbria, Raedwald King of East Anglia, Muhammed the Prophet of Islam 'the Praised One', Pulakesi II (Ereya) Ruler of the Chalukya Dynasty, Umar ibn al-Khattab Caliph of Islam, Amr-ibn-al-As, Rustam Farokhzad, Sa'ad ibn abu-Wakkas, T'ai tsung (Li Shih-min) T'ang Emperor, Asparukh (Isperikh) Founder of the 1st Bulgarian Empire, Pippin (Pepin) II of Heristal Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia 'the Middle', Tariq ibn Zayid, Mohammed ibn-Kasim, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi (Abdderrahman) Muslim Governor of Al-Andalus, Eudes (Odo) Duke of Aquitaine, Pelayo (Pelagio) Founder and Nobleman of the Kingdom of Asturias, Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik, Leo III Byzantine Emperor 'the Isaurian', An Lu-shan, Hsuan-tsung T'ang Emperor, Guo Ziyi (Kuo Tzu-i), Harun al-Rashid Abbasid Caliph, Egbert King of Wessex, AEthelwulf King of Wessex, Ivar Ragnarsson the Boneless, Halfdan Ragnarsson, Rhodri (Roderick) Mawr Ruler of Wales 'the Great', Mihira Bhoja I Pratihara King of Northern India, Basil I Byzantine Emperor 'the Macedonian', Arpad Chief of the Magyars, Edward King of Wessex 'the Elder', Simeon I Tsar of Bulgaria, Harold I (Harald Haarfager) King of Norway, Henry I (Heinrich der Finkler) German King 'the Fowler', Ngo Quyen Founder of the first National Dynasty of Nam Viet, Ramiro II King of Leon, John Kurkuas, Chai Rong (later Guo Rong) Zhou Emperor 'Shizong', Nicephorus II Byzantine Emperor 'Phocas', Sviatoslav I Prince of Kievan Rus', Otto I Holy Roman Emperor 'the Great', John I (John Tzimisces) Byzantine Emperor, Muhammed Almansour Abi emir 'the Victorious', Boleslav I (Boleslav Chobri) King of Poland 'the Brave', Rajaraja Chola Emperor of Tamil Nadu, Brian Boru, Basil II Byzantine Emperor 'Bulgaroktonos', Mahmud (Yamin ad-Dawlah Mahmud) Sultan of Ghazni, Malcolm II (Mael Coluim mac Cinaeda) King of Scotland, Canute II (Knut) Danish King of Denmark, England, and Norway, Fulk III (Fulk Nerra) Count of Anjou 'the Black', Rajendra Chola Emperor of Tamil Nadu, Harold II (Harold Godwinsson) Earl of Wessex, Tughril Beg Seljuk Turk Founder, Alp Arslan (Muhammed ben Da'ud) Seljuk Sultan of Persia 'the Valiant Lion', Sviatoslav II (Sviatoslav Yaroslavich) Prince of Chernigov and Grand Prince of Kiev, Robert Guiscard the Resourceful, William I Duke of Normandy and King of England 'the Conqueror', Sancho Ramirez King of Aragon and Navarre, Adhemar Bishop of Le Puy-en-Velay, Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar El Cid Campeador, Godefroy (Godfrey) de Bouillon Duke of Lower Lorraine 'Defender of the Holy Sepulcher', Minamoto no Yoshiie Japanese Daimyo 'Hachiman-Taro', Bohemond I (Mark Guiscard) Prince of Taranto and Antioch, Wanyan Wuyashu Jurchen Chief 'Kangzong', Baldwin (of Boulogne) I Count of Edessa and Latin King of Jerusalem, Alexius I Byzantine Emperor 'Comnenus', Vladimir II (Volodymyr Monomakh) Grand Prince and Grand Duke of Kiev, Sigurd I (Sigurd Magnusson) King of Norway 'the Crusader', Baldwin (of Le Bourg) II Latin King of Jerusalem, Zengi (Imad ad-Din Atabeg Zengi) Atabeg of Mosul and Aleppo, Alfonso I King of Aragon and Navarre, Boleslav III (Boleslav Krzywousty) King of Poland 'Wrymouth', Valdemar I King of Denmark 'the Great', Richard de Clare 2nd Earl of Pembroke 'Strongbow', Taira no Kiyomori Japanese Dajo-Daijin, Baldwin IV Latin King of Jerusalem 'the Leper', Alfonso I King of Portugal 'Henriques the Conqueror', Minamoto Yos(h)itsune Japanese Samurai, Frederick I (Frederick Hohenstauffen) Holy Roman Emperor 'Barbarossa', Kilij Arslan II (Izz ad-Din Kilij Arslan) Seljuk Sultan of Rum, Enrico Dandolo Doge of Venice, Muhammed of Ghor (Muizz al Din Muhammed) Muslim Sultan of Ghazni, Kaloyen Asen (Johanitza) King of Wallachia and Bulgaria 'the Roman Killer', Minamoto no Yoritomo 1st Japanese Shogun, Alfonso VIII King of Castile 'the Noble', Hojo Tokimasa Japanese Shikken, Simon de Montfort IV Lord of Montfort, Chepe (Jebe Noyan), Philip II (Phillippe Auguste) King of France, Alfonso II King of Portugal 'the Fat', Muqali, Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu Khwarezm Sultan, Hermann von Salza, Chormaqan Noyan, Llywelyn I of Wales (Llywelyn ab Iorwerth) Prince of Gwynedd 'the Great', Valdemar II King of Denmark 'the Victorious', Ogotai Khan Mongol Khagan, Guyuk Khan Mongol Khagan, Frederick II Holy Roman Emperor, Batu Khan Khan of the Blue Horde, Mongke Khan Mongol Khagan, Baiju, Hulagu Khan, Kaidu Khan, Kadan, Alexander Nevsky (Alexander Vsevolodovich) Prince of Novgorad, Simon V de Montfort 6th Earl of Leicester, Baybars I (Baibars al-Bunduqdari) Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, Qalawun al-Alfi Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, Bayan, Pedro III King of Aragon, Rudolf I German King 'Rudolf of Hapsburg', Kublai Khan Mongol Khagan, Jan I Duke of Brabant 'the Victorious', Nogai Khan, Andrew of Moray, William Wallace, Edward I King of England 'Longshanks', Hojo Tokimune, Werner Stauffacher, Robert I King of Scotland 'the Bruce', Alfonso XI King of Castile and Leon, Rudolf von Erlach Bernese Ritter, Stefan Uros IV Dusan King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks 'the Mighty', Orhan I (Orhan Gazi) Ottoman Sultan, Edward de Baliol King of Scotland, John Chandos, Edward Prince of Wales 'the Black Prince', Bertrand du Guesclin, Louis I King of Hungary, Croatia, Dalmatia, and Poland 'the Great', Pedro IV King of Aragon, James Douglas 2nd Earl of Douglas and Mar, Dmitri Donskoy Grand Prince of Moscow and Grand Duke of Vladimir 'the Don', Murad I Ottoman Sultan, John Hawkwood, Zhu Yuan Zhang (Tai Zu) Founder of the Ming Dynasty 'the Hongwu Emperor', Bayezid (Beyazit) I Ottoman Sultan 'the Thunderbolt', Tokhtamysh Khan of the White Horde, Olivier de Clisson the Butcher, Owen Glendower (Owain IV Glyn Dwr) Prince of Wales, Alberico da Barbiano, Andrea Fortebracci (Braccio da Montone), Witold (Vytautus) Didysis Kunigaikstis of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania 'the Great', Zhu Di (Cheng Zu) Ming Emperor 'the Yongle Emperor', Nun'Alvares Pereira 3rd Count de Ourem 'the Great Constable', Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc), Ladislaus II (Ladislaus Jagiello) King of Poland, Andrew Prokop Procopius the Great, Giovanni Giustiniani, Janos Hunyadi Voivode of Transylvania 'the White Knight', Alfonso V King of Aragon and Alfonso I King of Naples 'the Magnanimous', Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York, Richard Neville 5th Earl of Salisbury, Andrew Trollope, Henry Beaufort 3rd Duke of Somerset, Gjergj Kastrioti Prince of Albania 'Skanderbeg', Richard Neville 16th Earl of Warwick 'the Kingmaker', John Neville 1st Marquess of Montagu, Hosokawa Katsumoto Japanese Kanrei, Bartolomeo Colleoni, Vlad III (Vlad Dracula) Voivode of Wallachia 'the Impaler', Muhammed II (Mehmed II) Ottoman Sultan 'the Conqueror', Edward IV King of England, and Matthias Corvinus King of Hungary 'the Just'.
1500-present
Stefan III (Stefan Musat) Voivode of Moldovia 'the Great', Isabella I Queen of Aragon, Castile and Leon 'the Catholic', Bernard Stuart 3rd Seigneur d'Aubigny, Henry VII (Henry Tudor) King of England, Francisco de Almeida, Gaston de Foix Duc de Nemours 'the Thunderbolt of Italy', John de Vere 13th Earl of Oxford, Ferdinand V King of Castile and Leon (also Ferdinand II King of Aragon and Ferdinand III King of Naples 'the Catholic'), Aruj (Oruc Reis) Ottoman Bey of Algiers and Beylerbey of the West Mediterranean 'Barbarossa ('Redbeard'), Prospero Colonna, Ismail (Shah Isma'il Abu'l-Mozaffar bin Sheikh Haydar bin Sheikh Junayd Safawi) I Shah of Persia and Safavid Founder, Pal Tomori, Huayna Capac (Wayna Qhapaq) Sapa (God Emperor) of the Incas, Georg von Frundsberg, Konstanty Ostrogski Grand Hetman of Lithuania, Wolter (Walter) von Plettenberg Master of the Livonian Order, Francisco Pizarro Spanish Conquistador, Pedro (Don Pedro) de Alvarado y Contreras Spanish Conquistador, Jerzy Radziwell Voivode of the Kiev Voivodeship and Field Hetman of Lithuania, Francois de Bourbon Count of Enghien, Khair ad-Din (Yakupoglu Hızır) Ottoman Kaptan Derya 'Barbarossa' ('Redbeard'), Lapu-Lapu (Kaliph Pulaka) Filipino Chieftain of Mactan Island, Hernan Cortes (Hernando Cortez) Spanish Conquistador and 1st Marques del Valle de Oaxaca, Lautaro Toqui (Wartime Chief) of the Mapuche 'Lef-Traru', Gian Giacomo Medici, Jan Tarnowski Grand Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Charles V Holy Roman Emperor, Yamamoto Haruyuki Japanese Takeda General 'Kansuke', Herluf Trolle, Daniel Rantzau, Erik XIV (Eric) King of Sweden, John of Austria Don Juan de Austria, Shimazu Tadayoshi Japanese Daimyo, Mori Motonari (Shojumaru) Japanese Daimyo, Fernando Alvarez de Toledo y Pimentel 3rd Duque de Alba (Alva), Ivan IV Tsar of Russia 'the Terrible', William (Willem) I Prince of Orange and Count of Nassau-Dillenburg 'the Silent', Mikolaj Radziwell Grand Chancellor and Hetman of Lithuania 'the Red', Stefan Batory King Consort of Poland, Prince of Transylvania, and Grand Duke of Lithuania, Qi Jiguang, Don Alvaro de Bazan Marques de Santa Cruz de Mudela, Alessandro Farnese Duke of Parma and Piacenza, Francis Drake, Klaus (Clas) Fleming, Toyotomi Hideyoshi Japanese Daimyo, Michael (Mihai Viteazul) Romanian Ban 'the Brave', Krzysztof Mikolaj Radziwill Polish Reichsfurst of the Holy Roman Empire 'Piorun' ('the Lightning'), Akbar (Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar) Mughal Emperor 'the Great', Jan Zamoyski Lord Grand-Chancellor and Grand Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Stephen Bocskay Prince of Transylvania, Giorgio Basta Count of Huszt, Henri IV King of France and Henri III King of Navarre, Pedro Henriquez d'Azevedo y Toledo Count of Fuentes, Jan Roman Rozynski Polish Hetman, Tokugawa Ieyasu Japanese Shogun, Aleksander Lisowski, Stanislaw Zolkiewski Polish Hetman, Iskanderpasha, Charles Howard 1st Earl of Nottingham, Nurhaci Founder of the Manchu State 'Tianming', Peter Ernst Graf von Mansfeld, Abbas I Shah of Persia 'the Great', Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim, Yuan Chonghuan, Johann Tserclaes Graf von Tilly, Johan Baner, Ferdinand von Osterreich Governor of the Hapsburg Netherlands, Cardinal and Infante of Spain, Archbishop of Toledo, Li Tzu-cheng, Bernhard Duke of Saxe-Weimar, Duo'ergun (Dorgon), Har Gobind Sikh Guru, Torsten Stalhandske, Franz Freiherr von Mercy Lord of Mandre and Collenburg, Matthias Gallas Graf von Campo und Herzog von Lucera, Frederick Henry Prince of Orange, James Graham Marquess of Montrose, Lennart Torstensson, Jeremi (Jarema) Wisniowiecki Prince of Wisniowiec, Lubny and Chorol, Ralph Hopton 1st Baron Hopton, Maarten Tromp, Janusz II (Jonusas Radvila) Court Chamberlain and Great Hetman of Lithuania, Robert Blake, Ottavio Piccolomini Duke of Almafi, Bohdan Chmielnicki, Tugay Bey (Tuhaj- bej), Zheng Zhilong, Koxinga (Zheng Cheng Gong), Nzinga (Ana de Sousa Nzinga Mbande) Queen (muchino a muhatu) of Ndonga and Matamba, Stefan Czarniecki Field Hetman of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom, Stanislaw Potocki Field and Great Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth 'Rewera', George Monck 1st Duke of Albemarle, Thomas Fairfax 3rd Baron of Cameron, John Maurice Prince of Nassau-Siegen, William Cavendish 1st Duke of Newcastle-upo-Tyne, Raimondo Montecuccoli, Robert Munro, Shivaji Bhonsle Shri Shivaji Maharaj, Rupert Count Palatine of the Rhine and Duke of Bavaria 'Prince Rupert of the Rhine', David Leslie, Henry Morgan Morgan the Pirate, Abraham Duquesne Marquis Duquesne, Francois Henri de Montmorency-Bouteville Duc de Luxembourg, Niels Juel, Menno van Coehoorn Baron, William III King of England 'William of Orange', Godert de Ginkell (Godart van Ginkel) 1st Earl of Athlone, Sebastien Le Prestre Marquis de Vauban, Louis William Margrave of Baden-Baden, Aurangzeb (Mohi ud-din Muhammed) Mughal Emperor, Louis de Duras 2nd Earl of Feversham, Louis Joseph Duc de Vendome, Kangxi (Hsiian-yeh) Ch'ing Emperor, Peder Tordenskjold Thundershield, Peter I (Pyotr Alekseyevich Romanov) Tsar of Russia 'the Great', James FitzJames Duke of Berwick, Claude-Louis Hector Duc de Villars, Robert MacGregor Rob Roy, Charles Mordaunt 3rd Earl of Peterborough and Monmouth, Mirza Mahmud Siraj ad Dawla (Siraj-ud-Daulah) Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, Baji Rao I (Shrimant Baji Rao Vishwanath Bhatt) Maratha Peshwa, Edward Vernon Old Grog, James Wolfe, Louis-Joseph de Montcalm Marquis de Saint Veran, George Anson 1st Baron of Soberton, William Augustus Duke of Cumberland, Leopold Josef Maria Count von Daun and Furst von Thiano, Robert Clive 1st Baron of Plassey, Emelian Pugachev, Casimir Pulaski, Charles (Karl Alexander) Prince of Lorraine, Johann von Robaii (Johann Kalb) Baron de Kalb, Haidar Ali, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Sardar, Nathanael Greene, Ethan Allen, Francois-Joseph Paul Marquis de Grasse Tilly and Comte de Grasse, Jacques Hippolyte Comte de Guibert, Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon, Grigoriy Potemkin Prince of Tauride, Gustav III King of Sweden, Tippu Sultan the Tiger of Mysore, Ferdinand Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, George Rodney 1st Baron Rodney, John Burgoyne Gentleman Johnny, John Paul Jones, Francis Marion the Swamp Fox, Anthony Wayne, Louis Lazare Hoche, Richard Howe 1st Earl Howe, Benedict Arnold, Ralph Abercrombie, Daniel Morgan, Francois Toussant-L'Ouverture, Buckongahelas Lenni-Lenape Chief, Charles Cornwallis 1st Marquess Cornwallis, Horatio Gates, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Aleksei Orlov, Hyde Parker Admiral Sir, Gerard Lake 1st Viscount, Jean Lannes Duc de Montebello, John Moore, Blue Jacket (Weyapiersenwah) Shawnee (Shaawanwaki) War Chief, Little Turtle (Mishikinakwa) Chief of the Miami (Myaamiaki), Pyotr Bagration, Isaac Brock, Gerhard von Scharnhorst, Tecumseh Shawnee (Shaawanwaki) Leader, Mikhail Kutuzov (Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov), Jozef Poniatowski, Hugh Robert Rollo (Rollo Gillespie), William Howe 5th Viscount Howe, Frederick Josias Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Joachim Murat King of Naples, Louis Berthier 1st Duc de Wagram, 1st Duc de Valengin, and 1st Sovereign Prince de Neuchatel, Michel Ney 1st Duc d'Elchingen and 1st Prince de la Moskowale 'Le Rougeaud' ('Red-Faced') and 'le Brave des Braves', Pierre Augereau 1st Duc de Castiglione, Karadjordje (Djordje Petrovich), Andre Massena 1st Duc de Rivoli and 1st Prince d'Essling, Tadeusz Kosciuszko (Thaddeus Kosciusko), Mikhail Barclay de Tolly (Mikhail Bogdanovich Barklay-de-Tolli), Jan Dabrowski, Gebhard von Blucher Graf and Furst of Wahlstatt, Oliver Perry, Manuel Belgrano, Stephen Decatur, , Carl-Olof Constedt, Charles Dumouriez[/b], Lazare Carnot the Organizer of Victory, Francis Rawdon 1st Marquess of Hastings, Shaka Zulu Chieftain 'Shaka Zulu', Simon Bolivar El Libertador, Antonio Jose de Sucre, Thomas Sydney Beckwith, Gilbert du Motier Marquis de Lafayette, Tomas de Zumalacarregui , Hari Singh Nalwa Ranjit Singh Sikh Maharaja 'Sher-e-Punjab' ('the Lion of the Punjab', Pierre-Antoine Comte Dupont de l'Etang, William Henry Harrison, Juan Lavalle, Rowland Hill 1st Viscount Hill 'Daddy Hill', Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte 1st Sovereign Prince de Pontecorvo (later became Carl (Charles) XIV King of Sweden and Norway (Carl III Johan in Norway), Andrew Jackson, Robert Stopford, Thomas Bugeaud Marquis de la Piconnerie and Duc d'Isly, Muhammed Ali (Muhammad 'Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha) Pasha of Egypt 'Founder of Modern Egypt', Juan Martin de Pueyrredon, Zachary Taylor, Jose de San Martin (Jose Francisco de San Martin Matorras, Ignacy Pradzynski, Hone Heke (Hone Wiremu Heke Pokai) Maori Chief, Jozef Bem (Bem Jozsef), Nicolas Soult 1st Duc de Dalmatie, Francisco Castanos 1st Duke of Bailen, Jose Ballivian, Auguste Marmont Duc de Ragusa, Charles James Napier, William Carr Beresford 1st Viscount Beresford, FitzRoy Somerset 1st Baron Raglan, Pavel Nakhimov, Yang Xiuqing, Thomas Cochrane 10th Earl of Dundonald, Harry Smith 1st Baronet of Aliwal 'Sir Harry', Charles John Napier, Ignacio Zaragoza, Frederick Townsend Ward, Colin Campbell 1st Baron Clyde, Samuel Houston, John Buford, Jr., John Hunt Morgan, James Stuart Jeb Stuart, Hong Xiuquan (Hong Renkun) Heavenly King, Ambrose Hill, Winfield Scott, Francesco Serrano, Antoine-Henri de Jomini Baron, Justo Jose de Urquiza, David Farragut, George Thomas, Shamyl Imam Shamyl of Dagestan, George Meade, Henry Halleck Old Brains, Jose Antonio Paez, Cochise (A-da-tli-chi ) Nantan of the Apache (Chokonen), Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, Gordon Granger, George Custer, Braxton Bragg, Nathan Forrest, Crazy Horse (Thasuka Witko) Sioux (Oglala Lakota) Leader, Saigo Takamori the Last Samurai, Albrecht Theodor Emil Graf von Roon, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Mikhail Skobelev, Abd al-Qadir (Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri) Emir of Algeria, Henri Riviere, Cetshwayo kaMpande King of the Zulu Nation, Charles Gordon Chinese Gordon, Muhammed Ahmad (Muhammad Ahmad ibn as Sayyid Abd Allah) the Mahdi, Ulysses S(impson) Grant, George McClellan, Amedee Courbet, al-Hajj Mahmadu Lamine Senegalese Marabout, Philip Sheridan, George Crook, Sitting Bull (Tatanka Iyotake) Sioux (Hunkpapa) Leader, William Sherman (Tecumseh Sherman) Uncle Billy, Patrick Connor, John Pope, Patrice de Mac-Mahon Duc de Magenta, Pierre Beauregard, Chief Gall (Pizi) Sioux (Hunkpapa) Leader, Francois Canrobert, Antonio Maceo y Grajales the Bronze Titan, Louis Briere de l'Isle, John Chard, William Rosencrans, Piet Joubert, Gustave Borgnis-Desbordes, Samori Ture (Samori ibn Lafiya Ture) Dyula Ruler and Founder of the Wassoulou Empire, James Longstreet, Chief Joseph (Hinmuuttu-yalatlat) Nez Perce (Wal-lam-wat-kain) Leader, Bartolome Mitre, Gevork Chavoush, Maximo Gomez y Baez, Geronimo (Goyaale) Apache (Chiricahua) Leader, Oliver Howard, Red Cloud (Makhpiya Luta) Sioux (Oglala Lakota) Leader, Nogi Maresuke Kiten, Count Nogi, Garnet Wolseley 1st Viscount Wolseley, Menilek II (Sahle Maryam) Emperor of Ethiopia, Alfred von Schlieffen, Koos (Jacobus Herculaas) de la Rey, Frederick Roberts 1st Earl of Kandahar, Pretoria and Waterford, Joshua Chamberlain, Porfirio Diaz (Jose de la Cruz Porfirio Diaz Mori), Iwao Oyama, Joseph Gallieni, Horatio Kitchener Earl of Khartoum and Broome, Yuan Shikai, George Dewey, Liu Yung-fu (Lu'u Vinh Phuc), Frederick Stanley Maude, Paul von Rennenkampf, Emiliano Zapata, Louis Botha, Theodore Roosevelt Teddy Roosevelt, John Fisher 1st Baron of Kilverstone 'Jackie Fisher', Karl von Bulow, Christiaan de Wet, Michael Collins, Henry Wilson, Francisco Villa (Doroteo Arango Arambula) Pancho Villa, Vladimir Lenin (Vladimir Ulyanov), Charles Lanrezac, Sun Yat-sen Sun Zhongshan, John French 1st Earl of Ypres, Mikhail Frunze (Mihail Frunza), Aleksei Brusilov, Josias von Heeringen, Ferdinand I King of Rumania, Max Hoffmann, Andranik Toros Ozanian, Douglas Haig 1st Earl Haig, Alvaro Obregon, Ferdinand Foch, Georges Clemenceau, Wendell Neville, Horace Smith-Dorrien, John Monash, Omar Mukhtar (Umar Al-Mokhtar), Alexander Cobbe, Joseph Joffre Papa Joffre, Louis Archinard, Herbert Plumer 1st Viscount Plumer, Arthur Currie, Albert I (Albert Leopold Clement Marie Meinrad) King of the Belgians, Louis Lyautey, Alexander von Kluck, Heihachiro Togo, Paul von Hindenburg, Thomas Edward Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia, Jozef Pilsudski, Juan Vicente Gomez, Edmund Allenby 1st Viscount of Megiddo and Felixstowe, William Mitchell Billy Mitchell, Hans von Seeckt, Erich Ludendorff, Albrecht (Albrecht Maria Alexander Philipp Joseph) Duke of Wurttemberg, Leon Trotsky (Lev Bronstein), Smedley Butler the Fighting Quaker, Edward Rydz-Smigly, John Lejeune the Greatest of all Leathernecks, Walter von Reichenau, Louis Franchet d'Esperey, Isoroku Yamamoto, Franc Stane, Nikolai Vatutin, Charles Wingate Orde Wingate, August von Mackensen, Walther Model, Adolf Hitler Chancellor and Fuhrer of Germany, John Basilone Manila John (heroic addition), Fedor von Bock, John Vereker 6th Viscount Gort 'Lord Gort', Dragoljub (Draza) Mihajlovic, Masaharu Homma, Tomoyuki Yamashita the Tiger of Malaya, Evans Carlson, Philippe Leclerc Vicomte de Hauteclocque, John Pershing Black Jack, Walther von Brauchitsch, Archibald Wavell 1st Earl Wavell, Panglima Besar Soedirman (Sudirman) Father of the Army, Petre Dumitrescu, Jan Smuts, Thomas Blamey, Henri Petain (Philippe Petain), Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, Gerd von Rundstedt, Abdulaziz ibn Saud (Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman ibn Faisal Al Saud) Founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Rupprecht Crown Prince of Bavaria, Merritt Edson Red Mike, Alexander Papagos, Garegin Njdeh (Garegin Ter-Harutiunian), Hugh Trenchard 1st Viscount Trenchard, George Marshall, Leslie Morshead, Albert Kesselring, Alan Francis 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, Andrew Cunningham 1st Viscount of Hyndhope, Bernard Cyril Freyberg 1st Baron Freyberg, Douglas MacArthur, Alvin York Sergeant York (heroic addition), Renya Mutaguchi, Courtney Hodges, Josef Dietrich (Sepp Dietrich), Holland Smith Howlin' Mad Smith, Ernesto Rafael Guevara de la Serna Che Guevera, Konstantin Rokossovsky, Giovanni Messe, Li Zongren (Li Tsung-jen), Dwight Eisenhower (David Eisenhower) Ike, Harold Alexander 1st Earl of Tunis, Raizo Tanaka, Raymond Spruance, Ho Chi Minh (Nguyen Sinh Cung) Founder of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), Hugh Dowding 1st Baron Dowding, Semyon Timoshenko, Andrei Yeremenko, Charles de Gaulle, Lin Biao, Lewis Puller Chesty Puller, Chen Yi, Ivan Koniev, Frank Fletcher, David Ben-Gurion, Peng Dehuai, Chiang Kai-shek Jiang Jieshi, Keith Park, Francisco Franco, Otto Skorzeny, Anthony McAuliffe, Chu Teh Zhu De, Mao Tse-tung Mao Zedong, Bernard Montgomery 1st Viscount, Aleksandr Vasilevski, Kurt Student, Karl Donitz, Josip Tito, Gunichi Mikawa, Omar Bradley, Richard O'Connor, Claude Auchinleck the Auk, Mark Clark, Raoul Salan, Aksel Airo, Akhtar Abdur Rahman, Bekor Ghoulian, Shahen Meghrian, James Doolittle Jimmy Doolittle, Matthew Ridgway, Kim Il-Sung, Arthur Harris 1st Baronet 'Bomber Harris', Haim Bar-Lev (Haim Brotzlewsky) Haim Kidoni Bar-Lev, Stanislaw Maczek, Deng Xiaoping, Garegin Nzhdeh (Garegin Ter-Haroutunyan), Ahmed Shah Massoud the Lion of Panjshir, Sam Bahadur (Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw), Abdul Haris Nasution (Kotanopan), David Hackworth (heroic addition), William Westmoreland, Haji Mohammad Soeharto (Suharto), Harold Moore Hal Moore, Fidel Castro, Arkady Ter-Tadevossian, H. Norman Schwarzkopf Stormin' Norman, Charles Guthrie Baron Guthrie of Craigiebank, Wesley Clark, Tommy Franks, and Peter Cosgrove.
It may be too soon to add the last few. But perhaps not.
"The Gauls were not conquered by the Roman legions, but by Caesar. It was not before the Carthaginian soldiers that Rome was made to tremble, but before Hannibal. It was not the Macedonian phalanx which reached India, but Alexander. It was not the French army that reached Weser and the Inn; it was Turenne. Prussia was not defended for seven years against the three most formidable European powers by the Prussian soldiers, but by Frederick the Great".
- Napoleon Bonaparte
"War is all hell".
- William T. Sherman
"In war, there is no substitute for victory...the soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war."
- Douglas MacArthur
Thanks and enjoy, James ~:)
I had a lot of fun, my primary aim, in compiling my own 'military leaders list', which I constantly revise thanks to the contributions and suggestions of other posters, whom I thank. There really is no such veritable title as the 'greatest commander of all time'; it's akin to assessing what the best doughnut is, or which mountain range is the most breathtaking. But it's fun to make a list, and enjoy the debates.
I would like to stress that I am merely an amateur, and my knowledge of military history is much more thorough with the history of war in the West, so I apologize in advance if anyone feels I am too western-centric in my rankings, and/or if certain greats from the East are understated. I have done my best, and many should add to the list etc., as well as suggest changes of all sorts to this piece of subjective work.
War is not something to be happy about, but it is a powerful reality of history. Messiahs, diplomats, intellectuals, and philosophers have contributed to the twists and turns of history every bit as much as military leaders, but they have flourished only when protected by those very military leaders who could ensure the survival of their way of life. For the most part, the most significant and affecting leaders in world history have come not from the church, the governments, or the scholastic centers, but from the ranks of soldiers and sailors.
Perhaps a list of great (and not so great) could be broken up into two major TIERS - before gunpowder, which would comprise all the commanders before the 1420s or so, and after gunpowder. However, it can be argued that firepower was more a moral factor in affecting the conditions on the battlefield than a material one. But what difference does it make, if the commander utilizing such a condition brings victory?
Gunpowder did indeed exist in China as early as the 9th century or earlier (potassium nitrate, the primary oxidising component of black powder gunpowder, was extant as early as the 1st century A.D.), but it was used almost exclusively for pyrotechnics. The knowledge and technology of gunpowder was transmitted to Europe via the Middle East. The first known use of fire-lances, indeed occuring in China, became prevalent during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The Arabs produced the first known working gun in the early 14th century - the madfaa. The French improved upon this cannon, which the Moors utilized, with the pot-de-fur. Gunpowder became instrumental in warfare in the late 14th century but it was not generally adapted to civil purposes until the 17th century, when it began to be used in mining. When Henry V's artillery battered down the formidable fortress of Harfleur in 1415, at which 12 guns were a part of his siege-train, the era of impregnable fortresses seemingly ended. But it was at Constantinople, in 1453, where Muhammed II's massive bombards demonstrated the first substantial display of the potential of artillery power. The Hussites, under the brilliant Jan Zizka and Andrew Procop, showed what gunpowder could do on the battlefield if employed with bold imagination (they still thrived with their crossbows); they employed siege guns mounted on wheels (the Wagenburg), giving them an advantage of fortified mobility. Moreover, their asset of artillery effectuated an orderly retreat if surprised, as they could break through the enemy's lines when before a force would be doomed. This happened in 1419 in western Bohemia, at Nekmir (near Pilsen). Guns mounted on wheeled carriages became more prevalent in the mid-15th century, mainly with ordinances of Charles VIII of France, whose campaign in Italy in the 1490s was emblematic of mobile gunnery with guns designed for easy transportation in an improved siege train.
One Bartolomeo Colleoni is credited by some with being the first captain to implement a true field artillery tactic, perhaps amid the wars in Lombardy; apparently, he positioned his 'light' guns in the rear of his other army units and fired at the enemy through gaps provided at a given signal. Colleoni, in my opinion, may be one of those figures who layed down crude precedents for future greats to thrive from. Another example is Henri IV, the dashing cavalry expert of the Hugeunots, whose tacics of interspersed infantry and cavalry in the French Wars of Religion were paving the way for combined-arms working together.
In the mid-16th century, Charles V of Spain, Henry II of France, and Henry VIII of England took keen interests to improve artillery, issuing edicts to standardize and improve cannons. But the science of ballistics came out of Italy, with the ingenious works of the mathemitician Niccolo Tartaglia. But 'moblile field artillery' in the pre-Gustavian time simply meant the hauling of guns onto a field and, in a stationary position, used to fire on enemy formations. In the Thirty Years War, after survivng a slogfesting apprenticeship in Polish Prussia in the 1620s, Gustavus' regimental 3-lb field gun marked the first permanent allotment of artillery to infantry units. By the next century, Marlborough used batteries of guns for close support, then Frederick the Great (one of the mercurial military geniuses whom I find fascinating), went beyond preliminary bombardments with his heavier guns, implementing horse artillery as a mobile reserve, which allowed him to occupy high positions to deliver blasting openings upon the enemy formations. A little earlier in the Near and Middle East, the great Nader Shah dominated his opponents with superior arms of gunfire, including camel-gunners (as well as his superior generalship).
In 1503, Don Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, El Gran Capitan, and perhaps the father of 'trench warfare' (in a modern sense with gunfire), occupied the heights at Cerignola (Apulia, Italy) with his Coronelias (the seed of the famed tercios), and defeated the much larger French army of cavalry and pikemen; it was the dawn of the firarm. The French commander here, Louis d'Armagnac, was probably the first commander to be killed by enemy firearms in battle.
Like all military doctrine, this was all evolutionary, and many engineers etc. improved upon their predecessors' trials and errors. Forgive me if I deviated off subject of the leaders themselves, but geography and technology greatly affected the nature of command. Moreover, there's much a more thorough expert would certainly tell me I overlooked etc.
The Dutch under Mauritz (Maurice) van Nassau developed an excellent system of drill to train soldiers amid their war against the might of Spain, and it was the great Gustavus Adolphus, enjoying the support of both the commons and government of Sweden, who innovated every branch of his national army (and of the finest mercenaries) to render his forces superior to anything his enemies could counter him with; discipline was supreme throughout his soldiers, even his mercenaries, and his engineers developed regimental pieces which revolutionized field artillery. Gustavus synthesized existing practices into a coherent tactical method of combined arms never fully seen before: the co-existence of his flexible reformed infantry (mobility over weight), cavalry (the caracole tactic replaced by pistol fire followed by shock action with cold steel), both disposed in smaller units, and field artillery ushered in a new age of warfare. There were limits though, as the vaunted Wallenstein showed a patient strategy of attrition will neagte much of the mobile aggressiveness of an opponent. But Gustavus' men, following his death in battle, still drove him from the field in a slogging and bloody day at Lutzen, in November of 1632, and the reformed tercios of the vaunted Spaniards, assisting immeasurably at Nordlingen in 1634, still showed that modified traditional practices could win over the new ones with superior organization.
Moreover, a vast list could be piecemealed under specifics: strategic, tactical, operational, revolutionary, guerilla and artillery leaders etc. How much credit do monarchs merit in certain campaigns? Edward III and Henry V, 2 superb Medieval warrior-kings, surely deserve most of the credit for the tactical brilliance of their campaigns (though the lon-term strategic gains were slight). Was Shih Huang-ti a military commander? Augustus? Elizabeth I? Maybe, but probably not. Philip II of Spain, Otto von Bismarck, and Josef Stalin? I don't think so, in my opinion (this is arguable).
But I think I will bunch it together; the circumstances of war may never be repeated, but the essence of major tactics and strategy have not changed. It is the methods of their applications, due to the changes in technology, that have altered. Thus we can indeed compare the ancient commanders with the modern ones (IMHO) from this point of view. It must be understood, however, that modern commanders did not directly lead into action (modern meaning since, let's say, the time of Napoleon, and I mean this very broadly); they directed affairs from far away, and direct leadership was delegated to not just senior officers, but the junior ones. Thus tactical prowess was more significant in ancient and medieval times. Moreover, commanders who possessed autocratic power, such as Alexander, answered to no government or other ruler, which certainly facilitated his situation for conquest, in terms of decision-making. What if a Barcid had been the absolute ruler of Carthage? He merely could have ordered supplies and troops to be sent to Hannibal in southern Italy, something that proved could be effected (though only in detachments) soon after his devastating victory at Cannae, which cracked the solidarity of Rome's federation. The pressure might have been too much for the Rome, whose sound body-politic was the overall reason for her ultimate triumph in the titanic struggle against Hannibal. We'll never know.
So, what makes a great general? Many things, of course, and no man is infallible. Adaptation? Improvisation? Panache? Implementing sound policy (a morale objective) etc.? Magnanimity in winning over allies? Non-hesitation? Flexibility? Decisiveness? Exerting discipline and iron will into his troops? Possessing the balance of the skillful execution of strategy and tactics? When not to be rash? Knowing not only what to do, but what not to do? A political understanding to support one's war? Luck? Advancing one's state's cause for many generations to come? All great ideas are simple (at least to a genius). Perhaps the biggest, if one is most paramount, attribute to a great commander is his ability to identify a 'simple' solution to victory before his opponent in battle. Logistically, exploiting the terrain and weather is invaluable. The greats had them all. B.H. Liddell Hart, the renowned theorist (among many things he was), says the most important quality is to strike at an opponents' Achilles Heel. But one must find that weak point. A good soldier will conceal his weak point the best he can. For the most part, the great generals possessed the vision to identify the obvious and most viable situation to victory than his opponent.
With all things considered, such as the synthesized innovations (or improved reforms) of Epaminondas and Gustavus Adolphus (appropriately Gustaf II, or Gustav II, of Sweden), the tactical brilliance of Hannibal and Narses, the scope of the conquests of Chinggis Khan (he had others to directly carry out many of the conquests), the overall greatness in every facet of war of Marlborough (he benefited greatly from Eugene) etc., I consider Alexander the Great to be the towering figure of military history. His ability to successfully adapt strategy and tactics to virtually every branch of warfare sets him apart from every other great commander. He took his army some 20,000 miles in thirteen years, not once suffering a major setback (the action at the Persian Gates was very ominous for him, though), let alone a defeat. His opponent always chose the battlefield and ususally heavily outnumbered him. For what it merits, no other has successfully 'linked' the East and West, thus he was an immense cultural reformer, which is what he wanted to do. He indeed commanded an army much superior than what he faced, but he was outnumbered considerably and his battle dispositions at Gaugamela were perfectly planned to accord with what Napoleon described as 'a well reasoned and extremely circumspect defensive followed by rapid and audacious attack'. Besides, the advantage of a superior force is merely potential. It is the commander that must effectively utilize what he/she has and lead it to victory. In this regard, Alexander shined as well as any other in military history (IMHO of course). Alexander took what he wanted when he wanted, could be conciliatory if it was suitable for his needs, and his deeds, in the long run, were all about his intoxication for supreme power - something which never comes without cost. But amid that endeavor of power, he was also far-seeing in what many Greeks weren't, or simply didn't care to be: despite elements of megolamania on his part, he possessed a vision which Rome later conformed towards - a policy of bridging the gap between 'us' and 'them' entailing a knitting of appeasement. He treated his 'subjects', on whole, as allies and friends, and was attempting to 'Hellenize' the eastern peoples, something many of them (seemingly) hardly scoffed at. But it also involved his proposed (or insisted) practice of Proskynesis. This was fine with the Asiatic peoples, who submitted to people of higher rank with god-like reverance, but not to Greeks, who belived such an act was for the gods only; this cost him the respect of his fellow Hellenes, and his empire wasn't sustained only in fragments by his bickering successors, and only for some five decades.
But in conjunction for all Alexander's divine and adventurous quests for power and glory, there was a strategic end to all his actions. In Egypt, for example, he endeavored to Siwa for symbolic and personal reasons of deification, but he secured important sea communications throughout the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean, which stimulated economic interaction in his realm from the home base to Egypt (ie, he now controlled a primary source of grain).
The venerable Chandragupta, founder of the Mauryan Empire and considered perhaps the first 'emperor' of a unified India (perspective, of course), solidly kicked the Macedonian satrapies out of NW India following Alexander's death, and overcame the Nanda realm of the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent; subsequently, Selecus I, politically and perhaps militarily overcome by Chandragupta, acquiesced much territory to Chandragupta (a matrimonial contract was also involved), who in turn provided Selucus with some 500 war elephants, the asset which greatly helped in his victory, along with Lysimachus, at the ultra-decisive Battle of Ipsus in 301 B.C., which saw the defeat and death of Antigonus I; this resulted in not a re-unification of Macedonain power, but its break-up.
The military machine left to Alexander from his father Philip II was the world's first standing army (probably after the armies of ancient Sumer and Akkad), raised by the world's first universal military service. Philip also established the base of power for Alexander's great conquest (the League of Corinth). But Philip's son took his machine and succeeded, perhaps, beyond the Macedonian king's wildest dreams. A brilliantly constructed army is just potential; it is the commander that must lead it to victory, and advantages in troop quality and technology only produce advantages if used effectively. Alexander innovated the efficacy of combined arms to a much higher scope than his great father did (though there is nothing to indicate Philip could not have done so, had he lived). He also introduced the use of reserves on the battlefield that could take advantage of any unforeseen opportunities or reverses against the front lines. Moreover, he was the first great commander to use catapults tactically on the battlefield (it may have actually been Onomarchus, the Phocian leader, who first used non-torsion battlefield catapults against Alexander's father, but seemingly in a well-conceived ambush in 353 B.C.), and successfully undertook a counter-insurgency in the lands of Bactria and Sogdiana, where a nationalistic movement sprung up against him. In the Balkans, Alexander lined the machines hub-to-hub along the bank of the Apsus River to cover the crossing of his withdrawing troops against the attacks upon him by the Illyrian tribes under Cleitus and Glaucius. Contrarily, more than 2,000 miles away and six years later in 329 B.C., he effectively used catapults to drive the Scythians from the riverbank of the Jaxartes as he conducted an amphibious assault against them, and then created a sophisticated situation by which their steppe-style tactics were neutralized: under a brilliant commander, a brilliant instrument of combined arms could indeed defeat the best steppe horse archers at the time. There has perhaps been no greater practitioner of a great system than Alexander.
Hannibal, Scipio Africanus, Chinggis Khan, Subotai, and Napoleon, among many others, were certainly comparable in thier great martial works; Hannibal and Scipio implemented fine use of offensive reserves in their great victories, and the first 'true' reserve deployed on the battlefield may have been Hannibal's retention of his third line at the Battle of Zama. Hannibal also seemingly achieved military history's first great turning movement, which led to the splitting of two Roman armies and the smashing ambush of one of them at Lake Trasimene, in June of 217 B.C. In a wider strategic manner, Napoleon's Ulm Campaign in October of 1805 was a supreme example of such military doctrine.
Heinz Guderian was probably the greatest exponent of 'Blitzkrieg' at the start of WWII, which proved incredibly effective, at least initially. George Patton was a master of mobility and of armored warfare towards the end of WWII, albeit more in theory than practice.
When on top of his game, Napoleon was as impressive as any other commander in history. But his colossal ambition was ultimately beyond his, or any man's, reach. When he commanded relatively smaller armies, he was simply awesome, even in his later career. It seems he denied being a greedy conqueror who was merely intoxicated with power; he argued that he was building a federation of 'free states' in Europe, to be united under a liberal government under the aegis of France. But if this was his goal, he clearly went about it by taking power in his own hands. However, in the 'states' he created, Napoleon granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, created efficient governments and fostered education, science, literature and the arts. But the last few years of his career saw his derriere handed to him. But it reached a point where his hands were extended to the moon, and he was extant in a time when no Alexander could completely thrive. Adolf Hitler, hardly in Napoleon's league, would also learn the world was too big to have. Man cannot be God. But like Cannae, Austerlitz was a lesson in the art of war. Whether one admires him, is indifferent about him, or hates him, Napoleon Bonaparte was a genius.
Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan) was born in a tent and began with practically less than nothing; he rose to impacted the world greatly. Many think of him in connection with 'apocalyptic slaughter' etc., but he was a leader of his harsh times. I believe the truth of him is he was a visionary leader, whose policies incuded appeasement, and whose conquests joined a comparitively backward Europe with the flourishing cultures of Asia to trigger a global awakening, which resulted in an unprecedented explosion of technologies, trade, and ideas, all filtered via the Silk Road. He was as great a civil administrator as he was an organizer of arms, which was limited to cavalry and corps of engineers. Infantry was hardly ever used, which would not only hinder the Mongols' need for extreme celerity, but for the reason that a nomad fighter without a horse was unthinkable. Chinggis was also as adept as any commander in history at psychological warfare; many of his enemies were subdued without a shot being fired against them. He surpasses Alexander in the manner he organized his empire, and his command structure was based on ability, not any bloodline (even his own). That is the mark of a brilliant commander. His great general, or orlok, Subedei, was perhaps history's greatest grand strategist, as he effectively used armies to screen others' flanks, thus co-ordinating multiple armies across multiple mountain ranges etc. In 1220, traversing hundreds of miles of reputedly impassable desert, Chinggis and four armies (tumans) turned Muhammed II of Khwarez's entire line and severed the shah from his western domains, as part of the expeditionary force debouched south through the Kyzyl Kum ('Red Sand Desert') upon the enemy's rear, while Jebe distracted the enemy's attention to his forces on the eastern flank of the shah's center of power between Bukhara and Samarkand. The entire operation was a paradigm of strategic reconnaisance and surprise upon the rear of an enemy's position (not just that of an army, but an an entire region of the enemy's power!).
Though Alexander's empire did not endure as Rome's did or was as vast as that of the Mongols, his legacy probably outlasts any other military figure, other than perhaps the Prophet Mohammed (and maybe Constantine I), and his work was one of near cosmogony. He was a genius. He was a madman. He was a visionary. He was a mass-murderer. He was a liberator. He was intoxicated with power. He was chivalrous when not opposed. Was he all of these? Was he any of these? Militarily, he could smash his enemy. Diplomatically, he could win over numerous peoples with his panache. Scipio Africanus, probably Rome's greatest field commander, also succeeded with these great attributes. It is probable he couldn't have known at the time the extent of his immenince, but the fact we speak of him today in the manner in which we do means he got exactly what he wanted.
"If anyone has the right to be judged by the standards of his time, and not by the standards of our time, it is Alexander".
-Hermann Bengtson
Judged as an exponent in the art of stratagem, and as a field general who sustained his army in enemy territory so adeptly, with his Roman enemy assiduously dogging him once they found his tactical measure, and with but grudging material support from his own state, who could have sent him more troops and supplies from 215-208 B.C. from Africa or even Sicily (Syracuse had revolted from Roman rule, and Carthage held the southern coast fro some a few years), Hannibal may have no equal. His great campaign against Republican Rome was the significant first in which strategic actions played the pivotal role (attrition, indirect approaches etc.), finally resulting in Rome's victory. Rome adapted brilliantly, and won with his applied concept, basically of attempting to politically break an opposing state by detaching her protectorates. Moreover, their corporate heroism and sound body-politic ultimately matched his genius. Hannibal showed the Romans the value of security on the march, administered military history's first great turning movement in the actions leading to the smashing ambuscade at Lake Trasimene in 217 B.C., and provided the posterity of warfare with a textbook display of tactical perfection in the great battle at Cannae in 216 B.C. He did ultimately fail, but mostly because of circumstances and events which were simply out of his control. Rome won both Sicily and Sardinia quite by good luck and chance. He was simply fantastic, and understood fully that policy is what it took to win the nature of the war he undertook. He must be held responsible as the strategos of Carthage, but his subordinates in Iberia and Sicily failed miserably. Carthaginian folly, particularly in Iberia, was more responsible for his ultimate failure than any major mistakes on his part. His grand strategy to overcome Rome, once they didn't play by traditional ruled after Cannae, was dependent on an encirclement of Italy from his allies in Greece, Sicily, Africa, and Iberia, and then to comple the allies of Rome to forsake the great mother-city; by 208-207 B.C., they were indeed quite temeperamental. Rome simply checked or defeated Carthage's allies where Hannibal wasn't present, and the Carthaginians proved not to be the determined martial nation-state Rome was, willing to sacrifice more than come to the table. Given time under peril, Rome produced great men who adapted and implemeted away from Rome's traditional ways in a certain time of need: Scipio Africanus was such a man.
Chinese warlords of the steppes of Asia, such as Maodun (Mete Han) (late 3rd century to early 2nd century B.C.) and Ran Min (mid 4th century A.D.), carried out devastating campaigns of destruction with their indefatigable armies of horsemen. Cao Cao, a warlord who had been an important member of the previous Han Dynasty, had first established his power in northern China by defeating his rival, Yuan Shao, in the Battle of Guandu in 200 A.D. This made Cao Cao the most powerful ruler in northern China. Records seeem a little exiguous within the Three Kingdoms era, but in this battle, Cao Cao was outnumbered significantly. Wanyan Min, or Wanyan Aguda, the great Jurchen leader and founder of the Jin Dynasty, defeated 700,000 Liao (Qidan) troops with 20,000 (this is not a typo) of his superbly armored and skilled Jurchen cavalrymen at the Battle of Hubudagang in 1115. The Liao Dynasty by this time was very decadent, but those odds are ridiculous! The following year, Aguda completed the conquest of the entire Liaodong Peninsula (northeastern China). Between 1119 and 1122, Aguda's army repeatedly defeated Liao armies and captured all of Liao's five capitals. The Mongols destroyed the Jin in 1234. By this time, however, the Jin was seriously weakened by internal strife.
Gideon was one of the first great military craftsmen we can trace details to; in his famous attack upon the Midianites in the Plain of Esdraelon (Jezreel Valley) around 1200 B.C. It seems Gideon layed down precedents of a professional force, staff work, reconnaisance, a night attack, skillful use of deception and ruse, pursuit following victory, and knowing capabilies and limitations etc.
Xenophon was the originator, perhaps, of the rearguard action, exemplified in his legendary and disciplined retreat back home with the '10,000', in 401 B.C. following the defeat of his employer Cyrus the Younger.
Julius Caesar was untouchable (being assassinated notwithstanding). He was both a man of the people and a demagogue. As a conqueror, reformer, and politician, Caesar stands out as one of the giants of all time (for better or worse). His genius in other affairs of politics and administration etc. was probably as versatile as any other commander in history, even taking into consideration that history has seemingly made him larger than life (he was also probably the greatest of all generals on writing memoirs). But judged by his battlefield conduct, he seemingly can rank as one of the best ever, but certainly not without controversy.
Some were the best in the forest, some on sand, some at sea, some in the snow, some in the jungle, some on the beach, and some in city-fights; those like Alexander excelled almost in every branch, thus from this criterion, he seems to come out on top. But again, only if one must be chosen for teh fun of a debate of 'greatest general'. In more pedantic reality, there is no such thing.
I have categorized my compilation into three TIERS.
TIER 1 - The very best generals in military history. I have added in parantheses each commander's great military victory. This gets difficult; I am steadfast about the top 4, but how can one discern that Marlborough was indisputably better than Gustavus Adolphus?. It comes down to our own subjective preferences. Remeber, too, history is written by the winners.
Furthermore, the captains we discuss can only do things under the cards that were dealt. Frederick the Great's tactical conduct amid interior lines was astounding, but the circumstances couldn't avoid setbacks: facing a coalition that practically encompassed Prussia, he and his great subordinates would swiftly maneuver their disciplined army into positions and blast them positions with tremendous firepower (points achieved due to an innovation of horse artillery), and achieve flank attacks upon their numerically superior foes. This could be stupendously impressive, but also result in defeats, as commanders like Daun could adapt to a genius.
The quality of one's work is a little more important than the breadth (who am I to judge the 'quality', right?). This doesn't necessarily mean final victory for one's cause. For example, Epaminondas and Philip II of Macedon won just 3 major victories between them, smashing ones, which displayed tactical innovation. But it seems to me they were military geniuses above others who may have conquered more people and territory, such as Tamerlane and Hernan Cortes. Moreover, one can be superior to another without necessarily being the more innovative.
TIER 2 - The next level. These commanders could very well have possessed genius on par with the TIER 1 leaders, but something, from my view, precludes them from being ranked with the others. For example, Tamerlane, an amazing leader, was no fool, but basically a conqueror on a massive scale with no political foresight. He simply conquered, not settled; but that doesn't militate against his skill as a commander. Maybe indiscriminate conquest is all it takes to be considered a great military leader, particularly if that was one's goal (though Tamerlane clearly appreciated culture). I guess one might argue with "who cares?"; the breadth of Tamerlane's conquests rival that of Chinggis Khan and his successors. Superfluous to say, this is all debatable. I may have shown a little too much impressionability for the Christian Crusaders, who have been the subject of much romanticism. Let me know what you think. Needless to say, I feel the expected debates should not be contentious (at the risk of sounding like a moderator), but academic.
TIER 3 - These commanders, in some form or another, warrant attention more positively than negatively. I may have underrated some, such as Attila, Edward I, and Nathan Forrest, and the likes of Crassus and McClellan were moderate commanders at best. I include 'bandits', revolutionists, and operational commanders. I realize TIER 3 may be too broad, and many more could easily be included (and excluded) - ie, any commander who won a battle of some sort. Perhaps there should be a 4th? A 5th?
I do not include many monarchs, emperors, or presidents, such as Elizabeth I, Queen of England or Abraham Lincoln, as they cannot be given credit for the military successes, in battle, of their nation's armies. That credit goes to their subordinates. They certainly merit credit (or accountability) for their influence upon human history. However, I included the likes of Georges Clemenceau and Gustav III of Sweden, as they seemed to direct their war efforts more directly. But it's debatable, and there are many that may 'fit in' to that criteria I overlooked (forgive me in advance).
Despite what many probably feel, Adolf Hitler was a student of military history, and the supreme commander of one of the greatest military forces ever developed. Despite his failings and ideological perfidy, he was at times an enterprising commander, not to mention entirely Frederician in military outlook. His faith in fanaticism was not always completely misplaced, in terms of military success. But he barely makes this list, thus I am aware how incomprehensibly unrealistic he did become as WWII dragged on.
I hope I haven't expounded too much. By all means, I would love approvals, reprovals and suggestions etc., etc. Remember, this is all my opinion, and I am just an avocational amateur. This list is one of military leaders, not inclusive of great thinkers or engineeres, such as Alfred Mahan or Jean Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval. Sun Tzu was actually a general, but Carl von Clausewitz, though a fine soldier, did not hold a position of higher command. But Archimedes directly led the defense of Syracuse against the Romans with his brilliant machines (though he wasn't really a military commander). By all means, I would love approvals, reprovals, and suggestions etc., etc.
I don't think ancient commanders were better artists of war per se, but it seems the great commanders of way back displayed more overall direction of operations etc., thus most of the vaster variables of strategy and tactics in later times were drawn from the perceptiveness of great military leadership of fewer individuals of antiquity which history has written more about, than many great leaders of modern conflicts who won with many contributions to the evolution of strategy and tactics. For example, I don't think Alexander could have possessed a superior understanding in the art of war than the Austrain commander Radetzky of the mid 18th century. I feel we must mostly gauge by the actions. But it's not that simple, and I may be a sucker for romanticism!
One more thing: because a commander left a 'legacy' that shaped history because of his military success is not necessarily an important criterion to adopt. There is no way William the Conqueror, Francisco Pizarro, and Julius Caesar, to name a few, could have known their successes were going to affect Western civilization to the degree they did. I judge a commander by his/her actions, both on and off the battlefield, more than any enduring legacy left behind by a leader.
TIER 1
This is my 'top 10' list (16, actually).
Alexander III King of Macedon 'the Great' ('Megas Alexandros') (Gaugamela, 331 B.C.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/a/a2/180px-AlexanderTheGreat_Bust.jpg
Hannibal (Hannibal Barca) (Cannae, 216 B.C.)
http://alainhubler.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/bust_of_hannibal.jpg
Napoleon I (Napoleone Buonaparte) Emperor of France (Austerlitz, 1805 A.D.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en-commons/thumb/2/22/240px-Napoleon_Bonaparte.jpg
Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan, b. Temujin Baghatur) Mongol Conqueror 'Universal Ruler' (Indus River, 1221 A.D.)
http://www.s9.com/images/portraits/11096_Genghis-Khan.jpg
Publius Cornelius Scipio Scipio Africanus Major (Ilipa, 206 B.C.)
http://www.the-romans.co.uk/gallery2/full/republic08.jpg
John Churchill 1st Duke of Marlborough 'Corporal John' (Blenheim, 1704 A.D.)
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/mss/online/biographies/images/churchill-duke1-marlborough.jpg
Gustav II Adolf (Gustavus Adolphus) King of Sweden 'the Lion of the North' (Breitenfeld, 1631 A.D.)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/Gustav_II_Adolf_by_Merian.jpg/200px-Gustav_II_Adolf_by_Merian.jpg
Arthur Wellesley 1st Duke of Wellington 'the Iron Duke' (Salamanca, 1812 A.D.)
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40877000/jpg/_40877773_wellington220.jpg
Subu'atai (Subutai, Subedei etc.) the Valiant (Kalka River, 1223 A.D.)
http://www.hexagonal.net/anachronism/img/art/anachronism_art_112.jpg
Gaius Julius Caesar (Pharsalus, 48 B.C.)
http://www.incwell.com/Biographies/Caesar,Julius.jpg
Belisarius (Flavius Belisarius) (Daraa, 530 A.D.)
https://img125.imageshack.us/img125/3014/belisarius1rq.jpghttp://www.dialogus2.org/IMAGES/belisaire.jpg
Han Xin (Jingxing, 205 B.C.)
https://img20.imageshack.us/img20/4839/hanxin8ay.th.jpg
Frederick II King of Prussia 'the Great' (Leuthen, 1757 A.D.)
http://strangevistas.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/fryderyk_2.jpg
Epaminondas (Leuctra, 371 B.C.)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/9/93/280px-Epaminond.mors.jpg
Jan III Sobieski (John) King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (Vienna, 1683)
http://www.nyc24.org/2002/issue01/story02/images/sobieski.jpg
Philip II King of Macedon (Chaeronea, 338 B.C.)
http://www.alanfildes.com/images/philipmacedon.jpg
Timur-i Leng Turco-Mongol Conqueror (Barlas tribe) 'Tamerlane' (Ankara, 1402 A.D.)
http://www.geocities.com/go_darkness/god-timur.jpg
Khalid ibn al-Walid the Drawn Sword of Allah (Yarmuk River, 636 A.D.)
http://www.snrt.ma/photo/473130-579035.jpg
Probably the greatest admirals:
Themistocles (Salamis, 480 B.C.)
http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Portraits/Art/Themistocles.jpg
Yi Sun-shin (Yi Soon-shin) (Myeongnyang, 1597 A.D.)
http://medieval2.heavengames.com/m2tw/history/historical_figures_folder/admiral_yi_sun-shin/yss2.jpg
Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (Texel 1673, A.D.)
http://educatie.coevordenmuseum.nl/picture_library/MichieldeRuyter.jpg
Horatio Nelson Viscount Nelson (Trafalgar, 1805 A.D)
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/2/26/270px-Nelson1.jpg
Chester Nimitz (Midway, 1942 A.D.)
http://www.thc.state.tx.us/images/museums/musnimitz_clip_image002.jpg
TIER 2
These commanders are the next level. I do not rank these; they are listed chronologically by their deaths.
Tuthmose III (Thutmosis or Tuthmosis) Egyptian Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty
Cyrus Achaemenid King of Persia 'the Great'
Seleucus I Diadochi and Seleucid Founder 'Nicator'
Pyrrhus Molossian King of Epirus
Gaius Marius
Trajan (Marcus Ulpius Trajanus) Roman Emperor 'Optimus Princeps'
Cao Cao (Cao Mengde) Emperor of the Later (Eastern) Han Dynasty and King of Wei
Aurelian (Lucius Domitius Aurelianus) Roman Emperor 'Restitutor Orbis'
Constantine I (Flavius Valerius Constantinus) Roman Emperor 'the Great'
Narses (Narseus)
Heraclius (Flavius Heraclius Augustus) Byzantine Emperor
Charles Martel (Carolus Martellus) Frankish Mayor of the Palace 'the Hammer'
Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus, Charles I) King of the Franks 'the Great'
Alfred King of Wessex 'the Great'
Wanyan Aguda Jurchen Chieftain and Jin Founder 'Taizu'
Yue Fei
Saladin (Salah al-Din Yusuf bin Ayyub) Kurdish Muslim Leader
Richard I King of England 'Coeur de Lion'
Tran Hung Dao (Hung Dao Dai Vuong)
Edward III King of England
Henry V King of England
Jan Zizka
Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba Prince of Maratra 'El Gran Capitan'
Selim I Ottoman Sultan 'the Grim'
Babur (Zahiruddin Muhammed Babur) Moghul Founder 'the Tiger'
Sulayman I (Suleiman) Ottoman Sultan 'the Magnificent', or 'Kanuni'
Takeda Shingen (Katsuchiyo) Japanese Daimyo 'the Tiger of Kai'
Oda Nobunaga Japanese Daimyo
Jan Karol Chodkiewicz Grand Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Stanislaw Koniecpolski Grand Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Mauritz van Nassau (Maurice of Nassau) Prince of Orange
Ambrogio Spinola Marques de Balbases
Albrecht von Wallenstein (Albrecht Vaclav Eusebius z Valdstejna) Duke of Friedland and Mecklenburg
Oliver Cromwell Lord Protector of the Commonwealth
Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne Vicomte de Turenne
Louis II de Bourbon Duc d'Enghien and Prince de Conde 'the Great Conde'
Karl XII (Charles) King of Sweden
Eugene Prinz Francois-Eugen of Savoy-Carignan
Nader Shah Afshar (Nadir Qoli Beg, or Tahmasp Qoli Khan) Afsharid Founder and Shah of Persia
Maurice de Saxe (Hermann Moritz)
George Washington
Aleksandr Vasilevich Suvorov Generalissimus of Russia
Louis Nicolas Davout Duc d'Auerstadt and Prince d'Eckmuhl 'the Iron Marshal'
Charles (Karl Ludwig Johann Josef Lorenz) Archduke of Austria and Duke of Teschen
Johann Josef Wenzel Radetzky Graf von Radetz 'Vater Radetzky'
Thomas Jonathen Jackson Stonewall Jackson
Robert E(dward) Lee
Helmuth Karl Bernhard von Moltke Count von Moltke 'the Elder'
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (Ali Rıza oglu Mustafa) Founder of the Republic of Turkey
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel the Desert Fox
George Smith Patton Old Blood and Guts
Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim
Heinz Wilhelm Guderian
Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck
William (Joseph) Slim 1st Viscount of Yarralumla and Bishopston
Erich von Manstein (Fritz-Erich von Lewinski)
Georgi Konstantinovich Zhukov
Moshe Dayan
Vo Nguyen Giap
TIER 3
If titles of monarchy etc. are not specified, the commanders were merely generals of their respected states. Again, the captains are listed in chrononlogical order by their deaths.
BEFORE CHRIST
Lugalzagesi Sumerian King of Umma, Sargon King of Akkad 'the Great', Naram (Haram)-Sin King of Akkad, Hattusili I (Labarna) Hittite Founder, Mursilis I Hittite King, Tuthmosis (Thutmose) I Pharaoh of Egypt, Tuthmosis (Tuthmose) IV Pharaoh of Egypt, Tudhaliya I Hittite King, Suppiluliumas Hittite King, Mursilis II Hittite King, Muwatallis Hittite King, Rameses II Pharaoh of Egypt, Merneptah Pharaoh of Egypt, Gideon (Jerub-baal) Judge of the Israelites, Wu Wang (Chi Fa) Founder of the Chou Dynasty 'the Martial King', Tiglath Pileser I King of Assyria, Chou Kung (Chi Tan) Duke of Chou, David King of the Kingdom of Israel, Ashurnasirpal II King of Assyria, Shalmaneser III King of Assyria, Tiglath-Pileser III King of Assyria, Sargon II King of Assyria, Sennacherib King of Assyria, Esarhaddon King of Assyria, Ashurbanipal King of Assyria, Ji Zhonger Duke Wen of Jin, Nabopolasser King of Babylonia, Cyaxeres (Hvakhshathra) King of Media, Nebuchadnezzar II King of Babylonia, Harpagus (Arbaku), Wu Zixu (Wu Yun), Sun Tzu (Sun Wu) Honorable Sun, Cleomenes I King of Sparta, Darius I Achaemenid King of Persia 'the Great', Callimachus, Miltiades the Younger, Artaphrenes the Elder, Leonidas I King of Sparta, Gelon Tyrant of Syracuse, Pausanius, Leotychides, Xerxes I Achaemenid King of Persia, Cimon, Teres I 1st Odrysian King, Myronides, Nicodemes, Cincinnatus (Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus), Pericles (Perikles), Gaius Servilius Ahala, Phormio, Sitalkes Odrysian King 'the Great', Pagondas, Brasidas, Demosthenes Son of Alcisthenes, Hannibal Son of Gisgo, Gylippus, Alcibiades, Agis II King of Sparta, Himilco, Lysander, Wu Qi (Wu Ch'i), Agesilaus II King of Sparta, Iphicrates, Conon, Dionysius I Tyrant of Syracuse, Marcus Furius Camillus, Pelopidas, Datames, Artaxerxes II King of Persia 'Memnon', Xenophon, Philomelus, Onomarchus, Dionysius II Tyrant of Syracuse, Sun Bin, Marcus Valerius Corvus, Titus Manlius Torquatus Imperiosus, Timoleon, Memnon of Rhodes, Parmenio the Old General, Coenus, Leosthenes, Craterus Diadochi of Alexander, Perdiccas, Sun Bin, Antipitar Diadochi of Alexander, Antigonus I Diadochi of Alexander 'Monophthalmos', Chandragupta Maurya Mauryan Founder 'Sandracottus', Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus, Agathocles Tyrant of Syracuse, Ptolemy I Diadochi of Alexander 'Soter', Demetrius I (Demetrius Poliorcetes) Diadochi of Alexander, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Lysimachus Diadochi of Alexander, Olympiodorus, Ptolemy King of Macedon 'Ceraunus', Spurius Carvilius Maximus, Appius Claudius Caudex, Manius Curius Dentatus, Antiochus I King of Syria 'Soter', Bai Qi, Wang Jian, Li Mu, Lian Po, Xanthippus, Marcus Atilius Regulus, Asoka Mauryan Emperor, Adherbal, Gaius Lutatius Catalus, Hamilcar Barca Lightning, Gaius Duilius, Wang Jian, Ming T'ien, Chao T'o, Lucius Aemilius Papus, Gaius Atilius Regulus, Lucius Caecilius Metellus, Cleomenes III King of Sparta, Publius Cornelius Scipio the Elder, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus, Gaius Flaminius, Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, Titus Otacilius Crassus, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Hasdrubal Barca, Gaius Claudius Nero, Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, Mago Barca, Syphax King of the Masaesylii, Titus Manlius Torquatus, Marcus Valerius Laevinus, Marcus Livius Salinator, Attalus I King of Pergamum 'Soter', Hsiang Yu (Xiang Yu), Liu Bang (Gaozu) Han Founder, Manius Acilius Glabrio, Muttines (Mottones), Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiagenes, Manius Acilius Glabrio, Antiochus III King of Syria 'the Great', Prusias I King of Bithynia 'Cholos', Philopoemen the Last of the Greeks, Marcus Fulvius Nobilior, Mete Han Shanyu of the Xiongnu 'Maodun', Lucius Valerius Flaccus, Titus Quinctius Flamininus, Philip V King of Macedon, Antiochus IV King of Syria 'Epiphanes', Judas Maccabaeus the Hammer, Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, Gaius Laelius, Eumenes II King of Pergamum 'Soter', Masinissa King of the Massylii, Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus Minor, Viriathus, Aristonicus, Lucius Caecilius Metellus Dalmaticus, Wei Qing, Ho Qu-bing, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus, Decimus Junius Brutus (Callaicus), Gaius Tuditanus Sempronius, Liu Che (Wu Di) Han Emperor, Jugurtha King of Numidia, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus, Sulla (Lucius Cornelius Sulla) Felix, Quintus Sertorius, Spartacus, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius, Mithridates VI (Eupator Dionysus) King of Pontus 'the Great', Ariovistus King of the Suebi 'Friend', Lucius Licinius Lucullus Ponticus, Ambiorix Chief of the Eburones, Tigranes II King of Armenia 'the Great', Cassivellaunus (Cassibelanus) King of the Catuvellauni, Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius) Magnus, Gaius Scribonius Curio, Publius Licinius Crassus, Marcus Licinius Crassus Dives, Surena (Rustaham Suren-Pahlev) Eran Spahbodh, , Vercingetorix King of the Arverni, Juba I King of Numidia, Pharnaces II King of Pontus, Orodes II (Hyrodes) King of Parthia, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Pacorus I King of Parthia, Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius), Publius Ventidius Brassus, Titus Statilius Taurus, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and Nero Claudius Drusus (Decimus Claudius Nero).
ANNO DOMINI, 0-1500
Marcus Plautius Silvanus, Germanicus Julius Caesar (Nero Claudius Germanicus), Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, Arminius (Hermann der Cherusker) Chief of the Cherusci, Gaius Silius, Juba II King of Numidia and Maueritania, Publius Cornelius Dolabella, Tiberius (Tiberius Claudius Nero) Roman Emperor, Cunobelinus (Cynfelyn) King of the Catuvellauni, Caratacus (Caradoc) King of the Catuvellauni, Publius Ostorius Scapula, Liu Xiu (Han-Guang Wu Di) Han Emperor, Aulus Plautius, Boudicca (Boadicea) Queen of the Iceni, Gaius Paulinus Suetonius, Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, Vespasian (Titus Flavius Vespasianus) Roman Emperor, Eleazar ben Yair, Cerialis (Quintus Petillius Cerialis Caesius Rufus), Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Flavius Josephus (Joseph ben Matthias), Decebalus Dacian King, Bar Kochba (Simon bar Kochba), Marcus Aurelius, Sun Jian (Wentai) the Tiger of Jiang Dong, Yuan Shao Benchu, Severus (Lucius Septimius Severus) Roman Emperor, Zhang Liao (Wenyuan), Zhuge Liang (Chu-ko Liang) Founder of the Shu Kingdom 'the Hidden Dragon', Liu Bei Shu Emperor, Maximinus I (Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus) Roman Emperor 'Thrax', Ardashir I Sassanid Founder of Persia, Lu Xun (Boyan), Sun Quan (Zhongmou) Founder of the Wu Kingdom, Gallienus (Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus) Roman Emperor, Publius Septimius Odaenathus Prince of the Roman Colony of Palmyra, Postumus (Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus) Emperor of Gaul, Iberia, and Britian, Claudius II (Marcus Aurelius Claudius) Roman Emperor 'Gothicus', Shapur I Sassanid King of Persia, Septimia Zenobia (Znwbya Bat Zaddai) Queen of Palmyra, Liu Can (Shiguang) Emperor of the Han Zhao State, Constantius II (Flavius Julius Constantius) Roman Emperor, Shi Le (Shilong) Founder of the Jie State (Later Zhao), Ran Min (Yongzeng)) Emperor of the Ran Wei State 'Jinu', Julian (Flavius Claudius Julianus) Roman Emperor 'the Apostate', Shapur II Sassanid King of Persia, Maximianus (Magnus Maximus), Fritigern (Frithugairns) King of the Visigoths, Athanaric (Apanareiks), Arbogast (Flavius Arbogastes), Theodosius I (Flavius Theodosius) Roman Emperor 'the Great', Flavius Stilicho, Alaric I King of the Visigoths, Ataulf (Atawulf) King of the Visigoths 'Father Wolf', Wallia (Valia) King of the Visigoths, Coel Hen Duc Brittanniarum 'Old King Cole', Rua (Rugila) the Hun, Breda the Hun, Attila the Hun 'the Scourge of God', Flavius Aetius, Ardaric King of the Gepids, Cunedda ap Edern Wledig, Majorian (Julius Valerius Maiorianus) Western Roman Emperor, Ricimer, Geiseric King of the Vandals, Childeric I King of the Salian Franks, Odoacar (Odavacer) King of the Heruli 'Rex Italiae', Ambrosius Aurelianus (Aurelius Ambrosius), Riothamus (Riotimus) King of the Brittones, Clovis I King and Unifier of the Franks, Theodoric King of the Ostrogoths 'the Great', Arthur 'Dex Bellorum' (legendary; yes, the legendary figure we know so well, and perhaps the same leader known as Owain Ddantgwyn (Owain Danwyn)), Cadwallon I (Cadwallon ap Einion King of Gwynedd 'Long Hand', Azarethes, Eran Spahbodh, Mundus, Priscus General Priscus, Totila (Baduila) King of the Ostrogoths, Ceawlin Saxon Bretwalda of Wessex, Bayan Avar khagan, Rhydderch Hael Brythonic hero 'the Generous', AEthilfrith King of Northumbria, Raedwald King of East Anglia, Muhammed the Prophet of Islam 'the Praised One', Pulakesi II (Ereya) Ruler of the Chalukya Dynasty, Umar ibn al-Khattab Caliph of Islam, Amr-ibn-al-As, Rustam Farokhzad, Sa'ad ibn abu-Wakkas, T'ai tsung (Li Shih-min) T'ang Emperor, Asparukh (Isperikh) Founder of the 1st Bulgarian Empire, Pippin (Pepin) II of Heristal Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia 'the Middle', Tariq ibn Zayid, Mohammed ibn-Kasim, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi (Abdderrahman) Muslim Governor of Al-Andalus, Eudes (Odo) Duke of Aquitaine, Pelayo (Pelagio) Founder and Nobleman of the Kingdom of Asturias, Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik, Leo III Byzantine Emperor 'the Isaurian', An Lu-shan, Hsuan-tsung T'ang Emperor, Guo Ziyi (Kuo Tzu-i), Harun al-Rashid Abbasid Caliph, Egbert King of Wessex, AEthelwulf King of Wessex, Ivar Ragnarsson the Boneless, Halfdan Ragnarsson, Rhodri (Roderick) Mawr Ruler of Wales 'the Great', Mihira Bhoja I Pratihara King of Northern India, Basil I Byzantine Emperor 'the Macedonian', Arpad Chief of the Magyars, Edward King of Wessex 'the Elder', Simeon I Tsar of Bulgaria, Harold I (Harald Haarfager) King of Norway, Henry I (Heinrich der Finkler) German King 'the Fowler', Ngo Quyen Founder of the first National Dynasty of Nam Viet, Ramiro II King of Leon, John Kurkuas, Chai Rong (later Guo Rong) Zhou Emperor 'Shizong', Nicephorus II Byzantine Emperor 'Phocas', Sviatoslav I Prince of Kievan Rus', Otto I Holy Roman Emperor 'the Great', John I (John Tzimisces) Byzantine Emperor, Muhammed Almansour Abi emir 'the Victorious', Boleslav I (Boleslav Chobri) King of Poland 'the Brave', Rajaraja Chola Emperor of Tamil Nadu, Brian Boru, Basil II Byzantine Emperor 'Bulgaroktonos', Mahmud (Yamin ad-Dawlah Mahmud) Sultan of Ghazni, Malcolm II (Mael Coluim mac Cinaeda) King of Scotland, Canute II (Knut) Danish King of Denmark, England, and Norway, Fulk III (Fulk Nerra) Count of Anjou 'the Black', Rajendra Chola Emperor of Tamil Nadu, Harold II (Harold Godwinsson) Earl of Wessex, Tughril Beg Seljuk Turk Founder, Alp Arslan (Muhammed ben Da'ud) Seljuk Sultan of Persia 'the Valiant Lion', Sviatoslav II (Sviatoslav Yaroslavich) Prince of Chernigov and Grand Prince of Kiev, Robert Guiscard the Resourceful, William I Duke of Normandy and King of England 'the Conqueror', Sancho Ramirez King of Aragon and Navarre, Adhemar Bishop of Le Puy-en-Velay, Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar El Cid Campeador, Godefroy (Godfrey) de Bouillon Duke of Lower Lorraine 'Defender of the Holy Sepulcher', Minamoto no Yoshiie Japanese Daimyo 'Hachiman-Taro', Bohemond I (Mark Guiscard) Prince of Taranto and Antioch, Wanyan Wuyashu Jurchen Chief 'Kangzong', Baldwin (of Boulogne) I Count of Edessa and Latin King of Jerusalem, Alexius I Byzantine Emperor 'Comnenus', Vladimir II (Volodymyr Monomakh) Grand Prince and Grand Duke of Kiev, Sigurd I (Sigurd Magnusson) King of Norway 'the Crusader', Baldwin (of Le Bourg) II Latin King of Jerusalem, Zengi (Imad ad-Din Atabeg Zengi) Atabeg of Mosul and Aleppo, Alfonso I King of Aragon and Navarre, Boleslav III (Boleslav Krzywousty) King of Poland 'Wrymouth', Valdemar I King of Denmark 'the Great', Richard de Clare 2nd Earl of Pembroke 'Strongbow', Taira no Kiyomori Japanese Dajo-Daijin, Baldwin IV Latin King of Jerusalem 'the Leper', Alfonso I King of Portugal 'Henriques the Conqueror', Minamoto Yos(h)itsune Japanese Samurai, Frederick I (Frederick Hohenstauffen) Holy Roman Emperor 'Barbarossa', Kilij Arslan II (Izz ad-Din Kilij Arslan) Seljuk Sultan of Rum, Enrico Dandolo Doge of Venice, Muhammed of Ghor (Muizz al Din Muhammed) Muslim Sultan of Ghazni, Kaloyen Asen (Johanitza) King of Wallachia and Bulgaria 'the Roman Killer', Minamoto no Yoritomo 1st Japanese Shogun, Alfonso VIII King of Castile 'the Noble', Hojo Tokimasa Japanese Shikken, Simon de Montfort IV Lord of Montfort, Chepe (Jebe Noyan), Philip II (Phillippe Auguste) King of France, Alfonso II King of Portugal 'the Fat', Muqali, Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu Khwarezm Sultan, Hermann von Salza, Chormaqan Noyan, Llywelyn I of Wales (Llywelyn ab Iorwerth) Prince of Gwynedd 'the Great', Valdemar II King of Denmark 'the Victorious', Ogotai Khan Mongol Khagan, Guyuk Khan Mongol Khagan, Frederick II Holy Roman Emperor, Batu Khan Khan of the Blue Horde, Mongke Khan Mongol Khagan, Baiju, Hulagu Khan, Kaidu Khan, Kadan, Alexander Nevsky (Alexander Vsevolodovich) Prince of Novgorad, Simon V de Montfort 6th Earl of Leicester, Baybars I (Baibars al-Bunduqdari) Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, Qalawun al-Alfi Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, Bayan, Pedro III King of Aragon, Rudolf I German King 'Rudolf of Hapsburg', Kublai Khan Mongol Khagan, Jan I Duke of Brabant 'the Victorious', Nogai Khan, Andrew of Moray, William Wallace, Edward I King of England 'Longshanks', Hojo Tokimune, Werner Stauffacher, Robert I King of Scotland 'the Bruce', Alfonso XI King of Castile and Leon, Rudolf von Erlach Bernese Ritter, Stefan Uros IV Dusan King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks 'the Mighty', Orhan I (Orhan Gazi) Ottoman Sultan, Edward de Baliol King of Scotland, John Chandos, Edward Prince of Wales 'the Black Prince', Bertrand du Guesclin, Louis I King of Hungary, Croatia, Dalmatia, and Poland 'the Great', Pedro IV King of Aragon, James Douglas 2nd Earl of Douglas and Mar, Dmitri Donskoy Grand Prince of Moscow and Grand Duke of Vladimir 'the Don', Murad I Ottoman Sultan, John Hawkwood, Zhu Yuan Zhang (Tai Zu) Founder of the Ming Dynasty 'the Hongwu Emperor', Bayezid (Beyazit) I Ottoman Sultan 'the Thunderbolt', Tokhtamysh Khan of the White Horde, Olivier de Clisson the Butcher, Owen Glendower (Owain IV Glyn Dwr) Prince of Wales, Alberico da Barbiano, Andrea Fortebracci (Braccio da Montone), Witold (Vytautus) Didysis Kunigaikstis of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania 'the Great', Zhu Di (Cheng Zu) Ming Emperor 'the Yongle Emperor', Nun'Alvares Pereira 3rd Count de Ourem 'the Great Constable', Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc), Ladislaus II (Ladislaus Jagiello) King of Poland, Andrew Prokop Procopius the Great, Giovanni Giustiniani, Janos Hunyadi Voivode of Transylvania 'the White Knight', Alfonso V King of Aragon and Alfonso I King of Naples 'the Magnanimous', Richard Plantagenet 3rd Duke of York, Richard Neville 5th Earl of Salisbury, Andrew Trollope, Henry Beaufort 3rd Duke of Somerset, Gjergj Kastrioti Prince of Albania 'Skanderbeg', Richard Neville 16th Earl of Warwick 'the Kingmaker', John Neville 1st Marquess of Montagu, Hosokawa Katsumoto Japanese Kanrei, Bartolomeo Colleoni, Vlad III (Vlad Dracula) Voivode of Wallachia 'the Impaler', Muhammed II (Mehmed II) Ottoman Sultan 'the Conqueror', Edward IV King of England, and Matthias Corvinus King of Hungary 'the Just'.
1500-present
Stefan III (Stefan Musat) Voivode of Moldovia 'the Great', Isabella I Queen of Aragon, Castile and Leon 'the Catholic', Bernard Stuart 3rd Seigneur d'Aubigny, Henry VII (Henry Tudor) King of England, Francisco de Almeida, Gaston de Foix Duc de Nemours 'the Thunderbolt of Italy', John de Vere 13th Earl of Oxford, Ferdinand V King of Castile and Leon (also Ferdinand II King of Aragon and Ferdinand III King of Naples 'the Catholic'), Aruj (Oruc Reis) Ottoman Bey of Algiers and Beylerbey of the West Mediterranean 'Barbarossa ('Redbeard'), Prospero Colonna, Ismail (Shah Isma'il Abu'l-Mozaffar bin Sheikh Haydar bin Sheikh Junayd Safawi) I Shah of Persia and Safavid Founder, Pal Tomori, Huayna Capac (Wayna Qhapaq) Sapa (God Emperor) of the Incas, Georg von Frundsberg, Konstanty Ostrogski Grand Hetman of Lithuania, Wolter (Walter) von Plettenberg Master of the Livonian Order, Francisco Pizarro Spanish Conquistador, Pedro (Don Pedro) de Alvarado y Contreras Spanish Conquistador, Jerzy Radziwell Voivode of the Kiev Voivodeship and Field Hetman of Lithuania, Francois de Bourbon Count of Enghien, Khair ad-Din (Yakupoglu Hızır) Ottoman Kaptan Derya 'Barbarossa' ('Redbeard'), Lapu-Lapu (Kaliph Pulaka) Filipino Chieftain of Mactan Island, Hernan Cortes (Hernando Cortez) Spanish Conquistador and 1st Marques del Valle de Oaxaca, Lautaro Toqui (Wartime Chief) of the Mapuche 'Lef-Traru', Gian Giacomo Medici, Jan Tarnowski Grand Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Charles V Holy Roman Emperor, Yamamoto Haruyuki Japanese Takeda General 'Kansuke', Herluf Trolle, Daniel Rantzau, Erik XIV (Eric) King of Sweden, John of Austria Don Juan de Austria, Shimazu Tadayoshi Japanese Daimyo, Mori Motonari (Shojumaru) Japanese Daimyo, Fernando Alvarez de Toledo y Pimentel 3rd Duque de Alba (Alva), Ivan IV Tsar of Russia 'the Terrible', William (Willem) I Prince of Orange and Count of Nassau-Dillenburg 'the Silent', Mikolaj Radziwell Grand Chancellor and Hetman of Lithuania 'the Red', Stefan Batory King Consort of Poland, Prince of Transylvania, and Grand Duke of Lithuania, Qi Jiguang, Don Alvaro de Bazan Marques de Santa Cruz de Mudela, Alessandro Farnese Duke of Parma and Piacenza, Francis Drake, Klaus (Clas) Fleming, Toyotomi Hideyoshi Japanese Daimyo, Michael (Mihai Viteazul) Romanian Ban 'the Brave', Krzysztof Mikolaj Radziwill Polish Reichsfurst of the Holy Roman Empire 'Piorun' ('the Lightning'), Akbar (Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar) Mughal Emperor 'the Great', Jan Zamoyski Lord Grand-Chancellor and Grand Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Stephen Bocskay Prince of Transylvania, Giorgio Basta Count of Huszt, Henri IV King of France and Henri III King of Navarre, Pedro Henriquez d'Azevedo y Toledo Count of Fuentes, Jan Roman Rozynski Polish Hetman, Tokugawa Ieyasu Japanese Shogun, Aleksander Lisowski, Stanislaw Zolkiewski Polish Hetman, Iskanderpasha, Charles Howard 1st Earl of Nottingham, Nurhaci Founder of the Manchu State 'Tianming', Peter Ernst Graf von Mansfeld, Abbas I Shah of Persia 'the Great', Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim, Yuan Chonghuan, Johann Tserclaes Graf von Tilly, Johan Baner, Ferdinand von Osterreich Governor of the Hapsburg Netherlands, Cardinal and Infante of Spain, Archbishop of Toledo, Li Tzu-cheng, Bernhard Duke of Saxe-Weimar, Duo'ergun (Dorgon), Har Gobind Sikh Guru, Torsten Stalhandske, Franz Freiherr von Mercy Lord of Mandre and Collenburg, Matthias Gallas Graf von Campo und Herzog von Lucera, Frederick Henry Prince of Orange, James Graham Marquess of Montrose, Lennart Torstensson, Jeremi (Jarema) Wisniowiecki Prince of Wisniowiec, Lubny and Chorol, Ralph Hopton 1st Baron Hopton, Maarten Tromp, Janusz II (Jonusas Radvila) Court Chamberlain and Great Hetman of Lithuania, Robert Blake, Ottavio Piccolomini Duke of Almafi, Bohdan Chmielnicki, Tugay Bey (Tuhaj- bej), Zheng Zhilong, Koxinga (Zheng Cheng Gong), Nzinga (Ana de Sousa Nzinga Mbande) Queen (muchino a muhatu) of Ndonga and Matamba, Stefan Czarniecki Field Hetman of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom, Stanislaw Potocki Field and Great Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth 'Rewera', George Monck 1st Duke of Albemarle, Thomas Fairfax 3rd Baron of Cameron, John Maurice Prince of Nassau-Siegen, William Cavendish 1st Duke of Newcastle-upo-Tyne, Raimondo Montecuccoli, Robert Munro, Shivaji Bhonsle Shri Shivaji Maharaj, Rupert Count Palatine of the Rhine and Duke of Bavaria 'Prince Rupert of the Rhine', David Leslie, Henry Morgan Morgan the Pirate, Abraham Duquesne Marquis Duquesne, Francois Henri de Montmorency-Bouteville Duc de Luxembourg, Niels Juel, Menno van Coehoorn Baron, William III King of England 'William of Orange', Godert de Ginkell (Godart van Ginkel) 1st Earl of Athlone, Sebastien Le Prestre Marquis de Vauban, Louis William Margrave of Baden-Baden, Aurangzeb (Mohi ud-din Muhammed) Mughal Emperor, Louis de Duras 2nd Earl of Feversham, Louis Joseph Duc de Vendome, Kangxi (Hsiian-yeh) Ch'ing Emperor, Peder Tordenskjold Thundershield, Peter I (Pyotr Alekseyevich Romanov) Tsar of Russia 'the Great', James FitzJames Duke of Berwick, Claude-Louis Hector Duc de Villars, Robert MacGregor Rob Roy, Charles Mordaunt 3rd Earl of Peterborough and Monmouth, Mirza Mahmud Siraj ad Dawla (Siraj-ud-Daulah) Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, Baji Rao I (Shrimant Baji Rao Vishwanath Bhatt) Maratha Peshwa, Edward Vernon Old Grog, James Wolfe, Louis-Joseph de Montcalm Marquis de Saint Veran, George Anson 1st Baron of Soberton, William Augustus Duke of Cumberland, Leopold Josef Maria Count von Daun and Furst von Thiano, Robert Clive 1st Baron of Plassey, Emelian Pugachev, Casimir Pulaski, Charles (Karl Alexander) Prince of Lorraine, Johann von Robaii (Johann Kalb) Baron de Kalb, Haidar Ali, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Sardar, Nathanael Greene, Ethan Allen, Francois-Joseph Paul Marquis de Grasse Tilly and Comte de Grasse, Jacques Hippolyte Comte de Guibert, Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon, Grigoriy Potemkin Prince of Tauride, Gustav III King of Sweden, Tippu Sultan the Tiger of Mysore, Ferdinand Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, George Rodney 1st Baron Rodney, John Burgoyne Gentleman Johnny, John Paul Jones, Francis Marion the Swamp Fox, Anthony Wayne, Louis Lazare Hoche, Richard Howe 1st Earl Howe, Benedict Arnold, Ralph Abercrombie, Daniel Morgan, Francois Toussant-L'Ouverture, Buckongahelas Lenni-Lenape Chief, Charles Cornwallis 1st Marquess Cornwallis, Horatio Gates, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Aleksei Orlov, Hyde Parker Admiral Sir, Gerard Lake 1st Viscount, Jean Lannes Duc de Montebello, John Moore, Blue Jacket (Weyapiersenwah) Shawnee (Shaawanwaki) War Chief, Little Turtle (Mishikinakwa) Chief of the Miami (Myaamiaki), Pyotr Bagration, Isaac Brock, Gerhard von Scharnhorst, Tecumseh Shawnee (Shaawanwaki) Leader, Mikhail Kutuzov (Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov), Jozef Poniatowski, Hugh Robert Rollo (Rollo Gillespie), William Howe 5th Viscount Howe, Frederick Josias Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Joachim Murat King of Naples, Louis Berthier 1st Duc de Wagram, 1st Duc de Valengin, and 1st Sovereign Prince de Neuchatel, Michel Ney 1st Duc d'Elchingen and 1st Prince de la Moskowale 'Le Rougeaud' ('Red-Faced') and 'le Brave des Braves', Pierre Augereau 1st Duc de Castiglione, Karadjordje (Djordje Petrovich), Andre Massena 1st Duc de Rivoli and 1st Prince d'Essling, Tadeusz Kosciuszko (Thaddeus Kosciusko), Mikhail Barclay de Tolly (Mikhail Bogdanovich Barklay-de-Tolli), Jan Dabrowski, Gebhard von Blucher Graf and Furst of Wahlstatt, Oliver Perry, Manuel Belgrano, Stephen Decatur, , Carl-Olof Constedt, Charles Dumouriez[/b], Lazare Carnot the Organizer of Victory, Francis Rawdon 1st Marquess of Hastings, Shaka Zulu Chieftain 'Shaka Zulu', Simon Bolivar El Libertador, Antonio Jose de Sucre, Thomas Sydney Beckwith, Gilbert du Motier Marquis de Lafayette, Tomas de Zumalacarregui , Hari Singh Nalwa Ranjit Singh Sikh Maharaja 'Sher-e-Punjab' ('the Lion of the Punjab', Pierre-Antoine Comte Dupont de l'Etang, William Henry Harrison, Juan Lavalle, Rowland Hill 1st Viscount Hill 'Daddy Hill', Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte 1st Sovereign Prince de Pontecorvo (later became Carl (Charles) XIV King of Sweden and Norway (Carl III Johan in Norway), Andrew Jackson, Robert Stopford, Thomas Bugeaud Marquis de la Piconnerie and Duc d'Isly, Muhammed Ali (Muhammad 'Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha) Pasha of Egypt 'Founder of Modern Egypt', Juan Martin de Pueyrredon, Zachary Taylor, Jose de San Martin (Jose Francisco de San Martin Matorras, Ignacy Pradzynski, Hone Heke (Hone Wiremu Heke Pokai) Maori Chief, Jozef Bem (Bem Jozsef), Nicolas Soult 1st Duc de Dalmatie, Francisco Castanos 1st Duke of Bailen, Jose Ballivian, Auguste Marmont Duc de Ragusa, Charles James Napier, William Carr Beresford 1st Viscount Beresford, FitzRoy Somerset 1st Baron Raglan, Pavel Nakhimov, Yang Xiuqing, Thomas Cochrane 10th Earl of Dundonald, Harry Smith 1st Baronet of Aliwal 'Sir Harry', Charles John Napier, Ignacio Zaragoza, Frederick Townsend Ward, Colin Campbell 1st Baron Clyde, Samuel Houston, John Buford, Jr., John Hunt Morgan, James Stuart Jeb Stuart, Hong Xiuquan (Hong Renkun) Heavenly King, Ambrose Hill, Winfield Scott, Francesco Serrano, Antoine-Henri de Jomini Baron, Justo Jose de Urquiza, David Farragut, George Thomas, Shamyl Imam Shamyl of Dagestan, George Meade, Henry Halleck Old Brains, Jose Antonio Paez, Cochise (A-da-tli-chi ) Nantan of the Apache (Chokonen), Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, Gordon Granger, George Custer, Braxton Bragg, Nathan Forrest, Crazy Horse (Thasuka Witko) Sioux (Oglala Lakota) Leader, Saigo Takamori the Last Samurai, Albrecht Theodor Emil Graf von Roon, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Mikhail Skobelev, Abd al-Qadir (Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri) Emir of Algeria, Henri Riviere, Cetshwayo kaMpande King of the Zulu Nation, Charles Gordon Chinese Gordon, Muhammed Ahmad (Muhammad Ahmad ibn as Sayyid Abd Allah) the Mahdi, Ulysses S(impson) Grant, George McClellan, Amedee Courbet, al-Hajj Mahmadu Lamine Senegalese Marabout, Philip Sheridan, George Crook, Sitting Bull (Tatanka Iyotake) Sioux (Hunkpapa) Leader, William Sherman (Tecumseh Sherman) Uncle Billy, Patrick Connor, John Pope, Patrice de Mac-Mahon Duc de Magenta, Pierre Beauregard, Chief Gall (Pizi) Sioux (Hunkpapa) Leader, Francois Canrobert, Antonio Maceo y Grajales the Bronze Titan, Louis Briere de l'Isle, John Chard, William Rosencrans, Piet Joubert, Gustave Borgnis-Desbordes, Samori Ture (Samori ibn Lafiya Ture) Dyula Ruler and Founder of the Wassoulou Empire, James Longstreet, Chief Joseph (Hinmuuttu-yalatlat) Nez Perce (Wal-lam-wat-kain) Leader, Bartolome Mitre, Gevork Chavoush, Maximo Gomez y Baez, Geronimo (Goyaale) Apache (Chiricahua) Leader, Oliver Howard, Red Cloud (Makhpiya Luta) Sioux (Oglala Lakota) Leader, Nogi Maresuke Kiten, Count Nogi, Garnet Wolseley 1st Viscount Wolseley, Menilek II (Sahle Maryam) Emperor of Ethiopia, Alfred von Schlieffen, Koos (Jacobus Herculaas) de la Rey, Frederick Roberts 1st Earl of Kandahar, Pretoria and Waterford, Joshua Chamberlain, Porfirio Diaz (Jose de la Cruz Porfirio Diaz Mori), Iwao Oyama, Joseph Gallieni, Horatio Kitchener Earl of Khartoum and Broome, Yuan Shikai, George Dewey, Liu Yung-fu (Lu'u Vinh Phuc), Frederick Stanley Maude, Paul von Rennenkampf, Emiliano Zapata, Louis Botha, Theodore Roosevelt Teddy Roosevelt, John Fisher 1st Baron of Kilverstone 'Jackie Fisher', Karl von Bulow, Christiaan de Wet, Michael Collins, Henry Wilson, Francisco Villa (Doroteo Arango Arambula) Pancho Villa, Vladimir Lenin (Vladimir Ulyanov), Charles Lanrezac, Sun Yat-sen Sun Zhongshan, John French 1st Earl of Ypres, Mikhail Frunze (Mihail Frunza), Aleksei Brusilov, Josias von Heeringen, Ferdinand I King of Rumania, Max Hoffmann, Andranik Toros Ozanian, Douglas Haig 1st Earl Haig, Alvaro Obregon, Ferdinand Foch, Georges Clemenceau, Wendell Neville, Horace Smith-Dorrien, John Monash, Omar Mukhtar (Umar Al-Mokhtar), Alexander Cobbe, Joseph Joffre Papa Joffre, Louis Archinard, Herbert Plumer 1st Viscount Plumer, Arthur Currie, Albert I (Albert Leopold Clement Marie Meinrad) King of the Belgians, Louis Lyautey, Alexander von Kluck, Heihachiro Togo, Paul von Hindenburg, Thomas Edward Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia, Jozef Pilsudski, Juan Vicente Gomez, Edmund Allenby 1st Viscount of Megiddo and Felixstowe, William Mitchell Billy Mitchell, Hans von Seeckt, Erich Ludendorff, Albrecht (Albrecht Maria Alexander Philipp Joseph) Duke of Wurttemberg, Leon Trotsky (Lev Bronstein), Smedley Butler the Fighting Quaker, Edward Rydz-Smigly, John Lejeune the Greatest of all Leathernecks, Walter von Reichenau, Louis Franchet d'Esperey, Isoroku Yamamoto, Franc Stane, Nikolai Vatutin, Charles Wingate Orde Wingate, August von Mackensen, Walther Model, Adolf Hitler Chancellor and Fuhrer of Germany, John Basilone Manila John (heroic addition), Fedor von Bock, John Vereker 6th Viscount Gort 'Lord Gort', Dragoljub (Draza) Mihajlovic, Masaharu Homma, Tomoyuki Yamashita the Tiger of Malaya, Evans Carlson, Philippe Leclerc Vicomte de Hauteclocque, John Pershing Black Jack, Walther von Brauchitsch, Archibald Wavell 1st Earl Wavell, Panglima Besar Soedirman (Sudirman) Father of the Army, Petre Dumitrescu, Jan Smuts, Thomas Blamey, Henri Petain (Philippe Petain), Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, Gerd von Rundstedt, Abdulaziz ibn Saud (Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman ibn Faisal Al Saud) Founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Rupprecht Crown Prince of Bavaria, Merritt Edson Red Mike, Alexander Papagos, Garegin Njdeh (Garegin Ter-Harutiunian), Hugh Trenchard 1st Viscount Trenchard, George Marshall, Leslie Morshead, Albert Kesselring, Alan Francis 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, Andrew Cunningham 1st Viscount of Hyndhope, Bernard Cyril Freyberg 1st Baron Freyberg, Douglas MacArthur, Alvin York Sergeant York (heroic addition), Renya Mutaguchi, Courtney Hodges, Josef Dietrich (Sepp Dietrich), Holland Smith Howlin' Mad Smith, Ernesto Rafael Guevara de la Serna Che Guevera, Konstantin Rokossovsky, Giovanni Messe, Li Zongren (Li Tsung-jen), Dwight Eisenhower (David Eisenhower) Ike, Harold Alexander 1st Earl of Tunis, Raizo Tanaka, Raymond Spruance, Ho Chi Minh (Nguyen Sinh Cung) Founder of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), Hugh Dowding 1st Baron Dowding, Semyon Timoshenko, Andrei Yeremenko, Charles de Gaulle, Lin Biao, Lewis Puller Chesty Puller, Chen Yi, Ivan Koniev, Frank Fletcher, David Ben-Gurion, Peng Dehuai, Chiang Kai-shek Jiang Jieshi, Keith Park, Francisco Franco, Otto Skorzeny, Anthony McAuliffe, Chu Teh Zhu De, Mao Tse-tung Mao Zedong, Bernard Montgomery 1st Viscount, Aleksandr Vasilevski, Kurt Student, Karl Donitz, Josip Tito, Gunichi Mikawa, Omar Bradley, Richard O'Connor, Claude Auchinleck the Auk, Mark Clark, Raoul Salan, Aksel Airo, Akhtar Abdur Rahman, Bekor Ghoulian, Shahen Meghrian, James Doolittle Jimmy Doolittle, Matthew Ridgway, Kim Il-Sung, Arthur Harris 1st Baronet 'Bomber Harris', Haim Bar-Lev (Haim Brotzlewsky) Haim Kidoni Bar-Lev, Stanislaw Maczek, Deng Xiaoping, Garegin Nzhdeh (Garegin Ter-Haroutunyan), Ahmed Shah Massoud the Lion of Panjshir, Sam Bahadur (Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw), Abdul Haris Nasution (Kotanopan), David Hackworth (heroic addition), William Westmoreland, Haji Mohammad Soeharto (Suharto), Harold Moore Hal Moore, Fidel Castro, Arkady Ter-Tadevossian, H. Norman Schwarzkopf Stormin' Norman, Charles Guthrie Baron Guthrie of Craigiebank, Wesley Clark, Tommy Franks, and Peter Cosgrove.
It may be too soon to add the last few. But perhaps not.
"The Gauls were not conquered by the Roman legions, but by Caesar. It was not before the Carthaginian soldiers that Rome was made to tremble, but before Hannibal. It was not the Macedonian phalanx which reached India, but Alexander. It was not the French army that reached Weser and the Inn; it was Turenne. Prussia was not defended for seven years against the three most formidable European powers by the Prussian soldiers, but by Frederick the Great".
- Napoleon Bonaparte
"War is all hell".
- William T. Sherman
"In war, there is no substitute for victory...the soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war."
- Douglas MacArthur
Thanks and enjoy, James ~:)