Who would you march with?

[Thorn Is]

Taking from the Favorite historical figures idea thread
heres one...

if you were a simple warrior of history
what leaders, or generals would you most like to serve under, if you could....

they don't have to be a good military leader, or a good individual

as an example heres my list (in no particualar order)

Saladin
Flavius Aëtius
King William I
Queen Tomyris
Aleric
Rani Laximbai
Queen Boudica
Mutapa Matope
The Trung Sisters
Sir Isaac Brock

[Julian the apostate]

Wellington, George Washington, Leonidas, Pericles, King Alfred, King Jan sobieski,
Omar Bradly

A true general values his troops. but some causes are just worth it

[IrishArmenian]

Wellington, Saladin, Vartan Mamikonean, Patton, Philaretos, Bradley, Julius and Augustus Ceasar (Extremely Charismatic, both of them), Brian Boruma, Robert Bruce, Rodrigo Diaz de Bivar (El Cid), Charlemagne.

[Redleg]

General Rhame of the 1st Infantry Division during Desert Storm. He had more concern of his troops then that of the enemy.

Other historical figures - not many, Maybe General Lee if he was fighting for the Union, and General Patton.

Edit: Spelling

[AntiochusIII]

Martin Luther King.

March to Washington, baby!

[LeftEyeNine]

" I am not commanding you to assault. I am ordering you to die ! During the time we get killed, other forces and commanders may substitute us ! "

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, 25 April 1915, Conkbayırı, Çanakkale Defense

It would be pleasure to go for martyrdom under his commandment. That was one of the cornerstones of land battles of Çanakkale Defense in WWI. A band of soldiers retreating from a heavier number of enemy were stopped and positioned where they came across with Atatürk. After their stationing at where they were by the command of Atatürk, enemy was baffled so that they had stopped progressing, hence gaining the time needed for the arrival of 57th Pioneer Regiment there.

No need to look elsewhere for me. My history is full of ones who you'd be happy to die along with.

[Incongruous]

Malborough, Harrold Godwinson, Henry V, Edward III, Aethelstan, Heraclius, Richard the Lion Heart, Napoleon, Crommwell, El Cid, Alexander the Great, Charlamagne.

[Franconicus]

Mahatma Gandi, Martin Luther King

[matteus the inbred]

Any general who'd give me a motorbike.

Marlborough; he looked after his men.

[Stig]

Student, he was really concerned that his men would be used as para's not as ordinary infantry under some Nazi general, as they would lose then

[Kagemusha]

With those who had the righteous cause.

[The Wizard]

Yigael Yadin, Moshe Dayan, Ariel Sharon, Yitzhak Rabin, Israel Tal \o

And as for peaceful marches: Mahatma Gandhi and MLK.

[macsen rufus]

Henry V (I have a doctor's note excusing me from the "bloody flux" )
Macsen Wledig (of course! Brownie points for whoever knows the Latin name?)
Arthur quondam Rex que futurus

[Lorenzo_H]

The Duke of Wellington
William T. Sherman
Julius Caeser
El Cid
Franco
Alexander the Great.

[IrishArmenian]

Forgot about the peace marches. I am wondering why you picked Crommie, Bopa.
And why Diablodelmar picked Franco.

[Kralizec]

Malborough, Harrold Godwinson, Henry V, Edward III, Aethelstan, Heraclius, Richard the Lion Heart, Napoleon, Crommwell, El Cid, Alexander the Great, Charlamagne.

Alexander the Great.

I hope you two fancy death by dehydration in the Arabian desert

Franco

[Red Peasant]

Cyrus the Younger/Xenophon.

Anabasis, the ultimate adventure story. I remember reading it as a kid and dreaming of singing the paean and the clash of bronze and steel.

[Innocentius]

Well, if I was a "simple warrior of history" I'd march with whoever had the power and authority at the time and place I lived. No one here has answered Hitler, but if I lived in Germany in the 1930-s I'd gladly march for a guy that told me that I belonged to the superior rase, and who promised me food and labour. It's easy to make smart choices once you've learnt the lesson.
Also, I think the people following earlier leaders had no real choice. Sure, Richard Couer de Lion might have been a charismatic figure in history, and a decent military commander, but I believe few would've followed him if they had the choice. People of older days viewed the world in a different way than we do today, so from that perspective, there's no answer to that question.
Beisdes, I think few people today would chose to go to war at all, and if they had to, I can't se why you'd pick a war were you could die from a wound in the hand thanks to infection when you could go to a modern war with modern healthcare, medicine and surgery.

Just take El Cid for example, who really thinks that waging war against Al-Andalus (which had a very rich and flourishing culture and was about 500 years ahead of the Christians when it came to science) is a thing worth dying for?

So I'll just answe: Depends on when and where I lived. If I lived in England around the mid 14th century, I'd have little choice but to follow Edward III in his campaigns into France etc.

[Craterus]

Leonidas.

But I'll re-iterate my sentiments from another thread. Without looking up the exact post, I believe I said that I would fight in any war, as long as I believed in the cause. But even then... we all gotta die at some point, may as well die a hero, with sword (or gun, I suppose) in hand.

[Conradus]

Alexander the Great
Caesar
Attila (not because he cared for his men, but a Hun under Attila had most chance of surviving Catalonian fields)
Montgomory
Xenophon

[Evil_Maniac From Mars]

Macsen Wledig (of course! Brownie points for whoever knows the Latin name?)[/I]

Magnus Maximus.


Sir Isaac Brock - He was a soldier and a leader. He fought on the same field as his men, not in a tent some ways behind the battle.

Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck - Obviously. A brilliant tactician who was also a soldier, not a parade-ground officer.

[Orb]

Robert Guiscard
Bohemond I
Roger the Great Count
Guillaume Bras-de-fer
Karl Martell
Theodoric the Goth
Lysander
Al-Afdal Shahanshah (for no reason, really, I hate Saladin. HATE.)
Cao Cao
If Machiavelli had ever commanded an army, I'd be under him.
Carloman
Cyrus the Great
Henry V (of England)
Richard the Lionheart
Karl XII (of Sweden)
Admiral Sandy Woodward/Colonel Chris Keeble (both Falklands war)
Napoleon
Peter the Great (of Russia)
Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich (the elder)

Normanophile that I am :D
Mostly extremely charismatic and competent generals, many were formidable warriors, themselves. (particularly the large succession of Normans)

[KrooK]

John Carol Chodkiewicz
He was very strict but honest and he never lost war :)

[Stig]

Montgomory

Monty? I wouldn't want to march with him, imo he's far too arrogant. Sacrificed about 10,000 men for his own personal glory, blamed the Poles, and considered it a victory.

[IrishArmenian]

See, if one was Canadian, Monty was practically the enemy. He threw away Canadian troops (good ones too) like used tissue.

[Stig]

Not just Canadian troops m8

he knew there were 2 SS Panzer Division at Arnhem (he said so later), but still wanted it to go on, as (and this is what he didn't tell) he wanted to be the first in Berlin.

Pity Prince Bernhard is dead and doesn't visit this forum, he could give you loads of examples. I still like these quotes:
Monty: "I consider Market Garden 90& succesfull."
Bernhard: "My country can never afford a succes of Montgomery again"

[Subedei]

Could´t think of anybody I would march for....

Well...maybe....Monty Python on their quest for the Holy Grail.

[macsen rufus]

We have a winner - well done Evil Maniac!

Magnus Maximus.

Virtual brownies somewhere in your browser's cookie folder

[The Wizard]

Hmm. Add Hector to that list of mine.

[Innocentius]

Whatever...I'll just pick a few:

Gustav II Adolf
Karl XI
Karl XII (although I don't really fancy an everlasting, pointless, war that ends with me freezing and starving to death in Ukraine)
Robert Bruce (Wallace was only lucky to win at Stirling, Bruce had some skill at least judging from Bannockburn)
Any Welsh prince and Owain Glyndwr
Edward I
Edward III
Frederick I (Barbarossa)
Frederick of Prussia
Johann Tserclaes Tilly
Albrecht von Wallenstien
Ottavia Piccolomini
Charles I (the Bold)
Belisarius
Julius Caesar
"Saladin"
Alexander Nevskij
Oliver Cromwell
Béla IV (never liked Genghis...)
Bertrand du Guesclin
Jeanne d'Arc

Some of these are really odd picks I know (all of them are to be honest) as none of them had 100% success during their career.