Fredde
Posts: 498
Joined: 6/7/2000 From: Goteborg, Sweden Status: offline
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Hjalmar Siilasvuo, with weak Finnish troops holding, encircling and finally crushing two Russian divisions in the Suomossalmi area. This with extremely little air support, hardly any heavy weapons and facing a well-equipped tank-using Russian army. Isn't that a hero... !
Mannerheim.. for both Winter War and the Continuation War. Only two major Russian offensives that was halted in 1944 were both directed against Finland. Afterwards, he ended by throwing out the Germans as well..
Controversial perhaps.. good old Monty. Not as glorious and reputation-seeking as Patton, but one who really really knew his work. Excellent historian, slow and methodical approach, keeping to his own tactics and believing in it. What did he do? Stopping Rommel and throwing him out of Africa. Invade Italy successfully, after a very hard political battle to have plans after his own mind.. and they were successful. He went on directing the Overlord landing as well.. and of course, made it successful. His worst failure came when he for once abandoned his own tactics in Market-Garden.. but i forgive him Another often forgotten Brit in WWII is Alan Brooke.. keeping the ties together, fighting Germany all alone.
Wallenstein. Should he really be on that list? Despite loads of money and resources he was not successful.
When it comes to the Swedes. Gustav II Adolf was a good man yes.. but as military leaders I would rather push forward Karl X, Karl XI and Karl XII. All of them genious in their own way.. Karl XII, despite losing, putting Sweden on the same list as Napoleon.. Before that he did miracles with extremely limited resources.
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"If infantry is the Queen of the battlefield, artillery is her backbone", Jukka L. Mäkelä about the Finnish victory at Ihantala.
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