Best military units of all time

[SimonN]

Best millitary blunder of all time:

Barbarossa.

 

[Walter]

Barbarossa turned into a major blunder, but it began brilliantly. Had the military been allowed to run it, things could have ended up differently. Thank God he was mad.

 

[SimonN]

Jonathan once bubbled...
Best units should number:
BEF circa 1914 - they could fire 18 aimed rounds a minute with a bolt action (why has that fact stuck with me for 25 years or more?!

However, the Hun's mchine guns had a higher rate of fire and the BEF commanders thought they did not need machine guns because of the rifleman's high fire rate. Whoops. Fire rate went down shortly after than when they had to introduce conscription for the first time.

The British Marines did a damn fine job in 1982.

And Paras and Gurkas.

Worst decision making should surely include the US Marines in Somalia (aka Black Hawk Down)

It was the Rangers and Delta Force, not the marines.

I would say it was policy rather than decision making. 139 casualties (IRC) for the sake of one original casualty... Utter stupidity!

 

[WreckWriter]

Jonathan once bubbled...
Worst decision making should surely include the US Marines in Somalia (aka Black Hawk Down)

Jonathan

Sorry Jon, that was U.S. Army, not Marines.

You're right though, they blew that one hard. They should have went in with significantly more firepower.

WW

 

[caymaniac]

Thinking about the Army of Northern Virginia, if you've read Shaara's book on the Mexican American war, you'd realize that all the "good" southern generals came about from this war, as well as, since most of the "good generals went to the southern army, there was'nt that many good generals left to go to the northern army. Lee was perhaps one of the all time best historical generals.

Caymaniac

 

[Jonathan]

to the US Marines I sit corrected!

Actually they never let the Gurkas off the leash - and man were they itching to get into Stanley!

The Paras too did a good job - shame their leader read too many Marvel comics! What the hell was he doing up there?! Another candidate for worst military decisions.....

Jonathan

 

[SimonN]

Actually they never let the Gurkas off the leash - and man were they itching to get into Stanley!

A non-British nationality force could not be the first to enter Stanley. However, they saw a fair share of combat. including a very good military decision. They captured one line of defences, chopped off the head of an already dead Argentine soldier and threw it into the next line of defence whilst shouting their war cry. The next line of defence surrendered quick sharp. (This is from an ex-army friend of mine who spent some time training with them).

 

[Jonathan]

One of my Dad's officers was an FOO on Tumbledown with them - they had to let them go off and play with sheep (sorry Welshman) rather than send them in - probably after that incident!!

I can't believe what we've done to the Gurkas - best current fighting unit in the world bar non!

One of the best military quotes of all time - platoon walking into Stanley, radio op at the end of the line with union jack on the arial turns to the BBC camera "end ex!"

Jonathan

 

[trymixdiver]

Captain Danjou commanding the sixty-five man strong company of Legionnaires Aganist Colonel Millian, commanding the Mexican force of 800 cavalry and three battalions of infantry-about 2,000 at the village of Camerone, Mexico on April 30th 1863

Viva La Legion

 

[Delta 1/5]

Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 5 th Marines of the 1st Marine Div.,
Tet 1968, Battle of Hue