rank the german generals by ability

first to last

strategist

tactical

I can't offer much to get started..

lots of names

Manstein, Von Runsted, Mantuffel, Rommel..


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:German_generals



remember these are opinions, like judging some olympic events..

 

Each of the famous generals had his specialty. When it comes to more universal, strategic commanders I used to be greatly in favour of old Von Rundstedt, but after reading evaluations of him by other German officers I've started to lean more towards Von Manstein and Model.

Defence: no better than Heinrici. On a tactical level I'd favour Rommel or Von Manteuffel.

 

hitler also though heinrici was his best defensive commander .

he said something to the effect than some commander , if given a crack
panzer armee would take the world , other could hold a broken front with
cooks and the music band .

 

how bout guderian...he pretty much invented the panzer armies,no?

 

'Schnelle' (fast) Heinz Guderian. was one of the first persons that knew how tanks should operate (you also had the British Bassil Liddell Hart and J.F.C. Fuller and the French Charles De Gaulle)
created a new attack methode know as "Blitzkrieg. became the head of all motorised units in Poland, an dduring Fall Gelb.

Was fiered after his conflicts with Von Klunge and Hitler during the Russian campaign.
after stalingrad he gets the command over the panzers back but not even he is capable of stopping the russians.

and that's al i know about him


the best one for me is by far Rommel.why? he can manouver like hell, plays it clever, search for the weak spots and hit them hard, fights in the frontline, takes care for his men, treats prisoners with respect, refuses insane orders, can be seriously outnumbered and still score a victory,.........
He was "simply the best. better then all the rest"

 

Rommel is quite possibly the most overrated general in recent history. He keeps popping up on these Best Generals topics only because the British glorified him to explain away their shattering defeats in the desert, which were in fact due to faulty leadership of their own and an incomplete understanding of mobile tank warfare.

I will concede that on a tactical level Rommel was a very ingenious commander, using the terrain to his advantage and winning victories in spite of being outnumbered. However, in the desert he had the initiative and most British commanders behaved very predictably; besides, the terrain was perfectly suited for Rommel's tactics, which explains their success - not their inherent brilliance. He could not have done the same anywhere else, I'm sure. When forced to fight a defensive battle or campaign, Rommel showed his startling incompetence to grasp or deal with strategic problems and defensive tactics.

Basically, Rommel's defensive doctrine was "put down as many mines as possible and wait". Obviously, mines are little more than delaying weapons, but Rommel believed differently, which he showed both at El Alamein and in Normandy. In the latter theatre his command misconceptions are in fact plentiful, and General der Panzertruppen Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg has later described these flaws in detail (see "The German army at D-Day, Fighting the invasion" by David Isby).

 

definitly agree with rommel having been promoted past his best level
( division )
guderian was probably " the father " of combined armour warfare

but anmongst all the great german commanders manstein is , to me ,
the best

 

i find it very diffiuclt to asses german generals because all were hamstrung (esp post 42)...by hitlers interference and orders..they were not given free reign to command effectively and had to work within the confines of the regime and its structure.

 

Gudeng and rommel are obvioiusly at the top of that list,

 

Would you care to elaborate? I didn't just write a long post arguing that Rommel wasn't all that great to have someone say "well Rommel was better" without any support at all and knock away my point, if you know what I'm saying.

Rommel really belongs roughly in Sepp Dietrich's league, people who were inspiring and talented generals but definitely not capable of grasping all aspects of command, and therefore unfit for command beyond a certain level.

 

sepp dietritch was this rare and great kind of commander ,
who knew that he was incompetent and had no problem with it !!
that why the wafffen SS was such a great mob , get the best and
if you are not it then get somebody who is !!
seppp got fritz Witt to do the actual organizing and "pappa" paul Hausser to
create the fighting tactics of the panzer SS who would strike fear into their
oponents
sepp would go around the companies , eating with the troopers swaping
jokes and organising the odd raid , a great guy and much loved by his
kampfers