Best Marine Commanders WWII

ThreeDee3

Who do you think were the best American Marine leaders of WWII? I feel that the Marines are often forgotten, while the Army, Navy, and Air Force get the glory.
 

Locke01

Alexander Vandegrift, hands down, with everyone else being an also-ran. Roy Geiger gets an honorable mention.
 

EMTSATX

Banned
I think Vandegrift is most likely to be given the over all title of "Best Marine CO". Chesty Puller is the man and the Marines Marine but he was relatively low ranking.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say anyone who wore the Eagle, Globe and Anchor. The Marines were blessed with great Jr. Officer's and Jr. Field Grade Officers. Moreover, they had the best NCO's of any branch.
 

galveston bay

Locke01 said:
Alexander Vandegrift, hands down, with everyone else being an also-ran. Roy Geiger gets an honorable mention.
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I give Geiger slightly more weight because he commanded both Aviation and Ground forces, including his stint as commander of the 10th Army
 

Admiral Beez

Banned
Lieutenant Colonel Gregory "Pappy" Boyington comes to mind. I like the leaders who fight in the trenches with their men, though this usually means their well below star rank at the time.
 

Carl Schwamberger

EMTSATX said:
I think Vandegrift is most likely to be given the over all title of "Best Marine CO". Chesty Puller is the man and the Marines Marine but he was relatively low ranking.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say anyone who wore the Eagle, Globe and Anchor. The Marines were blessed with great Jr. Officer's and Jr. Field Grade Officers. Moreover, they had the best NCO's of any branch.
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The Marines cheated, they took advantage of the Bannanna Wars to test their junior leaders in actual combat. From the end of the Great War to 1932 Marine Captains, Lts, Sgts, & Cpls were in hundreds of small unit actions in Hati, Nacaraugua, Dominican Republic, & occasionally in China. The Master Sgts, Colonels & Generals of WWII had repeatedly seen the harsh lessons of combat through the 1920s & early 30s. The weak & ineffectual were filtered out & a culture of tough training, readiness and discipline kept alive through the 1930s to WWII.
 
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