Let’s look a bit at this list. WAY too American and way too publicity and movie driven
1. Yi-Sun-Shin – Yep.
2.Agrippa -Okay. Caesar’s strong Right Arm
3.Horatio Nelson – Absolutely. Brave, daring, and most of all, lucky
4. Duke of Wellington – The first Coalition builder on the list. Steady, resourceful, brilliant in India, even better in the Peninsular War, logistical master.
5.Dwight Eisenhower – Great organizer. Great political general. Some poor judgment regarding Corps and Army commanders (Clark stands out, but others were also less than brilliant selections). Not a “fighting” officer per se but determined and willing. Probably the perfect choice for the position. If this is meant to be a list in order of skills, ranked far too high.
6.Alexander the Great – Conquered the known world. Classic Warrior king. Not really a general at all.
7. Julius Caeser – Wouldn’t be on the list without Agrippa.
8. Scipio – Another of the many Roman generals of lore. Caveat on all of them is that “winner write history” and in this case the history is 2,000 years old.
9. Hannibal – Brilliant logistician, Cannae remains one of the classic battles with strategy that works to this day. Sad that all most people remember is the friggin’ elephants.
10.Saladin - Yep.
11. Belisarus – Same caveat as the Romans. However, if the histories are true, a master of getting a lot with a little and minimal support.
12.Andrew Jackson – Mean bastard. Personally brave as hell. Sociopath. He had a very good day at New Orleans and against irregular native forces both before and after. Doesn’t deserve to be listed here.
13. Robert.E. Lee – Did a lot with a little. Held together a force that was constantly in danger of both falling apart and being overwhelmed at the same time. Might be the last GREAT 19th Century style General.
14. Ulysses.S. Grant – Might be the 1st true Modern general. As Lincoln said, “accepted the mathematics”. Borderline for inclusion here.
15. Stonewall Jackson – Excellent field commander with less well appreciated planning skills
16. George Patton – About half as good as his press clipping. Decent Corps commander, WAY over his head as an Army commander due to striking weaknesses concerning logistical matters. Personally brave as anyone listed. Hell of a good movie though.
17. Bernard Montgomery – Not even half as good as his press clippings. Terrific planner, a rather odd mix of timid and gambler, was at his best in the Western Desert but never reached those heights again. Failed to impress in Sicily, failed to impress in Italy before giving up 8th Army to prepare for D-Day, adequate in Europe. Abused the hell out of his subordinates. Used up airborne forces like they weren’t real men.
18. Charles Nimitz – No question here. Another exceptional administrator. Terrific Theater Commander. Never had a fleet or flotilla command.
19. Dwight Eisenhower – This might be about right for his actual ranking. Sure doesn’t need to be listed twice.
20. Douglas MacArthur – Did great work administering post-War Japan. Inchon was a great piece of strategic planning. Should have, at the minimum, been cashiered for his criminal failings in the Philippines, a General Court Marshall would not have been a poor decision. Used up men to generate headlines like no other officer before or since. Treated his Allied troops, especially the Australians like garbage, wasn’t much better toward U.S. forces. He managed to get his forces into a prolonged fight on Leyte to secure space for airfields despite information that demonstrated the ground was unsuitable for that use. Actions delayed the capture of Luzon for at least two months by screwing around.
21. Erwin Rommel – Political General with some good skills at lesser levels of command. Did well in Poland. Talked his way into a division command in France. Failed in Western Desert, although it is doubtful that anyone could have succeeded. Failed in North Africa, including bailing out for delayed R&R (which, to be fair, was needed) when a brilliant commander could have made some difference, at least time-wise. Got suckered by Allies in 1944. Failed to defend against the Invasion. Worst of all, unlucky.
22. Georgy Zhukov – Didn’t get killed by Stalin despite telling him he was wrong. Lucky. Did some rather excellent planning before the Red Army became an unstoppable force of nature. Defeated the Japanese at Khalkhyn Golin a well planned and executed combined arms operation that predated the German Blitz.
23. Colin Powell – Huh? Defeated an enemy with about half the Coalition’s troop totals, less than half the airpower, no intel, and did it while wielding the greatest technological advantage in the history of warfare.
24. Norman Schwarzkopf – Nope. Same as above, except he also had Powell taking care of the political battles at home and handling the overall logistics. Was a good Coalition builder.
25. David Petreus - Nope. Be real here.
Better American Choices (a short list): Washington, Benedict Arnold, Greene, Forrest, Chamberlain, “Hap” Arnold, LeMay, Walker, Ridgeway, Spruance, Burke, Vandergrift, Puller
Overall more deserving (an even shorter list, considering): Napoleon, Ney, Arthur Currie, Ludendorff, von Hindenberg, Auchinleck, Guderian, Kesselring, Donitz, Rokossovsky, Konev, Giap