Discover the joys of mutually accepted subjectivity?How does one rate the top ten across such a wide span of history and circumstances?
Caesar (for instance) was facing entirely different circumstances than the Comnenoi, in so many ways that its hard to find something to measure them on even ground.
Discover the joys of mutually accepted subjectivity?
I find it interesting that people seem to always place Belisarius in lists like this one while ignoring Narses, who was as much responsible for the Byzantine Empire's reconquest of the West as Belisarius was, and is held by many authorities to be at least equal to Belisarius in his skills as a commander. If Belisarius belongs on the list, Narses does too.
Put it this way.I find it interesting that people seem to always place Belisarius in lists like this one while ignoring Narses, who was as much responsible for the Byzantine Empire's reconquest of the West as Belisarius was, and is held by many authorities to be at least equal to Belisarius in his skills as a commander. If Belisarius belongs on the list, Narses does too.
Put it this way.
Tim Duncan, for the last twelve years, has been the heart and soul of the San Antonio Spurs. Every one of their four titles relied on his efforts on the court. In 2007, he played all but two games in the regular season, averaging a 20-11-3; in twenty playoff games, he averaged a 22-12 and amassed 62 blocks. His Spurs swept LeBron's Cavs in the Finals embarrassingly easily. And who won the Finals MVP? Tony Parker, for utterly annihilating Cleveland's crappy point guards and averaging a 30-4. By any calculation, Duncan was still the fundamental driving force behind the '07 Spurs - but Parker still won Finals MVP.
Was that like the disparity between Belisarios' contribution in the Gothic War and Narses'? Probably not, no. Parker just wiped out the likes of Eric Snow; Narses had to rebuild the western army from refractory soldiers and rebellious northerners, and deal with multiple Gothic and Frankish armies into the bargain. And I also agree that Belisarios is historically overrated to an alarming degree. But come on. What Narses did was cool and all, but he did it against weakened and divided opponents and he really only did it once. Pretty much all of the other serious contenders had longer and more consistent careers.
The 2005 Finals were much, much worse than the 2007 Finals. Nothing from Cavs-Spurs can even compare to the last gasp of the slow-it-down, drag-it-out Crushing Defense Era. Least exciting Game 7 ever, too.Only alternate history.com can draw parallels between the most boring NBA finals ever and Roman Generals.
No, Belisarius beats Ceasar.Well, num. 1 is obviously Caesar.
The 2005 Finals were much, much worse than the 2007 Finals. Nothing from Cavs-Spurs can even compare to the last gasp of the slow-it-down, drag-it-out Crushing Defense Era. Least exciting Game 7 ever, too.
But yeah.![]()
No love for Agrippa? He beat Marc Antony at the very least.