He was soon released, however, and, as more capable French admirals either died or somehow incurred Napoleons disfavor, a path to the top echelons of command was opened for Villeneuve. Muammar Al-Gaddafi. While there were a host of bad generals serving on both sides during the American Civil Warmostly on the Union side unfortunatelythe one that usually gets the most credit for dragging out the war as long as he did is Union General George McClellan. These American commanders have lost the battle for history. Many historians credit Benedict Arnold and others with being the real victors of Saratoga. What a Lovely War and then in the 1989 television comedy series Blackadder Goes Forth. Top 10 Greatest Generals of Chinese History | ChinaWhisper How does an admiral make a list of the worst generals? Although he eventually disavowed Hitler, by that point Ludendorff had become so deeply involved with mysticism that few took him seriously. The Top-10 Most Evil Leaders of the 20th Century - LinkedIn Is Weiss correct? The Worst Civil War Generals on the Confederacy Confederate Maj. Gen. Gideon Pillow. 92. Military historian Russell Weigley rendered a succinct judgment on LBJ: No capable war President would have allowed an officer of such limited capacities as General William C. Westmoreland to head Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, for so long.. Military Men and material the Union could provide its armies. Tom Ricks, on his "Best Defense" blog has discussed the top 10 worst generals in U.S. history. Sure, he won big at the Alamo. Delivered Wednesday. Some captured Romans were placed in wicker cages and burned alive, others were enslaved or ransomed. Here's What You Need To Remember:The Soviets saw the American humiliation in Vietnam as a turning point. 5. You may opt out at any time. The South Vietnamese thus went for years equipped with castoff WWII-vintage U.S. equipment while outgunned by the communists, who were armed with the AK-47 assault rifle and other top of the line equipment. But the worst of all was McClellan, the so-called "Young Napoleon" from whom Lincoln. The heavily forested, swampy terrain made the Legions maneuvers impossible. Villeneuve was then to return in secret and help establish naval dominance of the English Channel in preparation for a land invasion of Britain. By the end of May 1862, Confederate commanding Gen. Joseph E. Johnston had withdrawn his forces to Richmond, and McClellan was close enough to the Confederate capital to hear its church bells ringing. He was uninterested in other viewpoints on how the war might be prosecuted, dismissing the PROVN Study sponsored by Army Chief of Staff General Harold K. Johnson (which concluded that Westmorelands way of war was not working and could not work) and basic disagreements with Westmorelands organization and approach voiced by his brilliant classmate General Bruce Palmer Jr. 7. Still, it is his world-changing defeat at Yorktown that merits memorializing. After his performance at Belmonta spectacular success by Pillow standardshe was tasked with the defense of Fort Donelson, a key strongpoint on the Mississippi River. Heres the inaugural class: 6. I flew into Vietnam in June 1968 as a young . Some historians are a little more sympathetic towards Percivals legacy nowadays arguing that Percival had been dealt an unusually bad hand. Yet backstabbing your commander-in-chief in the middle of a war is taking ambition a little too far. He was called the "inevitable general." A West Point graduate, he served in World War II and Korea. Delivered Monday-Friday. The worst military leaders since Napoleon | History 101 Franz Conrad von Htzendorf of Austria couldnt decide which country he wanted to invade, so the German General Staff eventually took his armies away. Cue the protests from other parts of the globe: A chorus of nations are accusing Washington of fostering unfair competition. McClellan was a superb organizer, a West Point-trained engineer who did much to build the Union army almost from . How might Vietnam or Iraq have turned out if a George Washington, a Ulysses Grant or a George Patton had been in command? On the night of August 15, 1812, Tecumseh led his forces across the Detroit River, and Brock followed the next morning. Considering some militants as instruments of regional influence while fighting others has had disastrous consequences. He was called the inevitable general. A West Point graduate, he served in World War II and Korea. Historian Lewis Sorley author of 1999s well-regarded A Better War: The Unexamined Victories and Final Tragedy of Americans Last Years in Vietnam now zeroes in on General William Westmoreland. Panama (1989) 2. In order, from most culpable down. Haig was cruelly mocked, first in the satirical musical Oh! The American Civil War was a factory for producing bad generals such as Braxton Bragg and Ambrose Burnside. Driven into exile in 1845, he contacted U.S. Pres. Top 10 Worst Military Leaders in History - Toptenz.net The Persians had a mixed record against the Greeks. The suppression of drug consumption and trade is high on the Government of Vietnam's agenda. Grachev has also been linked to corruption among the higher ranks of the military, specifically the assassination of journalist Dmitry Kholodov. The Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File of the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) Extract Files contains records of 58,220 U.S. military fatal casualties of the Vietnam War. Without question, many lives would be saved if their tactical professionalism were enhanced.. In the end, the Romans leveled Carthage and salted the earth. Click + to receive email alerts when new stories are published on 7 Of The Worst Military Leaders In History, That You Didn't Know About The initial assault resulted in very high casualties for the Russians and an almost complete breakdown of morale in the Russian forces. World War I provided a forum for any number of truly horrible commanders to assert themselves. On the other hand, there was that bad day at the Battle of Salamis when most of the Persian fleet went to the bottom. Lpez was the son of Carlos Antonio Lpez, a dictator who had done much to modernize Paraguay in the mid-19th century. His war of attrition, search and destroy tactics, and emphasis on body count did nothing to affect the war in the hamlets and villages of South Vietnam, where the enemys covert infrastructure was left free to continue using coercion and terror to dominate the rural populace. 9 Noteworthy Bog Bodies (And What They Tell Us), 12 Novels Considered the Greatest Book Ever Written, Inventors and Inventions of the Industrial Revolution, https://www.britannica.com/list/9-worst-generals-in-history. After gaining ground trying to cut an escape path for the Confederates during the February 1862 siege of Fort Donelson by Union forces led Brig. Who was the worst US general during the Vietnam War? - Quora At Brownstown, south of Detroit, two dozen warriors under Tecumseh routed more than 200 American militiamen escorting a supply column intended for Detroit. Darius never showed up for the first battle and defeat (Battle of Granicus) because he didnt see Alexander as much of a threat to his empire. Instead of sweeping around the French defenses in a massive flanking movement, the Germans were checked at the First Battle of the Marne. Examining the Leaders of North and South Vietnam - dummies Hulls nerve was shattered. His bad luck didnt end at San Jacinto. General Earle Wheeler was essentially a staff officer with virtually no troop leading experience, much less combat acumen. Along with Communist China and other Communist movements in the region, who were fighting to reunite the Vietnams under the red banner, there were other belligerent, free countries in the region who had an interest in keeping South Vietnam away from the Commies. Most younger officers who worked around General Westmoreland, excepting only a very few among his many aides-de-camp or executive officers and the like, had no personal relationship with this difficult and distant man. Fortunately, along came Reaganif not for that, Westmorelands military reversals could well have signaled the beginning of our end. 3. Alas, call it the laws of probability or just cosmic karma, but every nation produces bad generals as well as good onesand America is no exception. Thats an automatic disqualification from Hall membership. The British gained control of the fort, dozens of cannons, the brig USS Adams (recommissioned the HMS Detroit), and virtually the entire Michigan Territory. Opportunistic firms in Asia and Europe have already begun to relocate investments to the United States. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. In 1940, after increasing pressure from dictator Benito Mussolini and facing demotion, Graziani followed orders and invaded Egypt with his Tenth Army. Xi Jinpings signature foreign policy is a shadow of its former self.. This week marks exactly one year since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to invade Ukraine. Percival was off mistreating Irish Republican Army (IRA) leaders during the Anglo-Irish War before commanding British Malaya in World War II. (You May Also Like: 5 Israeli Weapons of War ISIS Should Fear). A more positive example is George Washington. James Bond Stockdale was flying his A-4 Skyhawk on a mission over North Vietnam, just days after the Gulf of Tonkin incident, when his plane took fire and hurtled d Fort Bragg was named in 1918 during the Jim Crow era. After months of inactivity, McClellan was finally spurred to action by Pres. 10. The 20 Worst World War II Generals - Ranker Fighter Aircraft of All Time, his army being routed by a smaller force of Redcoats and Loyalists at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina in 1780, When the Germans shattered his troops and his reputation at Kasserine Pass in Tunisia in early 1943, Fredendall was only a major general and a corps commander, Listing MacArthur as one of America's worst generals will be controversial, 5 Israeli Weapons of War ISIS Should Fear, But MacArthur's strategy certainly helped unleash 300,000 Chinese "volunteers" who inflicted significant casualties on United Nations forces, But Franks, who commanded the invasion, made a bad situation worse, Critics say that Franks and senior officials, such as Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, concocted an invasion plan that used too few troops. Westmoreland established a headquarters known as MACV Forward in the northern provinces of South Vietnam and put his deputy, General Creighton Abrams, in charge, placing him over the Marines and also the Army forces in that region. Today's list: The top ten reasons Gen. Westmoreland lost the war in Vietnam He deprived the South Vietnamese of modern weaponry, giving U.S. and other allied forces priority for issue of the new M-16 rifle and other advanced military wherewithal. Civil War Casualties | American Battlefield Trust But beyond the goals of one leader in Moscow, it is also clear that Ukraine has suffered horrors of a historic nature. History: Military History. Military greatness can most easily be defined by comparison. And, to further demonstrate progress in reducing enemy strength, Westmoreland arbitrarily and entirely on his own removed from the order of battle several categories of enemy forces that had long been carried there, including during the three years Westmoreland had already been in command of U.S. forces in Vietnam. 3. Gamelin made the mistake of viewing the Ardennes as impenetrable and chose to defend it with ten of his weakest, least well equipped and least well trained divisions. George Brinton McClellan, a self-proclaimed Young Napoleon, ran dreadful campaigns, but he doesnt make the grade because he was canned before he could lose the entire war. Over time Westmoreland asked for and received large numbers of U.S. troops, eventually totaling well over half a million. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Fortunately, along came Reaganif not for that, Westmorelands military reversals could well have signaled the beginning of our end. Here is a list of the 10 most famous Chinese generals in history. When the War of 1812 began, Hull was commissioned a brigadier general and tasked with defending Michigan and invading Upper Canada. James Madison spared him from execution. He underestimated the enemys staying power, maintaining that if he could inflict enough casualties the communists would lose heart and cease their aggression against South Vietnam. After only an eight-day siege, he surrendered his entire armya third of all British forces in America. Yet, Hannibal nevertheless ranks as one of the worlds epic fails. Alexander went on to march halfway across Asia, creating an empire, albeit short-lived, that changed the history of three continentsnot bad for an ancient millennial. A very influential visitor, Senator "Fritz" Hollings from Westmoreland's home state of South Carolina, had warned him about reliance on such ratios. The self proclaimed Napoleon of the West didnt quite leave the same legacy as his idol. 10 Redvers Buller As a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he theoretically had some influence there, at least to the extent he could shape the collective viewpoint, but even then LBJ and McNamara were famously impervious to advice from the Joint Chiefs. Among them are, of course, Lyndon Johnson himself, Robert McNamara, and General Earle Wheeler. If it was, half to three-quarters of them would be in jail. Only FP subscribers can submit questions for FP Live interviews. He first demonstrated his ineptitude during the Mexican-American War, where he had received an appointment to the rank of major general from his friend Pres. He ran as a Democrat against Lincoln in the 1864 presidential election. Born in 1901 in Quang Binh Province (part of North Vietnam), Diem was the son of a well-educated mandarin (Vietnamese civil servant who took part in running the country) who served as the Minister of Rites and Grand Chamberlain to Emperor Thanh-Thai (1889-1907). 3. In considering who should receive such a dubious honor, Ive consciously excluded bad leaders. My daughter thinks 2018 was the worst year ever. I'd nominate 1968 Hull responded by ordering the evacuation of Fort Dearborn, and the garrison was promptly massacred by a Potawatomi war band upon leaving the fort. Black Vietnam Veterans on Injustices They Faced: Da 5 Bloods - Time 6. Worst. Military. Leaders. Ever. | The Heritage Foundation But there was something that not even the factories of New York and Chicago could produce, and that was time. On March 24, 1976, Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1 st Viscount of Alamein, hero of World War II, died at home in England. Courses: Summer 2023 | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History These records were transferred into the custody of the National Archives and Records Administration in 2008. In reality, it is a collection of ideas, images, and information that enough people have chosen to preserve and disseminate. Hull withdrew after a series of harassing attacks by Tecumsehs highly mobile raiding parties. Evening roundup with our editors favorite stories of the day. Implementing the attrition strategy, Westmoreland typically employed a series of large unit sweeps conducted in the deep jungle regions along South Vietnams western borders. He effectively pledged to become an agent for the U.S. but found that he had been deposed upon his return to Mexico. This infuriated the Marines, who viewed it as evidence that Westmoreland lacked confidence in them. Unfortunately the fates of the former Republic Vietnam (Sout. As a military commander, Napoleon may have thebest batting averageof all time. The world over, countries are embarking on ambitious projects of industrial policy. FPs Ravi Agrawal spoke with two of the very best Russia experts:Angela Stent, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and the author ofPutins World: Russia Against the West and With the Rest, and Michael Kofman, the research program director of the Russia studies program at the Center for Naval Analyses. This strategy inevitably failed as the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong maintained control over how the war was fought which was through guerilla warfare. His 1812 campaign against Russia ended in complete disaster. He worked under Adolf Hitler's Third Reich as a leading general and gained fame from his battles in North Africa. Operational Culture General Training LREC SME Support Training Course Catalog Cognitive Dimension Training Additional Resources . There is now little doubt that Putin failed in his initial goals: Kyiv is still Show morestanding, Ukrainians are determined to keep fighting, and the West has so far stayed resolute in its support of Ukraine. In fifteen thought-provoking essays, each written by a professional military historian, readers are introduced . Judging GOFOs The Decisive Point Westmoreland held a press conference in which he categorically denied any such loss of confidence. This proved possible only with enemy cooperation, since they could break contact and limit casualties as they wished by withdrawing into sanctuaries across the border. After only 10 weeks into the Pacific War, Percival became responsible for the largest surrender of British-led forces in history. The General Who Lost Vietnam | TIME.com Needs to Talk About the Risk of War With China, Putin Has Assembled an Axis of Autocrats Against Ukraine, The Conversation About Ukraine Is Cracking Apart. Sure, they ganged up on the Spartans at the Pass of Thermopylae. Finally, there was MacArthur's insubordination. Alas, as a historian, he passed on the opportunity to answer Battlelands questions about what Vietnam should teach us about Afghanistan, and who, if anyone, is todays Westmoreland, during our email chat earlier this week: Whats the most important thing you learned writing Westmoreland: The General Who Lost Vietnam? He need not be concerned, soothed Wheeler, because the weight of judgment was that the enemy cant match us on a buildup. That turned out to be one of the classic misjudgments of the war, comparable in magnitude and consequence to General MacArthurs assurances to President Truman that Chinese forces would not enter the Korean War. The stabbed in the back myth did much to propel the ascent of Adolf Hitler, and Ludendorff was a key participant in the Beer Hall Putsch. Some would say that failure on the battlefield warrants censure. And the number one reason why Westmoreland lost the war in Vietnam: With his unavailing approach to conduct of the war he squandered four years of support by much of the American people, the Congress, and even the media. The Viet Cong Committed Atrocities, Too - The New York Times Villeneuve lost 20 ships, while Nelson lost none. In the end, Chiang sacrificed more than a million Chinese soldiers and well over ten million Chinese civilians in his bid to stay in power. Darius quickly lost everything and became nothing but a fugitive. Then, in an ill-advised comeback, he met his Waterloo. The rise of American-made chatbots has kicked off a flurry of Chinese activity. Leaders of the Vietnam War - Wikipedia The Top Ten. Westmoreland: The General Who Lost Vietnam, by Lewis Sorley, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011. . Following on from our list of the greatest and most successful military commanders, we are presenting this list of the worst. Assuming you believe the subtitle to be accurate, who were GEN Westmorelands biggest accomplices in the loss? Starting with the battle of Long Island, he lost way more fights than he wonyet he managed to win the war. But then MacArthur thrived on controversy like bread thrives on yeast. Argentina, Brazil, and the Brazilian puppet government in Uruguay formed an alliance, and on May 1, 1865, they declared war on Paraguay. All related (37) Sort Recommended Doug Szabo Author has 972 answers and 137.7K answer views Nov 27 My vote goes to adm Otto Zumwalt. Publication of the PROVN Study, whose precepts were later implemented with great success by Westmorelands successor, illustrated a matter of fundamental importance. Vietnam War - Encyclopedia Britannica | Britannica But all that remains of his would-be empire today is a flaky French pastry. I didn't fire him because he was a dumb son of a bitch, although he was, but that's not against the law for generals. What defines Santa Anna is his utter failure to subdue the Texican rebels and block American expansion. In 1847, U.S. troops once again surprised Santa Anna and captured his prosthetic leg. What will another year of war look like? 1. Loyalty to himself and himself alone would be something of a running theme in the narrative of Santa Annas life, and his rise to power in Mexico was characterized by near-constant vacillation and betrayal of his allies. Vast areas dotted with villages were blasted with artillery, bombed from the air. Top 10 Traitors In US History - Listverse Napoleon. They dramatically upped their game, pressing the U.S. worldwide. To counter these, Major General William R. Peers commenced Operation Greeley using elements of the 4th Infantry Division and the 173rd Airborne Brigade. If Putin had hoped to weaken NATO, the very opposite has happened, with Finland and Sweden on the cusp of joining the transatlantic military alliance. 88,594. A former British officer, Gates rose to fame as Continental Army commander during the momentous American defeat of a British army at Saratoga in 1777. As Lincoln well knew, the only way the Union could lose the war was if the North eventually grew tired and agreed to allow the South to secede. Washington also suffered his share of defeats. If Putin had hoped to weaken NATO, the very opposite has happened, with Finland and Sweden on the cusp of joining the transatlantic military alliance. Many of these generals had their worst defeats when their countries were least prepared for conflict, such as the hapless Soviet generals who faced the German infiltration of Russia in 1941. Lpez, possibly in a fit of madness, ordered the execution of hundreds of people, including some of his own family members. A Texan with the U.S. Army's 1 st Infantry Division, Nolan reportedly slipped away from his basecamp in Tay Ninh Province on Nov. 22, 1967 and turned himself over to the Viet Cong. Top 10 Worst World Leaders - Wonderslist Was My Lai just one of many massacres in Vietnam War? While Muammer Al-Gaddafi isn't into the funny business in his politician reign, he most certainly is one of a highly egotistical leader and a member who represents more of the "self" rather than all else. MilitaryHistoryOnline.com After occupying Jerusalem and crucifying 2,000 Jewish rebels in Judaea, Varus went off to govern Germania and tame barbarian tribes. Woefully inexperienced U.S. soldiers found themselves against Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps veterans. 6. For one thing, we wouldnt haveSpartacuson Netflix. His poor tactical decisions resulted in his army being routed by a smaller force of Redcoats and Loyalists at the Battle of Camden in South Carolina in 1780. French defeated at Dien Bien Phu - HISTORY Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon Baines Johnson announced his fateful decision to double the number of U.S. troops in Vietnam. Delivered Thursday. The British blockaded the port at Cdiz with a numerically inferior force, and Villeneuve, upon learning that he was to be relieved of command, rashly struck out at Nelsons fleet. How well that would have worked can be seen when Gates was sent to command American troops in the South. Not only is Sorley a third-generation graduate of West Point a Vietnam veteran and a historian, but he worked for Westmoreland as well. They kept it as a war trophy, exhibiting the leg at. (You May Also Like: The Five Best U.S. Click + to receive email alerts when new stories are published on. Russias war is receiving critical assistance from authoritarian regimes around the world. Eschewing a direct overland march to the Confederate capital of Richmond, McClellan orchestrated an impressive amphibious landing of more than 100,000 troops at Fort Monroe, at the southeast end of the peninsula between the James and York rivers. - 4 Worst: 1990 Cleveland Cavaliers. To accomplish this goal, Vietnam employs repressive policies that often contravene international human rights law. How the North Vietnamese remember the conflict 40 years after the fall of Saigon. Had Lincoln retained McClellan in command of the Union armies, many former Americans might still be whistling "Dixie.". To that Hollings responded, "Westy, the American people don't care about the ten. Although Nelson was killed in combat at Trafalgar, Villeneuve outlived him only by six months. 336 pages | 16 halftones | 6 1/4 x 9 1/4. Michael Ray oversees coverage of European history and military affairs for Britannica. The American Civil War was a factory for producing bad generals such as Braxton Bragg and Ambrose Burnside. This was heeded about as well as any piece of parental advice, anywhere ever. 0. A U.S. ship conveyed him to Mexico, and upon his arrivalto the surprise of virtually no onehe executed a volte-face and took charge of the Mexican troops. He was responsible for coming up with the idea of using force to restore constitutional order in Chechnya. Varus placed his legions in a position where their fighting strengths would be minimized and that of the Germanic Cherusci tribesman maximized. Feel free to mention any others you may know of in the comments. A final humiliation came during Mexican-American War. When major U.S. ground force deployments were under consideration in July 1965, for example, LBJ worried that North Vietnam would respond by pouring in more men of its own. As the commander of U.S. forces in Vietnam, he faced a two-front war, an insurgency in the South and an invading army from the North. LBJ's tragic "addiction" to Vietnam: The mistake that still - Salon The unprecedented violence of battles such as Shiloh, Antietam, Stones River, and Gettysburg shocked citizens and international observers alike. Informed that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor and were certain to attack the Philippines next, MacArthur failed to disperse his aircraftthe only force that could disrupt the Japanese offensive in the absence of the American fleetand to attack Japanese airfields before the enemy wiped out his air force.

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