Who do you think are the Best Military Minds of History?
My top three:
1. Alexander The Great
2. Napoleon Bonaparte
3. Julius Caesar

I think A List without Sun Tsu and Patton would be an incomplete List.

Yes, they were also great military minds, but I think Alexander had the best

Hannibal Barca
Arthur Wellesley

Hannibal, I agree with, but I feel embaressed to ask, who was Arthur Wellesley?

The guy who kicked the crap out of your #2

He is better known as the Duke of Wellington

Ah! Now i recognize him! But you do realize that he only won Waterloo, because of the Prussians? And in Spain, Ill give you that one.

Also, if you are embarrassed to ask, why do so? It's faster to google/wiki it than ask and await a response...

Wellesley kicked the shite out of France in the Peninsular War and utterly confounded the French marshalls. Meanwhile Napoleon was off destroying his own army by retreating via the same route he attacked in winter of all times. Sheer military genius...

Napoleon was also the General who kicked the shit out of the Russians, Prussians, Austrians, and The British at the same time (not same battle, war) with the odds againist him. He drove the Austrians out of Italy twice, Conquered Egypt, Austria, and Prussia, but made a few mistakes which cost him everything.

When, exactly, did Napoleon defeat the British? Wellesley was practically undefeated in the Peninsular campaign.

The Russian retreat is one of the greatest military disasters in history.

Also i recommend you look up the Battle of Assaye and Second Marahta War

Ah,but Napoleon was not PERSONALLY leading the troops in Spain. I'll give you Russia, but how many countless times had Napoleon defeated combined Allied troops? You cant deny he was a great general.

Actually I can.

His infantry strategy was horrid... he would win via sheer force of numbers more than good strategy. He would just send massive columns at poorly disciplined soldiers who would scatter.

Once the French faced the disciplined British they got completely owned thanks to their columns. At best these columns could have 10% of their muskets fire while 100% of British muskets could fire. Is it any wonder the columns routinely got shredded?

But did Napoleon or his marshalls change tactics in the wake of these setbacks? Nope... they kept plugging along using strategies that had been proven not to work. Hardly what I expect of a military genius.

He also personally refused to allow the use of rifles which proved a considerable advantage for the British and obviously became the standard weapon soon thereafter.

Napoleon was a hundred years ahead in supply trains and used Artillery in such a way that was unpreceeded! He was a master of artillery. He used a early from of Blitzkrieg to surprise his enemies and threw them off balance. He created the glorious french empire which stretched from spain to Poland!

Sun Tzu
Erwin Rommel
Charlemagne

It's unprecedented, not unpreceeded.

There is more to war than simply artillery. A good tactician is flexible and learns from his mistakes instead of repeating them. He was good but he had many failings.

Richard, why so hostile? KGB is presenting his argument in a clear manner and is inspiring a good debate. Meanwhile, back in preschool, you're attacking instead of debating, and resorting to every little weapon you own, including spell-check.

I didn't realize I was even being hostile... merely presenting a case against Napoleon's military genius,

As for the correction, I thought he would want to know. I certainly would in his shoes. If he is insulted by it then he needs thicker skin.

Napoleon kicked shit of russians?
u better learn history kid

Also: Sun Bin, Qin Shihuang, Caesar, Maurice of Nassau, Gustav Adolphus, Prince Eugene of Savoy, Duke of Malborough, Robert E. Lee, Colin Powell (the general, not the statesman)

While Lee was quite good I think Longstreet was the better option. Lee was a superb leader but he would have been better off going with the defensive style that Longstreet advocated. The South could not win on the offensive... only by outlasing the North.