NationStates Jolt Archive

Although this promises to be a controversial topic no matter what I say, I'll say it nonetheless:
Disregard which side the guy (or girl) fought on. Don't discuss the Politics.
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So, we've had one thread about military aircraft, and one about military ships. So, how about one about the human part of the machinery.

Who do you reckon is your favourite human war machine?

I'll nominate Hans-Ulrich Rudel, a German Stuka-Pilot during WWII.
He flew 2530 combat missions, was shot down 35 times, was awarded the highest order Germany could give (no one else ever got it) and survived the war to help develop the Warthog plane.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans-Ulrich_Rudel

http://guns.connect.fi/gow/hayha.html

Simo Hayha, without a doubt.

Simo Hayha, without a doubt.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simo_Hayha
Just for those without Finnish lessons...

I liked Hayha, because when the war started, he picked up his rifle, and said he was going to "hunt some Russians".

Charles Upham:

http://www.nzedge.com/heroes/upham.html

I've actually quoted a lot of the article, but this covers the basics:


Charles Upham
VICTORIA CROSS AND BAR

Captain Charles UphamAcknowledged widely as the outstanding soldier of the Second World War, Captain Charles Upham is the only combatant soldier to receive the Victoria Cross and Bar (awarded to members of the armed forces of the Commonwealth for exceptional bravery). In Crete in May 1941 and the Western Desert in July 1942 Upham distinguished himself with displays of ‘nerveless competence’.

He was renowned for combining controlled courage with quick-thinking resourcefulness. While most medals for bravery are awarded for a single act, Upham’s first citation was for nine days of skill, leadership and evident heroism. In March 1941, he was a Second Lieutenant in the 20th NZ Battalion in Crete. His display of courage included destroying numerous enemy posts, rescuing a wounded man under fire and penetrating deep behind German lines, killing twenty-two German soldiers on the way to leading out an isolated platoon – all after being blown over by a mortar shell, painfully wounded in the shoulder by shrapnel and with a bullet in his foot.

Captain Upham's second citation was for his part in the July 1942 attack on Ruweisat Ridge, Egypt, where the New Zealand Division was stranded when promised armoured support never came through. As the Allied forces struggled to hold the line, Upham led his company on what was described as a savage attack on German and Italian strongpoints. Upham himself was responsible for destroying a German tank and several guns and vehicles with hand grenades and, though he was shot through the elbow with a machine gun bullet and had his arm shattered, he went on again to a forward position and brought back some of his men who had become isolated.

He was removed to the regimental aid post, but immediately after his wounds had been dressed he returned to his men. He consolidated and held his position and despite exhaustion, loss of blood and further injuries (as a result of artillery and mortar fire that decimated most of his company) he stayed with the only six remaining members until, now unable to move, he was eventually overrun by the superior weight of the enemy forces and captured.
Top of Page


Typifying his character and nickname ‘Pug’, he attempted to escape numerous times before being branded "dangerous" by the Germans and incarcerated in the infamous prison fortress Colditz.

Rowland Hill


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rowland_Hill%2C_1st_Viscount_Hill

[QUOTE=Monkeypimp]Charles Upham:

I was about to To say Him glad I changed my Mind at last minute

Kind of odd for me to promote a Finn as my choice, considering that I'm an American. But, if I had to pick an American, Audie Murphy would do.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy#Military_career

Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company B 1 5th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Holtzwihr France, 26 January, 1945. Entered service at: Dallas, Texas. Birth: Hunt County, near Kingston, Texas, G.O. No. 65, 9 August 1945. Citation Second Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by 6 tanks and waves of infantry. Second Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to prepared positions in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by telephone. Behind him, to his right, 1 of our tank destroyers received a direct hit and began to burn. Its crew withdrew to the woods. Second Lt. Murphy continued to direct artillery fire which killed large numbers of the advancing enemy infantry. With the enemy tanks abreast of his position, Second Lt. Murphy climbed on the burning tank destroyer, which was in danger of blowing up at any moment, and employed its .50 caliber machinegun against the enemy. He was alone and exposed to German fire from 3 sides, but his deadly fire killed dozens of Germans and caused their infantry attack to waver. The enemy tanks, losing infantry support, began to fall back. For an hour the Germans tried every available weapon to eliminate Second Lt. Murphy, but he continued to hold his position and wiped out a squad which was trying to creep up unnoticed on his right flank. Germans reached as close as 10 yards, only to be mowed down by his fire. He received a leg wound, but ignored it and continued the single-handed fight until his ammunition was exhausted. He then made his way to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. Second Lt. Murphy's indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy's objective.

Kind of odd for me to promote a Finn as my choice, considering that I'm an American. But, if I had to pick an American, Audie Murphy would do.
You don't have to. As I said, Politics are of no importance. Just exciting stories.

You don't have to. As I said, Politics are of no importance. Just exciting stories.

Hayha just impresses me. A real solid, simple, modest guy.

Bhanbhagta Gurung

On 5 March 1945 at Snowdon East, near Tamandu, Burma (now Myanmar), a section was pinned down by heavy enemy fire and was also being subjected to sniping from a tree. Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung killed the sniper and later when the section was again attacked, he dashed forward under continuous fire personally clearing four enemy foxholes and he also silenced a light machine-gun. With the help of a Bren gunner and two riflemen he then repelled an enemy counter-attack on the captured bunker with heavy losses. His action in clearing these positions was decisive in capturing the objective.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhanbhagta_Gurung

I'm with MonkeyPimp on this one:
Upham all the way.
First day at training camp, when no leave was issued, Upham went to see the commanding officer and asked for special leave. Reason? A man who owed him money for a car he had sold him. He told the officer he was going to either get the money or was going to beat the crap out of him (in his words 'give him a hiding').
You gotta that sort of attitude. And yes he did get the leave, but no, he didn't get his money.

For his first VC, MonkeyPimp forgot to mention that he had been suffering from severe dysentry for 2 weeks prior to the 9 days he was fighting in, during which time he couldn't hold down anything but condensed milk.

During the first battle, some members of his platoon were shot. This was probably the worst thing the Germans could have done in the whole battle of Crete, as it seriously pissed off Upham. In the resulting attack on the airfield he personally destroyed several machine gun nests, going so far as attacking one German with the butt of his pistol as it was empty (he had to be dragged off the poor guy).
He then braved machine gun fire to rescue and carry out a couple of wounded men - the act of bravery was such that the Germans actually stopped firing to let him take the men out.
When the attack failed and a retreat ordered, Upham then volunteered to go through no-mans land while under heavy fire to rescue a platoon of men trapped and bring them out safely.

A day or so later he led his platoon in a successful counter-attack against a German attack on allied lines, killing 40. Upham was wounded during this time in the shoulder (shrapnel) and foot (spent machine gun bullet). When hit by the shrapnel he refused to go back to the medics and ordered one of his men to dig it out with a pocket knife. For the foot injury, he left the bullet in to stop the bleeding (it wasn't pulled out until weeks later).

The call came through for a complete withdrawal.
Upham again went across no-mans-land to tell the other platoons. During his mission he was shot at by two Germans. He fell down, pretending to be dead, and slowly crawled towards a tree where he carefully set up his rifle. Unable to use his left arm (due to the shrapnel) he wedged the gun in between two branches and waited for the Germans to come over to check his body. He waited until they were less than 10 metres away before he fired, killing one. Using his good arm and the tree for leverage, he drew back the bolt, cocked, aimed and fired at the remaining German charging him, firing. The German was so close he actually fell against the rifle.

After a few more battles, the call finally came through to abandon Crete. This meant a 40 mile walk along the coast - after 9 days fighting, being wounded twice and suffering from dysentry.

Once there, the Germans started attacking and were getting close to the allied HQ. Upham (of course) volunteered to lead the counter-attack. This meant climbing up a sheer cliff face to come around behind the Germans advancing. To attack them, Upham had to be held by his ankles so he could lean out over a cliff face and fire down upon the advancing Germans. They killed 22 and caused their retreat.

Finally, when volunteers were called for to defend the ships leaving - knowing full well that it was at worst a death sentence, at best a POW camp, Upham (naturally) volunteered but was turned down. By this time the commanding officers had decided he deserved the VC more than anyone else.
Upham had to be literally dragged onto the ship. He was raging and in tears at the thought that some of his men were staying to allow him to leave.


And that's just what he did to get his FIRST VC. If you're interested I can tell you about what he did to get his second and what happened to him afterwards.

I'm with MonkeyPimp on this one:
Upham all the way.
First day at training camp, when no leave was issued, Upham went to see the commanding officer and asked for special leave. Reason? A man who owed him money for a car he had sold him. He told the officer he was going to either get the money or was going to beat the crap out of him (in his words 'give him a hiding').
You gotta that sort of attitude. And yes he did get the leave, but no, he didn't get his money.

For his first VC, MonkeyPimp forgot to mention that he had been suffering from severe dysentry for 2 weeks prior to the 9 days he was fighting in, during which time he couldn't hold down anything but condensed milk.

During the first battle, some members of his platoon were shot. This was probably the worst thing the Germans could have done in the whole battle of Crete, as it seriously pissed off Upham. In the resulting attack on the airfield he personally destroyed several machine gun nests, going so far as attacking one German with the butt of his pistol as it was empty (he had to be dragged off the poor guy).
He then braved machine gun fire to rescue and carry out a couple of wounded men - the act of bravery was such that the Germans actually stopped firing to let him take the men out.
When the attack failed and a retreat ordered, Upham then volunteered to go through no-mans land while under heavy fire to rescue a platoon of men trapped and bring them out safely.

A day or so later he led his platoon in a successful counter-attack against a German attack on allied lines, killing 22. Upham was wounded during this time in the shoulder (shrapnel) and foot (spent machine gun bullet). When hit by the shrapnel he refused to go back to the medics and ordered one of his men to dig it out with a pocket knife. For the foot injury, he left the bullet in to stop the bleeding (it wasn't pulled out until weeks later).

The call came through for a complete withdrawal.
Upham again went across no-mans-land to tell the other platoons. During his mission he was shot at by two Germans. He fell down, pretending to be dead, and slowly crawled towards a tree where he carefully set up his rifle. Unable to use his left arm (due to the shrapnel) he wedged the gun in between two branches and waited for the Germans to come over to check his body. He waited until they were less than 10 metres away before he fired, killing one. Using his good arm and the tree for leverage, he drew back the bolt, cocked, aimed and fired at the remaining German charging him, firing. The German was so close he actually fell against the rifle.

After a few more battles, the call finally came through to abandon Crete. This meant a 40 mile walk along the coast - after 9 days fighting, being wounded twice and suffering from dysentry.

Once there, the Germans started attacking and were getting close to the allied HQ. Upham (of course) volunteered to lead the counter-attack. This meant climbing up a sheer cliff face to come around behind the Germans advancing. To attack them, Upham had to be held by his ankles so he could lean out over a cliff face and fire down upon the advancing Germans. They killed most of them and caused their retreat.

Finally, when volunteers were called for to defend the ships leaving - knowing full well that it was at worst a death sentence, at best a POW camp, Upham (naturally) volunteered but was turned down. By this time the commanding officers had decided he deserved the VC more than anyone else.
Upham had to be literally dragged onto the ship. He was raging and in tears at the thought that some of his men were staying to allow him to leave.


And that's just what he did to get his FIRST VC. If you're interested I can tell you about what he did to get his second and what happened to him afterwards.

After the 2 VC's and capture, you can get onto his three escape attempts, all of which he was very nearly killed.

After the 2 VC's and capture, you can get onto his three escape attempts, all of which he was very nearly killed.
There were more than 3 I thought. Unless you were only talking about his most dramatic ones, like the one where he jumped from a moving train whilst being transported to Colditz.

There were more than 3 I thought. Unless you were only talking about his most dramatic ones, like the one where he jumped from a moving train whilst being transported to Colditz.

The first was when he was being transported by a truck convoy with several other prisoners, when a sharp bend in the road put the truck behind out of view long enough for him to jump out, rush down the grassy bank, bolt across a field with rifles opening up on him (one bullet hit the heel of his boot) and attempting to hide in some bush. He was found, thumped a few times and taken back to the convoy where an officer started yelling at the soldiers who captured him. He found out later from a fellow prisoner that spoke german that the officer was saying to the soldiers that he should have been shot rather than recaptured.

The second was from a prison camp where he worked out a blind point where the two guards outside the wire would not be looking at a certain spot for a certain amount of time (about 30-40 seconds, there were usually three of them but not on that day). He then had two of his mates start a fight to distract the machine gunner on a tower's attention, and attempted to climb the wire in broad daylight. He got caught up in the wire, fell between the two fences, and when a guard came over, calmly lit a cigerette which supposidly saved him from being shot.

The third was when he jumped from the moving train after three soldiers had been assigned to watch him at all times during the transfer. This was during the night, and he had no idea what he was jumping onto when he went out a small bathroom window. As it was, he landed on another set of tracks and was captured about 24 hours later.



Are there others?

As further proof as to Upham's greatness, here's the interview he gave to NZ radio after being awarded his first VC. He only did it after being threatened by his commanding officer with insubordination if he didn't.
"I wish to thank all those who have sent me cables from New Zealand and England. I have been very fortunate indeed, having the very best of commanders above me and the very best of NCOs and men in my own platoon, as well as right throughout the NZ Division. It was very easy to do any job under those circumstances. It was the men in my own battalion, not myself, who earned the distinction. Their morale was the highest in the whole army. Nothing could stop them.
"We left many friends killed over there (Crete). Men we will never forget. I will mention the names of some our own company - Major Wilson, Sergeant Wallace, Sergeant Mussn, Corporal Herbert, Corporal Malloch, Lance-Corporal Skilton, Privates Allen, Aitkens, Boyd, Burns, Brown-Pride, Gilligan, Hislop, Watson, and Woods; not to mention Sergeant Hinton* and hundreds of others left wounded in Greece and Crete. I hope the people in New Zealand remember them, lying in hospitals and prisons all over Europe. Do all you can to send them food and clothing. These men were not captured whole and unharmed like the Italians we ourselves took, but were wounded and sick men who struggled and fought right on to the last.
"After the war, we must do all in our power to help the Greeks with food and clothing and stud stock to help build up their country again. The Greeks were very staunch friends of the New Zealand soldiers and hundreds of us owe our lives to the big-heartedness of these people.
"The division over here is going from strength to strength and the morale of our troops is unsurpassed. You will hear more from us again. We have a great little army up here in the sandhills.
"I would like the New Zealand Government to know that it is impossible to send over too much New Zealand tobacco to the troops. It is very much apprecited here. Kia Ora."
Now how's that for being cool? Not once did he talk about himself. Someone who showed outstanding bravery over 9 days of fighting and he tells the world it was due to the men around him, then asks for public support of the POWs and Greeks.
Now that is being a GREAT hero.


*Also won the VC in the same battle as Upham.

Genghis Khan is my choice, he may of started the war but my god he was a genious, not just for his bravory but for the way his mind worked and his battle tactics, he was one of the first really substantial leaders to use psychology in warfare.
All who surrender will be spared;
whoever does not surrender but opposes with struggle and dissension,
shall be annihilated.
--Genghis Khan

Heres my nomination: Hans Ulrich Rudel

"When war broke out in 1939 he was in the reconnaissance wing of the Luftwaffe, and spent the Polish Campaign as a Lieutenant flying long-range missions. He earned the Iron Cross Second Class on October 11, 1939. He was then admitted to dive-bombing Stuka training in May 1940, and after completing it, was assigned to a Stuka wing near Stuttgart. Rudel spent the French campaign as an Oberleutnant, however, in a non-combat role. Although he took part in the invasion of Crete, it was also in a non-combat role.

Rudel flew his first combat mission on June 23, 1941, with the German invasion of the Soviet Union. His piloting skills earned the Iron Cross First Class on July 18, 1941. On September 23 1941, Rudel sunk the Soviet battleship Marat during an air attack on Kronstadt harbor in the Leningrad area.

Rudel's input was also used during development of A-10 attack craft. In total, he flew about 2,530 combat missions (world record), during which time he destroyed almost 2,000 ground targets (among them 519 tanks, 70 landing boats and more than 150 anti-air and anti-tank defenses), as well as a battleship, two cruisers, a destroyer and 13 planes. He was shot down 32 times (behind enemy lines), always somehow managing to escape capture despite Stalin personally having a 100,000 rouble bounty placed on his head."

According to the Russians he SINGLE HANDEDLY destroyed an entire tank army (700 tanks)

Alvin York, Robert E. Lee, Patton, or 'Stonewall' Jackson

Nelson, a true hero, or possibly Henry V.

Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_von_Lettow-Vorbeck)

He commanded the German colonial forces in German Southeast Africa (Tanzania) in WWI. He managed to tie down British troops many times the strength of his own by fighting a guerrilla war.

My favorite General is General George Patton

Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_von_Lettow-Vorbeck)

He commanded the German colonial forces in German Southwest Africa (Namibia) in WWI. He managed to tie down British troops many times the strength of his own by fighting a guerrilla war.

Forgot about him, hes the guy that never lost a battle

Hannibal Barca. The only general to nearly succeed in destroying Rome, with nigh flawless tactics and capability. He basically wrote the rule book in western warfare when it came to ambush and engagement. Who else could have orchestrated such victories as Trebia and Trasimene at the time, and of course the utter disaster at Cannae, the defeat that became Romes standard for "smushed" for centuries to come? He was a figure used to scare children. Not only that, but he welded an army from Africa (Numidia and Libya), Spain and Gaul together to form an unstoppable force that was only defeated in battle once. The casualties he inflicted on Rome would not be reached again until the first world war. Not only that, but he accomplished the task of securing the south of italy with his one army, almost entirely unreinforced, despite the Romans massing 25 legions against him. Their casualties were so severe they had to recruit prisoners and slaves, and some of romes closest allies actually refused to send the last refuges of their manpower to the cause.


Hannibal Barca drained Roman cities of all their men.

Aside from Genghis Khan, who held all the advantages, who else compares?

Hannibal Barca.Hannibal sucked at strategy, though. He didn't manage to use his tactical victories, and thus snatched defeat from the jaws of victory for Carthage.

Hannibal sucked at strategy, though. He didn't manage to use his tactical victories, and thus snatched defeat from the jaws of victory for Carthage.


Hannibals battlefield strategy was without peer.
Remember how historical wars WERE fought right up until the rise of Rome. The two armies would meet in the field. They'd fight. The winner would demand terms, the losers would accept. it was RARE that a state would be smashed off of the face of the earth. Rome had went from disaster to disaster the likes of which had almost never been seen in the western world. Legions were wiped off of the face of the earth with almost disdainful ease. Hannibal marched up and down Italy, Roman soil, and they couldn't stop him.

Now, what I'd imagine you're referring to is Hannibals refusal to march on Rome after Cannae, leading to Maharbals quote of "You (Hannibal) know how to gain a victory, but not how to use it."

Think about it. After Cannae, all historical sources say that the senate refused to consider surrender to Hannibal. No senators defected to his side. By all accounts, Rome would have fought at Rome without considering. And Hannibal WOULD have lost. Romes warrior culture is second ONLY to Sparta, and it was far more successful. its citizens willingly gave up almost all rights, including the right to life, to serve the state. For what reward? Almost none. They were landowners, any "loot" that was dispersed would be small. Roman pride in the state would have led the citizens to almost certainly take up arms and not doubt roman victory. Hannibals army, after Cannae, was in great shape comparatively after Cannae, but it was in no condition to take Rome. None at all. He would have sacrificed his men.


EDIT: Defeat from the jaws of victory? Hannibal was eventually pushed back on all fronts, only the Italian front (that's Hannibals) held for long enough. Scipio (Africanus) took Spain from them, their negotiations with Massinissa of Numidia secured most of Africa from Carthage.... they were being crushed. only Hannibals sapping of Roman resources assisted them. Had they given him more men, had they attempted a real attempt at Siciliy, had they not been concerned with petty infighting and hatred of the Barca family (who was seen as trying to set up a new country of their own in Spain) then Hannibal would have led them to victory. As such, he was the bright spark of an otherwise dismal war against Rome. He nearly won, which was more than could be said of any other Carthaginian commanders.

Hannibal sucked at strategy, though. He didn't manage to use his tactical victories, and thus snatched defeat from the jaws of victory for Carthage.

Actually you over look the fact his army was mixed troops. He had a core of veterens but the rest?

He didn't have the manpower to march on Rome.

Actually you over look the fact his army was mixed troops. He had a core of veterens but the rest?

He didn't have the manpower to march on Rome.He didn't do anything else either though. He was rather successful in defeating Romans in his own way, but that prompted the Romans to stop attacking him and press on Carthage instead. Tactically, he was brilliant, but he didn't manage to use the won battles to win the war.

any warrior that is brave enough to turn against war

Spartacus, for one reason only...

I'm Spartacus!! Who else didn't see that comming? Or the later reply that says: "I'm Spartacus"

any warrior that is brave enough to turn against war
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.

Alvin York

Close second: Audie Murphy

Runner-Up: Chesty Puller

However, most libraries have catalogues of MoH winners, with a brief synopsis of their accomplishments and the circumstances that lead to their winning the award.. many of these stories are really amazing, but so numerous that they really can't all be mentioned.. so I'm sticking to War heroes who were also public figures to some degree.

Since we're not talking about politics or sides...
Erwin Rommel
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwin_Rommel

some of Rommel's quotes:

"Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives, and brains saves both."
"Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning."
"A risk is a chance you take; if it fails you can recover. A gamble is a chance taken; if it fails, recovery is impossible."
"The art of concentrating strength at one point, forcing a breakthrough, rolling up and securing the flanks on either side, and then penetrating like lightning deep into his rear, before the enemy has time to react-is Blitzkrieg."

Brilliant strategist; winner of battles in both WW I (Battle of Caporetto - Italians might tell you what caporetto meant after that particular defeat) and WW II (France, some African fights,...)

He had respect from both sides:

"The British Parliament considered a censure vote against Winston Churchill, for his failure to defeat Rommel. The vote failed, but in the course of the debate, Churchill would say:

"We have a very daring and skillful opponent against us, and, may I say across the havoc of war, a great General.""

etc... just read the text, learn some history :D

plus... he wasn't one of those nazi fans :) ( he fought for germany, not for for nazi ideals)


*just don't tell my countrymen that I voted for a german general instead of a slovenian one ;)

Vercingetorix

General Lord Cornwallis

I've have to stick close to home....

De Valera, or Collins

But i'm a fan of Mannerheim too on the wider international scale.

Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander

rumored to be the last man to leave the beaches at Dunkirk. Ike's choice to Command at D-Day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Alexander

Spartacus, for one reason only...

I'm Spartacus!! Who else didn't see that comming? Or the later reply that says: "I'm Spartacus"

No , I'm Spartacus!

How the hell has nobody else done that in the last four hours?

I'd nominate Nathanial Greene.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Hathcock

My war hero.

No , I'm Spartacus!

How the hell has nobody else done that in the last four hours?

NO, IAM SPARTACUS

Well, I guess Manfred von Richthofen qualifies too.

Are there others?
One when he was in solitary and uprighted his bed to climb up into the ceiling to try to make an escape. He got stuck up there, as they had cemented the tiles down so he couldn't bust through. Not much of an escape, true, but it is an attempt.
Another one was after the failed jumping over the wire. He was in solitary and allowed out only by himself, with a machine gun tower trained on him and an armed guard watching him. One day he noticed the barracks door opened, which led through to outside the camp. He slowly walked round the yard moving closer to the barracks door and when the guard was oocupied made a dash through the barracks and out into the open. His freedom was short-lived though. The machine gunner didn't fire because he could see a troop of men coming back from the town just over the rise. Upham ran straight into them.
Because this was his 3rd attempt, he was transferred to Colditz. Whereupon he made two attempts while being transported there, as you've already mentioned.

http://www.islandfarm.fsnet.co.uk/

How about these guys? It's like "The Great Escape", but for real!

From the stories, Upham sounds like an absolute moron. A hilarious one at that. I can't decide whether the stunts he pulled were out of bravery or stupidity. Probably both.

Well, if we are disregarding politics, whoever single handedly killed the most enemy soldiers in battle. If anyone can tell me who that was, I won’t call you a jackass.

From the stories, Upham sounds like an absolute moron. A hilarious one at that. I can't decide whether the stunts he pulled were out of bravery or stupidity. Probably both.


It's hard to say. He did only win the Victoria Cross twice, maybe if he was smarter he would have won three.

It's hard to say. He did only win the Victoria Cross twice, maybe if he was smarter he would have won three.

Was Upham the guy who always carried around a wind-up phonograph?

Or was that another guy in the LRDG?

Well, if we are disregarding politics, whoever single handedly killed the most enemy soldiers in battle. If anyone can tell me who that was, I won’t call you a jackass.

Didn't one of the german machine gunners on Omaha beach kill some ridiculous amount of people? It might not have been the most over all, but it was a fair few for the mans only day of combat...

Actually, I retract my previous choices.

Ronald Reid-Daly is my new choice.

I have to give a second vote for Audey Murphy, that is if the questions is asking for the greatest human war machine. Although there are many great stategists throughout history, few low ranking soldiers can match Murphy's consistent disregard for his own life and safety and success in achieving his objective in the heat of battle.

Didn't one of the german machine gunners on Omaha beach kill some ridiculous amount of people? It might not have been the most over all, but it was a fair few for the mans only day of combat...

If you consider that Hayha killed over 500 using a bolt action Mosin-Nagant rifle with iron sights, and killed over 200 with a submachinegun, it would be hard to kill more than that ridiculous number.

Then again, I bet that on the Somme, some machinegunners killed a couple thousand each. But that was easy pickings.