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ds9lord wrote:
hello dakka my question for you is what in your opinion is the most interesting single war out battle in history. In other wars what is the one that you like the most.

I well start, for a war probable the Gothic war, the roman tactics with horse archers and the constant fighting up and down the Italian peninsula is really cool along with the leaders on either side as well. Here is a wiki page about it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_War_%28535%E2%80%93554%29

For a battle probably the battle of Crecy, not only is it apart of the hundred years war but is also has the most interesting king of England Edward the third. Anyway tell me what is your favorite battle our war.

The Gothic War is fascinating. Belisarius was a stud.

But my vote goes to the siege of Malta by the Knights of St. John. A handful of knights defending their tiny island against the might of the Turkish military. Its a siege of epic proportions that's way better than anything I've ever seen in a movie. Okay, this needs to be made into a movie.

The Gothic War is fascinating. Belisarius was a stud.

Ya he was wining the war until the empire and the other generals got jealous and sent him back home along with disbanding his bodyguard unit which where some of his best troops probably one of the man reason the Romans lost Italy.

cammy wrote:

Who would you say were the 'original' owners - before the saxons it was the British/welsh/celts - however these again displaced the indigenous culture as the celts were from the hallstatt culture in Austria. it is an emotionally charged topic to go down that route.

Harold would be the last 'English' King in that respect as the English were the anglo-saxons/jutes

There were no Celts until @1790.

The English are not anglo-saxons/jutes, that definition is a romantic invention, which in part leads to the creation of the Celts.

Well personally i like the whole lot

its always highly interesting to see how wars change over time, as well as the repeated mistakes that seem to occur in whatever period you are looking at.

However for the most interesting war, for me its WWII. Many do not comprehend how vast it actually was, the Allies may have won in the end but the strategy was always up to a point hanging by a thread. As well as the fact there were some frankly bonkers decisions made that in hindsight (as ever...) might have made things go very differently. Like us Brits failing to boot the Italians out of North Africa when we had them on the run in 1940, that would have secured the Suez canal for good and would have avoided the desert war and all its twists and turns. But that as they say is history.

The most interesting battle? a very hard choice. But perhaps its Waterloo , after that there was not a proper Europe wide war until 1914.

Though as others have mentioned i'm a bit hesitant about doing historical games, especially WWII ones. Its not that i object to the idea, it just seems you cannot do any justice to the heroism and bravery of those who fought on either side. Whether they were stuck on a boat in the Atlantic to dropping bombs on Germany.

 Hordini wrote:
I think the War of 1812 is pretty interesting. Eventually I'd like to try to wargame it. I have a ruleset I want to use, but I don't have any miniatures for it. Hopefully I'll get the chance to dive into a bit more in the next few years.

Which war of 1812?
The one where we burned down the White House or the one where Napoleon froze his balls off in Russia?

Tibbsy wrote:

 Hordini wrote:
I think the War of 1812 is pretty interesting. Eventually I'd like to try to wargame it. I have a ruleset I want to use, but I don't have any miniatures for it. Hopefully I'll get the chance to dive into a bit more in the next few years.

Which war of 1812?
The one where we burned down the White House or the one where Napoleon froze his balls off in Russia?

The War of 1812 (England/US) is interesting in the fact it garnered the US it's 'economic' independence. The US failed in Canada, but was much more successful in Louisiana, New York and Maryland, as well as navally. It helped the US get out from under the thumb of British attempts to interfere with the US, and solidified the country.

I have always felt the Battle of Toad Hall was rather splendid for a small scale engagement.

Going to the other extreme, the Battle of the Nations (Leipzig 1813) is still one of the largest clashes of arms ever fought.

The Second Thirty Years War 1914-1945 probably maintains my interest the most, but most historical warfare holds my interest to some degree.

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 whitehorn wrote:
1066 Battle of Hastings.

Big pitched battle that could truely go either way. One decisive battle that changed the history of the world.
The last English King, England would ever have vs a Norman French Duke.

Funny to call Harold the last English King, as the Saxons were usurpers and conquerors in their own right. People tend to forget the Saxons were far worse in their conquests than the Normans were.

6th to 1st century BC. Like a previous poster said, all the different troops, generals and nations battling it out is so complex and intriguing. Also, the sheer scale of the battles and how warfare was so different to how modern warfare is makes it unique.

I say the Saxons were no bette as from what I have read they more or less did the same things in their parts of England when they conquered England.

Really though, being to acrimonius about it is a bit silly. Almost all conquering races have performed some form of scortched earth policy on someone. The Romans salted the Earth at Carthage for example.

My point is more that neither side is the pure and virtuous side that tends to be depicted (went to te festival of history and te saxons were going on and on about the noble saxons and vile normans, how they were wonderful paragons, conviently ignoring they ha taxation, thegns who abused their power, etc)

The war I find most interesting is the Chinese Civil War, went right from the revolution of the early 1900's through WW2 and and the 50's.... A war with horrendous atrocities from both sides, involved other political powers, one where the armies were very amature.

For battle, though it's not really a battle i'd say the Long March, This is one of th most epic, insane, brave, things to happen during a conflict and saved the Communist party from the Nationalists.

It's a shame it gets forgotten so readily because people focus on WW2.



Oh and The Pentrich Rising in 1817....mainly because I used to live in that area..

 Maniac_nmt wrote:
I say the Saxons were no bette as from what I have read they more or less did the same things in their parts of England when they conquered England.

Really though, being to acrimonius about it is a bit silly. Almost all conquering races have performed some form of scortched earth policy on someone. The Romans salted the Earth at Carthage for example.

My point is more that neither side is the pure and virtuous side that tends to be depicted (went to te festival of history and te saxons were going on and on about the noble saxons and vile normans, how they were wonderful paragons, conviently ignoring they ha taxation, thegns who abused their power, etc)

I think it's also poor practise to attach modern mentalities/values to ancient actions. We've had a dozen or so extra centuries to develop concepts totally foreign to people back then, concepts like taking prisoners in war. Seriously, think about that concept. You beat the enemy, who until moments ago were trying to end your life. Now, it's on you to feed them, clothe them, and assign a proportion of your soldiers to ensure they don't escape to fight you again. Compound that with Dark Age logistics, and the logical choice is simply to exterminate them.

The Sack of Jerusalem in the First Crusade is a good example. Nowadays, we see this as another example of religious extremism and tsk tsk about how backwards Western Christendom was back then, but to those who were carrying out the atrocity, they genuinely believed salvation was theirs. The afterlife was an extremely valid and important concern for most people in the Dark Ages.

 ProfessionalAmateur wrote:
I've always found WWI interesting because it was arguably the birth of modern warfare, where the line infantry and cavalry charges of the 19th century met with tanks, artillery bombardments, aerial combat and stormtrooper tactics.
It's a shame all that ever gets focused on is trench warfare on the western front when there was so much more to the war.

As for battles I've always had a soft spot for Kursk, because I'm a big tank fan

Got any links? I'd love to learn more about WW1 and am definitely rooted in the "gakky trenches" view of it

Here's a good starting point

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Front_(World_War_I)

 Dakkamite wrote:

Got any links? I'd love to learn more about WW1 and am definitely rooted in the "gakky trenches" view of it

If you've got 18 hours to spare, this is a fascinating documentary




I've been listening to it whilst I paint for the past week or so

Guns of August by Tuchman. The first month of WW1. Really enjoyed this book.

Well, I like the wars of the Diadochi after Alexander's death. However, the names can get to be a bit... overwhelming. However, my favorite ancients general is Pyrrhus of Epirus. That's how I play wargames. Even when I win, it was so close that most would consider it a loss.

I'm also interesting in WWI Naval and Aviation games.

Finally, from a local perspective I am interested in gaming the Dakota Uprising of 1862.

 RanTheCid wrote:
Republic Rome is my second love - the vast web of adversaries in the 3rd century BC makes for fertile material for gaming: Romans, Etruscans, Celts, Carthaginians, Greek states, Italian Tribes, and the remnants of the Successor nations.

I second that. I really, really like the Republican Roman period, especially the Punic Wars...

The whole period has to offer a very nice variety of societies, cultures, for us to discover.

And a lot of armies too.

 Dakkamite wrote:

Got any links? I'd love to learn more about WW1 and am definitely rooted in the "gakky trenches" view of it

What's been posted above is a good example, I'd also recommend reading up on Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck and the East Africa Campaign. Using guerilla tactics he managed to remain
virtually undefeated against a much larger British colonial force and was the only German commander in the war to successfully invade imperial British territory.

Also the Battle of Tanga in that campaign featured the 98th Infantry Regiment being broken by swarms of angry bees. What more could you ask for?

The seven years war. So many personalities and great battles.

 jedi76 wrote:
Guns of August by Tuchman. The first month of WW1. Really enjoyed this book.

Tchman is a lovely writer, who occasionally bumps into history.


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 whitehorn wrote:
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 whitehorn wrote:
1066 Battle of Hastings.

Big pitched battle that could truely go either way. One decisive battle that changed the history of the world.
The last English King, England would ever have vs a Norman French Duke.

Funny to call Harold the last English King, as the Saxons were usurpers and conquerors in their own right. People tend to forget the Saxons were far worse in their conquests than the Normans were.

I know that's where history gets a bit odd. Always makes me laugh when Nick Griffin or some other BNP guy says something like England for the English, get rid of the foreigners. Er, we only came over 1500 years ago. There are Roman descendants with more claim to be natives than us.
Plus in that example Harold was half Viking anyway.

Although with William's harrowing of the north I'm not sure I can 100% agree with the last statement.

I think the dark ages in general are probably the most fun era to play.

This is the coolest idea for a post I have seen on Dakka in a long time.... EXALTED.

I am learning more about the Battle of Leyte Gulf specifically the Battle of Sibuyan Sea. That's mainly because of my grandpa's involvement for which he recieved the DFC for photos taken of the Musashi just before and after the run.

Otherwise, the more I learn about WW1 the more and more fascinated I get. It's such fascinating time. It could be that my wife has brainwashed me by making me watch Downton Abby though.

Tunnels and miners and bombs and stuff. Machine guns. Tanks and horses. Big guns mounted on trains. Lots of rivets everywhere. Lumbering ships. Airplanes made out of cloth. Zeplins. WTF?! How can that not be your favorite?!

Fo me it has to be a mixture between the Mudjahedin in afganistan in the 1980ish, dollowed by the Balkan wars. Mostly due to their influence on the times we now live in and the events spawned by those wars.
Followed by that I have to sayt he thirty year war, because angry Swedes makes for a bloody awesome army

 Art_of_war wrote:

However for the most interesting war, for me its WWII. Many do not comprehend how vast it actually was, the Allies may have won in the end but the strategy was always up to a point hanging by a thread. As well as the fact there were some frankly bonkers decisions made that in hindsight (as ever...) might have made things go very differently. Like us Brits failing to boot the Italians out of North Africa when we had them on the run in 1940, that would have secured the Suez canal for good and would have avoided the desert war and all its twists and turns. But that as they say is history.

I regularly imagine 'what-if' scenarios when bored at work. My favourite is if Hitler hadn't ordered the Panzers to Halt! at Dunkirk, no miracle in that universe.

Except they halted due to the need to rest and refuel and rearm after a manic drive across Europe.

Regardless of the 'Hitler Order' those panzers needed a few days downtime.

Fortunately it coincided with the evacuation. Hitler just added an extra day or two for good measure.

Just as well. My Grandfather was one of the last out of Dunkirk...

The Great War in the trenches.

For me my ww2 battle would be the winter war, the invasion of the karelian isthmus, otherwise it would have to be the battles at krak chevalle (sp)

Definitely The Kettle War, truly a dark time in human history.

The War of Spanish Succession is a personal favorite of mine.