History's most decisive battles

[Dave Lobster]

By putting craters in Stanley's air field the Argies weren't able to fly their fast jets out of the airport, which helped give the Brits air superiority, which in turn ensured that the incoming naval fleet and ground forces were better protected by Brit fighters. Basic military tactics in any battle.

Didn't they all miss?

[rogson]

Not a battle as such, but the defeat of the Spanish Armada lead to British marine dominance for centuries and with it the spread of the Protestant faith, British colonisation and empire building, spread of the British political system/rule of law.......and lots more.

[Biff]

Didn't they all miss?

All but one I think.

[imdying]

All but one I think.

Yep, here's a pic.

/edit: And another.

[steved]

I think many of you are overestimating Britain's impact/influence in WW2. To me the decisive battle was Stalingrad, where the might and the morale of the Germany army was ground to dust. It was the turning point of the largest land war history has seen.

[Indiana_Jones]

I think many of you are overestimating Britain's impact/influence in WW2. To me the decisive battle was Stalingrad, where the might and the morale of the Germany army was ground to dust. It was the turning point of the largest land war history has seen.

Stalingrad was a very important battle in that sense. But Kursk was the final nail in the coffin if you ask me.

I love the eastern front

-Indy

[Hitcher]

I see the Argintines are making noises again about the Falkland or as the call them the Maldives.

They (the Argentines) call the Falklands the Malvinas. The Maldives are in the Indian Ocean. I doubt even Argentine expansionism extends that far.

[merv]

When I saw the header I thought we'd be talking about history like Hailwood versus Agostini or Sheene versus Roberts or something like that to compare to today's Stoner versus Rossi.

[Marmoot]

Nothing beats The Battle of Endor. It gets the momentum rolling.

[sAsLEX]

You're joking right ?!

Disabling, or at least reducing your enemy's air capabilities is one of the most important tasks of any modern warfare. By putting craters in Stanley's air field the Argies weren't able to fly their fast jets out of the airport, which helped give the Brits air superiority, which in turn ensured that the incoming naval fleet and ground forces were better protected by Brit fighters. Basic military tactics in any battle.

Didn't they all miss?

All but one I think.

Ah there we go, they could of repaired it, which they did according to the dit I heard but kept it looking poo for the ISR sats.

They (the Argentines) call the Falklands the Malvinas. The Maldives are in the Indian Ocean. I doubt even Argentine expansionism extends that far.

The Maldives aren't going to beat global warming!

[Biff]

Ah there we go, they could of repaired it, which they did according to the dit I heard but kept it looking poo for the ISR sats.

This was considered a risk, but local intelligence sources (primarily the British ATC head at the airport) stated that the Argies didn't have the correct machinery on the island to repair the crater, and because the Brits were then able to enforce a naval blockade on the island there was no hope of the buggers getting them in.

[sAsLEX]

This was considered a risk, but local intelligence sources (primarily the British ATC head at the airport) stated that the Argies didn't have the correct machinery on the island to repair the crater, and because the Brits were then able to enforce a naval blockade on the island there was no hope of the buggers getting them in.

You stated the denial of Air power was such a great requirement. Why did the SAS back out at the last minute from destroying half the fleet on mainland Argentina..... read the book can't remember now

[Biff]

Probably because the Brits didn't want the war to escalate to either countrys' mainland. I know that Maggie T rejected a similar suggestion by Strike Command who wanted to attack key locations in Argentina.

[MisterD]

I think many of you are overestimating Britain's impact/influence in WW2. To me the decisive battle was Stalingrad, where the might and the morale of the Germany army was ground to dust. It was the turning point of the largest land war history has seen.

BUT. If we hadn't have kept the Western and African fronts open, what might have been the outcome in Russia if Germany was able to bring all her resources to bear....


I'm not up to speed much on ancient battles, but having read my way through Bernard Cornwell's Saxon series I'm going to put in a vote for the Battle of Edington (Ethandun). The world would be considerable different if Alfred had lost Wessex to Guthrum...no England, no English language...

Closer to today, I'd also have to go for Waterloo. Probably the last time an entire campaign was decided by a single battle which shaped history for decades to come. Taking things to a slight tangent, Waterloo is also one of those battles (perhaps the best example too) where the weather tipped things one way....if it hadn't rained so much overnight, it would have started earlier thus not giving Blucher time to arrive and Napoleon's artillery would have been much more effective with the shot not burying itself in the mud....

[jrandom]

I think many of you are overestimating Britain's impact/influence in WW2.

Nonsense. If it weren't for the bracing effect of Britain's lonely stand against the Nazis in 1939 and 1940, Germany could have consolidated its gains in continental Europe, and the Anglo-American political climate could easily have shifted toward compromise.

In fact, the British commitment of men and materiel in Europe and North Africa substantially exceeded the USA's until mid-1944.

Not to mention the influence of the British Navy and Bletchley Park on the Battle of the Atlantic. Churchill's opinion was always that the U-boat threat to the convoys was the most crucial strategic issue of the war. Had Germany won the battle to control the seas, the vast quantities of vital war equipment supplied to the USSR would never have arrived, and Operation Overlord could never have been conceived.

To me the decisive battle was Stalingrad...

Hmmm. Without the Atlantic and Baltic convoys, no soldiers would ever have arrived at Stalingrad to defend it. The brave defenders would still have been walking and riding in horse-drawn carts when the Germans swept triumphantly through Moscow.

Don't forget that on the Eastern front, before, after, and during the battle of Stalingrad, Russia supplied the blood and bone to fight the Germans, and America supplied the steel.