Assessing Hitler as a Military commander

Adolf Hitler must be one of the most reviled characters of the twentieth century. Firstly he unleashed a war and secondly he unleashed a spate of crimes against humanity during the occupation of Europe. However the second world war is a fact of History and Hitler was the Chief of the German war machine. There is also little doubt that no decision could be executed in Germany without his express approval. After the war was lost a number of German generals blamed him for the defeat. By corollary it must be appreciated that early victories and the prolongation of the war was also due in part to Hitler. Hence after a lapse of some 60 years we can have a dispassionate look at Hitler as a Commander and head of the German Army The Fall of France and Retreat of The BEF The Germans were always terrified of a two front war. To obviate this Hitler signed a non aggression pact with Russia and then invaded France. The battle is important as the Wehrmacht over ran France in just a little more than a month The British expeditionary force had to retreat fro Dunkirk and Hitler became master of Europe. The plan for the invasion of France must have had the express approval of Hitler and must have been discussed threadbare in his head quarters. Hence some credit for this campaign must go to Hitler. In addition the bold and daring plan for the invasion of Norway in the teeth of the superiority of the Royal navy was entirely Hitler’s plan. The landings at 5 places on the coat led to the capitulation of Norway. The Russian campaign Hitler abrogated the Russo German treaty of friendship and invaded Russia. Hitler was a man of no moral principles, but his lightening thrust into Russia when 3 German armies conquered thousands of miles of Russia is nothing short of startling. The plan for the invasion of Russia was conceived by him in his command post and along with the German staff some credit must go to Hitler. After the defeat at Stalingrad the stiffening of German resistance was entirely due to the iron will of Hitler. Assessing Hitler’s Military Ability Hitler had some ability as a planner and executer of a campaign. An example is the Ardennes offensive of late 1944. Hitler also had a sharp though convoluted mind. But he had as per reports studied the writings and theories of the great masters of warfare like Fredrick, Clausewitz,Moltke and Schlieffen. Hitler was certainly not a great commander in the class of Napoleon or Alexander. But to entirely dismiss as a cipher in terms of military knowledge would not be entirely correct. References Mein Kampf Adolf Hitler, Houghton Miffin Harcourt reprinted 1998 Operation Barborossa The Rise and fall of the Third Reich, William Shirer, Simon and Shuster 1990 (3rd edition) The Fall of France: The Nazi Invasion of 1940, Julian Jackson (Oxford University Press, 2004)