# Greatest Warriors of All Time **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 23, 2010, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098 "2010-04-23T13:45:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![davekhps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@davekhps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davekhps)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/21 "2010-04-23T17:21:31Z")
You don’t expect to die in MMA. You know the old saying, “Everything in war is simple, but the simple things are hard?” That applies here. Even something as “simple” as firing a rifle at another human being to kill them is made harder for a host of reasons: fear of death, fear of failure, emotional consequences of being responsible for the life and death of other human beings (of your friends, and of the enemy). Overcoming bowel-emptying fear of death in order to accomplish your mission, whatever that mission may be-- killing the enemy, rescuing your buddies, driving a freakin’ resupply truck-- requires a warrior ethos that most people will never encounter (and they’re luckier for it). For that reason, someone like Hayha or Audie Murphy qualify as warriors. In the modern age, those kind of warriors are rarer, mostly because more and more fighting men are further removed from actual battle, but they still exist. That said, all apologies for the snark, I think we need to consider [this individual](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrior_(wrestler)) for the title. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jk1245](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/49beb7/32.png) [@jk1245](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jk1245)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/22 "2010-04-23T17:24:02Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > I think we need to define what a warrior is. I’d have thought the above was no more a warrior’s feat than casting a fishing rod, unless he was under fire during every kill. Even then, he’d just be a lucky man, who was good with a rifle, unless he could also handle himself in CQC. As ol George said “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.” I think the best “warrior” is one who would engage the enemy at the times and places that are worst for the enemy to defend himself. A sniper who is constantly under fire isn’t a very good sniper, and probably won’t be around long enough to make much of an impact on the war effort. A single soldier who takes out 500 plus enemy troops plus forces the other side’s leadership to specifically commit resources to counteract him is a pretty damn effective warrior I would think. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/23 "2010-04-23T17:42:23Z")
Who was the American machine gunner in Vietnam who basicly stopped a whole VC battalian, by killing them all, last man holding out and all that? There was one Engliseh Knight who used to win all the staged battles and ransom his prizes, to such a degree of success that he built his own castle.During the medieival period knights would hone their battle skills through ‘games’ which were intended to simulate combat. The uidea would be to take your opponents captive and ransom them, they were not like the games we have, the only rule was not to kill your opponent, and dead people do not ransom very well. Thi sparticualr knight was very much the best pf his day, and won enough prizes to set himself up for life, but in fact he did go into battle and had a very distinguished career. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/24 "2010-04-23T17:45:39Z")
Ah, good Old Civ Quotes. “Victorious warriors win first, then go to war. Defeated warriors go to war, then seek to win.” ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/25 "2010-04-23T17:54:10Z")
There’s a list of some pretty serious badasses [HERE](http://http://www.history.army.mil/moh.html). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/26 "2010-04-23T18:06:13Z")
Some good ones listed already. I’ll add: > **[William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Marshal,_1st_Earl_of_Pembroke)** > > William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146 or 1147 – 14 May 1219), also called William the Marshal (Norman French: Williame li Mareschal, French: Guillaume le Maréchal), was an Anglo-Norman soldier and statesman. He served five English kings—Henry II, his sons the "Young King" Henry, Richard I, and John, and finally John's son Henry III. > Knighted in 1166, he spent his younger years as a knight errant and a successful tournament competitor; Stephen Langton eulogised him as the "best knight tha... > **[Peter Francisco](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_francisco)** > > Peter Francisco (born Pedro Francisco; July 9, 1760 – January 16, 1831) known variously as the "India," the "Giant of the Revolution," and occasionally the "Virginia Hercules," was a Portuguese-born American patriot and soldier in the American Revolutionary War. > Francisco is shrouded in mystery. It is believed he was born on July 9, 1760, at Porto Judeu, on the island of Terceira, in the Archipelago of the Azores, Portugal. In the case of the origin of his identification with the child named P... > **[Joshua Chamberlain](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Lawrence_Chamberlain)** > > Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (born Lawrence Joshua Chamberlain, September 8, 1828 – February 24, 1914) was an American college professor from Maine who volunteered during the American Civil War to join the Union Army. He became a highly respected and decorated Union officer, reaching the rank of brigadier general (and brevet major general). He is best known for his gallantry at the Battle of Gettysburg, for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor. > Chamberlain was commissioned a lieutenant colonel... > **[William B. Cushing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_B._Cushing)** > > William Barker Cushing (4 November 1842 – 17 December 1874) was an officer in the United States Navy, best known for sinking the CSS Albemarle during a daring nighttime raid on 27 October 1864, for which he received the Thanks of Congress. Cushing was the younger brother of Medal of Honor recipient Alonzo Cushing. As a result, the Cushing family is the only family in American history to have a member buried at more than one of the United States Service Academies. > Cushing was born in Delafield,... > **[Erich Hartmann](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Hartmann)** > > Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993) was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in aerial combat on 825 separate occasions. He was credited with shooting down a total of 352 Allied aircraft: 345 Soviet and 7 American while serving with the Luftwaffe. During his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his fighter 16 times after either mechanical fail Ha... > **[Douglas Bader](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Bader)** > > Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader, CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, DL, FRAeS (/ˈbɑːdər/; 21 February 1910 – 5 September 1982) was a Royal Air Force flying ace during the Second World War. He was credited with 22 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared probable and 11 enemy aircraft damaged. > Bader joined the RAF in 1928, and was commissioned in 1930. In December 1931, while attempting some aerobatics, he crashed and lost both his legs. Having been on the brink... > **[John Basilone](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Basilone)** > > John Basilone (November 4, 1916 – February 19, 1945) was a United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant who received the Medal of Honor for actions during the Battle for Henderson Field in the Guadalcanal campaign, and the Navy Cross posthumously for extraordinary heroism during the Battle of Iwo Jima. He was the only enlisted Marine to receive both of these decorations in World War II. > He enlisted in the Marine Corps on June 3, 1940, after serving three years in the United States Army with dut... ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/27 "2010-04-23T18:10:45Z")
> [@jk1245](#): > > A single soldier who takes out 500 plus enemy troops plus forces the other side’s leadership to specifically commit resources to counteract him is a pretty damn effective warrior I would think. Wars are expensive both in blood and cash. A millitary whos soldiers consistently defeat 2-3 enemies to his loss is damn effective, and to paraphrase the saying, the value of a soldier is not always in what he kills, but in how many people he keeps watching for him. ---
**Author:** ![flight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbce88/32.png) [@flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flight)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/28 "2010-04-23T18:26:46Z")
> [@gytalf2000](#): > > Wasn’t there a single axe-wielding Viking warrior, at the battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066, that killed a ridiculous number of Saxon opponents attempting to cross the bridge before a surprise spear-thrust ended his life? I was going to mention him. I don’t think his name is known, but this is what wikipedia has to say: > [@wikipedia](#): > > Although one of Harald’s men single-handedly blocked the English from the bridge for some time and was reported to have killed at least 40 Saxons, when he fell after an Englishman sneaked under the bridge and stabbed upwards, King Harold’s forces easily broke through and both Harald and Earl Tostig were killed. Harald’s army was so heavily beaten that only 24 of the 300 longboats used to transport his forces to England were used to carry the survivors back to Norway. ---
**Author:** ![This\_Just\_In\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@This\_Just\_In\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/This_Just_In_2)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/29 "2010-04-23T18:38:11Z")
80,000 Inca warriors were routed by 168 conquistadors at the Battle of Cajamarca, Peru. That’s a ratio of 476:1 In one day the Spanish killed 7,000 Indians with no injuries, as well as capturing the Inca leader. Sure the Spanish had steel swords, some horses, and a few very early guns that were more effective at scaring the Inca than killing them. But 168 guys who had just walked hundreds of miles through unknown jungle & mountains against a home crowd of 80,000 warriors. And even with a sword, a crappy gun and a horse I wouldn’t like my odds against 476 guys armed with clubs. Pretty bad-ass if you ask me. They sure did a lot better than the Empire did against the Ewoks. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/30 "2010-04-23T18:51:31Z")
> [@deadindays](#): > > I need fighters like that Spartan at Thermopylae (don’t remember his name right now) Which one? Leonidas was the King. But there were plenty of others, equally brave, there. But I give you a supreme nutter, [Adrian Carton de Wiart](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Carton_de_Wiart) ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/31 "2010-04-23T19:06:47Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > But I give you a supreme nutter, [Adrian Carton de Wiart](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Carton_de_Wiart) That’s quite a life! ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/32 "2010-04-23T19:22:20Z")
> [@This\_Just\_In\_2](#): > > 80,000 Inca warriors were routed by 168 conquistadors at the Battle of Cajamarca, Peru. That’s a ratio of 476:1 > > In one day the Spanish killed 7,000 Indians with no injuries, as well as capturing the Inca leader. > > Sure the Spanish had steel swords, some horses, and a few very early guns that were more effective at scaring the Inca than killing them. But 168 guys who had just walked hundreds of miles through unknown jungle & mountains against a home crowd of 80,000 warriors. And even with a sword, a crappy gun and a horse I wouldn’t like my odds against 476 guys armed with clubs. > > Pretty bad-ass if you ask me. They sure did a lot better than the Empire did against the Ewoks. To be fair, they weren’t squaring off 476:1, they were fighting in [coordinated attacks](http://latin-american-colonization.suite101.com/article.cfm/spanish_conquistador_weapons) of horsemen with halberds and swordsmen on the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/33 "2010-04-23T19:31:03Z")
Well, that’s sort of the point. Are we talking about the guy who defeated the most enemies in one on one fair fights, or the guy who defeated the most enemies? Because fair fights are for idiots. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/34 "2010-04-23T19:37:31Z")
Another I’ll add to the list is Admiral Cochrane: > **[Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Cochrane,_10th_Earl_of_Dundonald)** > > Chilean War of Independence > Peruvian War of Independence > Brazilian War of Independence So badass that fighting for one country wasn’t enough for him - he had to go on to find _three_ new countries to fight for, all successfully, before returning to Britain. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/35 "2010-04-23T19:48:49Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Well, that’s sort of the point. Are we talking about the guy who defeated the most enemies in one on one fair fights, or the guy who defeated the most enemies? Because fair fights are for idiots. So much for honour in battle. Anyone can kill lots of people with a variety of weapons designed to make doing so as easy as possible; that doesn’t necessarily make them a warrior, in my eyes. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/36 "2010-04-23T19:56:34Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > To be fair, they weren’t squaring off 476:1, they were fighting in [coordinated attacks](http://latin-american-colonization.suite101.com/article.cfm/spanish_conquistador_weapons) of horsemen with halberds and swordsmen on the ground. They also had hordes of tribesmen from groups rebelling against Inca rule. Most of those killed on the 476 side of the given ratio were not killed by Spaniards. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/37 "2010-04-23T20:01:55Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > Is a “warrior” someone who is necessarily good with a weapon? Wouldn’t they also have to be able to do a bit with the old unarmed combat aspect? > > I’d say anyone who was totally reliant on a weapon, was more of a wuss than a warrior. > > Also, I’d say most elite MMA fighters are closer to being “warriors” than a modern soldier. Sorry MMA fighters = thugs and bully boys, warriors kill. When they start fighting to the death, then we might consider them warriors. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/38 "2010-04-23T20:08:26Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > So much for honour in battle. Anyone can kill lots of people with a variety of weapons designed to make doing so as easy as possible; that doesn’t necessarily make them a warrior, in my eyes. So warrior means the dumbest fuck that happened to get really lucky? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/39 "2010-04-23T20:29:05Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > So much for honour in battle. Anyone can kill lots of people with a variety of weapons designed to make doing so as easy as possible; that doesn’t necessarily make them a warrior, in my eyes. Do you know what they do with the honorable guy in a fight to the death? Bury him. ---
**Author:** ![This\_Just\_In\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@This\_Just\_In\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/This_Just_In_2)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098/40 "2010-04-23T20:49:05Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > They also had hordes of tribesmen from groups rebelling against Inca rule. Most of those killed on the 476 side of the given ratio were not killed by Spaniards. Do you have a cite for this - I’ve never read about hordes of help for the Spanish? Look - I know the 168 conquistadors were huge a-holes and there were many factors why they won (superior weapons, horses, small pox, too-highly centralized Inca command structure, etc. etc. etc.). I’m not trying to say they did a good thing. But they went into the heart of an empire with 168 guys - they were vastly outmanned. They had better weapons but they were still mainly hand to hand weapons - its not like they had machine guns. They then proceeded to conquer the entire friggin country through whatever despicable means they had to use. And they did it. 168 guys. And just having the guts to walk into an area like that so vastly outnumbered -they didn’t know victory was guaranteed. Pizarro and company were definately bad-ass warriors. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greatest-warriors-of-all-time/537098.md?page=3)