Erwin Rommel Quotes

If I had to take hell, I would use the Australians to take it and the New Zealanders to hold it.

Men are basically smart or dumb and lazy or ambitious. The dumb and ambitious ones are dangerous and I get rid of them. The dumb and lazy ones I give mundane duties. The smart ambitious ones I put on my staff. The smart and lazy ones I make my commanders.

Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives, but brains saves both.

Be an example to your men, in your duty and in private life. Never spare yourself, and let the troops see that you don't in your endurance of fatigue and privation. Always be tactful and well-mannered and teach your subordinates to do the same. Avoid excessive sharpness or harshness of voice, which usually indicates the man who has shortcomings of his own to hide.

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.

Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning.

The German soldier has impressed the world, however the Italian Bersagliere soldier has impressed the German soldier.

In the absence of orders, go find something and kill it.

For me, soldiers are all equal. Those black people wore your same uniform, fought on your side, and so you will be in the same jail.

One of the most important factors, not only in military matters but in life as a whole, is ... the ability to direct one's whole energies towards the fulfillment of a particular task.

Winning the men's confidence requires much of a commander. He must exercise care and caution, look after his men, live under the same hardships, and-above all- apply self discipline. But once he has their confidence, his men will follow him through hell and high water.

There is one unalterable difference between a soldier and a civilian: the civilian never does more than he is paid to do.

The battle is fought and decided by the quartermasters, long before the shooting begins.

Training errors are recorded on paper. Tactical errors are etched in stone.

Always in a moment of extreme danger things can be done which had previously been thought impossible.

In a man-to-man fight, the winner is he who has one more round in his magazine.

I would rather be the hammer than the anvil

When there's no clear option, it's better to do nothing.

In view of my services in Africa, I have the chance of dying by poison. Two generals have brought it with them. It is fatal in three seconds. If I take the poison, none of the usual steps will be taken against my family; that is, against you. They will also leave my staff alone.

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.

One must not judge everyone in the world by his qualities as a soldier: otherwise we should have no civilization.

In Tunisia the Americans had to pay a stiff price for their experience, but it brought rich dividends. Even at that time, the American generals showed themselves to be very advanced in the tactical handling of their forces, although we had to wait until the Patton Army in France to see the most astonishing achievements in mobile warfare.

The commander must be at constant pains to keep his troops abreast of all the latest tactical experience and developments, and must insist on their practical application. He must see to it that his subordinates are trained in accordance with the latest requirements. The best form of welfare for the troops is first-class training, for this saves unnecessary casualties.

War makes extremely heavy demands on the soldier's strength and nerves. For this reason, make heavy demands on your men in peacetime exercises.

The best form of welfare for the troops is first-rate training.

But courage which goes against military expediency is stupidity, or, if it is insisted upon by a commander, irresponsibility.

One cannot permit unique opportunities to slip by for the sake of trifles.

Mortal danger is an effective antidote for fixed ideas.

Anyone who has to fight, even with the most modern weapons, against an enemy in complete command of the air, fights like a savage against modern European troops, under the same handicaps and with the same chances of success.

He [Hitler] seemed very depressed and upset about the Stalingrad disaster. He said that one is always liable to look on the black side of things after a defeat, a tendency which can lead one into dangerous and false conclusions.

The future battle on the ground will be preceded by battle in the air. This will determine which of the contestants has to suffer operational and tactical disadvantages and be forced throughout the battle into adoption compromise solutions.

The peril of the hour moved the British to tremendous exertions, just as always in a moment of extreme danger things can be done which had previously been thought impossible. Mortal danger is an effective antidote for fixed ideas.

Messages can't be intercepted if they aren't sent, can they?

Manstein is a man of illusions. ... He believes Hitler will listen to facts.

Which would your men rather be, tired, or dead?

The organization of supplies, the command of men, anything in any way constructive requires more than intellect; it requires energy and drive and an unrelenting will to serve the cause, regardless of one's personal interests.

The commander must establish personal and comradely contact with his men, but without giving away one inch of authority.

There are always times where the place of a commander isn't back with his Major State, but onward with his troops.

The battle is going very heavily against us. We're being crushed by the enemy weight. We are facing very difficult days, perhaps the most difficult that a man can undergo

It is often possible to decide the issue of a battle merely by making an unexpected shift of one's main weight.

I didn't die nor win.

The enemy must be annihilated before he reaches our main battlefield. We must stop him in the water, destroying all his equipment while it is still afloat!

Good soldiers, bad officers; however don't forget that without them we would not have any Civilization.

I would rather he had given me one more division

To every man of us, Tobruk was a symbol of British resistance and we were now going to finish with it for good.

It's better for one to die than for all of us to be killed in a shooting affray. Anyway, we've practically no ammunition.