Top 10 Greatest Military Leaders of All Time

In a sense, wars are what make history – and these leaders made their mark in wars. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Greatest Military Leaders.

For this list, we’re counting down the military leaders and tacticians who had the greatest impact on the world. These are strategists and warriors who defied the greatest odds and built the greatest empires.

You know a man was a great military leader when whole philosophies of war and marshal strategy are based on a book he wrote. Living between 544 BC and 496 BC, Sun Tzu was a military leader and tactician in ancient China whose victories in battle inspired him to write the masterpiece The Art of War. This book would be a reference for military leaders all the way up to today. Legend has it that Sun Tzu was tasked with creating soldiers out of a harem of the King’s concubines. When the concubines failed to obey their commanders’ orders, he had the commanders executed. Harsh, but they did obey orders after that.

Giáp first served as a Vietnamese military leader during World War II and the Japanese occupation of Vietnam. He would go on to be a primary commander in the First Indochina War and the Vietnam War. After the Vietnam War, Giáp would oversee the invasion of Cambodia and defeat of the brutal Khmer Rouge. He would also successfully repel a Chinese invasion of Cao Bang. To recap, Vo Nguyen Giáp had a hand in defeating Imperial Japan, Colonial France, the United States of America, the Khmer Rouge, and China. That’s five major powers of the 20th century. Cleary this guy was good at Risk.

Also known as “The Maid of Orléans,” Joan of Arc was canonized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church for her role in the Hundred Years’ War. Claiming to have received visions from the Archangel Michael and several saints, she swore to help recover France from English rule. Joan was sent to assist in lifting the siege of Orléans and did so in just nine days. After several victories, she was captured by English allies, put on trial, and burned at the stake. All in all, a pretty full resume for a nineteen year old.

With what must have been the biggest and heaviest crown in history, Cyrus II was formally called The Great King, King of Persia, King of Media, King of Babylon, King of Anshan, King of Sumer and Akkad, and King of the Four Corners of the World. Cyrus conquered much of the civilized world, and his leadership must have been truly inspired: his early army was formed of a rag-tag group of friends from various tribes. Later on he created a truly impressive army, including his 10,000 “Immortals,” who served as his bodyguards. He also outfitted his chariots with scythes that made them killing machines. Dude was definitely smart.

Field Marshal of the Nazi Wehrmacht during the Second World War, Erwin Rommel was known as the Desert Fox. Having achieved success during World War I on the Italian front, Rommel would go on to command the 7th Panzer Division during the invasion of France. He was then sent to lead the campaign in North Africa where he gained his famous nickname. Rommel was known for developing fast and agile tank tactics which pressured the enemy and didn’t allow them to regroup or retreat in an organized fashion. Due to his involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler, he was forced to commit suicide.

A member of Rome’s first Triumvirate, Gaius Julius Caesar was an accomplished politician, writer, and general by the time he invaded Gaul. His writings on the Gallic Wars are a master class in strategy and politics. After achieving victory and pushing the borders of the Roman Empire to the English Channel and the Rhine, Caesar would famously return to Rome with an army at his side. The resulting Civil War ended when Caesar defeated his enemies in the Senate, and he was crowned the Dictator of Rome. His ability to combine political know-how with keen military strategy fueled his rise, leading to the creation of the Roman Empire.

Like Charlemagne before him, Napoleon would unite most of Europe through military might. He was a French military leader who rose to power during the French Revolution, declaring himself Emperor in 1804. On the field of battle, Napoleon made use of a highly mobile corps of artillery to pound his opponents before delivering the killing blow with his elite troops. Under Napoleon, the goal was not just defeat but destruction. Aside from his military victories, Napoleon was also known for his Civil Code which established a set of laws that would hasten the end of feudalism in Europe and influence law in much of the world.

A general of Carthage during the first and second Punic Wars with Rome, Hannibal was one of the few military leaders to see success against the Roman Republic. His most famous feat was marching a Carthaginian army up through Iberia (modern day Spain) and down into Italy through the Alps. His army included not only soldiers but also massive war elephants. In Italy, he achieved 3 major victories, the greatest being the battle of Cannae where he surrounded and crushed the Roman Legions. Hannibal might have secured a final victory, were it not for lack of support from Carthage, which caused him to finally retreat and return home.

If anyone came close to conquering the entire world, it was Genghis Khan. The Mongol Empire he founded would go on to be the largest land empire in history. He based his army on a form of meritocracy and allowed his closest generals to operate with autonomy. This gave his forces unprecedented flexibility. Genghis Khan was known for developing the feigned retreat where he would have his forces fake a retreat in order to lure the enemy into breaking formation and pursuing them. When they did, he would counter-attack and surround them. Khan was also known as a merciless fighter, with many considering his actions genocidal.


Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

William Wallace


George S. Patton


Georgy Zhukov

You know you’re a conqueror when you’ve had over 70 cities named after you. Born in Macedonia, Alexander believed that he was the son of Zeus and was destined to conquer the world. He nearly succeeded. During over a decade of military campaigns, he never lost a single battle. This is even more astounding when you consider just how mighty the Persian Empire was at the time he was fighting it. His empire stretched from Greece all the way to India. If he hadn’t died so young at the age of 32, we’d probably all be speaking Greek.