""Permission to speak, Sir(e)?"" Topic

Following from a couple of asides/reasons in some of the postings on the "Which Battles would you have liked to watch" thread, together with the concept of Time-Travel, and, I suppose, a facility for instantaneous and accurate translation into any language, IF you could have a few minutes to speak with a commander, participant &c at a historical engagement, which would you choose, and why?

Note that I'm not confining your opportunity to advising against what action was then taken, or to advising which action to try, or even to telling the truth (to the participant) at all.

Bobbie Lee at Gettysburg before he launches Picket's charge. I'd say: "You do realize, that you're about to let the Yankies do a Fredericksburg on you?"

umm…. Col Custer there really are thousands of indians down there.

(If I've got you right, Knight Templar, you could add, "and all at once, not in instalments…")

To Percival at Singapore.

"You really don't have to surrender you know, there are hardly any Japanese over there at all".

My grandfather might have made it through the war alive then, rather than dying as a Japanese POW.

To Hitler.

"Stick to house painting, there is no future in politics."

Advising Gin'al Jackson NOT to go for a ride at Chancellorsville might be interesting.

Why? I dunno. Just think it was a shame the man got shot by his own troops, is all.

Good one tabletopwarrior. That has a Bob Newhart quality to it. Nicely done!

For me, I would point out to Frederick the Great that he need not launch his army into the teeth of the Russian defenses at Kunersdorf or the Austrians at Torgau. And that all he has to do to win the war is to survive, rather than win on the battlefield.

I would go to Mead at Gettysburg, and to make sure the south got crushed there and then, I would give the entire Union army M1 Garand, and Miniguns

waiting for pickets charge and when the rebs were 300 yards way open with 100 miniguns at 6000 rps pr. gun
then when 100% of the 15000 red were dead or dying,

the union soliders would charge over the field with Garands and finish of the rest of the reb army, and while i'm at it, I would give them littlle birds to so they can make sure to capture Lee and the other senior generals

Didn't read the question in the first thread, did you?

I'd tell Boney to stay on Elba.

Or perhaps even about Russian 'Scorched Earth' tactics

Didn't read the question in the first thread, did you?

yes I did, I just took the thing to the exteme

I would say to King Harold (battle of hastings) don't look up

I'd want to sit in on the Allied Council of War before Austerlitz and just urge Weyrother on. I'm not interested in changing history but I just want to see this guy talking up his overly complicated unfeasible plan after a string of catastrophes for anyone trying his plans…and somehow winning the argument.

I'd talk to Richard before Bosworth and say: "Stanley's going to screw you, Northumberland won't move and don't try a cavalry charge. Better leave with Norfolk and look for a better day."

Or try a simpler argument: "Those are pikes. This is what they do to cavalry…"

"Ney, forget about those brits in Quatre Bras, they are just useless. Today the name of the game is: crushing Blucher again (and again…)"
16th june 1815.

Napoleon: "Whatever you do, don't let Ney out of your sight"
15th June 1815.

>"Ney, forget about those brits in Quatre Bras,
>they are just useless. Today the name of the
>game is: crushing Blucher again (and again…)"
>16th june 1815.

Very rarely, while reading previous posts and
thinking about what you'll write down you
end up reading EXACTLY what you intended to post.
This has just happened to me.

Thanks Tirailleur Corse :-)

Napoleon around the 12th of June 1815.

"Don't forget to boil the water."

To Meade at Gettysburg on July 4 (or late July 3), "Sure you took a lot of losses but so did Lee; he's got to retreat pretty soon; why not try to get BETWEEN him and Virginia?"

I'd have a talk during late July of 378 with Imperator Caesar Flavius Julius Valens Augustus. I'd politely convince him against any military campaigning during the first part of August, especially near Adrianople.

The example I keep thinking of, dates only from early 2003.

"I'm sorry to have to contradict you, General Sedgewick, but I rather suspect that in fact they really can hit an elephant at this dist…..oh dear, that must have stung a bit, are you all right, sir?"

On the one hand, taking this at face value, the danger would be that your few moments with that leader might actually change their actions, and history would be forever altered. But on enever knows if that would be for the good.

What if, for example, Lee had won triumphantly at Gettysburg, so instead of pulling back and the war going on for 2 more years, he made a bolder advance, was caught totally unprepared by Meade's replacement, and his entire army was eliminated later in 1863? Perhaps the war would have ended sooner and with far less loss of life.

But then, perhaps not. Going back in time and observing is one thing. Going back and having a conversation with someone who could make a key decision differently is quite another.

At Liegnitz: "Are you sure that charging across a frozen lake is a good idea?"

At Agincourt: "Hey, haven't we done the whole charge across a large, open, muddy field before?"

At Towton: "Are you sure we really need to fight this battle – why not hold an election I think we have a quorum of the voting population here already?"

At Versailles, 1918: "I don't think you should put those conditions in the armstice – it will only cause more problems down the road which can be avoided today."

In Russia 1930: "No, I don't think that Stalin is the man most capable of leading the revolution forward."

In China 1926: "Mao, how would you like a great job in America?"

I agree with "SeattleGamer". That an interesting point could be made about "unintended consequences". You convince Hitler not to go into politics. A political vacuum forms and the communist take over Germany (I realize that is simplistic, but that was communist doctrine – world domination). Then slowly the rest of the continent is swallowed up. Eventually, the British Empire falls….A isolated US could still beat Japan, but how do you prevail against a communism that includes all of Europe and China? Like it or not WWII eventually woke us up to first the threat of fascism and in turn armed us to fight communism. Of course someone else could have filled Hitler's shoes. But then that is the issue ….be careful of the things you want changed in history!

To Napoleon in 1815: 'Soult will not be a good chief of staff. Promote Montholon to marshal and make him chief of staff.'

'Send Ney home. Take both Suchet and Davout with you into Belgium. Give Soult Suchet's job on the Piedmontese frontier. Arrest and imprison Fouche, he's working for the bad guys. Promote Vandamme and make him a marshal along with Grouchy.'

Finally, 'Leave Bourmont at home. Davout is right, everyone else is wrong.'

Peninsula 1862: "Gen. McClellan, Sam Grant sends you this case of rotgut with his compliments, sir."

To the Austrians at Marengo.
It ain't over till it's over.
Melas: suck it in and keep command till you see the French in total rout.
O'Reilly: dont get distracted by minor clean-up actions and supprt the Austrian assault on the French centre.
Ott: march to the sound of the guns. Reynaud's cavalry ae just a distraction.
Above all the Austrians should note: the Consular Guard may be beaten but there not destroyed. This is a symbol of the entire French effort at Marengo.You have to crush them to win.
And for goodness sake, dont write off this Bonaparte fellow. Hes a miltary genius and has a date with you guys at Austerlitz.

Paullus and Varro at Cannae.
Just don't. OK?

"The example I keep thinking of, dates only from early 2003.
"

I know what you mean. But like virtually all of these older examples, You could not talk sense to a guy in that position.

Here's another good one, closer to "home": To king Gui de Lusignan at Sephoria in the summer of 1187: "If you listen to them (Gerard de Ridfort, Reynald de Chatillon, et al. the bellicose, fire-breathing party), the exact opposite of what they say will happen: you won't look like an aggressive, fearless king, you will lose your army on the waterless hills and probably your life, and history will remember you as a weak-willed push-over who let others talk him into a piece of the worst military strategy ever witnessed." (but about halfway through that little speech, I am sure Gui's eyes would have glazed over and he wouldn't have understood a thing I was saying: but I would like to try anyway)

[I know what you mean. But like virtually all of these older examples, You could not talk sense to a guy in that position.]

Well, you hit the nail on the head with the "…like these older examples" part. That's the thing about hindsight. The decision-maker (or "decider," in that case) had his reasons at the time, and thought that the end would justify the means, or that the nay-sayers had some ulterior motive and therefore couldn't be trusted.

I would say to Frederick before Kolin – "you've done well up to now, have the day off"

I would tell Rear-Admiral Beatty (at the Battle of Jutland, 1916) to signal Admiral Jellicoe the location, speed, course and formation of the High Seas Fleet.

The Battle of Jutland would then have been a crushing British victory. The Germans may have been forced to sue for peace two years early, preserving Europe a lot more intact than the actual war result. This would probably have prevented the Russian Revolution, the break-up of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire and avoided WW2.

I would tell Napoleon to leave Portugal alone and not march through Spain to get there.

I'd tell Alexander to A) get married to a good Macedonian woman and have kids before taking down Persia and B) stay away from swamps and booze.

2nd Lieutenant Thomas I Crowell,Jr., First Battalion Headquarters Company, Telephone Officer, 313th Regiment of Field Artillery, A.E.F., Meause-Argonne, October 1918

The reason being that it would give me a chance to meet my paternal grandfather, of who I have heard many admirable things. Sadly he died before I was born. I do have his regimental history and his rifle.

Not in a battle per se -- "Hey, Alexander -- the oracles have told me to tell you not to drink any swamp water over the next couple weeks without boiling it first. Better yet, stick to wine. Best yet, anything you eat or drink -- have a taster try it first!"

But, then again, would I really have wanted to grow up speaking Greek?

Oops – Shagnasty, sorry, didn't see that! Great minds think alike!

Dave C … that is PERFECT!

Forget about the larger than life personalities.

I would love to go back in time. Once to July 20th, 1861 and meet my 20 year-old great, great grandfather, James Pruett, serving in a southern regiment that fought at First Bull Run. I would love to talk to him, on the eve of that first major battle and find out why he was there. What he hoped for. What he wanted for the south.

Born in Kentucky, raised in Indiana, he left home for Texas before the war, and ended up joining the souther cause. What sort of man was he?

Then I'd like to go back to April 25, 1865, and find him on the eve of his surrender with General Joseph Johnson's army. Having served and survived the entire war. What a painful conversation that would be. Maybe he was bitter. Maybe he was just thankful it was all finally over.

I wonder if he knew that both of his younger brothers, who had remained in Indiana and fought for the North, had both died.

No changing of the past, just getting to know one of my blood kin, and his part in our history. There would be other relatives I would love to see as well, but I think I'd start with James.

to churchill in late 1914 – send the infantry to Gallipoli at the same time as the fleet, not 6 weeks later……

honestly – if they'd landed on 18 March instead of 25 April Turkey would ahve been out of the war within a couple of weeks, Russia could ahve continued it's normal commerce via the Black Sea & not ended up bankrupt, Sebia succoured, Bulgaria probably not have entered teh war and a negoatiated peace probably likely in 1915-16.

Of course that wouldn't have solved the fundamental problems….but it would ahve avoided Soviet russia, Nazi Germany and WW2 as we know it…..

To Sir Isaac Brock, at Queenston Heights: "Fer God's sake, man! Put on that blooming sash!"

It's called Preparation-H, sire. No need to thank me, but I wouldn't mind an Old Guard grenadier bearskin or two.

Please, General Brock, take my vest made by the tailors "Kevlar" of, er, Potsdam. Yes, that's where I bought it, Potsdam.

I would tell Rear-Admiral Beatty (at the Battle of Jutland, 1916) to signal Admiral Jellicoe the location, speed, course and formation of the High Seas Fleet.

And tell both of them not to store their bleeping cordite ammunition in the bleeping ships' corridors and to shut the bleeping doors!

(And I typed my response before reading Jakar's post. Great hosers think alike.)

Not a battle, but…

Rome. Early morning, March 15, 44 BCE

Ave Caesar! Glad you're still home. I was just out for a morning stroll and as I was passing by the Temple of Venus Genetrix, her boobs fell off right about the time a large bat-winged creature intercepted and devoured an eagle. I raced right over here, dodging several black cats and a snake that fell off someone's roof. Perhaps you'd like to stay home today?

By the way, I tried to tell all this to Brutus and Casca, but they kept shouting Rome's secret name at me.

Mr. President, it will not be a "slam dunk"!!!

To General Howe at Brandywine (or a number of other battles), 'Push on Sir, push on! They will not stand!'

Harold at Hastings "Look-out Archers!"