This was a team effort and it’s a mistake to compare generals as if they were acting in isolation or competition. Davidht, it is not only factually correct, it is something that needed saying in this forum. Mkt-Garden delayed that by over 2 months at a cost of over a complete division decimated. His personal memoir, published in 1958, was particularly inflammatory. https://www.biographyonline.net/military/bernard-montgomery.html. Partnerships: projecting stability through cooperation, Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), NATO Public Diplomacy Division’s Co-Sponsorship Grants. After it was all over, Prince Bernard of the Netherlands said, “My country can never again afford the luxury of another Montgomery success.””, http://pattonhq.com/textfiles/thirdhst.html. Montgomery was ground forces commander for the D day invasion and won the battle of Normandy. Now, let us consider what happened after Monty was replaced by Ike as ground commander, the battle bogged down stalled all along the line and the Germans counter attacked in the Ardennes, battle of the bulge, and routed the American army causing 80,000 casualties. Much of our info from that war is from the US so expect them to be biased. ", Montgomery demonstrated the insececurity of a short man at almost every opportunity .While choosing in Africa to build up a public persona , Rommel’s legend is strictly accomplishment based .While seeking out ways to annoy superiors , he demanded unconditional obediance from subordinates .Eisenhower’s task was far above anything a Montgomery could have accomplished because of his insecurities .He wasn’t interested in getting the job done , but claiming the creadit for it was his aim as well as denying that credit to others .A small man in many ways , very similar to Patton and McCarthur . I am not sure I have ever been able to understand your closing remark, Mark (835). Patton (1970) was no exception. His plan called for a quick taking of Caen by his Army. Gen. Montgomery was a good senior leader in Britain at the time. "7 Montgomery’s lack of physical presence was more than compensated for by the magnetism with which he dominated the British Eighth Army. The chief criticism of Monty is of his supposed over caution, but this was forced on him given that Britain simply did not have the manpower to replace high casualties, besides which much of the British Army was under trained and poorly equipped. When Montgomery took control of the Northern flank of the bulge, he straightened the line, gave confidence to the American forces that were in some disarray, and managed to prevent a major catastrophe. He saw out the rest of the war as a staff officer, serving in the Battles of the Somme (1916) and Passchendaele (1917). I believe Montgomery’s seeming refusal to allocate more resources to the estuary as was explicitly ordered was down right insubordinate. The armies of Italy and Germany suffered a decisive defeat by the British Eighth Army. BLM personally visited the US 7th Armoured Division and galvanised them with a pep talk. Churchill once said of him that he was "indomitable in retreat; invincible in advance; insufferable in victory! Operation Market Garden, which attempted to do this was too little, too late, and meanwhile, while Marget Garden was on, Patton made sure that he was embroiled in a battle of his own, which starved the thrust into Germany and across the Rhine with the supplies it needed. If I were to give anything by Montgomery an A+ it would be Veritable and Grenade. The battle of Normandy was a masterpiece which, whilst he was only in command of the ground forces, was very much Monty’s battle. The “BULGE” was a terrible battle and the only General who had plans for what to if it did happen was Patten. Patton, who spent three months hammering himself at Metz, for 50,000 casualties? I have always thought that Montys performances in Normandy and N France were amongst the finest of the war by any general. On the one hand, he was highly appreciated among his subordinates as an exceptional commanding officer, and on the other hand, … In September 1944, the Allies launched a daring airborne operation to cross the Rhine and advance into northern Germany. He certainly did seek out his share of headlines as well, and managed to shove his foot down his throat a whole bunch when speaking to the press.