I think it would be either Erwin Rommel or Fedor von Bock.
Erwin Rommel because he was an amazing desert warfare general and almost stopped the Allies during the D-day invasion. Fedor because he almost defeated the Russians but Hitler made his tanks go to Kiev. But my ultimate choice would have to be Rommel.
The threat’s title is a bit confusing. Do you want to know who’s the best Nazi or the best German general or the best Nazi German general?
What would be the criteria for being the best Nazi?
Excellence by Nazi standards but not by general standards, e.g. Heydrich, Seyss-Inquart?
Or excellence by more or less general standards while operating as a fully fledged and dedicated Nazi in the Nazi system and yet managing by that conduct to undermine its most appalling moral conduct, e.g. Konrad Morgen?
And so on to other variable moral and historical confusions.
Well, assuming that the author of the thread means “German Generals of WW2”, I offer the following nominations -
For high-level commander - Gerd von Runstedt, “Father of the Army”. Although not always rated as an operational commander, Runstedt displayed great abilities as a high level commander from the 1940 western campaign on. His abilities as a Staff Officer and in logistics were also considerable. One remembers Brigadefuhrer Heinz Harmel actually complaining that, towards the end of the “Market Garden”, new equipment (including Tiger tanks) was raining upon him faster than he could put it into fruitful operation.
For master strategist - Erich von Manstein. No argument here. Manstein was perhaps the master strategist of the war in any combatant force. Mind you, he did have a weakness that Hitler (of all people) identified. As someone who could probably have played a good game of Chess in total darkness, at the bottom of a mineshaft, by correspondence, Manstein’s version of strategy did probably work best from a starting position of strength and good order, where his forces could be deployed and employed in accordance with a carefully calculated multi-stage plan. Poland, France, Kharkov, (arguably) Kursk, and certainly the Crimea/Sebastopol campaign illustrate how well this could work when the basic conditions were favorable. Manstein’s proposals for 1944 (involving a retreat to entice the Soviets into a trap) were, if accepted, potentially even more disastrous than what actually eventuated. Not particularly surprising that this proposal resulted in Manstein’s “retirement” on “medical grounds”. Which leads to …
For best scrapper-blocker (high level) - Walter Model, again, hard to find a rival. One can, of course, criticize Model for the fact that, ultimately, none of his blocking, scrapping “Fuhrer’s Fireman” operations actually achieved much in the end. However, similar comments might be made of any senior German commander. He consistently did his best in very difficult circumstances, east or west.
For commander of large operational formations in “fluid” combat situations - Hasso, Graf von Manteuffel. A slightly late starter, Manteuffel showed his abilities in this field amply in France, North Africa and on the Eastern Front. Manteuffel was a general who showed great ability in dealing with large forces involved in “fluid” situations, usually ones in which the Germans were either under strong pressure to achieve particular results, or under similar pressure to resist pressure from superior enemy forces.
I may have further nominations but … is there any real point to this ? Yours from the Bunker, JR.
No real point JR*, O.P. is a spammer.