Erwin Rommel > Quotes

“Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives, but brains saves both.”
― Erwin Rommel

“Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning. ”
― Erwin Rommel, Rommel: In His Own Words

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

“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.”
― Erwin Rommel

“No plan survives contact with the enemy”
― Erwin Rommel

“I would rather be the hammer than the anvil”
― Erwin Rommel

“Mortal danger is an effective antidote for fixed ideas.”
― Erwin Rommel

“When there's no clear option, it's better to do nothing.”
― Erwin Rommel

“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.”
― Erwin Rommel, Attacks

“Loose lips sink ships.”
― Erwin Rommel, Rommel and His Art of War

“But courage which goes against military expediency is stupidity, or, if it is insisted upon by a commander, irresponsibility.”
― Erwin Rommel, The Rommel Papers

“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.”
― Erwin Rommel, The Rommel Papers

“It is often possible to decide the issue of a battle merely by making an unexpected shift of one's main weight.”
― Erwin Rommel, The Rommel Papers

“It is my experience that bold decisions give the best promise of success. But one must differentiate between [strategic] and tactical boldness and a military gamble. A bold operation is one in which success is not a certainty but which in case of failure leaves one with sufficient forces in hand to cope with whatever situation may arise. A gamble, on the other hand, is an operation which can lead either to victory or to the complete destruction of one's force. Situations can arise where even gamble may be justified - as, for instance, when in the normal course of events defeat is merely a matter of time, when the gaining of time is therefore pointless and the only chance lies in an operation of great risk.”
― Erwin Rommel

“Sturm, Swung, Wucht”
― Erwin Rommel

“Sweat saves blood.”
― Erwin Rommel

“Whether I would survive a defeat lies in God's hands. The lot of the vanquished is heavy. I'm happy in my own conscience that I've done all I can for victory and have not spared myself.”
― Erwin Rommel, The Rommel Papers

“Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning”
― Erwin Rommel

“Give me the Maori Battalion and I will conquer the world”
― Erwin Rommel, War

“El sudor ahorra sangre, la sangre ahorra vidas, y el cerebro, las dos cosas.”
― Erwin Rommel

“Perplexity and inactivity have frequently led to catastrophies. The councils of the mass undermined the authority of the leaders.”
― Erwin Rommel, Infantry Attacks

“It is often possible to decide the issue of a battle merely by making an unexpected shift of one's main weight.”
― Erwin Rommel, The Rommel Papers

“Im Osten, Westen und Süden liegen die letzten Ruhestätten jener deutschen Soldaten, die für Heimat und Land den Weg der Pflicht bis zum bitteren Ende beschritten haben. Sie sind eine ständige Mahnung an unsere Zurückgebliebenen und unsere zukünftigen Generationen, dass wir sie nicht im Stich lassen dürfen, wenn es darum geht, Opfer für Deutschland zu bringen.”
― Erwin Rommel, Infantry Attacks

“One of our Tiger tanks is worth four of their Shermans, but the Americans always bring five.”
― Erwin Rommel