A Case Study in Leadership - Colonel Paul Emil Von Lettow-Vorbeck

Abstract

Never captured nor defeated in battle, Colonel Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck successfully fought the British for four years with virtually no external support from Germany. Through brilliant leadership and unequalled use of terrain and weapons placement Lettow-Vorbeck rapidly moved his army across the rugged terrain of Africa and conducted numerous raids and ambushes against the British in East Africa. Only after the war was lost in Europe did Lettow-Vorbeck surrender. His professionalism and leadership style earned him the utmost of respect from his adversaries. Studying Lettow-Vorbeck as a gifted military leader who conducted a strategic guerrilla campaign against overwhelming odds and continually won, demonstrates how a numerically inferior force can achieve success on the battlefield.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 09, 2002
Accession Number
ADA404449

Entities

People

  • John C. Stratis

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Africa
  • Automobiles
  • Case Studies
  • Continents
  • East Africa
  • Germany
  • Governments
  • Indian Ocean
  • Machine Guns
  • Machines
  • Students
  • Terrain
  • Training
  • Transportation
  • United States
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • History

Readers

  • Aerospace Research.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.