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.

I would rather he had given me one more division

Manstein is a man of illusions. ... He believes Hitler will listen to facts.

One must not judge everyone in the world by his qualities as a soldier: otherwise we should have no civilization.

One cannot permit unique opportunities to slip by for the sake of trifles.

The enemy must be annihilated before he reaches our main battlefield. We must stop him in the water, destroying all his equipment while it is still afloat!

I would rather be the hammer than the anvil