In the world history, war has been prominent throughout to prove the power and strength. Several armies in the world have been successful to produce world-class soldiers. The world has seen few distinct soldiers and war heroes around the world in history with badass skills. They are deadly, tough and dangerous. Not just men, women have played an equally powerful and important role during the wars. These soldiers have been really really bad to their enemies. Their stories are going to amaze us all.
Check out the ten deadliest soldiers in history who are badass for their bravery and skills:
10. Abu Azrael, Iraqi Commander
Abu Azrael has the nickname “Angel of Death” for killing more than 1,500 ISIS fighters. He is a real-life Rambo. The commander of the Kataib al-Imam Ali, an Iraqi Shi’a militia group has become a hero in Iraq. Azrael has a huge number of followers on social-media for resisting ISIL in Iraq. He became a public icon after his start to fight against ISIS in 2014. By 2015, he was on the headlines of international news websites in England, France and USA. Abu Azrael’s motto is “Ella Tahin” which literally means “Until/into dust” interpreted to mean “Grind you to dust.” Before fighting against ISIS, he was a militia member in Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army which was fighting against the US during the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. The real-life superhero is so much feared among the ISIS fighters that mentioning his name is forbidden.
9. Zhang Taofang, Chinese Sniper
Zhang Taofang was a deadly Chinese sniper who has the highest number of confirmed kills without a telescopic-sight. Taofang was fighting for Communist China during the Korean War. During the initial days of Taofang’s induction into the army, he missed all his shots. After practicing intensely to master his marksmanship, he could shoot down one enemy in a day. The next day, he fired 9 shots hitting 7 enemies. This alone surpasses the hit ratio of many experienced snipers. By the end of 32 days, he had shot down 214 enemy soldiers. He achieved all of this with an old Mosin–Nagant without a PU scope. Taofang was a warrior soldier with extreme talent and is one of the best marksmen in history.
8. Adrian Carton de Wiart, British Army Officer
Adrian Carton de Wiart was a brave solider born in Belgium, part of the British Army and buried in Ireland. He was a fierce and tough soldier. Carton de Wiart is the recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration awarded for valor in various Commonwealth countries. He survived the Boer War, First World War, and Second World War. He not only survived the war but was shot on face, head, stomach, ankle, leg, hip, and ear, survived two plane crashes, escaped from prison-of-war-camp and tore off his own fingers when his doctor refused to amputate them. Carton de Wiart became a figure of legend with his black eye-patch and empty sleeve. He was a warrior.
7. Kurt Knispel, German Tank Ace
Kurt Knispel was probably the best tank ace during the World War II. During the World War II, the German tank ace is attributed to 168 confirmed tank kills. It could probably be more than 200 tank kills. He is known to have served as a driver, gunner and commander in every primary model of tank the Germans used. His 168 confirmed tank kills made him the most successful fighter in armored warfare. He was a true war hero and badass during the war. Knispel was martyred at a young age of just 23. On 10 April 2013, Knispel’s remains were confirmed by Czech authorities along with 15 other German soldiers. The remains were found behind a church wall in Vrbovec. The German War Graves Commission reburied his body on 12 November 2014 at the military cemetery in Brno with 41 other soldiers died in various places.
6. Carlos Hathcock, US Marine Sniper
The US Marine Corps sniper, Carlos Hathcock has 93 confirmed kills during the Vietnam War. The number of kills might be higher than that, maybe over 300. He was a badass lone warrior who would sit all day in the forest with only a rifle to kill the enemies. Due to his record and the extraordinary details of the missions he undertook made him a legend in the U.S Marine Corps. Hathcock has been honored by having a rifle named after him – Springfield Armory M25 White Feather (Carlos Hathcock is nicknamed as “White Feather” by the North Vietnamese Army). His legacy has been part of several movies such as Saving Private Ryan (1998) and Sniper (1993).
5. Warren G. H. Crecy, American Tank Commander
Warren G. H. Crecy is often called as the “Black Captain America” or “Black Panther”. He became known as the “Baddest Man in 761st Tank Battalion“. According to historians, he had 300-400 kills under his name. On 1944, he along with 10 men fought the enemy till his tank was destroyed. He eliminated the enemy position which destroyed his tank with just a vehicle armed with only a .30-caliber machine gun. Crecy had destroyed several antitank positions, German machine gun positions and strong posts with just a machine gun without worrying about his personal safety. He was fierce and would take charge when the need arises with exceptional skills and zeal.
4. Audie Murphy, American Combat Solider
Audie Murphy is one of the most decorated American combat servicemen of World War II. The U.S Army gave him every available military combat awards for his valor and bravery. He also won the French and Belgian awards for heroism. Murphy was just 16 years old with a height of 5’5 and yet wanted to serve his nation during the World War II. Audie Murphy was initially rejected by the US Marines and US Navy, he was accepted by the U.S Army. He was in action starting from Allied invasion of Sicily, Battle of Anzio, liberation of Rome, invasion of southern France and finally to assault at the L’Omet quarry near Cleurie in northeastern France. There are several brave stories about the little yet courageous Audie Murphy.
Inspiring Stories of Audie Murphy:
On 1944, in France Murphy was given orders to take “Pill Box Hill”, a heavily defended German position. Murphy as a scout went forward while his men gave him cover. When two German soldiers were approaching him, he shot them both. Murphy went ahead to attack German foxhole positions and was out of ammo. He went back to the hill, got a light machine gun and continued the assault. Audie Murphy and his best friend Tupton came under heavy artillery. Tupton was shot dead. Enraged Murphy used grenades to kill the defenders. Finally, he cleared all the Germans off the hill. Badass Murphy had done what an entire company of 120 or more men could alone. He won the Distinguished Service Cross for his bravery.
After 6 months, he was ordered by his superiors to hold the Colmar pocket (a critical position in France) against Germany. At one point of time, his company was left with only around 20 men out of the original 128 men. Germans came with six tiger tanks and large number of soldiers. He was outnumbered. Murphy used a .50 caliber machine gun to engage fire for 30 minutes and managed to kill 50 soldiers.
Murphy’s toughness, valor and bravery requires a textbook.
3. Klavdiya Kalugina, Soviet Sniper
Klavdiya Kalugina is one of the youngest snipers during the Soviet era of World War II. At the age of 17, she was part of an active snipers team fighting on the 3rd Belorussian Front. She was part of the Komsomol sniper school where she initially struggled to get through. Kalugina credits her graduation from the school to the training squad commander. During the 3rd Belorussian Front in 1944, her favorite weapon was Mosin-Nagant rifle with a PU scope. She had teamed with a group of women snipers to engage in the front for several months. Kalugina used to engage enemies at distances from as close as 200 metres to as far as 1200 meters.
Her sniper partner during the war was Marusia Chikhvintseva whom she had trained. Klavdiya Kalugina’s main goal during the war was to eliminate important targets like enemy commanders and machine gun emplacements. She used to heavily camouflage, fire one shot per day during the night on key targets. She has 257 confirmed kills making her one of the deadliest women snipers in history. Kalugina survived the war, although her partner, Chikhvintseva didn’t survive.
2. Hans-Ulrich Rudel, German Combat Pilot
Hans-Ulrich Rudel is one of the deadliest German ground attack pilots during World War II. He was one of the highly decorated German servicemen of the war. He mostly flew the Junkers Ju 87 “Stuka” dive bomber. The deadly pilot is credited to the destruction of 519 tanks and several ships. All his ground enemies go mad when he is above them. Rudel has destroyed more than 800 types of vehicles on the ground and claimed 9 aerial victories. The dangerous pilot flew 2,530 combat missions during his career and destroying a total of 2,000 targets. He was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds in January 1945. The decoration was exclusively created for him.
The badass pilot was heavily wounded in 1944 on his thigh. He put on a plaster cast and continued to blast some more vehicles. On 8 February 1945, a 40 mm shell hit his aircraft. The event crash landed his plane in German lines leaving Rudel’s right foot severely wounded. His leg had to amputated below the knees. By 25 March 1945, he returned and claimed 26 more tanks destroyed before the war ended. He later surrendered to US forces on 8 May 1945. After 11 months of imprisonment, USA released him and he moved to Argentina in 1948.
1. Simo Häyhä, Finnish Sniper
Simo Häyhä is the most fierce and dangerous sniper in history. He was given a nickname “White Death” by the Red Army. Simo Häyhä used the Finnish produced M/28-30 rifle and the Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun. Western sources report his total kill count as 505 men during the 1939–40 Winter War. Antti Rantama, Häyhä’s unit military chaplain credits the total kill count by Häyhä as 259. A dairy of Häyhä found in 2017 reveals that he had killed over 500 Soviet soldiers with sniper and submachine guns. Häyhä was on his own all day wearing a dress covering him with white camouflage as the snowy place had temperatures in the range of −40 °C (−40 °F) and −20 °C (−4 °F). In 1940, his face was damaged by a bullet that pierced through. He was mysterious, dangerous and invisible yet powerful.