Visiting the Battle of Chickamauga
By William E. WelshAn hour before the sun reached its zenith on September 20, 1863, on the second day of a hard-fought battle on a sluggish stream in the north Georgia woods, Union Brig. Read more
The USS West Virginia & The Attack on Pearl Harbor
by Chris MiskimonDuring the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 the primary target was Battleship Row. These capital ships had to suffice since the American carriers were away. Read more
Women in the Civil War: Enlisting With the Men
By Carole ButcherOn a warm morning in July 1861, the Union Army marched forth with bands playing and regimental flags flying. Read more
The Battle of Champion’s Hill: Prelude to Vicksburg
By Lawrence WeberThe Battle of Champion’s Hill was a pivotal event in the American Civil War. Ulysses S. Grant would pursue the retreating Confederate army to an area 20 miles east of Vicksburg, bringing about the Siege of Vicksburg and the Confederates’ surrender. Read more
How World War 1 Reshaped The Course of Europe
by Mike HaskewOn June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, visited the city of Sarajevo and were assassinated by Gavrilo Princip, a 20-year-old Yugoslav nationalist. Read more
2014 Marks the 60th Anniversary of Veterans Day
Today marks the 60th Anniversary of Veterans Day in the United States. Originally called “Armistice Day,” commemorating the end of World War I, it was renamed Veterans Day in 1954 by President Eisenhower to acknowledge veterans of the Second World War and Korea. Read more
Literally Cutting Down Your Enemy in a Vought F4U Corsair
By Christopher MiskimonThe Battle of Okinawa raged not only on the island itself but in the skies overhead. Japanese aircraft attacked the invading Americans not only through conventional bombing attacks but also by using the dreaded Kamikaze—suicide pilots who turned their planes into guided missiles to inflict more damage. Read more
The Battle of Vicksburg & The Hardships of Military Siege
By William E. WelshThe defenders of Vicksburg, clad in tattered uniforms, stood drenched in sweat at their posts on the morning of May 22, 1863. Read more
The Battle of Wilson’s Creek: A Bloody Southern Victory
By William E. WelshThe morning of August 10, 1861, dawned damp and hot. A steady drizzle fell on the large Confederate encampment on the still waters of Wilson’s Creek. Read more
President Abraham Lincoln & The American Civil War
by Mike HaskewThe 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln was elected to the highest office in the land in November 1860, and the event prompted the secession of numerous southern states beginning with South Carolina the following month. Read more
‘Goosebumps’: Flint Whitlock Visits the D-Day Invasion Landings
By Flint WhitlockI feel deeply honored to have been chosen by the Smithsonian Institution to lead D-Day trips to England and France (one took place in May; the other two were scheduled to take place in September and October). Read more
Game Features: Europa Universalis IV: Art of War
by Brian BelkoThe Thirty Years’ War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history. The final collapse of the old Roman Empire completely redrew the political and religious map of central Europe, and paved the way for sovereign states to emerge from the fighting. Read more
Saratoga Park Honors First Large-Scale American Victory in Revolutionary War
by William E. WelshThe thick gray smoke of battle engulfed the high ground a mile west of the river but it did not deter one American officer from dashing back and forth on his frothing horse from one brigade to the next exposing himself to shot and shell. Read more
