Queen Victoria Archives

British “New Army” infantrymen “go over the top” in a film made in 1916 about the Battle of the Somme, which began earlier in the year. The Allies had high hopes for the offensive.

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A Sunlit Picture of Hell: Battle of the Somme

By O’Brien Brown

Early in the morning of July 1, 1916, a mist blanketed the lolling hills of the Somme region of northwestern France. Read more

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An Acre of Massacre: The Second Boer War’s Battle of Spion Kop

By Herman T. Voelkner

The century of conflict that would introduce the concept of total war to the world had its bloody roots on an obscure hilltop in the remote South African veldt. Read more

Slaves are liberated after a slave ship is confiscated in 1861. The trade continued in the Sudan and elsewhere for another decade.

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Samuel White Baker: British Explorer and Abolitionist

By Gregory Peduto

The men of the expeditionary force beat a hasty retreat through the seven-foot-tall African grasses. Poison-tipped arrows let loose by pursuing Bunyoro warriors rained down upon them in deadly torrents. Read more

In their first major battles of World War I, American Expeditionary Force troops helped blunt multiple offensives launched by the German Army in the spring of 1918.

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WWI Timeline: Sowing the Seeds of the Conflict

by Arnold Blumberg

This WWI Timeline covers the first decade of the 20th century, in which the so-called “Great Powers” of Europe attempted to advance their economic and technological prowess to out-do—or at worst, at least keep pace—with their neighbors and rivals. Read more

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Governor-General Charles Gordon’s Death in Khartoum

By Joshua Shepherd

For British authorities in Egypt, the contents of the diary that had been smuggled out of Khartoum, Sudan, contained devastating intelligence. Read more

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The Trent Affair: When the Union and Great Britain Nearly Went to War

By Mark Simmons

In November 1861, word swept through London that an American warship, James Adger, in port at Southampton, was planning to put to sea and intercept a British ship bringing Confederate emissaries to Europe. Read more

Was Emperor Showa ("Hirohito" as he is typically referred outside Japan) a warmonger, pacifist, or both?

Queen Victoria

The Real Hirohito/Emperor Showa

by Blaine Taylor

He was the longest-reigning monarch and head of state in the 20th century, and the third-longest in history behind King Louis XIV of France (72 years) and England’s Queen Victoria (64 years). Read more

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Black Day at Magersfontein

By Kelly Bell

During the third week in November 1899, British forces under the overall command of General Sir Redvers Buller were marching northward across South Africa’s Orange Free State in a campaign to relieve the strategically vital railroad center of Kimberley. Read more

British General Garnet Wolseley was able to steal a march by making intelligent use of war correspondents.

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General Garnet Wolseley & The First War Correspondents

by Harold E. Raugh, Jr.

War correspondents are relatively new to history. The Crimean War (1854-1856), pitting Great Britain, France, Turkey, and Sardinia against Russia, was the first conflict in which an organized effort was made for civilian correspondents reporting news directly to the civilian population of the home country. Read more

The 1885 Battle of Abu Klea (or Battle of Abu Tulayh) would prove to be the end for British Major-General Charles George Gordon.

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Breaking the Square: Britain Takes on Mahdi at the Battle of Abu Klea

By Simon Craig

Until weapons technology made it redundant, the infantry square was a most effective and versatile formation. It needed no ditches or palisades; it could stand its ground, advance, or retreat; and it could offer a wall of fire on all four sides. Read more

The Qing Dynasty become embroiled in the Second Opium War of 1860 when Britain forced open trade relations with a reluctant China.

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Qing Dynasty And British Empire Clash In The Second Opium War

by Eric Niderost

On June 26, 1858, crowds packed the narrow streets of Tianjin to witness an awesome spectacle: A British diplomat was about to sign a treaty between his country and China. Read more

France concluded World War I's Triple Entente with Great Britain and Russia in response to the threat of German imperialism across the continent.

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France & World War I’s Triple Entente

by Michael Haskew

The French nation was stunned by the catastrophic defeat its army suffered at the hands of a Prussian-led German coalition in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. Read more

The German zeppelin night raids of WW1 inflicted terror on London and presented stiff challenges for RAF pilots.

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German Zeppelins: Terrorizing The British And RAF During WW1

By Eric Niderost

Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson was not a happy man, and his sour mood was made worse by the weather. Read more

British imperialism and overconfidence leads to a bloody Zulu War at the Battle of Isandlwana.

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The Battle of Isandlwana: Zulu Wars with the British

By Eric Niderost

Commandant Robert Lonsdale of the Natal Native Contingent was feeling very unwell, nursing a bad case of sunstroke that left his head pounding and his senses reeling. Read more

From Around the Network

“Manila’s Mata Hari”

Debacle at Dakar

Napoleon’s Old Guard Infantry

On This Day in History: The Gallipoli Campaign