Articles Archive

First Maine Cavalry shown skirmishing with Spencer carbines at an unnamed battle in drawing by Alfred Waud.

The Spencer Carbine

By Kelly Bell

Confederate soldiers bitterly called it “that damned Yankee carbine they load on Sunday, and then fire all week.” Read more

Napoleon Bonaparte’s Battle of Marengo

By Eric Niderost

On March 17, 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte closeted himself in his study at the Tuileries Palace in Paris and ordered his private secretary, Louis Fauvelet de Bourrienne, to unroll a large map of Italy and lay it on the floor. Read more

Test pilot Commander Frederick Trapnell flew the prototype for this U.S. Navy carrier-based F6F Hellcat and worked closely with Leroy Grumman as the fighter was rushed through production. Navy Hellcats shot down over 5,000 Japanese aircraft.

Test Pilot Frederick Trapnell

By Mark Carlson

Today, every U.S. naval aviator who straps into a cockpit owes a debt to a man they never met and few have even heard of—Vice Adm. Read more

Led by Charles VIII, the French enter Florence, Italy. Charles invaded Italy in September 1494, using his powerful artillery to reduce fortifications where he met resistance. The Army arrived at Pisa in November, followed by Florence, before reaching Naples in February 1495.

Battle of Fornovo: Rising to Crush an Invader

By Jonathan North

Fifteenth-century Renaissance Italian political life was a heady mix of intrigue, provocation and dispute, backed by limited wars and border raids. Read more

Marcus Licinius Crassus sought glory on the battlefield by following in the footsteps of his idol, Alexander III. It all came crashing down at Carrhae (in modern-day Turkey) at the hands of the Parthian Empire in 53 BCE.

Marcus Crassus, Alexander and the Battle of Carrhae

By Glenn Barnett

Alexander of Macedon, called “the Great,” died in June of 323 BCE having conquered the mightiest empire yet seen on earth. Read more

“The Hanging of Nathan Hale , New York 1776” by Don Troiani.

Continental Army Captain Nathan Hale

By Kevin Seabrooke

On the night of September 16, 1776, young Nathan Hale, a captain in the Continental Army, set out across Long Island Sound from his native Connecticut on the armed sloop Schuyler. Read more

Breaking out of Hell: The Korsun–Cherkassy Pocket

By Ludwig H. Dyck

On January 26, 1944, in the midst of the Ukrainian winter, the tanks of Gen. Ivan S. Read more

Twelve Military History Book Reviews for Winter 2024

By Christopher Miskimon Full Reviews

Ukraine Volume 2: Russian Invasion, February 2022 (Tom Cooper, Adrien Fontanellaz, Edward Crowther & Milos Sipos, Helion Books, South Yorkshire UK, 2023, 76 pp., Read more

Comanche warriors ride into San Antonio, Texas, March 19, 1840, to discuss a potential peace treaty with representatives of the new Republic of Texas.

The Great Comanche Raid of 1840

By Eric Niderost

It was a colorful spectacle few citizens in San Antonio, Texas, had ever expected to see: a large delegation of Comanches coming in to discuss terms of a possible peace treaty. Read more

Troop Sergeant Major, 11th Hussars, “Prince Albert’s Own,” 1854

This British cavalry unit was raised in 1715 as Honeywood’s Regiment of Dragoons and continued in service through the 18th century before being renamed the 11th Regiment of Light Dragoons. Read more

Germans in their pickelhaube leather helmets and French in red and blue uniforms engage in a brutal skirmish in a wooded section of World War I’s Western Front during the early months of the war.

French Revenge at the First Battle of the Marne

By Joshua Shepherd

In the early morning hours of September 10, 1914, long lines of gray-clad German infantry formed up in a steady rain that only seemed to dampen spirits. Read more

Arma Reforger

By Joseph Luster

Arma Reforger has been cooking in Early Access on PC and Xbox Series since May 17, 2022, and it recently made its full exit. Read more

Call of Duty Modern Warfare III

By Joseph Luster

Folks, we’re officially back to the third Call of Duty: Modern Warfare game, and no, this isn’t a review of 2011’s Modern Warfare 3. Read more

On the coast of Italy, military personnel take time out from their duties at the beach. The water adapted observation plane may have been used for water skiing.

Uniformed for R&R

Photo Essay by Kevin M. Hymel

For the lucky few that got the opportunity, putting on a bathing suit and hitting the waves or pools was a welcome escape from the war. Read more

Undisputed King: The Battle of Tewkesbury

By David Alan Johnson

King Edward IV could not have asked for better news. On the evening of May 3, 1471, his scouts reported that the army of his Lancastrian archrival, Queen Margaret of Anjou, was camped a few miles south of the abbey town of Tewkesbury with its back to the River Severn. Read more