Military History

Military History

“There was In Her Something Divine”

In November 1455 a most extraordinary ecclesiastical court convened in the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris at the behest of the French Inquisition. Read more

Military History

Seaplane Striking Force

The first few years after World War II were challenging ones for the U.S. Navy. Massive demobilization of personnel and rapid scrapping or retirement of ships created internal disruptions. Read more

Military History

The British Empire Strikes Back

The crew of the HMS Alexandria waited anxiously for battle in the minutes before 7:00 am on July 11, 1882. Read more

Military History

Masterstroke at the Battle of Salamanca

Marshal Auguste Marmont watched intently as the left wing of his French army maneuvered against the Anglo-Portuguese army during the Battle of Salamanca at mid-afternoon on July 22, 1812. Read more

Military History

The Viking Longship

In the first week of October 844, Emir Abd ar-Rahman II of Cordoba learned disturbing news: Vikings had captured Seville. Read more

Military History

Savage Action at Newbury

By Robert L. Durham

Prince Rupert eyed the Parliamentarian position atop the low ridge south of the village of Newbury on the morning of September 20, 1643, with deep concern. Read more

Military History

Collecting Vintage Grenades

Even now, six decades after the end of World War II, the words “potato masher” just as easily conjure images of the legendary German hand grenade as they do kitchen utensils. Read more

Military History

Disaster at Nicopolis

Thick black smoke rose skyward from burning villages on the southern frontier of the Hungarian Kingdom in the spring of 1395. Read more

Military History

WWII Polish Cavalryman: Lance-Wielding Anachronism?

In the late afternoon of September 1, 1939, the 18th Uhlan Regiment of the Pomorska Cavalry Brigade was holding its position along Poland’s heavily forested northwest frontier when orders arrived to attack the flank of the advancing German 20th Motorized Infantry Division. Read more

Military History

Covered in Glory at Leuthen

In the early afternoon of December 5, 1757, the men of Prussia’s 26th Infantry Regiment were drawn up in assault formation just south of the Silesian village of Leuthen. Read more

Military History

A Bloody Sport Indeed

One of the most enduring images of the Middle Ages is the tournament, with its knights in shining armor, heraldic devices on shields, fair damsels watching from the stands, and brightly colored banners flying in the breeze. Read more

Military History

Sweden’s Desperate Stand at Lesnaya

Colonel Axel Gyllenkrok had had a lot on his mind in recent weeks. It was the autumn of 1708, and as the Swedish Army’s general quartermaster he was not only responsible for supplying its needs on campaign, but he also functioned as an operational manager. Read more

Military History

Teutonic Fury

As part of tribal obligations to appease Rome, Segimer, the powerful Cherusci chief, surrendered his sons Arminius and Flavus to the Roman emperor Augustus. Read more

Military History

Pollepel Island: Private Fortress on the Hudson

In central New York, 50 miles north of New York City on the Hudson River, is a small spit of land known as Bannerman Island. Read more

Military History

Chris Kyle’s Precision Rifles

From the sniper’s perch, the city of Fallujah, Iraq, on November 7, 2004, looked dusty and brown. Most of the buildings were squat, two-story affairs, with the occasional minaret or domed mosque sitting above them. Read more

Military History

The Battle of Chalons: Attila’s Stinging Defeat

In AD 451, Attila the Hun, by then known to terrified Western Christians as the “scourge of God,” crossed the Rhine River in command of a multi-ethnic army. Read more

Military History

Bloody Stalemate at Borodino

By mid-afternoon on September 7, 1812, Russian troops had lost control of the earthworks on their left flank at Borodino. Read more

Military History

Triumph Off Flamborough Head

Standing on the quarterdeck of his flagship Bonhomme Richard, Commodore John Paul Jones took his telescope and trained it northwards, sweeping the instrument to the left and right to see what his lookouts were reporting at midafternoon on September 23, 1779. Read more

Military History

Grand Assault On Gibraltar

Great Britain’s war with her rebellious American colonies was about to conclude as diplomats crafted a peace treaty. Read more

Military History

Lightning Victory In The Persian Gulf

IN November 1990 the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution authorizing the use of force against Iraq if it failed to withdraw from Kuwait by January 15, 1991. Read more