Military History Archives

British infantry forms a square against French cavalry at the Battle of Quatre Bras in this painting by Lady Butler. Napoleon hoped when he crossed into the Netherlands to separate the British from the Prussians and defeat each separately, but neither he nor his subordinates rose to the occasion.

Military History

Terrible Slaughter at Waterloo

By David A. Norris

With two hours of daylight left, French Emperor Napoleon I saw his chance to make the Battle of Waterloo his greatest victory. Read more

Military History

Soldiers of God

By John Walker

In November 1177, Saladin launched his first significant military campaign against a crusader state. With 26,000 men, siege engines, a huge baggage train, and his own personal force of elite Mamluk bodyguards, Saladin marched his Ayyubid army across the Sinai Desert from Egypt into southern Palestine. Read more

Military History

Incomparable Bravery

By Alexander Zakrzewski

In the early evening of September 12, 1683, the citizens of Vienna watched from the ramparts of their beleaguered city as 3,500 winged horsemen poured down the slopes of the Kahlenberg Heights and into the heart of the besieging Turkish army. Read more

A column of 45 Royal Marine Commando marches toward Port Stanley. The British did not have a particular advantage in numbers or firepower, but their training and discipline enabled them to triumph in the challenging environment.

Military History

Bloody Showdown at Stanley

By Christopher Miskimon

A rocky, jumbled mass of boulders known as Mount Harriet just west of the city of Stanley in the Falkland Islands had no claim to fame before the night of June 11-12, 1982, but it achieved renown after a harrowing engagement that occurred between British and Argentine forces that night. Read more

General George Washington rallies his Continental Army during the Battle of Monmouth in June 1778 in a 19th-century painting by Emanuel Leutze. Maj. Gen. Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben’s relentless drilling of Washington’s soldiers at Valley Forge the previous winter enabled them to fight the British Army to a draw that day.

Military History

The Necessity of Drill

By Eric Niderost

In normal times 18th-century Cambridge, Massachusetts, was a small farming community of about 800 souls clustered around a common. Read more

Henry IV is shown directing the siege of Paris in 1593 in a 19th-century painting by Frederic Ronmy. The Catholic populace feared retribution from the victorious Huguenot king.

Military History

“Rally Round My White Plumes”

By Louis Ciotola

On March 14, 1590, King Henry IV of France achieved his greatest military victory on the field of Ivry. Read more

Military History

Unstoppable God Of War Alexander At Issus

By Charles Hilbert

Those rare qualities that set the extraordinary military commanders apart from the average ones were present in Alexander the Great, wrote the Greek historian Arrian, who drew on the account of Alexander’s general, Ptolemy. Read more

Military History

Napoleon’s Old Guard Infantry

By William E. Welsh

When Napoleon Bonaparte became First Consul of France in December 1799, he consolidated the two seperate guard bodies, one for the directory and one for the legislature, into the Guarde des Consuls. Read more

Viking marauders sack the Clonmacnoise monastery in central Ireland. Medieval monasteries were exorbitantly wealthy and typically overflowed with treasure, which made them tempting targets for Vikings seeking instant riches.

Military History

The Northern Foe

By Louis Ciotola

The stereotypical Viking and his method of warfare have long been etched in the popular mind. Images of hairy, axe-wielding, and horned-helmeted barbarians raiding coastlines amid a frenzy of rape and pillage have for centuries filled our collective consciousness, as well as our desire to be entertained. Read more

Military History

Briton Warrior Queen Boudicca

By Ludwig Heinrich Dyck

The lash bit into the flesh of the woman’s back, beaten raw by metal balls tied into the ends of leather thongs. Read more

Iron-helmeted citizen soldiers armed with shields and pikes defend the Milanese carroccio against German cavalry at Legnano.

Military History

Imperial Ambition Denied

By Eric Niderost

Frederick Barbarossa, Emperor of the Romans and one of the great rulers of the Middle Ages, was in the midst of a battle that might determine the fate of Northern Italy. Read more

Prince Edward leads his heavy cavalry against raw recruits from London on the left of Earl Simon Montfort’s line at the Battle of Lewes fought May 14, 1264, in a modern painting by Graham Turner. Edward’s pursuit of the fleeing Londoners had a detrimental effect on the outcome of the battle.

Military History

Monfort’s Last Stand

By William E. Welsh

The narrow barge drifted slowly along the Thames River on a muggy summer day in July 1258. Read more

The tide of battle turns in favor of the Allies as French General Pierre Bosquet's division, which had taken up a support position behind the British right flank, engages the Russians.

Military History

A Gloomy though Glorious Triumph

By David A. Norris

As the Battle of Inkerman veered into chaos, British Maj. Gen. George Cathcart stepped into the role of a line officer, leading several hundred men to cut into the flank of an approaching Russian column. Read more

Military History

Charles Edward Stuart Evades the British

By William E. Welsh

One of the “stranger than fiction” stories in military lore involves Charles Edward Stuart’s evasion of British forces following his defeat at Culloden on April, 16, 1746. Read more

Ottoman gunners played a central role in the siege. Their stone shot brought down whole sections of the city’s massive walls, opening large breaches.

Military History

Medieval Bombards at the Siege of Constantinople.

The Ottoman army’s bombards played a key role in its successful conquest of Constantinople during the epic siege of 1453. In the 15th century the great powers of medieval Europe paid talented gunsmiths to build massive bombards to batter walls and shorten the length of sieges. Read more

Military History

17th century Ottoman Janissary Musketeer

The Ottoman janissary corps was recruited from military slaves. These slaves were either prisoners captured by Ottoman armies during the course of war or boys and young men conscripted from occupied Christian populations. Read more

The crew of a British Sopwith Camel flying at 10,000 feet downs the first Gotha on British soil during a night raid on London in January 1918. Germany reinvigorated its strategic bombing campaign late in the war by using Gotha aircraft instead of zeppelins.

Military History

Germany’s Gotha Heavy Bombers

By Eric Niderost

It was the early-morning hours of June 13, 1917, when a group of German aircraft began its final preparations for a very special mission, which amounted to the first fixed-wing bombing of London. Read more

British infantry prepares to assault German positions on Menin Road Ridge. The British squandered valuable time preparing for the Passchendaele offensive, giving the Germans ample time to improve their defenses.

Military History

Hard-Won Victory at Passchendaele

By Mike Phifer

British soldiers fixed their bayonets and waited tensely in the trenches for the order to go over the top. Read more

Military History

Greek Hoplite (8th – 4th century B.C)

By William E. Welsh

Illustration by Peter Connolly

The Greek hoplite was a heavily armored infantryman who fought in a phalanx formation. Read more

English King Richard I wields a broadsword against his Muslim foes in the Holy Land. His leadership in the Third Crusade ensured his place in the pantheon of great medieval commanders.

Military History

Crusader Triumph at Arsuf

By William E. Welsh

The advance of long ranks of scimitar-wielding Nubian and robed Bedouin archers on foot signaled a dramatic change in Ayyubid Muslim tactics against the Frankish army marching south along the Palestinian coast from Acre towards Jaffa. Read more

Military History

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