December 2005 Archives

English and Dutch warships unleash thunderous broadsides against each other in the heavy seas of the English Channel, in this painting by Dutch artist Abraham Storck.

Military Heritage

“Hurrah, Over You Go Again!”: The High Seas Battle of Portland

By Keith Milton

For nearly a century, England and the Netherlands were longtime allies in the Eighty Years’ War against the Spanish Empire. Read more

With the rising Shangani River behind them, Major Allan Wilson and his 32 hard-pressed troopers make a desperate last stand against King Lobengula’s 1,000 Matabele warriors in southeast Africa.

Military Heritage

Death of the Shangani Patrol

By Robert Barr Smith

On the banks of the rain-swollen Shangani River, a small force of white militiamen closed ranks as hundreds of Matabele warriors swarmed around them. Read more

Sir Peter Parker’s nine-warship fleet unleashes a devastating barrage of fire on Ft. Sullivan from Charleston Harbor.

Military Heritage

Patriots’ Great Day: The Battle of Sullivan’s Island

By Earl Echelberry

By the early 1770s, with a full century of settlement already behind it, Charleston, S.C., had come into its own as a thriving urban center. Read more

Military Heritage

Union Disaster: The Battle of Thompson’s Station

By Robert L. Durham

The winter of 1863 was a time of general inactivity for the exhausted armies in middle Tennessee. Read more

Wounded but triumphant, Grand Master Pierre D’Aubusson receives homage from his worshipful Knights Hospitallers after beating back the Turkish siege of Rhodes.

Military Heritage

Siege of Rhodes: The Will Of The Hospitallers

By William McPeak

Although the great Crusades were over by 1309 ad, one old crusading order continued to evolve, flourish, and make enemies—the Knights Hospitallers of St. Read more

Military Heritage, Editorial

After successfully concluding the First Anglo-Dutch War, English strongman Oliver Cromwell turned his severe Puritan attentions to Spain or, more accurately, to Spain’s far-flung possessions in the New World. Read more

Military Heritage, Communique

Hedgehog

Dear Editors:

I took the enclosed photo of Hedgehogs in June 1961 on my ship USS Hector AR-7. Picture was taken on a DD alongside. Read more

Military Heritage, Weapons

The Baker Rifle: Why it was so Accurate, Deadly, and Dependable

By Arnold Blumberg

The European wars of the late 18th and early 19th centuries were characterized by large-scale clashes between similarly armed soldiers employing sabers, cannons, and weapons like the iconic Baker rifle. Read more

Viking longboats cut through the sea while on expedition. King Harald’s nickname was “Hardradi,” meaning “the ruthless;” something his enemies could surely attest to.

Military Heritage

Harald “Land Waster” Hardradi

by Kenneth Cline

For many history buffs, the date 1066 conjures up an image of Norman knights breaking through the shield wall of the ax-wielding Anglo-Saxons at Senlac Hill. Read more

Wehrmacht infantrymen march through a Belgian town to occupy territory overrun by armored divisions.

Military Heritage, Intelligence

German Intelligence Chief Wilhelm Franz Canaris

by David Alan Johnson

In most popular spy thrillers, secret agents are tall, handsome, virile, and irresistible to women. Whether their name is Dirk Pitt, Jack Ryan, or James Bond, all are hard-drinking, well-tailored ladies’ men. Read more

Military Heritage, Militaria

Collecting Tanker Helmets

By Peter Suciu

Since the first tanks rolled across the battlefield in World War I, armored crews have required specialized equipment to protect them inside the giant metal beasts. Read more

Military Heritage, Books

The First Marines

by Lt. Col. Harold E. Raugh, Jr., Ph.D., U.S. Army (Ret.)

To this day, the U.S. Marine Corps proudly commemorates in its service hymn the Marines’ first overseas operation on “the shores of Tripoli.” Read more

Military Heritage, Games

Divided Nation, Leyte Gulf, and Age of Empires III

By Eric T. Baker

The American Conquest series, from publisher CDV, follows the birth and evolution of the United States. The latest game is American Conquest: Divided Nation, which takes the story into the tumultuous 19th century. Read more

December 2005

From Around the Network

To Hell And Back

Operation Market Garden: the 82nd Airborne Division’s Pivotal Role

Operation Jupiter: The Fight for the Key to Normandy

The Deadly Defector from the USSR