Spring 2021 Archives

Soldiers of the 42nd Highland Regiment, known as the Black Watch, braved murderous fire in their assault on the entrenchments of the Egyptian national army.

Military Heritage

The British Empire Strikes Back

By Mike Phifer

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

The six British Horsa gliders assigned to Operation Dead-stick swoop down on the Caen Canal Bridge at under cover of night on June 5-6.

Military Heritage

Lightning Assault on Pegasus Bridge

By Joshua Shepherd

At midnight of June 6, 1944, a trio of Halifax bombers, each towing a Horsa glider, roared above the black waters of the English Channel. Read more

Pikemen participate in a re-enactment of the pitched battle. Parliamentary forces fought with great professionalism in a slugfest marked by heavy casualties on both sides.

Military Heritage

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

Georgians of Lawton's Brigade drive off the Pennsylvania Reserves during the Union assault on the Confederate right wing.

Military Heritage

Rebel Blunder at Fredericksburg

By David A. Norris

Brig. Gen. George Gordon Meade’s division spent three hours bombarded by Confederate guns on December 13, 1862. Read more

Macedonian King Alexander's counterattack pierces the left-center of the Persian line and puts Darius to flight on the plain of Gaugamela.

Military Heritage

Alexander’s Triumph at Gaugamela

Eric Niderost

It was nighttime, and a great battle was soon to be fought at Gaugamela, in the dusty plains and rolling hills of modern-day northern Iraq. Read more

John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough, directs the Allied attack against Malplaquet on France's northern frontier. At far left, a camp follower strips clothing from the dead. The bloody clash was known for its heavy casualties.

Military Heritage

Peter Drake was a cavalryman, but at the moment he was standing near his horse’s head, holding his mount’s bridle and calming the beast when the animal grew restless after a night of inactivity. Read more

Military Heritage

Hammer of the Normans

By William E. Welsh

Bright sunshine flooded the sedge-covered, damp ground in Sussex on the morning of October 14, 1066. Having attended mass at sunrise, Duke William of Normandy shouted commands to his senior officers outlining their positions for the coming battle with English King Harold II Godwinson’s army. Read more

Military Heritage, Editorial

Meade’s Impressive Performance at Fredericksburg Earned Him Army Command

George Gordon Meade did not want command of the Army of the Potomac when it was thrust upon him on the eve of the Battle of Gettysburg seven months after the Union defeat at Fredericksburg, but he had the distinction of being the division commander who had led the successful Union assault during the bloody battle in December 1862 on the south side of the Rappahannock River. Read more

August Willich was one of the premier brigadier generals in the Union Army of the Cumberland. His performance leading the 32nd Indiana at Shiloh merited a promotion to brigade command.

Military Heritage, Soldiers

Union General August Willich

By Frank Jastrzembski

“A soldier in every phrase of the term, able and skillful, on many a bloody field he demonstrated his ability and courage,” Brig. Read more

Military Heritage, Uniform

Uniform: Private in the 4th New York Regiment

By Don Troiani & William E. Welsh

Headgear: Since leather caps were unavailable, the regiment was outfitted with felt hats trimmed with hair crests. Read more

A U.S. Navy SEAL trains on a MK-12 special purpose rifle, one of the four sniper rifles that Kyle used, which is similar to an M-16 but with a shorter barrel. Kyle often carried an MK-12 while clearing buildings in Iraq’s most dangerous cities.

Military Heritage, Weapons

Chris Kyle’s Precision Rifles

By Christopher Miskimon

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

Hauptmann Gordon Gollob poses with his Messerschmitt Bf110 fighter. He made recommendations for technical improvements to the heavy fighter and traveled to a Luftwaffe test facility to consult with aircraft engineers on his ideas.

Military Heritage, Valor

German Fighter Ace Gordon Gollob

By William E. Welsh

German Luftwaffe pilot First Lieutenant Gordon Gollob moved in for the kill at midafternoon on December 18, 1939, with his Messerschmitt Bf 110 against a formation of seven British Vickers Wellington medium bombers heading home from their bomb run against German battle cruisers in Wilhelmshaven harbor. Read more

Military Heritage, books

Alvin York became the most famous of a group of U.S. doughboys who went into harm’s way to thwart a German attack on October 9, 1918.

By Christopher Miskimon

On October 8, 1918, soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 328th Infantry Regiment arrived at Hill 223 and started dying. Read more

Military Heritage, Games

A Controversial Cancelled Shooter Rears Its Head in 2021

By Joseph Luster

Based on true stories from the Second Battle for Fallujah in 2004, Six Days in Fallujah was originally announced back in 2009 but was eventually cancelled. Read more

Spring 2021

From Around the Network

George S. Patton: World War II As He Saw It

Looking Back on the Vicksburg Campaign

Death of the Ternopil Garrison

The National World War I Museum