Shahan Russell

Shahan Russell is one of the authors writing for WAR HISTORY ONLINE

Articles by Shahan Russell:

Awarded the Medal of Honor For Bravery, His Country Locked up His Family in an Internment Camp

George “Joe” Taro Sakato is a second-generation-born American of Japanese descent, which was why his family had to relocate during WWII. Despite this, he joined…

The Plane That Flew Itself – After The Pilot Ejected, This F-106A Flew for Miles Before Landing Gently in a Field!

In 1970, a plane got fed up with its pilot so it hatched an audacious plan. First, get rid of the pilot. Second: land. Third:…

The Bombing of Pearl Harbor – And The Exiled Queen of Holland, The First Female Billionaire

Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria was the longest-serving queen of the Netherlands, having reigned from 1890 to 1948. Her keen business instincts made her the first…

Disease, Starvation, and the Brutal Russian Winter – Why Napoleon’s Invasion of Russia Failed

In 1812, Napoleon’s Grande Armée (Great Army) invaded Russia. Though made up of about 680,000 soldiers, they lost. Historians have given many reasons as to…

Vietnam Green Beret Had 37 Wounds And Still Carried On Fighting

Master Sergeant Raul “Roy” Perez Benavidez was shot several times, suffered two grenade blasts, and got bayonetted while saving the lives of eight men. Despite…

The Cost Of War: Powerful Drone Footage of World War 1 Graves at Tyne Cot Cemetery

Its full name is the Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Memorial to the Missing – or “Tyne Cot” for short. And though it’s…

When The USA And The UK Nearly Went To War Over An Island With A Pig

Though America became independent of the British Empire in 1776, the British didn’t actually leave. Where the United States of America ended and where British-America…

Two WW2 Planes Collided Over Australia, Then The Pilot Who Saved Them Was Punished!

In 1940, two planes collided in mid-air over Australia. Remarkably, there were no fatalities. Even more remarkably, the pilot responsible for saving the planes was…

Jesse Owens and His Unlikely Friend From Nazi Germany At the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics

The grandson of slaves, he got a college degree and became an international legend. Despite being sickly, he set athletic records that took decades to…

Half Blind Japanese Pilot Flies His Damaged Zero For 5 Hours, Then Refuses Medical Attention Before Making His Report

During WWII, Sub-Lieutenant Saburō Sakai served as a naval aviator with the Imperial Japanese Navy. He claimed 64 victories, one of which was made after…

She Bought Her Own T-34 Tank And Went On a Rampage After Nazis Killed Her Husband

They say that “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” But if you take her love away, it gets a helluva lot worse –…

The Slave Who Stole A Confederate Ship, Met President Lincoln & Bought His Master’s House

In 1862, Robert Smalls stole a Confederate ship, gave it to the Union Army, freed slaves, and met President Abraham Lincoln. After the war, he…