Ancient History | War History

The Battle of Pharsalus: How Caesar Won a Civil War While Outnumbered Two to One

The Battle of Pharsalus was one of the most important in Julius Caesar’s career. Fought on the 9th of August 48 BC, it was the…

Hannibal Barca was Rome’s Greatest Enemy – But He Couldn’t Win the War for Carthage

Hannibal Barca inflicted one of the worst defeats ever suffered by the Roman army at the battle of Cannae. Nearly 70,000 men were killed in…

The Big Reasons Why The Romans Went to War – Apart From Liking a Good Fight

Ruthless conquerors and efficient warriors, we remember the Roman legions as a force that swept across Europe and the Mediterranean, crushing everything in their path.…

Massive Engagements Of Ancient Warships – The Most Decisive Ancient Naval Battles

Ancient naval battles were quite risky; they involved massive investments in money in building ships and trained manpower for rowing and marines. Contrary to popular…

When The Romans Lost A Tenth Of Their Armies In A Single Battle – The Disaster Of The Teutoburg Forest

The Roman Empire of the 1st century AD is renowned as one of the most deadly and successful fighting forces in history. But even the…

Marcus Agrippa: Augustus’ Little Known Right Hand Man Who Knew How to Limit his Ambitions

Octavian Augustus was the first actual emperor of Rome; Caesar had held the dictatorship but was murdered a few years into his rule. Ambitious men…

The Element of Surprise – Totally Effective Surprise Attacks in Military History

Surprise attacks and ambushes can turn the tide of war. More often than not, the side that has the larger base of industry or manpower…

Constantinople: Holding The Walls At All Costs

At dawn, the leaders of the defense gazed out west from the walls of Constantinople. The two Byzantine commanders, Bonus and Sergius, did not speak…

Halting the Northern Crusades: 1410 Battle of Grunwald

The Crusades were monumental military efforts to secure Christian Holy lands around Jerusalem. Two orders of warrior monks, the Templars, and Hospitallers, had great successes…

The Battle of Actium: Agrippa’s Victory, Octavian’s Glory

Rome after Caesar’s death was a place of great uncertainty. Caesar had a long road to secure power and had finally secured it, and seemed…

378 Adrianople: Rise of the Barbarians And The Beginning Of The End Of The Roman Empire

The Fall of Rome was an arduous, drawn-out process, lasting centuries in the West to over a thousand years in the East. The so-called “barbarians”…

Medieval Doombringers: Viking Raiders and Their Dragonships

When thinking about the Viking age it is nearly impossible not to picture the iconic Viking Longship complete with dragon head bow and shields hung…