War Articles | War History

Mel Brooks: The Famed Jewish Comedian Who Fought the Germans In Europe

Mel Brooks sitting on a couch

Mel Brooks is arguably one of the most recognizable faces in the realm of comedy. With a career spanning decades, he’s the brains behind some…

TRIGON: The CIA Spy Who Funneled Soviet Secrets to the United States

Rosemary Giles
Portrait of Aleksandr Ogorodnik, better known by the spy name "TRIGON" + Krasnoluzhsky Bridge running over the Moskva River

Aleksandr Ogorodnik’s death was like something out of a spy film – that is, of course, because he was a secret agent. Operating under the…

From Wartime Necessity to Chocoholic Revolution: Hershey’s World War II-Era Tropical Bar

June Steele
US Marines coming ashore from landing craft + Hershey's Tropical Bar

As the Second World War raged on, the United States faced a myriad of challenges, one of which was ensuring troops remained well-fed and supplied…

HMS Medusa (A353): The Ship That Marked the Way to Omaha Beach in June 1944

HMS Medusa (A353) anchored at a dock

The HMS Medusa (A353) – formerly known as the Harbour Motor Defence Launch (HMDL) 1387 – was near Omaha Beach on June 5, 1944, the…

The Magic Engineering Behind Why Early Fighters Didn’t Shoot Their Own Propellers

Close-up of the front of an aircraft equipped with an interrupter gear

Let’s dive into something that’s been bugging many for decades: how did old fighter aircraft shoot at the enemy without blasting their own propellers into…

The Evolution of Guédelon Castle – A 13th-Century Castle In the Modern Era

Clare Fitzgerald
Exterior of Guédelon Castle

In east-central France, just a two-hour drive south of Paris, a structure is being built that’s unlike any other. Guédelon Castle is, as its name…

A24 Releases Trailer for Award-Winning Holocaust Film, ‘The Zone of Interest’

Sandra Hüller as Hedwig Höss in 'The Zone of Interest'

The official trailer for the World War II-era movie The Zone of Interest has been released by A24. The feature, which premiered at the Cannes…

Lee Marvin: The Hollywood ‘Tough Guy’ Who Earned His Stripes In the Pacific Theater

Lee Marvin as the Sergeant in 'The Big Red One'

Lee Marvin was a mainstay of cinema and television throughout the 1950s and ’60s. Known for his portrayal of villains and tough guys, he was…

‘U-571’ Is So Inaccurate That It Sparked An Official Debate In British Parliament

Damian Lucjan
Still from 'U-571'

Imagine: it’s 2000 and you’re sitting on your couch, popcorn in hand, waiting for the newest American war production to appear on your screen. The…

Seven American Soldiers Have Defected to North Korea Since the Korean War

Rosemary Giles
North Korean soldiers standing in front of the Military Demarcation Line between North and South Korea

Since the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, seven Americans have made the unprecedented decision to defect to North Korea. These men weren’t any ordinary…

The Soviets Tried to Starve Berlin Into Submission, But Were Humiliated By the Unprecedented Airlift

Damian Lucjan
Crowd watching an aircraft fly over West Berlin

Berlin, 1948; a city torn in two – and the Soviet Union wanted it all. The plan? Choke West Berlin by blocking all supply routes,…

Northrop XP-79: The Flying Wing Designed to Ram Into Enemy Aircraft in Mid-Air

Northrop XP-79 parked on the tarmac

The Northrop XP-79 Flying Ram was a rocket- and jet-powered flying-wing fighter designed during the Second World War for the US Army Air Forces. The…