Ancient Roman Military Decorations – The Roman Legions Decorated Soldiers For Exemplary Conduct
Like most professional armies, the Roman legions used military decorations to acknowledge superior behavior. Though few looked like medals as we picture them today, these…
Drunkenness, Disorder and the Plague: The Cadiz Fiasco Of The Royal Navy
The English navy has a reputation as a force to be reckoned with from the 16th century onwards. But in the early 17th century it…
Jewish Lawyer Foiled Nazi Plans in LA During WWII
Captain John H. Schmidt worked for a Jewish lawyer named Leon Lewis. Lewis set up a spy network on his own, without support from the…
An Italian Civil War in Spain: Guadalajara, 1937
Proxy wars have been an ugly feature of military history since ancient times, powerful nations turning others into battlegrounds without risking themselves in full-scale warfare.…
Battle of Omdurman – When The British With 11,000 Soldiers Took On 60,000 Natives in Sudan, Losing 47 Killed
All through the darkness of the night, a British infantryman waits nervously by the banks of the Nile. The Mahdists, infamously bloodthirsty savages, are just…
Napoleon Bonaparte, Famous European Conqueror, Was Inspired All His Life By Great Women
Despite sharing the gender biases common to his time, Napoleon Bonaparte’s admiration for great men extended to a few women. Though he once said that…
Despite All Efforts, The Struggle Of The Allied Landings At The Anzio Ended In Failure
Towards the end of 1943, Allied forces were struggling to fight their way up Italy in the face of stern resistance from German Field Marshal…
Living A Quiet, Reclusive Life After Her Service, A Forgotten Heroine Of World War Two
On September 2, 2010, an 89-year-old woman’s body was discovered in a modest apartment in the British town of Torquay, Devon. She had died several…
Leonidas I, Sparta’s Greatest Warrior King
King Leonidas I is the most famous general in the history of Sparta, and perhaps the whole of Greece. Disappointingly little is known about the…
Victory For The Scottish Rebels At Bannockburn – Mud, Blood, And Sabotage
Fought on 23-24 June 1314, the Battle of Bannockburn is one of the most celebrated incidents in Scottish history. Having been conquered by the English…
The English Should Have Lost at Agincourt, But Against All The Odds, They Won
The Battle of Agincourt is an iconic moment in English military history. On 25 October 1415, an army of English raiders under Henry V faced…
Laid Low By Their Illnesses – French Commanders Who Became Liabilities Because of Ill Health
Even the best of commanders are prone to poor performance when ill health strikes. Several of note have affected the French army during its history.…