Following the swift German advance into eastern France through Belgium and Luxembourg in August 1914 under the Schlieffen plan, progress quickly slowed as both sides suffered unexpectedly heavy casualties. A series of offensives and counteroffensives yielding minimal ground forced a race to the sea as both sides attempted to outflank... More
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was, understandably, a stop-gap solution directed towards achieving an instant cessation of hostilities, rather than reflecting faithfully events on the ground. That considered reflection would emerge from the Treaty of Versailles, concluded on 28 June 1919. The Armistice formally renounced the Treaties of Brest–Litovsk... More
The Battle of Lepanto (1571) was hailed a historic victory for Christendom against the ‘infidel’ Turks. The fleet of the Holy League (Papal States, Spain, Venice) annihilated their Ottoman enemy, sinking or capturing almost 200 ships. The admiral that day, Don John of Austria, went on to recapture Tunis (1573).... More
US naval capabilities continued to strengthen throughout the course of World War II, outstripping those of the Japanese Imperial Navy, which was defeated in a number of key naval battles. The shift towards strategic and tactical operations based increasingly around aircraft carriers allowed the US Navy to engage in long... More
The Avignon papacy (1305–77) was a period, initiated by Pope Clement V, when the papal capital moved to Avignon in southern France. The seven Avignon popes were all French, as were most of the cardinals. The Avignon papacy gained a reputation for corruption and subordination to the French monarchy. The... More
The powerful Wettin dynasty had been active warriors, instrumental in pushing Germany frontiers east into Slavic lands in the 11th century. When six-year old Henry the Illustrious succeeded as Margrave in 1221, he commanded extensive lands, including the March of Meissen. As a reward for supporting the Hohenstaufen Holy Roman... More
The Wilderness was a tangled thicket in northern Virginia. As Ulysses S. Grant’s Union army moved towards the Confederate capital, Richmond, Confederate Commander Robert E. Lee decided to confront them in the Wilderness, where the dense scrub would negate Grant’s huge advantage in manpower and artillery. After crossing the Rapidan... More
William of Orange had achieved a bloodless ‘Glorious Revolution’ in England, when James II fled to France upon William’s landing at Brixham in Devon. However, James saw Catholic Ireland as a route to regaining his throne, and William pursued him there. After landing in Kinsale with 6,000 French troops courtesy... More
In early 1915 the Central Powers had a grand design: a coordinated attack through East Prussia by Germany and in Galicia by Austro-Hungary to meet east of the Vistula, enveloping the Russian armies on the eastern front. On 7 February in severe winter conditions the German 8th and 10th Armies... More
Having subdued Austria and created the Confederation of the Rhine, Napoleon was determined to crush the remnants of the Prussian army, most of whom had been killed or captured in autumn 1806. Napoleon followed the Prussians as they moved eastwards, punching his way through Prussia in less than three weeks.... More
Also known as the Russo-Finnish War, the Winter War came about after Finland refused to negotiate with the Soviets over the acquisition of land on the Karelian Isthmus and a naval base at Hanko. The Soviets attacked on several fronts, yet made few gains. The Finns made some failed counterattacks,... More
Encrypted communications were used by all major military powers by World War II, so the ability to crack methods of encryption was vital to maintaining the upper hand in strategic decisions. The Germans used the Enigma machine and its successors, the much more powerful Lorenz SZ40 and SZ42, to encrypt... More