Category Campaigns & Operations
The Mexican-American war of 1846-1848 was not inevitable but both sides placed themselves on a collision course that seemingly made it so. A combination of Mexican unwillingness to recognize Texas independence and the desire of Texans for statehood with… Continue Reading →
Europe in the tenth and eleventh centuries was a continent in transition. The states of Europe were still in flux and the kings of Europe had limited authority outside their own personal demesne. Although individual French kings did… Continue Reading →
I am planning a vacation trip to Malta this summer with my family and like all vacations I take there will be an element of historical tourism involved. I have always wanted to visit Malta and I am finally… Continue Reading →
This will be a series of posts laying out the general history of the major Fronts in World War I. The First World War was unnecessary in that if the diplomats of Europe had truly wanted to stop the war… Continue Reading →
All classical military theorists point out that military strategy and national policy are intermingled. Clausewitz devotes a lengthy portion of his treatise to the ways in which military action should serve the needs of the state; indeed, his most… Continue Reading →
The conventional explanation for why the Western Front in World War I settled into a stalemate is that the power of defensive weapons was stronger than the offensive methods employed. The theory is that the defensive potential of machine-guns,… Continue Reading →
This book is an interesting read to say the least, Dr. Citino makes the case that there is a specifically German “way of warâ€. That way, is what he calls operational maneuver. He traces the development of this “way of… Continue Reading →
On this day 66 years ago, Hitler did the world a favor and took his own life. Unfortunately, he should have done it in 1923 and saved the world upwards of 100,000,000 dead while he pursued his ambition of… Continue Reading →
Cpt. Noel Chevasse is one of the three men who have earned the Victoria Cross twice. He was a doctor and earned both awards during the First World War. He won the first VC during the battle of the Somme… Continue Reading →
Is there such a thing? That question hit me this morning as I was reading a book review in an old copy of the Journal of Military History. The book in question was Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns… Continue Reading →
I wrote a post about Saint John of Nepomuk a week or so ago and at the time I wanted to post a picture of the statue near my house but had been too lazy to stop on my way… Continue Reading →
I am currently reading Polybius’ Histories, and I have finally gotten to the part where he describes the events during the Second Punic War. Last night I read his account of the battle of Lake TRasimene in 217 B.C…. Continue Reading →
This is the final update I will post about writing my thesis. I got the final grade for my Capstone (Thesis) class. I have been academically cleared for graduationa and now all I am waiting on is word… Continue Reading →
The region of Germany where I live in northeastern Bavaria is locally known as the Oberpfalz or in English the Upper Palatinate. Traditionally, this area was not part of Bavaria but was made up of numerous small separate sovereignties with a… Continue Reading →
The Death of Bin Laden, a Good Start
With Bin Laden dead, what next? It is a virtual certainty that terrorism will not stop because someone (even bin laden) who has been in hiding for the past 9 1/2 years was killed. Terrorism, specifically Islamic terrorism, is bigger… Continue Reading →