The Battle of Carrhae in 53 B.C. was one of the biggest military disasters Rome ever suffered, ranking right up there with Cannae, The Teutoberg Forest, and Lake Trasimene. The battle occurred in what is today Syria between a… Continue Reading →
The last question that needs to be answered as concerns the parallels between Afghanistan and Vietnam is why we are not pursuing a campaign of territorial conquest. In Vietnam, the U.S. did not seek to gain and maintain control… Continue Reading →
           Beginning in the thirteenth century the Swedes attempted to continue their expansion to the east into the territory of the Lapp people and the Orthodox Russians of Novgorod. They harnessed the rhetoric of Crusade as they expanded to… Continue Reading →
           The people of Northern Germany known as the Wends were not one homogenous people but rather organized themselves in a tribal structure. The tribes from the Saxon border west were the Wagrians, Polabians, Abotrites, Rugians, Liutizians, and Pomeranians.[1] … Continue Reading →
This is the text of a paper I wrote for my undergrad that I found yesterday while looking through the folders on my computer for something else and decided I would post here. It is not the best writing I… Continue Reading →
Comparisons of Afghanistan to Vietnam were common during the Bush years but have slowed down considerably since he left office. Â Perhaps there are political reasons for this and perhaps there is just comparison fatigue, I am not really which. Â I… Continue Reading →
           Pope Innocent III (p.1198-1216), who was perhaps the most ardent supporter of Crusade to hold the Papacy, issued the Papal Bull Quia maior in April 1213 calling for a new Crusade to recapture Jerusalem.[1] This Bull set the standard… Continue Reading →
I finished Chapter 2 of my thesis last night, ten days later than I planned, but finished is finished right? it was the chapter about the opening skirmishes and battles of the Königgrätz Campaign. It was fun to write but… Continue Reading →
I am now a little over half-way through writing my thesis at least going by the Outline I drew up. I got to page 50 last night and am almost ready to start writing the chapter concerning the main… Continue Reading →
The weapons and techniques used throughout most of siege warfare are remarkably consistent with few innovations. The notable new weapons were the trebuchet, Greek fire, and Cannons. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Siege towers or belfries were common if unwieldy weapons used at… Continue Reading →
The siege was the most common type of battle fought during the Middle Ages. Medieval armies and commanders tended to avoid pitched battles unless forced into them by circumstances. Medieval warfare and its concentration on sieges can thus… Continue Reading →
The Third Crusade (1189-1192) was launched as a direct result of the loss of Jerusalem to the Muslims in October 1187. The loss of Jerusalem was occasioned by the destruction of the crusaders at the Battle of Hattin on… Continue Reading →
Jay Luvaas is a professor at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle Pa.; he coauthored a series of Battlefield Guides of U.S. Civil War battlefields that became almost instant classics. He has authored several books of military history such… Continue Reading →
I was getting to the actual writing of a description of the fighting part of my thesis today when something hit me. Â I was looking at casualty figures for the various actions and they are decidedly lopsided. Most historians… Continue Reading →
           The capture of Salvatierra by the Almohad’s in 1210 provided the impetus for Pope Innocent III (p.1198-1216) to issue a general call for crusade in Spain and grant the remission of sins for those who would go to Spain… Continue Reading →
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