Life in ancient Germany was rough, to put it lightly. You knew who your second cousins were, because you never knew when someone and his cousins were planning to kill you. Maybe you stole some of his family’s livestock, maybe you accidentally insulted his father or maybe one of your ancestors killed one of his … Continued
Leading a massive military force must be a huge ego booster for its commander. Wielding that much military power in one place has to make anyone feel confident of victory. Still, it’s always important to check yourself before you wreck yourself because even history’s greatest leaders can fall victim to hubris. In Pulp Fiction, Marcellus … Continued
For centuries, people have inhabited Europe, building new empires with more sophisticated cultural antiques than their predecessors. Out of sight and out of mind, some of the oldest places for underground exploration had been lost to humanity before being rediscovered, even by accident. Modern civilization created a general rule to keep the human remains out … Continued
Most people know of Spain’s disastrous effort to invade England with a massive fleet of ships that quickly ended up at the bottom of the English Channel, but that’s not where the rivalry between Spain and England ended. The defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 happened very early on in a series of wars … Continued
On Aug. 17, 1943, U.S. General George S. Patton and British Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery arrived in Messina and completed the Allied conquest of Sicily. Operation Husky, the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943, was not without its flaws and screw-ups, but the Allied troops tore open a gap on the beaches and … Continued
There are a few things the United States military does to maintain its global supremacy. First and foremost, it maintains a standing, professional force where every soldier, sailor, airman and Marine has a function that keeps the force moving – and is paid well to do it. It also constantly innovates, keeping abreast of the … Continued
On this day in history, WWI began. Here’s everything you were always supposed to know about the Great War but may have never learned.