8 Ways Soldiers Were Recruited in Medieval England
Recruiting an army could be a difficult business in the Middle Ages. Most people’s lives consisted of farming small patches of land. When people didn’t…
Last Battle Of The Vikings On The West Coast Of Scotland
It was the age of the Great Mongol Khans. It was the age of Byzantium, of the Holy Roman Empire. The wars of the Reconquista…
“My heart refused such sinister grandeurs” – the fall of the last Napoleon
It was a turbulent time in Europe. The year was 1870, and the Kingdom of Prussia held the reins of power. Prussia’s king, Wilhelm, was…
Greek Fire – The Top Secret Weapon of the Byzantine Empire
During the Middle Ages, the fortified city of Constantinople, the imperial capital of the Byzantine Empire, was considered unconquerable. It was not the city’s large…
5 Of The Bloodiest and Most Devastating Sieges We Tend To Neglect
Siege of Suiyang (757) Up to 100,000 Killed Or Eaten The rebel army of Yan fought against the Chinese Tang army in an attempt to…
3 Of The Biggest Battles Won By the Englishmen During The Hundred Years War
A major conflict in Europe from the 14th to the 15th century was The Hundred Years War. The House of Plantagenet, respectfully the Kingdom of England, fought…
Oda Nobunaga – The Demon Daimyo Who Unified Japan
From 1400 to 1600, Japan was a fractured country, in endless inner turmoil. The territorial warlords were in constant conflict with each other and there…
The Five Flaws of the Brilliant General “Stonewall” Jackson
General Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson is widely regarded as one of the greatest tactical commanders in American military history. While his solid determination to hold…
The Battle of Ankara,1402 – Treachery on the battlefield seals the fates of an Emperor and a Sultan
The Battle of Ankara was fought on the 20th of July 1402. Two of the greatest rulers of their time – Bayezid I The Thunderbolt, the…
Al-Andalus, a Melting Pot of Faiths in the Iberian Peninsula
Jewish people have often faced persecution throughout history, and across many states. At the start of the 8th century, the technologically and numerically superior Muslims…
Onna-bugeisha – The Female Samurai Warriors
Long before the modern-day archetype of the male samurai warrior, Japanese history was dominated by powerful female samurais. They were trained to use weapons and martial arts…
The Battle of Wavre – Ten Miles From Waterloo, Another Battle May Have Sealed Napoleon’s Fate
The long struggle of the Napoleonic wars famously culminated in the Battle of Waterloo. Undoubtedly Napoleon Bonaparte’s greatest defeat, this engagement would signal the end…