Napoleon’s Blockade of Britain Was Hugely Ambitious But Undermined His Own Empire
In 1806, Napoleon Bonaparte launched a blockade of Great Britain. Merchants from the French Empire and its dependencies were no longer allowed to trade with…
General Burnside – The Swashbuckling Union General Who Pioneered Sideburns
What do a rifle, various railroads, the American Civil War, the Franco-Prussian War, the National Rifle Association, and sideburns have in common? Here is the…
The Climactic Battle of Waterloo Was A Huge Event On It’s Time, But It Still Matters Today
It is over two hundred years since Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo. The defeat of France’s warlord Emperor saw the end…
Eight Reasons Behind Napoleon’s Invasion Of Egypt
Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt was his last great military campaign before seizing power as First Consul of France. Despite being a disaster, it helped him…
The “Glowing Angels” Who Saved Civil War Soldiers Turned Out To Be Luminous Parasitic Bacteria
The Battle of Shiloh was one of the bloodiest skirmishes in an already vicious American Civil War. In its aftermath, came strange tales of an…
The Janissaries – An Elite Ottoman Army Unit Who Became Public Enemy No1
The walls of Vienna trembled on 27th of September, 1529, as strange music echoed close by. The sound of hundreds of drums stopped the heartbeats…
Nine Things the Movie ‘Braveheart’ Got Wrong… And One Thing It Got Right
Mel Gibson’s film Braveheart is both one of the most celebrated and one of the most reviled pieces of historical filmmaking ever. A heart-stirring and…
The Kingmaker – Seven Family Members Napoleon Used to Assert His Power
Like many rulers throughout history, Napoleon made use of his family. He discussed issues with them, and they were supporters and strategic assets in his political…
Disaster In The Desert: Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign
Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt was one of the strangest failures in military history. A young general and statesman at the height of his abilities he…
The Italian Campaigns – Where Napoleon Built The Foundation For His Legend
Napoleon’s 1796 invasion of Italy was one of the most significant campaigns of his career. It was the offensive that turned him from a rising…
Top 10 True Innovations of the Civil War
You often hear about how the Civil War brought submarines, iron-clad ships, or the telegraph into play, but that’s not exactly true. While they are…
Single Combat At The Siege of Bayonne, 1131AD
Pedro de Lara was bored. His had lived a full life, a life of personal pride and skill at arms, of politics, wine and of…