Valor | War History

‘The Hurt Locker’ Was a Box Office Flop, Despite Being a Critically-Acclaimed Film

Samantha Franco
Jeremy Renner as Sgt. First Class William James in 'The Hurt Locker'

Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker (2008) saw Jeremy Renner portray a character serving in the Iraq War. While the film did poorly upon its debut in…

M72 LAW: The Vietnam-Era Anti-Tank Weapon That Continues to See Service Today

Ryan McLachlan
American soldier firing an M72 LAW

In the Dirty Harry movie, The Enforcer (1976), the filmmakers needed to find a more powerful weapon than Harry Callahan’s Smith & Wesson Model 29.…

Charity Allows War Veterans to Unearth the Secrets of the Battle of Waterloo

Clare Fitzgerald
Painting of the Battle of Waterloo

While scientific digs are typically conducted by the likes of archaeologists and palaeontologists, there’s a war charity that actively looks to get military veterans involved.…

Mata Hari: The Dutch Exotic Dancer Accused By the French of Being a Double Agent

Portrait of Mata Hari

Legendary exotic dancer Mata Hari was much more than meets the eye. With her captivating beauty, alluring performances and alleged involvement in espionage during the…

Pancho Villa: The Mexican Revolutionary Who Evaded US Capture For Nearly 11 Months

Rosemary Giles
Francisco "Pancho" Villa and other Mexican revolutionaries on horseback

Pancho Villa was easily one of the most beloved leaders of the Mexican Revolution. Born into a humble sharecropping family, he rose from poverty to…

Remains of German U-boat SM UC-55 Identified Off the Coast of the Shetland Islands

SM UC-42 at sea

A team of divers have confirmed the identity of the wreck of a World War I-era German U-boat sunk off the coast of the Shetland…

US Marine Taking a Break During the Battle of Saipan

Pfc. Raymond Hubert sitting on a naval shell while emptying sand from his boot

The Battle of Saipan, fought between June 15 to July 9, 1944, was a significant turning point in the Pacific Theater. As part of the…

Trailer Released for ‘One Life,’ Starring Anthony Hopkins as ‘British Oskar Schindler’

Anthony Hopkins as Nicholas Winton in 'One Life'

A number of individuals went above and beyond to save as many lives as possible during the Second World War. One of them was Sir…

The United States Once Came to the Aid of North Korea During a Pirate Attack

MV Dai Hong Dan at sea

The Dai Hong Dan Incident occurred on October 29, 2007 in the Indian Ocean. After Somali pirates attacked the North Korean cargo ship MV Dai…

Nakano Takeko: The Fearsome Female Warrior Who Was One of the Last Samurai

Rosemary Giles
Statue of Nakano Takeko

In the annals of Japanese history, few figures stand as tall as Nakano Takeko, a remarkable woman who defied societal norms to become a fearsome…

A B-52H Stratofortress Once Flew for Five Hours – Without a Tail!

Boeing B-52G Stratofortress in flight

In January 1964, a Boeing B-52H Stratofortress embarked on an eight-hour flight load survey to test buffeting turbulence effects at low-levels. When this turbulence became…

Hughes XF-11: The Aircraft That Almost Took Out Its Creator

Hughes XF-11 coming in for a landing

The Hughes XF-11 was a prototype reconnaissance aircraft intended to be operated by the US Army Air Forces (USAAF). It was partially designed by Howard…