Browsing: Military

A Brief History On August 26, 1346, at the Battle of Crecy, English archers proved the superiority of the English longbow over the combination of armored knights and crossbowmen fielded by the French.  There have been many weapons throughout history that did not need either gunpowder or explosives to be effective.  Here 10 such weapons are listed in no particular order.   Digging Deeper 10. Hands, Feet, Teeth, 1st Use Unknown. The absolute simplest weapons: hands, feet and teeth can be used to strike, kick or bite an opponent quite effectively, even killing him or it (if an animal). For example, just…

A Brief History This article presents a timeline of weaponry. Digging Deeper into Ancient History Digging Deeper into Medieval History On January 23, 971, with deadly fire from their crossbows, troops of the Chinese Song Dynasty managed to defeat the War Elephant Corps of the Southern Han Kingdom. On July 20, 1304, the forces of King Edward I of England successfully took Stirling Castle during the First War of Scottish Independence. On August 26, 1346, at the Battle of Crecy, English archers proved the superiority of the English longbow over the combination of armored knights and crossbowmen fielded by the French.  There have…

A Brief History On August 25, 1939, in a move meant to dissuade Germany from attacking Poland, the United Kingdom (Britain) signed a military alliance treaty with Poland which promised that if either were attacked, the other would come to their assistance.  Meanwhile, in a deal made with the devil (you pick which side is the devil, both qualify!), the German Nazi government led by Adolf Hitler signed a “non-aggression pact” with the Soviet Union known as the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact in which each country promised not to attack the other. Digging Deeper Both of these agreements were not worth the paper…

A Brief History On August 23, 1942, the Battle of Stalingrad commenced during World War II.  The German 6th Army was destroyed, and the decisive Soviet victory marked the beginning of the decline of the Axis forces on the Eastern Front.  Many historians therefore consider the Battle of Stalingrad to have been the turning point of the European theater of World War II. Digging Deeper There were many important battles during World War II; some only had a few thousand casualties, whereas others had over one million casualties. With a total of 22 to 25 million military deaths, including deaths in captivity of about 5 million prisoners of war, World War…

A Brief History On August 23, 1994, an extraordinary American warrior was posthumously commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.  Eugene Bullard, born in Columbus, Georgia in 1895, had fought in World War I for the French Foreign Legion, and in 1917 he became the first ever African-American to be a military pilot, one of only two pilots of African origin in World War I. Digging Deeper While with the French ground troops, Bullard had served with distinction.  He finally got his chance to fly after he had recovered from serious wounds which he had received at Verdun in 1916.  For…