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ANIMATED BAYEUX TAPESTRY
I ran across this when I was teaching my Medieval England unit in my Western Civilization classes. It is incredible. Kudos to David Newton. It only lasts 4 1/2 minutes.
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An interesting historical story.
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SURUS
The use of war elephants probably began in Ancient India. The weapon gradually moved westward. Darius III had some at the Battle of Gaugamela (Arbela), but they did not have an impact on the result of the battle. Alexander the Great prevailed. He met elephants again in India at Read more…
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BATTLE OF THE LITTLE WICHITA RIVER
When I create my “This Day in History” posts, one of the web sites I use is This Day in US Military History (https://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/). R. W. White does a great job highlighting interesting events that occurred on every day of the year. He also includes a section that covers Read more…
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AMERICA’S FIRST HERO OF WWII
“Truth is the first casualty in war” is a phrase used to describe government lies to the public to justify war and to boost morale during the war. But it’s not just the government pronouncements that you need to be skeptical about. Military reports and press releases often include exaggerations Read more…
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THE HISTORY OF BEER
Beer is one of the oldest man-made beverages. It may have first been produced in Ancient China as early as 7,000 B.C. Archeologists have found beer residue in pottery from that time period. It was more like mead than beer and had rice, honey, or fruit as ingredients. The Read more…
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ZOPYRUS
Here is a story from Herodotus. In the 6th Century B.C., the city of Babylon rebelled against Persian rule. When Darius I approached the city to restore control, the city gates were closed to him and he had to begin a siege of the city. The Babylonians were confident Read more…
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THE HUMAN TUGBOAT
Charles Jackson French was born in Arkansas. He learned to swim in the Red River when he was 8. In 1937, at age 18, he enlisted in the Navy. He served four years on the USS Houston. After getting out, he reenlisted after Pearl Harbor. He was on board Read more…
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OPERATION CHASTISE
Even before WWII began, the British military analysts determined that destruction of German dams in the industrial Ruhr Valley would cripple industrial production. When the war began, the mission was green lit. Bernard Wallis, assistant chief designer for the Vickers company, was given the task of designing a bomb Read more…
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HISTORY OF THE BIKINI
Murals on the walls of archeological excavations show Roman women working out in two- piece outfits. These outfits went out of style after the fall of the decadent Roman Empire. It took more than 1,700 years for European females to get back to that look. On July 5, 1946, Read more…
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ALONZO CUSHING – THE LAST GETTYSBURG MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT
The most famous battle in American History is the Battle of Gettysburg. On the first days of July in 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac under Gen. George Meade defeated the Army of Northern Virginia led by Gen. Robert E. Lee. The climactic attack was Pickett’s Charge. 15,000 Read more…