Military

Cao Cao meeting with politician Hua Xin, Chinese, late 19th-early 20th century.

Sun Tzu and the Art of Becoming Famous

How did Sun Tzu and The Art of War become synonymous with strategy in the West?

Photogravure plate after painting by Neuville, 1882; group of 8 French soldiers relaxing in building yard during the Franco-Prussian War, one playing piano.

‘Bismarck’s War’ by Rachel Chrastil review

Bismarck’s War: The Franco-Prussian War and the Making of Modern Europe by Rachel Chrastil argues that German victory was a catastrophe for Germany and the world.

Marjorie Foster after becoming the first woman to win the King’s Prize for rifle shooting at Bisley, 20 July 1930.

Shots Fired: Marjorie Foster and Women at War

After winning the biggest shooting prize in the Empire, Marjorie Foster joined the new pantheon of women making sporting headlines. On the eve of the Second World War, she had a new target in her sights: the War Office.

Richard III, oil on panel, late 16th century. National Portrait Gallery

Was Richard III a Bad King?

Child-murderer, arch villain, failed monarch, ‘northern’. Have efforts to redeem Richard III succeeded or is he still one of history’s worst kings?

Satirical illustration of the Russo-Japanese War, depicting a Japanese soldier stepping on a Korean as a Russian looks on. By Georges Ferdinand Bigot, Paris, c.1904

Korea the Kingmaker

The Korean peninsula was a chessboard on which the fates of great powers were decided.

Vitellius led through the streets of Rome by the people, by Georges Rochegrosse, 1883

The Year of the Four, Five, Six Emperors

For citizens of Ancient Rome, the recurrence of brutal civil war was par for the course. For writers, it was an opportunity.

The Reichstag on fire, Berlin, February 1933.

‘February 1933’ by Uwe Wittstock review

Germany in February 1933 as it unfolded day-by-day.

Stephen (left) and Henry II, from Les Roys de Engeltere, Anglo-Norman manuscript, late 13th century.

Anarchy in the Waste Land

Following the death of Henry I, England was plunged into a civil war that reduced the country to a charred ruin. With the barons split between rival claimants, the people suffered.

The Battle of Nájera, fought by King Peter against Henry Trastámara, 3 April 1367, from a 15th-century manuscript of Jean Froissart’s Chronicles.

Friends to Friends, Enemies to Enemies

The Anglo-Portuguese alliance is the oldest of its kind. Concluded in June 1373, it has survived world wars, the rise and fall of empires and globalisation. How?

What is a ‘Just War’?

On the 20th anniversary of the worldwide protest against the Iraq War in February 2003, we ask: is there such a thing as ‘just war’ or is there just war?