Military History | The Runway

Military history is a field that studies warfare and its societal impacts, including battle strategies, weaponry progression, and military technology evolution. It's crucial for understanding societal evolution and informing military strategies. Strategists can learn from victories and defeats by analysing past wars to inform future decisions. Military history also reveals societal responses to conflict, guiding efforts to prevent future wars and promote peace. Additionally, it fosters national identity by allowing societies to remember and honour their past. In essence, military history provides valuable insights into the past, present, and human nature.

Military History

Japan had little chance of victory—so why did it attack Pearl Harbour?

Before WW2, US sanctions prevented Japan from obtaining vital raw resources—Japan thought a pre-emptive strike against the USA followed by an invasion of the Philippines would force the US to make peace—they were wrong.

Military History

Anglo-Nepalese War

Gurkha (from Nepal) troops demonstrated such impressive fighting qualities in the 1814-16 War that despite losing to the British, the British have employed them as members of the British Army ever since.

Military History

From the bookshelf: ‘The Scrap Iron Flotilla’

The Scrap Iron Flotilla (named by Nazi leader Joseph Goebbels) refers to WW1-era Australian destroyers that, despite their age, played a crucial role in resupplying Australian troops besieged in Tobruk in WW2.

Military History

Second World War, 1939–45

Almost a million male and female Australians served in WW2. They served and fought in nearly every theatre of war, including Europe, Africa and the Pacific.

Military History

Milne Bay Breaking the Japanese Spell, 1942

Milne Bay is located on the easternmost tip of mainland PNG. During WW2, it was of significant strategic value as Japan would first have to capture Milne Bay to gain air superiority over the sea approaches to Port Moresby.

Military History

How did Erwin Rommel Earn the Nickname ‘Desert Fox’?

His troops and his enemies respected WW2 German General Rommel—his daring resulted in tactical success. Still, in the long run, he did not pay enough attention to logistics, and in the end, his forces were driven out of Africa.

Military History

Cuban missile crisis, 60 years on: new papers reveal how close the world came to nuclear disaster

In 1962 during the Cold War, the USSR (Russia) attempted to place nuclear missiles in Cuba—the USA saw this as a direct threat to the USA.

Military History

How Hitler’s Enablers Undid Democracy in Germany

In the period between WW1 and 2, the Nazis used "the politics of legality" to gain absolute power. German democracy was used to destroy democracy in Germany.

Military History

The story of the B-52 Stratofortress Strategic Bomber that landed safely without its tail

In 1964 a B-52—the US's primary long-range bomber—landed safely after having its vertical fin ripped off by air turbulence.

Military History

11 of the Weirdest X-Plane Designs

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency developed a series of experimental platforms designated X-Planes—Chuck Yeager flew X-1 in the 1940s- the first pilot to break the sound barrier officially.