Category: Weapons and Technology
Heavyweights — The Monster Super Tanks of World War Two
“Small, thinly armoured and under-gunned, the first tanks of World War Two were light-weights when compared to the lumbering beasts that would lurch off production lines within a few short years.” TO UNDERSTAND JUST how…
The First Dogfighters — How History’s Earliest Combat Pilots Improvised Aerial Warfare
“Many of the principles of air to air combat still in use today were improvised on the fly (literally) by pilots who were making it up as they went along.” THE WORLD’S MILITARIES were among…
How Not To Be Seen — The Art, Science and History of Camouflage
THE UNITED STATES military is abandoning its recently-adopted pixelated camouflage uniforms, according to the army newspaper Stars and Stripes. The drab grey digital scheme, known as the Universal Camouflage Pattern (UCP), will be discarded after only eight…
Two-Wheeled Warriors — A Brief History of Bicycles on the Battlefield
“Bike riding infantry could carry heavier loads father and faster than men on foot, and riders would still have the energy to charge into battle, even after hours of pedalling.” THE BICYCLE (as we know it…
How An Alarming Shortage of Gunpowder Nearly Ended America’s Bid for Independence
Some armies have been ground to a halt because they’ve run out of gasoline. Others have been rendered useless for want of warm clothes or food. For the Continental Army of 1775, a critical shortage…
The ‘Pickelhaube’ — A Brief History of WW1 Germany’s Iconic Spiked Helmet
“To Germany’s enemies, the helmet quickly became associated with ‘Hun’ barbarity.” THE GERMAN ARMY’S spiked helmet or pickelhaube (is arguably one of the most enduring symbols of the First World War. The polished black leather helmet with ornamental…
