Sun Tzu and the Art of Becoming Famous
How did Sun Tzu and The Art of War become synonymous with strategy in the West?
Military
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.
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.
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?
The Kingmaker: Korea Between Asia’s Great Powers
The 19th-century Korean peninsula was a chessboard on which the fates of great powers were decided. China, Japan and Russia learned this to their cost in the 'Other Great Game’.
The Year of the Four, Five, Six Roman Emperors
For citizens of Ancient Rome, the recurrence of brutal civil war was par for the course. For writers, the Years of the Four, Five and Six Emperors were an opportunity.
February 1933 by Uwe Wittstock review
Germany in February 1933 as it unfolded day-by-day.
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.
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?
Stalingrad: The Unbreakable City
The Battle of Stalingrad began in August 1942, subjecting its residents to months of living hell. But few doubted that the city was worth defending.