West Point's Class of 1915 is the academy's most important in history. The cadets of the United States Military Academy, West Point, are intimately twined with the country's history. The graduating class of 1915, the class the stars fell on, was particularly noteworthy. Of the 164 graduates that year, 59 (36%) attained the rank of general, the most of any class in. Although Dwight Eisenhower and Omar Bradley, both five-star generals, are the most...

The Battle Digest summary includes all the key aspects of the campaign and battle, including maps, images, and lessons learned. After his early success in the Civil War's Western Theater, Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant moved south to capture the key railroad hub at Corinth and further cut into the Confederate hold on the Tennessee and Mississippi River Valleys. But Confederate Gen. Albert S. Johnston wasn't playing by Grant's script. Instead of waiting...

D-Day, Operation Market Garden, Battle of the Bulge-the US Airborne divisions were integral at all these major points in World War II. But they also played a significant role in North Africa, where they first saw action, and in Italy in 1943. Right on the tail of these planes, this expert history follows the airborne divisions from the redesignation and initial training of the 82nd in 1942 through to their final, momentous missions in the Pacific. Featuring...

Step aboard the floating cities that patrol international waters, launch aircraft from their decks, and decide the fate of war. Behold the king of naval warfare: the aircraft carrier. Soon after the Wright Brothers' historic flight in 1903, officials explored the airplane's military applications. The seaplane and the flying boat were conceived to combine air and naval operations, but their potential proved limited. Aircraft that could operate from...

Matchlock, wheel lock, flintlock and caplock; muzzle-loading and breech-loading; revolving and rifling — the history of muskets and rifles is a fascinating journey through the development of firearms technology. From early matchlocks of the 15th century to the latest hunting rifles and assault rifles, Collector's Guides: Rifles and Muskets traces the development of these small arms through their technical revolutions. From a 16th century wheel-lock...

A concise guide to the Japanese attack on Hawaii that plunged America into WWII, with facts, maps, historical significance, and more. As America prepared for WWII, everything changed on December 7, 1941-described by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a "date which will live in infamy"-when Japan launched a successful surprise attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor. The devastating attack crippled the fleet, while showing the world...

Get facts, maps, historical significance, strategies, and more in this concise summary of Robert E. Lee's victory in Virginia. The Confederate victory at the Battle of Chancellorsville is considered the crowning military achievement of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Against the numerically superior Union Army of the Potomac, Lee took a calculated risk by dividing his Army of Northern Virginia in what would become the largest flanking maneuver of the Civil War....

Get facts, maps, historical significance, strategies, and more in this concise summary of the notoriously bloody Civil War battle. During the late summer of 1862, Confederate forces launched their first invasion of the North. When Union forces met them near Sharpsburg, Maryland, along Antietam Creek, the result was the "bloodiest day" in American military history. Although the battle of Antietam was a tactical draw, Union Gen. George McClellan stopped...

A concise history of Custer's Last Stand with maps, facts, historical significance, and more. The battle of Little Bighorn, despite its relatively small size, was the worst defeat for the U.S. Army in the Indian Wars. Although it was a clear tactical victory for the Plains Indians, it also would be a significant strategic setback for their cause. The outrage resulting from the Indian victory only intensified efforts by the U.S. Army and its Department...