The History Network

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The Reluctant Warlord; The wars of Marcus Aurelius Oct 31, 2014

Show notes

Angus Wallace (from the History Network) is joined by Josho, Lindsay and Mark McCaffery to look at Ancient Warfare Magazine Volume 7, Issue 6. The Reluctant Warlord: The Wars of Marcus Aurelius.

"With Marcus Aurelius, the Roman Empire was for the first time ruled by two emperors, both adoptive sons of the late Emperor Antoninus Pius (r. AD 138–161). Marcus had selected his nine-year-younger adoptive brother Lucius Verus to be his co-emperor. The two individuals could not have been more different in character. While the ascetic Marcus, whose main interest was philosophy, had been taught to “avoid the ways of the rich” (Meditations 1.3.), critics declaimed against Lucius’ luxurious lifestyle and his habits."

1709 Hobart's Funnies - Hobart Oct 24, 2014

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D-Day the invasion of Europe was to take place at low tide, this minimised the risk of landing craft hitting mines and other submerged obstacles. But this created problems for the troops being landed. It was going to be a long dash over a sandy beach which may have been mined, supporting vehicles could quickly become bogged down in the soft sand then once over the beach the man-made defences had to be breached. To achieve this the 79th Armoured Division was formed, commanded by the maverick, Major General Percy Hobart, he oversaw the development of a number of unusually modified tanks to overcome problems the invaders would face, these would become known as “Hobart’s Funnies”. Dur: 23mins File: .mp3

1708 Napoleonic Infantry Tactics Oct 11, 2014

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Column, Line or Square is a very simplistic way to view Napoleonic era tactics. Troops were either deployed in Column to march, Line to fight or in the case of the infantry Square to defend against Cavalry. Sounds simple. But these were tactics drawn up and codified to allow for a new era, where large numbers of troops were deployed. Sometimes they were conscripts, sometimes poorly trained and in the case of the infantry using muskets with limited range and poor accuracy. Dur: 20mins File: .mp3

1707 The Battle of Arras, 1917 Sep 27, 2014

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The Battle of Arras was in fact a series of Battles in April/May 1917, including Vimy Ridge, which has gone down in history as being an allied victory, but which in reality saw little gain in terms of allied advance and huge casualty figures on both sides after its 39 day duration. In fact such was the attrition rate that for the allies it surpassed The Somme in terms of daily casualty toll. Include the German casualties and an average of some seven and a half thousand casualties a day occurred throughout. Dur: 21mins File: .mp3

1706 The Taiping Rebellion Sep 12, 2014

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The clang of gongs hung in the heavy air of an August day, 1860. Waving their yellow flags, the rebels in their red turbans and colourful garb marched closer and closer to Shanghai – until artillery erupted from the city walls and sent them scurrying for cover. Yet the rebels would not fire back. At last they withdrew, scratching their heads that the British and French troops were killing them, not greeting them as Christian brothers. For these rebels had been baptized and had no quarrel with the foreigners of Shanghai. And their enemy was the same Chinese government that Anglo-French forces on that same day battled in the north. Dur: 33mins File: .mp3

1705 Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban Aug 31, 2014

Show notes

In looking back through history, it is kings, queens, politicians and generals who steal the limelight. Those people who actually "do" the bidding are often much less well known. How many people are familiar with Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Marshal of France? The foremost military engineer of his day, he was renowned not only for building fortifications but for developing the art of siege craft. Dur: 15mins File: .mp3

1704 The Battle of Blenheim Aug 17, 2014

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It had been largely accepted that "Charles the Sufferer", the feeble and sickly King of Spain, would die without an heir. The nearest claimants to the Spanish Crown were the king's cousins; the Bourbon King of France, Louis XIV, and the Austrian Habsburg Leopold I, the Holy Roman Emperor. Married to Charles's Sisters, both had a strong claim. With the succession storm brewing Europe's monarchs entered into agreements in order to place themselves in favorable positions at the moment of Charles's death. Some aligning themselves with the house of Bourbon, others with that of Habsburg. Dur: 23 mins File: .mp3

1703 The Origins of the First World War Aug 01, 2014

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There is no single factor to blame for the outbreak of the First World War. At best we can say that the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, was the catalyst setting in motion a string of events that resulted in war. For decades tensions had been mounting between the European powers. It was these tensions that lead to a complex web of alliances, which would eventually drag the great powers into war. Dur: 19mins File: .mp3

March of the Ten Thousand Jul 25, 2014

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Josho, Murray and Lindsay are joined by Roel Konijnendijk to discuss Ancient Warfare issue VII.5

"The march of the Ten Thousand is one of the best documented campaigns in Greek military history, thanks to the detailed narrative of Xenophon. He was a young Athenian expatriate who eventually rose to a senior position of command among the Hellenic survivors of Cyrus’ mercenary army."

For more information Ancient Warfare Magazine visit ancient-warfare.com

1702 The Battles of Saratoga Jul 20, 2014

Show notes

On October 17, 1777, British General John Burgoyne surrendered his army to American forces under the command of General Horatio Gates, marking the end of an ambitious campaign to isolate the rebellious New England colonies from the rest with a three pincer movement all leading to Albany, New York. There were two battles at Saratoga. The first, the Battle of Freeman's Farm, took place on September 19 and the second, the Battle of Bemis Heights, took place on October 7. One patriot, Henry Sewall, wrote "Perhaps an unprecedented Instance that near 6,000 British & foreign Troops, under the command of an accomplish’d General, should surrender themselves Prisoners of War in the field to an Army of raw Continental Troops & Militia!" Dur: 43mins File: .mp3

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