Steve Dunn is the author of 15 books, mostly on specific aspects of World War I at sea, from the Dover Patrol to the defence of the Western Approaches. In Spectre of Invasion, he has turned his hand to a…
Don Hollway’s account of the life of the Norse warlord Olaf Tryggvason (king of Norway in the years c.995-1000) covers a period of momentous social and religious change in the lands bordering the Baltic Sea. The author tracks his hero’s…
Six coins have been recovered from beneath the foremast of Nelson’s famous flagship during an ongoing conservation project. Over several nights in April, a 750-tonne crane was used to remove the Victory’s mizzen, foremast, and bowsprit, as part of the…
A second season of excavations at Bodiam Castle in Sussex has revealed extensive evidence of a Roman presence, with tiles and pottery confirming that the site was home to a port for the Classis Britannica – the Roman naval fleet…
Military History Matters has curated a list of best military history titles from 2025: the nominees for this year’s MHM book awards. Our selection includes some of the best researched, most insightful, and most readable titles reviewed and featured in…
MHM’s round-up of the latest military history releases.
Chalke History Festival returns to the Wiltshire countryside this summer for a week of talks, performances, living history encampments, and more. A star-studded lineup of speakers will explore a vast variety of topics, spanning ancient to modern history, including many…
Marine archaeologists have uncovered the wreck of the Dannebroge, a Danish warship sunk during the Battle of Copenhagen on 2 April 1801. The Dannebroge sat at the centre of a chain of old Danish ships of the line that had…
A temporary export ban has been placed on a Union Flag that flew from HMS Royal Sovereign – the ship that led the British charge at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805 – in order to allow time…
The ruins of ancient Phaselis occupy a striking setting on the Mediterranean shore. Matthew Symonds visited to find out more.
MHM’s round-up of the latest military history releases.
REVIEW BY LISA BRIGGS It has been 15 years since A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor was first published and introduced readers to a novel method of breaking down world history into bite-sized, easily digestible…
REVIEW BY GRAHAM GOODLAD Andrew Lambert has earned a reputation as the leading naval historian of his generation with a series of books on Nelson, the Anglo-American War of 1812-1814, and the Crimean War. In 2018, his Seapower States chronicled…
REVIEW BY KK Opening with a brutal account of fratricide between the sons of the pioneering physician who first described Down’s syndrome, this book about boathouses is unexpectedly gripping. The rest of the publication is not nearly so dramatic, but…
Nick Spenceley reconsiders Alfred Thayer Mahan’s The Influence of Sea Power Upon History.
A project has begun to preserve the 400-year-old Swedish warship Vasa, which notoriously sank on her maiden voyage. A new metal structure is being installed to support the hull of the ship, which has its own museum in Stockholm and…
Reviewing the best military history exhibitions with Carly Jones.
Put your military history knowledge to the test with our competition.
A new research project is using artificial intelligence to uncover the stories of Union sailors, or ‘bluejackets’, during the American Civil War. The study is the result of a collaboration between the universities of Sheffield and Northumbria. It aims to…
Construction has begun on a new home for a rare German U-boat from the Second World War. The new Battle of the Atlantic U-boat Museum, which will house the vessel U-534, is expected to open in Birkenhead in 2026. The…
REVIEW BY GRAHAM GOODLAD Nicholas Rodger began his monumental history of British sea power, tracing its development from Anglo-Saxon times to the end of the Second World War, almost three decades ago. The second volume, which took the story from…
An anonymous shipwreck discovered off St Alban’s Head in Dorset more than 30 years ago has finally been identified by marine archaeologists from Bournemouth University. Found in 1990 at a depth of c.27m, the 24m-long vessel was nicknamed the ‘Pin…
With Marc DeSantis
A British troopship sunk during the First World War has been located off the coast of Greece. Nearly 300 men were lost after SS Arcadian was torpedoed by a U-boat in spring 1917, although one former Titanic passenger who was…
There were nine sailmakers in West Coker at the start of the 19th century, and the bleaching fields around the Somerset village were white with canvas sheets laid out in the sun. ‘Coker canvas’ became the generic name for the…
Everyone has a story to tell. So do warships. The saga of the USS The Sullivans, which was launched in April 1943, is still making headlines today. The Fletcher-class destroyer is one of three decommissioned World War II- era naval…
With Marc DeSantis
MHM’s round-up of the latest military history titles
REVIEW BY CALUM HENDERSON The Battle of Normandy has been covered extensively in the 80 years since it took place. But less well remembered is the naval campaign that accompanied it, the subject of this new book by Nick Hewitt,…
REVIEW BY ANDREW MULHOLLAND The Arctic campaign, fought between 1941 and 1945, saw Allied convoys battling through icy seas to deliver supplies to northern Russia. It was the stuff of legend. Yet more than 90 per cent of the cargo…
More than a hundred letters that were sent to imprisoned French sailors during the Seven Years War have been opened for the first time. The messages were seized by the British Royal Navy during the conflict, which took place between…
Survey records 30 wrecks sunk during Operation Dynamo Over the course of two weeks in September and October, DRASSM (the French marine heritage agency), in partnership with Historic England, carried out a survey of 30 shipwrecks sunk during Operation Dynamo,…
Test your military history knowledge with our crossword!
A look at some of the best military history events and exhibitions to check out.
Humans in the late Palaeolithic lived mainly on the coastline at a time when sea levels were up to 100m lower than they are today, meaning much of the archaeology of this period now lies below the waves.
A new exhibition at Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery features artefacts recovered from the wreck of the Gloucester, which sank off Norfolk in 1682. Carly Hilts visited and spoke to curators Professor Claire Jowitt and Dr Francesca Vanke to find out more.