Cape Matapan, 27-29 March 1941
Graham Goodlad analyses Cunningham’s masterpiece, the battle which broke the power of fascist Italy in the Mediterranean.
Second World War
Cunningham & Cape Matapan: taking on Mussolini’s battle fleet
For our special this issue, Graham Goodlad analyses the achievements of Admiral Andrew Browne Cunningham, universally known to his peers as ‘ABC’. In this first part, he looks at Cunningham’s life and career, while in the second he offers a detailed commentary on the battle that is widely regarded as his masterpiece.
Survey explores underwater battlefield in western Pacific
The survey, conducted by a team of scientists from the US National Park Service, is the first of a two-part project.
The Second World War in living colour
Most books about the Second World War include only black-and-white photographs, and these are often sketchy or blurred. Some are even staged pieces of propaganda. Colour photography was not unknown at the time, of course, but it was immensely expensive…
Battlefield Ukraine: lessons from history
The roots of the current war in Ukraine are deeply entwined with the nation’s turbulent military history. Here, David Porter examines some of the most important episodes and events.
Fifty years of The World at War
Half a century on, the most comprehensive series ever made about the Second World War is still being shown on television channels around the globe. Taylor Downing takes a critical look.
War Classics: ‘The Face of Battle’
The Vietnam War and associated public distaste for military intervention also provided a challenge as to how the study of warfare was conducted and presented.
![Above Christian with her husband John in 1943 [left] and in 2021 [right]. below An Allied tanker sinks after being hit by a torpedo fired from a U boat during the Battle of the Atlantic.](https://i0.wp.com/the-past.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/post-1_image0-5.jpg?fit=768%2C505&ssl=1)
102-year-old WREN recalls the vital role she played in the Battle of the Atlantic
Christian Lamb – who is now 102 years old – was involved in plotting the course of ONS-5, a slow trade convoy from Britain to North America that saw off a vicious attack from the Kriegsmarine in early May 1943.
The Women Behind the Few: the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and British Intelligence during the Second World War
REVIEW BY COLIN POMEROY With The Women Behind the Few, Sarah-Louise Miller has produced a truly excellent book telling the story of women in multiple roles during the Second World War. The book actually begins with the Great War, with…
Hitler’s Panzer Generals: Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt, and Schmidt unguarded
REVIEW BY CALUM HENDERSON ‘The longer the war lasts the lesser my opinion of the generals.’ These were the words in April 1943 of Ulrich von Hassell, a German diplomat who was executed for his role in the 20 July…
CA 399 Letters – May
Your views on issues raised in CA.
Tally-Ho: RAF tactical leadership in the Battle of Britain, July 1940
REVIEW by COLIN POMEROY A renowned writer on air combat in World War II, Professor Patrick Eriksson is well known for his detailed research, something he fully demonstrates in this new book, which takes its name from the fighter pilot’s…
This week: Churchill’s US arsenal
He is, without doubt, the most quoted prime minister in British history. But even by his own standards, the speech that Winston Churchill made on 5 March 1946 stands out. Addressing an audience in Fulton, Missouri, he warned that an…
Churchill’s American arsenal: the special relationship that won World War II
In a new book, Larrie D Ferreiro explains how a special relationship between British and US combat scientists and engineers produced the innovations that won the Second World War.
Stand ‘Easy’: searching for the ‘Band of Brothers’ at Aldbourne
Before the celebrated US paratroopers known as ‘Easy’ Company were deployed on D-Day, they were based at Aldbourne in Wiltshire. What have recent excavations revealed about their camp? Richard Osgood reports.
German mass grave found in WWI tunnel to be consecrated as a war memorial
On 4 May 1917, the entrance to the tunnel on the Chemin des Dames collapsed following French shelling.
Spain at war: a country divided
Chris Bambery traces the history of the Spanish Civil War and sets the scene for the conflict’s bloodiest battle.
MHM 132 Letters – January
Your thoughts on issues raised by the magazine
MHM Book of the Year 2023
The MHM Book Awards recognise the best military history titles, as voted for by you.
War on Film – Casablanca
TAYLOR DOWNING reviews a classic war film.
Clash in the Pacific: the fight for Guadalcanal
Eighty years on, Graham Goodlad analyses the brutal battle that brought an end to Japanese expansion in the Far East.
Review: The Museum of Flight
Open 10am-5pm (closed Christmas and Thanksgiving)9404 East Marginal Way South, Seattle, WA 98108-4097www.museumofflight.org+1 206 764 5700 Long before the advent of computer-generated imagery, better known as CGI, filmmakers relied on actual planes to recreate the thrills and dangers of aerial…
Back to the Drawing Board: the M11/39 Medium Tank
DAVID PORTER ON MILITARY HISTORY’S DOOMED INVENTIONS
The Commanders: the leadership journeys of George Patton, Bernard Montgomery, and Erwin Rommel Lloyd Clark
REVIEW BY GRAHAM GOODLAD This is not the first joint biography of George Patton, Bernard Montgomery, and Erwin Rommel, arguably the three outstanding battlefield commanders of World War II. Terry Brighton led the way in 2009 with his acclaimed study…
Military History Competition: win a copy Max Hastings’ Bomber Command
This issue, we’re giving away two copies of Max Hastings’ classic book Bomber Command, courtesy of The Folio Society.
Military History Matters 131 Letters – November 2022
Your thoughts on issues raised by the magazine.
The Brewster F2A Buffalo
The Buffalo originated with a 1935 requirement for a carrier-based fighter to replace the US Navy’s Grumman F3F biplanes. Brewster’s XF2A-1 prototype was selected in June 1938 and the first production aircraft began to enter service as the F2A-1 in…
This week: Dunkirk
The events of late May and early June 1940 have long been the stuff of patriotic British legend, celebrated in classic war movies (most recently Christopher Nolan’s 2017 blockbuster), and hailed by Winston Churchill as a ‘miracle of deliverance’. For…
‘The Year 1940’ Quiz
Which day in 1940 saw the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, bringing the so-called Phoney War to an end?
Military history exhibitions and events in Winter 2022 – Spring 2023
A round-up of some of the best military history events, exhibitions, and galleries in the UK and the US.
Was Dunkirk really a miracle?
In a new book, Robert Kershaw argues that the lack of a German perspective means we have only a partial understanding of the events of May-June 1940. Here, he explains what his research tells us about a battle that changed the tide of the Second World War.
The USSR at 100
There were two revolutions in Russia in 1917. In March, tens of thousands of striking workers, peasants, and soldiers — exhausted by the privations of the First World War — took to the streets of Petrograd (St Petersburg) in protest.…
The Mosquito Men: the unsung heroes of 627 Squadron
The elite Pathfinders of 627 Squadron may not have achieved the renown of their Dambusting comrades in 617 Squadron but, as David Price explains in a new book, their Second World War acts of valour were equally remarkable.
Historic bridge across Rhine to be reconstructed
The bridge will be reserved for pedestrians and cyclists, as well as serving as a monument to victims of the war.
Colditz: prisoners of the castle
REVIEW BY TAYLOR DOWNING Ben Macintyre is well known for his books on spies and espionage, like Agent Zigzag, Double Cross, and Philby. Earlier this year, one of his other works, Operation Mincemeat, was adapted into a hugely successful movie…
Review: Scapa Flow Museum
Scapa Flow is a vast natural harbour in the Orkneys, to the north of mainland Scotland. In the First World War, it was where the Grand Fleet was based. And in the Second it was the anchorage for the Home Fleet, therefore playing a central role in the naval history of two wars.