History of War Magazine - Issue 116

In this issue

‘WE HAVE THE MAXIM’
Early use of the machine gun gave the British an overwhelming battlefield advantage.

SHERMAN: AMERICA’S WAR WINNER
Read the story of the Western Allies’ most successful and controversial tank: the M4.

SHIROYAMA, 1877
Japan’s last major samurai rebellion was finally ended in a bloody last stand on Kyushu island..

'WE HAVE THE MAXIM'

Early machine guns were used by British forces during the 'Scramble for Africa' but the British Army was slow to fully realise their lethal potential

3 mins

INFANTRY BRANCH

Of the three branches of the Machine Gun Corps, the largest was the Infantry. Initially formed in each infantry brigade, a machine gun company took on the role of machine gun support to the infantry battalions

3 mins

MOUNTED & MOTORISED

In October 1915 the Cavalry and Motor branches were created to be more mobile than the infantry brigade companies

3 mins

LEGACY OF THE CORPS

Despite being at its largest in December 1918, the MGC reduced significantly and swiftly after the armistice and subsequent treaty

3 mins

SHERMAN THE MAKING OF A WAR WINNER

The M4 Sherman medium tank was produced in huge numbers during WWII and became the Allies' most prominent yet controversial land weapon of the conflict

10+ mins

THE DEVIL'S PORRIDGE

During World War I, Britain's female workforce rallied to the war effort, joining munitions and weapons factories. Some of this work was notoriously hazardous...

10 mins

SHIROYAMA

A final showdown pitting a rebellious samurai clan against a Westernised army of Japanese conscripts launches a new Asian empire

10+ mins

Heroes of the Victoria Cross ERNEST 'SMOKEY'SMITH

In October 1944, as the Allies fought to establish a bridgehead across Italy's Savio River, a roguish private challenged an armoured column

6 mins

IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF...T.E. LAWRENCE

In late 1916, a little-known archaeologist arrived in the Red Sea port of Jeddah. What started as a trouble-shooting mission would transform the Middle East

8 mins

HOW TO FIGHT A WAR Q+A WITH DR MIKE MARTIN

The former British Army officer and senior visiting fellow at King's College London reveals how and why wars are fought, from the ancient world to Ukraine and beyond

10 mins

WWII THIS MONTH...FEBRUARY 1943

To commemorate 80 years since the Second World War, History of War is taking a look at some of the key events during each month of the conflict

3 mins

JIHADI POLITICS

A RECONSTRUCTION OF THE BLOODY INFIGHTING WITHIN THE GLOBAL JIHADI MOVEMENT THAT SET AL-QAEDA AGAINST ISLAMIC STATE, WITH CONSEQUENCES THAT ARE STILL FELT TODAY

2 mins

RUSSIA'S WAR ON EVERYBODY

THE STORY OF RUSSIAN AGGRESSION AND HOW AND WHY MOSCOW PUSHES FOR POWER AND INFLUENCE FAR BEYOND UKRAINE

1 min

DESERT ARMOUR TANK WARFARE IN NORTH AFRICA

FROM BEDA FOMM TO OPERATION CRUSADER 1940-41, THIS THOROUGH STUDY OF ARMOURED WARFARE IN THE WESTERN DESERT IS A WORTHY ADDITION TO ANY ENTHUSIAST’S SHELF

2 mins

Read all stories from History of War

History of War Magazine Description:

Discover the politics, mechanics, strategies and machines of war.

From the conquering legions of Ancient Rome to the thunderous tank battles of World War II and beyond, History of War takes you deeper inside the minds of history’s fighting men, further under the bonnets of some of the world’s most devastating war machines, and higher above the battlefield to see the broad sweep of conflict as it happened.