Questions tagged [military]
Questions pertaining to characteristics of armed forces' structure, manpower, equipment, or expenditures.
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In Early modern European warfare how and why were cavalry used instead of infantry?
In Early modern European warfare how and why were cavalry used instead of infantry?
In European warfare the default company is the infantry company. This may be of varying grades of weight from royal ...
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184 views
Could anyone please help identify this gentleman. I would say he was in the Argyll's
I would guess he was in the Argyll's but who is he?
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1answer
205 views
When was the last time that the U.S. as a country, state, or city was occupied by foreign troops?
Of recent wars (1900 to today) I can only think of instances of the U.S. sending offensive troops to occupy other nations.
I understand that we've been attacked by the likes of Pearl Harbor and 9/11 ...
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How does one return “war booty” to their rightful original owners? [closed]
I honestly don't know where to ask this question, so here goes.
My grandfather served on the Communist side during the Vietnam War. He shot down an F-104 (or an F-4) and removed a piece of flight ...
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57 views
How many men could Emperor Ningzong of Song field?
I've been looking to see how many men Emperor Ningzong could field but just can't seem to find the amount.
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2answers
249 views
Did Soviet Union really consider using atomic bomb against US aircraft battlegroup?
In this video youtube narrator says that:
"During Cold War Soviet Union considered American battle-group such a dire threat that they predicted the only way to defend against them would be by use ...
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2answers
1k views
Why did only Anglo-Saxon kings wear helmets?
According to this article on the BBC news website only Anglo-Saxon kings wore helmets. Here is the full quote:
"Only Anglo-Saxon kings wore helmets and this is one of a very small number ever to be ...
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1answer
191 views
What were the differences between mortars and other artilleries in world war I?
Artillery just means missiles today.
In WWI did artillery and mortars worked the same way only difference being the angle its being fired at, and how big the projectile is.
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1answer
81 views
Where can I find primary sources on mortars/artillery in world war one?
I need primary sources for artillery from ww1. I have looked everywhere such as the database of the World War I Document Archive, Proquest and archive.org but with no luck. So I am asking here as a ...
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1answer
205 views
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1answer
5k views
What type of plane is this wreck?
I have found this picture on MSN, with the claim that it is a P-38 somewhere at the French Riviera. However the P-38 Lightning is a twin-engined fighter, while this wreck has most probably four. What ...
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0answers
69 views
What was the troop ratio between the red and white army in the Russian revolution?
I am making a game over the Russian Revolution for English class. I want to make this game a somewhat accurate representation of the Russian Revolution. I have been able find the answers to all of my ...
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69 views
Hussars Elite force [closed]
I wanted to write about a group of Hussars light cavalry that wore black feathers head to toe. I saw a book from Poland with a drawing on the inside cover, but I have not been able to find out ...
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What Roman legions were present in London (UK)?
I have just come across an interesting article about the Romans in London (UK):
Roman eagle found by archaeologists in City of London
a Picture from the above article (just to have an idea):
My ...
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1answer
2k views
In WWI, which countries used prisoners as soldiers?
What happened to prisoners incarcerated for domestic crimes (not war) before and during the outbreak of the Great War?
Using a UK report, in 1914 the prison population dropped around 5000, but 11,000 ...
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1answer
154 views
What mesoamerican culture used long, “pike-like” spears?
A while back, I read about some Mesoamerican tribe or culture that armed many of its warriors with extremely long spears, that either the Spanish invaders or the article I read itself compared to the ...
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1answer
125 views
Is this a US Civil War uniform?
Image is a photo of an original tin type (photographic method introduced in 1856, in popular production until roughly 1867), hat appears to be U.S. Civil War - Union, "X" patch on right front breast ...
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1answer
356 views
Why do foreign dignitaries inspect guards of honour upon arrival?
I've been watching videos of various dignitaries (heads of state, heads of government, important officials, etc.) arriving for state visits in foreign countries. I noticed that upon disembarking from ...
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2answers
421 views
What is this war machine shown on Trajan's column?
The most comprehensive visual evidence about Roman army of I-II centuries is the Trajan column. It shows in great detail cloths, weapons, ships, military machines and other equipment of the Roman army....
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1answer
119 views
How to decode / read US Veterans Bureau Form 7202?
In doing some family background research, I came across an old military service record which says it is a "Form 7202 - Rev. Sept., 1927". I would like to decipher the meanings of the various codes to ...
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2answers
153 views
Besides the US in 1958, has there been a post-WWII show of force by any military in the Taiwan Strait (excluding Taiwan and China)?
CNN's article US Vice President Pence set to inflame China tensions: 'We will not be intimidated' describes an upcoming speech by US VP Pence and the existence of a proposed military exercise in ...
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1answer
164 views
How effective were archers/ slingers / skirmishers in Greek, Roman and Medieval Period?
So it seemed that from the accounts of Thermopelea, Roman military strategy of waiting out an arrow storm, and Knights holding out for hours behind a shield wall during the first crusade it ...
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3answers
4k views
Which air minister said (before or during WW2) that parachute troops are just a circus?
In Chapter 32, Airborne Forces of Liddell Hart (ed), The Soviet Army, Kurt Student says, after noting the abscence of paratroop involvment in the invasion of Poland (p. 378), that
`Parachute troops ...
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1answer
130 views
How frequently did the KMT use telegrams to communicate; from where (roughly) and to whom?
This answer to the Chinese Language SE question Historical: How was Chinese written in telegrams and early computers? says (in part):
Following is a telegram code "dictionary" used by Japan ...
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2answers
5k views
What was the fastest military draft in the United States?
In the United States, men aged 18-25 are required to register for a possible military draft. The original argument was that the country would need large numbers of troops in a hurry, and (back then) ...
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How did succession work in the modern Argentine military dictatorships?
For example, it says on the wikipedia page for Alfredo Oscar Saint Jean, an Argentine president and general: "Saint-Jean's brief period as President in June and July 1982 ended when he was succeeded ...
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1answer
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Under Catherine the Great were all officers appointed for five years?
I noticed that the chief commandants of Kamchatka seemed to serve terms of about five years (Koselev 1802-1807, Petrovskii 1807-1813, Rudakov 1813-1817). These seem to have been Majors-General (rank ...
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461 views
Which Allied aircraft scored the most air-to-air kills against the Me 262 in WWII?
Backgound:
The Schwalbe (German: "Swallow") fighter version of the Messerschmitt Me 262 was the first operational jet-powered fighter aircraft, with the first test unit having been formed on 19 April,...
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3answers
379 views
Why can't people on the back of the phalanx “reorient” their shield?
What do men in the middle of a phalanx contribute?
says that phalanx are vulnerable from behind
So what does people in phalanx formation when they get smacked from behind? They just keep pointing ...
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3answers
564 views
How can a skilled battle commander like Napoleon Bonaparte lose to Prussians at Waterloo (Belgium) as such?
According to this website Napoleon Bonaparte lost the battle at Waterloo to Prussians because(Chronologically):
1. The failure of Grouchy keeping the Prussians away from the Battlefield.
2. The ...
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2answers
220 views
Trying to identify a military uniform, ca. WWI
I've recently come into a a large group of dry glass plate negatives, and this is one of the first images I've come across. Most of the the other slides I've seen, so far, are likely from the early ...
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When did SHAEF / Eisenhower move HQ from London to France during WWII?
SHAEF meeting in London 1944
Two different reputable sources indicate two different time frames for SHAEF's move from London to Versailles:
The Military Agency Records of the National Archives ...
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387 views
Example of a battering ram used to successfully breach a gate
I am looking for a specific example of a battering ram used to breach the gate of a castle or fortification in Europe. I can find lots of indirect references to the use of battering rams on gates (...
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2answers
451 views
What do men in the middle of a phalanx contribute?
I understand how the Phalanx can have an almost impenetrable front, and I understand the rear and sides may have to defend against an attack like the front - but what purpose do men in the middle ...
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0answers
110 views
What was the maneuver called when an infantry co. fired in two different directions while advancing? [closed]
When a Napoleonic-era infantry company was taking fire from front and rear, what is the maneuver called where they covered their rear while advancing forward?
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2answers
2k views
Why didn't Eisenhower personally sign Act of Military Surrender in Reims, 1945?
My question is about German Army Surrender in Reims. The unconditional surrender was signed by Colonel General Alfred Jodl, on behalf of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht and General Walter Bedell Smith ...
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2answers
361 views
Identification of radio equipment and its purpose in Vietnam
The following photograph is from the first years of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. These soldiers are wearing baseball caps and their patches are in color. Later, the patches were olive drab. Obviously, ...
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2answers
427 views
Has the training of Russian troops improved since 1989? [closed]
Recently, USA has excluded Pakistan from military training list. On the flip side, Pakistan has signed an agreement with Russian Federation for the training of its officers. My personal assessment is, ...
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1answer
2k views
In Britain, what was the “Junior Service” in 1913?
I read a marriage notice from 1913, which noted that the father of the groom "has four sons abroad, three having served with distinction in the junior Service".
(West Sussex Gazette, Thu 13 Feb 1913, ...
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Can you identify this military uniform? Montana 1850-1920
Portrait taken in Montana-best guess between 1850 and 1920. WWI?? Slouch hat. Single-breasted coat with 5 or 6 buttons. Breast pocket on each side; diagonal, flap with button. Knee-high boots. Curvy ...
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1answer
86 views
Can the assignment “Depot Battalion” in Hart's Annual Army List be linked to a specific regimental assignment?
In this question I asked about the meaning of the assignment "depot battalion" in Hart's Annual Army List, a book that lists the assignments of every British officer in the Victoria era, each year.
...
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What does “Depot Battalion” mean in Hart's Annual Army List?
Copies of Hart's Annual Army List are available online, and consist of a list of all British army officers employed in a given year.
Some of the listings are self-explanatory (e.g. so-and-so with ...
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92 views
Mutual support in Latin American wars of independence
Nascent Latin American countries expelled Spain with some mutual aid from each other. Between 1815 and 1822, independent Argentina and Chile sent newly acquired naval forces (under Bouchard, Brown, ...
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2answers
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Who was Richard of York at the Battle of Grunwald?
Gloria.TV states that "the foreign knight,...Richard of York" fought, and was killed, at the Battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg) in 1410. I can find no one from the house of York who might have been at ...
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2answers
435 views
Why were so few Koreans enlisted in the Japanese Army before conscription was introduced in 1944?
Citing two sources, the article Korea under Japanese rule gives the following figures showing that very few Koreans who volunteered for enlistment into the Japanese army 1938 – 1943 were actually ...
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1answer
180 views
Can someone help me ID this insignia?
Charles Miller - fought with US Army at battle at Wounded Knee - this photographer took images during and after the Battle. Anyone recognize the insignia? He later became a Mason? Could it be from ...
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1answer
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Where was this flag flown?
I have a 48 Star flag that I have recently acquired from a seller off of a similar setting to Craigslist. He said he’s found it in an attic and really has no other information on it. Because the size ...
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1answer
222 views
Turko-Mongol horse tactics and Western European response
Did not seem that Western European armies stood up to Turco-Mongol military tactics such as the horse archer. Did these European armies ever learn to counter those tactics? The Slavs (Polish) had a ...
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5answers
7k views
Why didn't line infantry tactics try to keep up a constant volley of fire?
Often in movies on the American revolution and back when muskets were common place the opposing armies would line up facing each other and take turns firing. One side, then the other. Kind of like a ...
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2answers
237 views
Are there any surviving military textbooks from the Napoleonic era?
Napoleon attended school for military officers, so it stands to reason they would have some books around which they based their curriculum. Are there any complete and publicly available recordings of ...
