Questions tagged [war]
An armed conflict between state actors, typically for a political or economic aim. Use this tag for specific wars.
428
questions
5
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1answer
218 views
Was the M4 Sherman used frequently in artillery capacity?
I've heard the M4 Sherman had instruments on it that allowed it to act as an artillery piece. Is there any evidence to suggest this was effective?
I've heard that the Sherman had of course, its High ...
2
votes
3answers
262 views
Why was Hesse south of the Main left out of the North German Confederation?
When the North German Confederation was founded after the Austro-Prussian war, it included all German states north of the Main, including the part of Hesse that was north of the Main. However the ...
1
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2answers
161 views
Were British officers able to return home after the American Revolution?
Were defeated British officers able to return home after England lost the war or were they taken prisoner? I am writing a novel set in the aftermath of the American Revolution. What happened to the ...
40
votes
3answers
9k views
Why can I visit battlefields, but not battleships?
Why are warships declared as war graves prohibiting divers from even visiting them (let alone entering them or taking artifacts) and yet I as a pedestrian I can freely visit the Somme or any other ...
10
votes
1answer
146 views
How did the Swedish army deal with prisoners of war in the Thirty Years War?
Researching for this answer to another question I found the martial law and "Articulsbrief" (norms for the mercenary soldiers) of Sweden after the reform of the military of King Gustav II ...
-3
votes
1answer
184 views
How hard was it to produce German zeppelin pilots in World War One? [closed]
I would like to know how much time it took to train new zeppelin pilots, the cost to train them, if the airship pilots were normal airplane pilots, and the demand for them.
Any help will be ...
-2
votes
2answers
196 views
Why were/are mines ever considered sensible as a weapon? [closed]
Ever since I was a kid, up until now that I'm middle-aged, I've always wondered why, in wars or otherwise, they bother digging down mines which explode when humans tramp on/near them. This seems like ...
2
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0answers
101 views
Is there a historical example of two neutral armies meeting in the field? [closed]
Usually, when two armies of different nations are in close proximity to each other, it is for good reason. For example,
They are at war with each other;
There are tensions between their nations and ...
5
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0answers
162 views
How did U-boats enter and exit the submarine pens at Brest?
I was reading about the Brest submarine pen/bunker complex and looking at pictures of it. I was even able to locate a set of blueprints of the base here. But because of the poor quality of the image ...
3
votes
1answer
200 views
How did Japanese small boats win against Mongolian ships?
During the first attempted Mongolian invasion of Japan, fighting mostly occurred on land, just after Mongolian landings. Only local landlords were there to fight, and they did not manage well. In this ...
0
votes
2answers
278 views
Have there been any known cases of governments/military powers PRETENDING to be incompetent, as a sneaky form of security?
This intrigues me, especially after reading a lot about WW2 ciphers and sneaky techniques by the British, etc.
Are there any known/famous cases of governments/military powers consistently and ...
0
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0answers
42 views
What are some sources about nursing in Devon in WW2?
I am working with a South Devon village group putting a display etc together for the celebration of VE Day. I am a nurse and keen to do something about district nursing/midwifery for those left at ...
4
votes
5answers
700 views
What military power would ever pre-announce an attack to give the enemy time to work up a defense?
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the
Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service against the United States naval
base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory, on the morning of ...
9
votes
3answers
4k views
Could besieged medieval cities develop a micro-economy during wars to endure the siege for long time? [closed]
During the medieval age, one of the main reasons that pushed besieged cities to capitulate was the exhaustion of provisions (foods,water,drugs...) that maintain the every-day life of the city ...
30
votes
5answers
9k views
Why did the Allies Invade French North Africa?
Question: Why did the allies invade Vichy French North Africa?
Operation Torch was the name of the Anglo American Invasion of French North Africa. Both of the American most ...
4
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0answers
98 views
What was the likely death toll of the Tudor invasion of ireland?
Ben Kiernan uses the Tudor Conquest of Ireland as an example of an early modern genocidal campaign in his book Blood and Soil. While he quotes extensive contemporary description of depopulated ...
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3answers
217 views
Has there ever been a war where 2 parties who were at war with each other cooperated on a strike against a third party? [duplicate]
Has there ever been a situation where the following conditions applied:
At the same point in time
A is actively war with B on battlefield 1
other troops of both sides work together* against C on ...
-2
votes
1answer
188 views
In which instances in history did an attacker ask the attackee to borrow some of their ammunition in order to continue the fight?
I read on https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Peter_Tordenskjold&oldid=937200048#Court-martial:
In 1714, Wessel was court-martialled after an indecisive sea battle with a Swedish frigate....
2
votes
1answer
433 views
Why was Saturnino Martín Cerezo honored by the Spanish government?
Saturnino Martín Cerezo (page not available in English) a lieutenant in the Spanish army, was involved in the famous Siege of Baler, in which a small contingent of Spanish soldiers held out against ...
-2
votes
1answer
154 views
What was the military background of the Irish company at the Siege of Jadotville?
During the Siege of Jadotville, the Irish "A" company under Quinlan's command and UN mandate seems to have fought pretty well.
It is especially mentioned in the linked article a good capacity in ...
3
votes
0answers
133 views
What actually happened during the elephant duel (Songkram Yutahatti) between King Naresuan of Ayutthaya/Siam and Mingy Swa of Hongsawadee/Burma?
Before we start, I just want to say that I find Thai history and the history of Southeast Asia in general to be extremely fascinating and interesting. I think that it’s just as interesting as Chinese ...
2
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1answer
152 views
What was the total megatonnage of all munitions expended in World War 2?
I'm wondering about the total megatonnage of all munitions expended during World War Two in all theaters.
I've seen estimates of 2, 3 and 5, but no concrete cited sources for a specific number.
27
votes
3answers
11k views
Was any stimulant used in wars before WW2 that gave a significant advantage to soldiers?
During World War II German soldiers were given a drug called Pervitin, which was a form of methamphetamine and is considered having given them a significant advantage during the war.
Was any ...
4
votes
1answer
225 views
How were wars financed under Islamic empires?
A related question is this thread, where the subject in question were banks, and how they operated and profited under Islamic rule.
In Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), charging interest on loans is ...
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2answers
151 views
Did any country ever suppress the value of money?
I am thinking of events such as massive disease, starvation of war, during which physical resources and manpower were so important that it did not make sense anymore to count them with money.
As a ...
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2answers
299 views
How were the Burmese able to sack Ayutthaya when it was one of the wealthiest and most powerful cities in Asia at the time? [closed]
So I’m “watching” (more like skipping to the interesting scenes) the Thai lakorn/historical drama Sri Ayodhaya and in one episode, this one professor said that Ayutthaya was an incredibly wealthy and ...
4
votes
0answers
115 views
Was the internment camp Thalerhof the first concentration camp in Europe?
During World War I, Austrohungarian authorities ran a so-called internment camp in Thalerhof (close to Graz in modern Austria). According to Encyclopedia of Ukraine
The first 2,000 prisoners at ...
3
votes
1answer
253 views
Were any tactical missiles used during the 1971 Indo Pakistan war?
During the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971, some Sidewinder and Atoll missiles were used in the air. The SA 2 guidline was used by the Indian side as SAM, and on sea the Indian navy struck Pakistani bases ...
-4
votes
1answer
90 views
Could an amphibious attack have succeeded during the Gulf War? [closed]
During the Gulf War (1991), the US Navy and the US Marine Corps had assembled consequent naval and amphibious forces. Some of them (including the battleship Iowa) were attacked by Iraqi antiship ...
1
vote
0answers
165 views
What was the aftermath of a battle in the middle ages? How did wounded soldiers proceed?
The Red Cross was founded by 1859 over these circumstances:
Until the middle of the 19th century, there were no organized and/or well-established army nursing systems for casualties and no safe and ...
2
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0answers
192 views
Could someone help me identify this button from a WW2 prison camp field?
I'm struggling to identify a button found in a field in Italy, where WW2's prison camps were built.
Searching online I found a lot of American's Civil War buttons that could be related to it, based on ...
1
vote
1answer
175 views
What restrictions were placed on embedded journalists during the Persian Gulf War?
I am currently researching the effect of the 24-hour news cycle on U.S. Foreign policy during the Gulf War and am looking for primary sources from the U.S. and/or British military pertaining to ...
6
votes
1answer
599 views
Is The King (2019) historically realistic? [closed]
The King (2019) by Netflix is about king Henry V.
A few aspects of the movie struck me as either unbelievable, or contradicting what little even I know about history.
In no particular order:
The ...
7
votes
1answer
410 views
What happens to interned military personnel if war is declared post-internment?
Here is a real-world example during World War I. The German ship SMS Geier sails to neutral port in Hawaii in 1914, territory of the United States. Since the USA and Germany are not at war, the ship ...
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1answer
387 views
Rifle with bayonet thrown like a javelin
I mean certainly there had to be a circumstance at one point where a soldier's only chance was to throw his rifle and somehow ended up winning? my searches have garnered no luck..
edit:for the 150 ...
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0answers
149 views
Did soldiers and/or athletes of ancient times perform any kind of stretch or warmup exercises?
There are some 'time travel' stories where the protagonist, hailing from a modern age, does stretches and warmup exercises (calisthenics, radio, etc) and the natives have no idea what that is.
There'...
4
votes
1answer
458 views
How long did men have to serve in the US army until they were promoted to sergeants during WW2?
During the Second World War men rose through ranks much quicker than they do today due to heavy losses and they went from private to corporal and corporal to sergeant after serving only a small amount ...
2
votes
1answer
269 views
Do historians agree that wars break out because of miscalculations? [closed]
I am not a historian and have always been curious as to really why wars break out. I find it unthinkable how people can decide to kill each other in big numbers and cannot just resolve all matters ...
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votes
3answers
704 views
Has a sniper ever disabled a tank?
In theory, a sniper can disable a tank.
shoot out the gun sight
shoot out the driver sight
wait for crew to open the hatch because they can't see
shoot the crew
Has this ever happened? The snipers ...
1
vote
1answer
187 views
In Tolstoy's War and Peace, one character is captured after the Battle of Austerlitz and is taken as a POW. Was his experience historically accurate?
Prince Andrei Bolkonsky is captured after sustaining a wound in battle and is taken as a POW. He, along with other officers of the Russian Army, were treated with care and respect by the French, and ...
51
votes
17answers
21k views
Was Switzerland really impossible to invade during WW2?
My question is not about an alternative scenario, nor about the reasons that caused Switzerland to not get invaded (as could be seen here: Why was Switzerland not attacked during the two World Wars?). ...
7
votes
1answer
429 views
What kind of bullet did I find in Swiss glacial ice?
I found this bullet frozen in glacial ice in Switzerland. There is no visible stamp on it anymore and unfortunately did not have any precise measuring equipment with me. I can measure the size of my ...
3
votes
3answers
469 views
What factors explain Indian territorial restraint towards Pakistani occupied Kashmir despite military success against Pakistan?
It would seem that the Indian army managed on three separate occasions to beat its Pakistani opposite, but did not press these advantages by occupying the Pakistani portion of Kashmir.
The three ...
4
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0answers
263 views
What was China's claim line in the Aksai Chin before the 1962 war?
The original mutually agreeable boundary seems to have been the McCartney-MacDonald line since the late 1890s. In the 1910s and 1920s China seems to have accepted even the Johnson line, by publishing ...
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2answers
644 views
Why did conquered countries after WWII recover, but countries conquered later continue suffering? [closed]
Nations damaged severely in WWII (suffered major economic collapse and civilian casualties) such as Japan, Germany and Poland have not only recovered but are doing better than ever before. Most of ...
7
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1answer
1k views
Why did the later Crusades seemingly focus more on naval traversal?
I was studying some general Crusade maps and I noticed the first crusades seemed to be more land based as compared to the latter ones and I was wondering exactly why that was (besides just changing ...
7
votes
1answer
277 views
Why might one think that Australia gained independence from the UK in December 1920?
I'm looking at a dataset claims that Australia gained independence from the UK in December 1920.†
I found this puzzling and this could very well just be a mistake. But I'm wondering if there's any ...
1
vote
1answer
107 views
Did any UK declaration of war extend automatically to Australia?
On 1939-09-03, the UK declared war on Germany and Australia did the same.
A New Zealand government website claims:
In contrast to its entry into the First World War, New Zealand acted in its own ...
4
votes
0answers
139 views
Why was the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo signed there?
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which ended the Mexican-American War was signed "at the main altar of the old Basilica of Guadalupe", or possibly in an adjacent building. This is a major Catholic ...
2
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0answers
106 views
What was the most expensive war of the 20th century? [closed]
Putting aside the enormous "cost" of wars in terms of human life and suffering, what about the economic costs? Once I studied the Vietnam war and Gabriel Kolko in one of his books described how much ...
