Thu, Nov 9, 2017
The Armchair HIstorian provides a short overview of the causes of the Crimean War and the opening phases of the conflict.
Thu, Nov 9, 2017
The Armchair Historian describes the concluding battles of the Crimean War, including the siege of Sevastopol, the Charge of the Light brigade and the stand of the Thin Red Line.
Sat, Feb 3, 2018
The Armchair Historian discusses the European geo-political situation that led to the Franco-Prussian War and how the new German Confederation was able to destroy France's Second Empire so quickly.
Wed, Feb 7, 2018
After the British army's pyrrhic victory at Bunker Hill, the Americans maintained their armed presence nearby. General George Washington, now in charge of American forces, proposed various attack plans, but the British navy's control of Boston's harbor forestalled them. Finally, General Henry Knox arrived with artillery after dragging the pieces over an arduous 300 mile journey from Fort Ticonderoga. Now Washington could attack the British without their navy being able to protect their army.
Wed, Mar 14, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the history of the Venetian republic from its creation shortly after the fall of Rome through the next thousand years as a mercantile power.
Wed, Apr 4, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the reasons why Italy snubbed its former allies Germany and Austria-Hungary at the outset of World War One and joined the Entente - Great Britian, France and Russia - instead.
Tue, May 8, 2018
The Armchair HIstorian outlines the crucial six-month long Battle of Stalingrad between the Wehrmacht and the Soviet army that resulted in enormous casualties - the average lifespan of a solider fighting there being less than 24 hours.
Fri, May 18, 2018
The Armchair Historian delves into the causes and results of the Second Sino-Japanese War, which, in addition to tying up massive amounts of Japanese soldiers during the conflict, directly led to the ultimate Chinese Communist victory after World War Two.
Wed, May 23, 2018
The Armchair Historian describes the 842-day long siege of Leningrad by German forces that resulted in more Russian causalities, both military and civilian, than occurred in all American conflicts from the Revolutionary War to the Afghan conflict combined. By the time the blockade was lifted in 1944, more than a million and a half Russian soldiers and civilians had died.
Mon, Jun 4, 2018
Assaults by Allied paratroopers from the British 6th Airborne, the American 82nd Airborne and 101 Airborne Divisions on D-Day are recounted and analyzed to determine if the Normandy invasion on June 6, 1944 would have failed without their efforts.
Tue, Jun 5, 2018
The Armchair Historian recounts the experiences of Benjamin Alvarado, an American soldier landing on Omaha Beach with the second wave of troops on D-Day.
Thu, Jun 21, 2018
The Armchair Historian analyzes the reasons the Royal Air Force defeated the Luftwaffe in the air battle called The Battle of Britain.
Thu, Jul 5, 2018
The Armchair Historian evaluates the advantages and disadvantages British and American armies faced that decided the American Revolutionary War.
Thu, Jul 12, 2018
The Armchair Historian describes the development of linear tactics for infantry units, starting with the Swedish armies commanded by Gustavus Adophus II in the 17th Century and evolving to standard use during the next two centuries to thwart cavalry attacks, keep order among large numbers of men and deliver concentrated fire using inaccurate muskets against an enemy.
Thu, Jul 19, 2018
The Armchair Historian describes how the advances in military technology, such as the minie-ball and rifled cannons, coupled with the failure to adapt decades-old tactics such as linear tactics, led to the enormous casualties during the American Civil War.
Thu, Jul 26, 2018
The Armchair Historian analyzes the reasons why Fascist Italy was the weakest of the Axis Big Three in World War Two.
Thu, Aug 2, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the rise of the Russian Empire from its beginnings as a handful of tributaries to the Mongol Empire.
Thu, Aug 9, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces how the Great Britain conquered India starting with the establishment of the British East India Company, to defeating various empires on the Indian subcontinent militarily.
Thu, Aug 23, 2018
The Armchair Historian analyzes the rise and decline of the Swedish empire during the 17th Century.
Thu, Sep 6, 2018
The Armchair Historian analyzes the structure, tactics and military successes of Prussia's armies to determine if they were really the most potent fighting force in Europe during the 18th and 19th Centuries.
Thu, Sep 13, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the rise of Prussia from its beginnings as just another German principality to one of the dominant countries in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries
Thu, Sep 27, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the reasons for the communist party to defeat the forces of Chiang Kai Shek following World War II.
Thu, Oct 4, 2018
The Armchair Historian describes the 1895 conflict between Italy and Ethopia, the only conflict between a European and an African nation that resulted in a long-standing victory for the latter.
Thu, Oct 18, 2018
The Armchair Historian traces the background and results of the War of the Spanish Succession which raged in the early 1700s.
Thu, Dec 20, 2018
Desperate to win military glory and recreate the ancient Roman Empire in the 20th Century, Mussolini ordered his Italian army commanders to attack British forces in Egypt. Though heavily outnumbered, the British army managed to smash the invaders using clever strategies and superior logistics.
Thu, Dec 27, 2018
The Armchair Historian discusses the last great invasion of western Europe by the Ottoman Empire in 1683 and how close the Turks came to overwhelming the defenses of Vienna before reinforcements from the Holy League turned the tide of battle.
Thu, Jan 17, 2019
The Armchair Historian analyzes the rationale behind the second French intervention in Mexico during the 1860s and how the United States' enforcement of their Monroe Doctrine by sending aid to Benito Juarez's forces caused the downfall of Emperor Maximillian's short reign as sovereign.
Thu, Jan 31, 2019
Adolph Hitler appoints Erwin Rommel to command German forces in North Africa in order to clean up the mess created by Mussolini and his Italian troops. He manages to besiege tens of thousands of mostly Australian troops in Tobruk, but the Desert Rats held out long enough to be relieved by British forces.
Sat, Feb 9, 2019
The Armchair Historian describes the unsuccessful American invasion of Canada during the American Revolution in 1775
Thu, Feb 14, 2019
While some historians claim that when the United States defeated British during the Amerian Revolution, it bested the finest army fielded in the world during the 18th Century. The Armchair Historian compares the British army against those of other European nations to determine if this hypothesis holds water.
Thu, Apr 11, 2019
In 1776 over 40,000 British and Hessian soldiers squared off against 19,000 Americans on Long Island in the largest battle of the American Revolution. Not only did the British have twice as many men, they also had naval supremacy and could land these troops anywhere around New York City to flank or get behind George Washington's forces. Washington thought the British would sail up the Hudson or the East River to attack Manhattan, so he thought the British landing on Long Island was a feint. This, coupled with British sympathizers who knew the local topography better than American generals led to the almost complete destruction of the American army. Only the desperate rearguard action by the First Maryland Regiment and Lord William Howe's concern over attacking Brooklyn's defenses without proper preparation prevented the end of the American Revolution on the spot.
Thu, May 9, 2019
The Armchair Historian traces the battles of the Seven Years War from 1759 and the fall of Quebec to the Treaty of Paris in 1763 which effectively ended the first truly global conflict, with campaigns taking part in North America, Europe, Africa, South America and India.