History 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.

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WAR IN FOCUS

TIMELINE OF… VJ DAY • Despite the end of combat operations in Europe, the Allies’ campaigns against Imperial Japan continued unabated and it would require nuclear warfare to finally end the conflict

TARAKAN 1945 • Australian-led Allied forces carried out amphibious landings against Japanese forces on an Indonesian island that began the Borneo Campaign

ROYAL NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES ARMY • DESPITE THE OCCUPATION OF BOTH THE NETHERLANDS AND ITS FAR EAST COLONIES, DISPLACED DUTCH TROOPS CONTINUED TO FIGHT THE JAPANESE IN CAMPAIGNS THROUGHOUT INDONESIA

“I DIDN’T FEEL TOO GOOD ABOUT DROPPING THE BOMB” • After serving 58 missions in Africa and Europe during World War II, Theodore ‘Dutch’ Van Kirk transferred to the 509th Composite Group and was the navigator on the Enola Gay, which, on 6 August 1945, dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima

A TORRENT OF FIRE • Often overshadowed by the dropping of the atomic bombs, the US firebombing raids on Japanese cities in the spring and summer of 1945 resulted in tremendous damage and civilian casualties

LEADERS & COMMANDERS • The final months of the war with Japan witnessed a tense but by no means certain path to the negotiation table

THE FLYING IRISH • Despite their country’s fractious relationship with Britain, pilots from Ireland joined the Royal Air Force to defend their neighbour’s shores

‘THE EMERGENCY’ • Éire may have been neutral during WWII but it still endured rationing and bombings before its Taoiseach mistakenly expressed sadness when Adolf Hitler committed suicide

WAAFS RISK, SKILL AND RESPECT • Craig Murray, curator of Imperial War Museum, Duxford explains the vital ground role that the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force played during the Battle of Britain

SERVE IN THE WAAF WITH THE MEN WHO FLY

“AND EVERY CHANCE BROUGHT FORTH A NOBLE KNIGHT” • The summer of 1940 saw wave after wave of Luftwaffe attacks, placing pilots, ground crew and supporting personnel under critical pressure. Pilots, including men from across the Empire and around the world, bore the brunt of German attack, but men and women on the ground were also in the firing. Their bravery and resolve helped resist the enemy offensive

GERMANY’S FIGHTER ACES • With 111 kills between them, the top three Luftwaffe marksmen accounted for over seven percent of all RAF losses

THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN AT A GLANCE

BIG WING THE BIG DEBATE • A matter of intense disagreement at the time, the Big Wing tactic continues to be a great source of disagreement 80 years later. Tied up with the politics of the battle, the issue still evokes strong emotions on both sides

CROWDFUNDING 1940s STYLE • With the Luftwaffe successfully repelled by Fighter Command, a vigorous tour of the country began to raise morale, and money, in the wake of Britain’s victory

WAR THUNDER • This mass-multiplayer video game puts you in the cockpit and the driving seat of thousands of vehicles, pitting your skills against a global online community of millions of players

INTRODUCING WAR THUNDER

BATTLE OF ISSUS • Alexander the Great and his Macedonian army invade Persia, despite being heavily outnumbered, to face off against King Darius's superior force

5 NOVEMBER 333 BCE • How the Persians were...