France
Gallo-Roman – Salian Frank – Carolingian
A Frankish warrior of the 6th century AD. A variety of his arms, armour and equipment is shown. Note especially his decorated spangenhelm. The alternative helmet is also of Northern Iranian Asiatic origins, adopted by the Germanics, the Huns and the Romans. Painting by Angus McBride Lutetia, the Gallo-Roman ancestor of Paris Austrasia, homeland of the Franks (darkest green), and…
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Navarino, 1827 Part I
A European coalition united by the cause of Greek liberty defeats the Turkish navy to create an independent Greek state and further weaken the grip of the Ottoman Empire in Europe Early on a bright Saturday morning in October 1827, a combined fleet of British, French and Russian warships was…
Navarino, 1827 Part II
The Naval Battle of Navarino, Ambroise Louis Garneray Unlike the Spartans, the Ottomans only had to guard the southern entrance. Almost daily reconnaissance reports meant that Codrington was aware that their fleet numbered just over a hundred ships, forty of which were non-combatant. Letellier had positioned the warships at anchor…
Dunkerque and the Strasbourg Battleships
Dunkerque as built. Dunkerque The design of Dunkerque and Strasbourg was heavily influenced by the latest British practice. The battleships Nelson and Rodney, scaled-down versions of the G3 battlecruiser design of 1922, entered service in August and November 1927 respectively and had a major impact on the thinking of other…
Napoleon’s End
Napoleon Bonaparte on board the British ship Bellerophon by Sir William Quiller Orchardson Riding in the Basque Roads near Rochefort on the morning of July 15, 1815, the two-decker Bellerophon rocked comfortably in the long swells as a lookout sighted a boat coming out from shore. A familiar-looking figure-running to…
Battle of Alexandria, (20-21 March 1801)
The Battle of Alexandria, 21 March 1801, Philip James de Loutherbourg After Nelson’s victory in the Battle of the Nile and the unsuccessful French siege of Acre, Napoleon had returned to France in 1799, evading the British navy. He had, however, left his army in Egypt. It appeared both a…
Battle of Eckmühl 1809
1809 CuirassierAustrian Cavalry – Cuirassiers in 1809 Antoine de Marbot recounted an incident that demonstrated the properties of the two styles of cuirass, when at EckmĂĽhl in April 1809 French and Austrian cuirassiers crashed together, while the accompanying light cavalry drew off to the flanks to avoid being caught up…