bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ashikaga shogunate (1338–1573)
Authors: Conlan Thomas D.
Published: November 2011

The Ashikaga shogunate
(bakufu)
is named after the surname of the fifteen shoguns who exercised authority from 1338 until 1573. Also known as the Muromachi bakufu, after the street in Kyoto where some shoguns resided, this regime was largely based in the capital of Japan. Unlike the earlier Kamakura shogunate (1185–1333), which was a judicial regime located in eastern Japan, the Ashikaga shogunate was located in Kyoto, and was amalgamated with the imperial court. The Ashikaga strove not to amass land, but rather to give it away, and through largesse secure support. Perhaps their greatest gift, and a cause of most of the ensuing decentralization, was the 1351 promulgation of the
hanzei,
whereby half of a province's revenue was used for military supplies, and they had to rule or overawe these
shugo
in order to govern effectively.
Atlantic, Battle of the (1939–1945)
Authors: Milner Marc
Published: November 2011

The Battle of the Atlantic was fought to secure the sea lanes vital to Allied victory in the Second World War. Allied objectives in the Atlantic, such as the blockade of Axis Europe, the securing of sea movements, and the projection of military power, were obtainable without direct attack on Germany's essential maritime interests. As a result, this was not a “battle” in the traditional sense, but a series of distinct campaigns in response to German initiatives. Solid organization to control and protect shipping through Naval Control of Shipping (NCS) and naval intelligence networks, through the establishment of mercantile convoys, and the cover of a powerful fleet formed the foundation of successful Allied defense of the north Atlantic.
Attila the Hun (406–453)
Authors: Devries Kelly
Published: November 2011

One of the most famous warriors of all time, Attila, leader of the Huns during the fifth century, is described by Byzantine envoy Priscus as a confident man, one who did not need the ostentatious display of wealth to validate his power: “His dress … was quite simple, affecting only to be clean. The sword he carried at his side, the latchets of his Hunnic shoes, the bridle of his horse were not adorned, like those of the other Huns, with gold or gems or anything costly.” With this confidence Attila struck the barbarian lands, quickly overrunning them and pushing the previous occupants into the Roman Empire, then following after them and for most of two decades raiding, pillaging, and destroying all that was in the path of his quick‐moving, ruthless armies.
Austerlitz, Battle of (1805)
Authors: Bonura Michael
Published: November 2011

The Battle of Austerlitz represented the epitome of Napoleonic warfare, and is considered to be his most decisive victory. Napoleon achieved this victory by concentrating his army on the battlefield, deceiving the Allied army of his intentions, and then at the decisive moment he penetrated the center of the enemy formation and broke their will to resist. Napoleon then translated this battlefield victory into a peace treaty that accomplished his foreign policy goals.
Black and Tans
Authors: Leeson David
Published: November 2011

Two different police forces were nicknamed Black and Tans during the Irish War of Independence (1919–1921). The “true” Black and Tan was a British recruit for the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)—generally speaking, a young, unmarried English working man who had served in the army during the Great War. These British constables got their nickname from their peculiar uniforms: shortages of dark‐green police clothingwere temporarilymade up with military khaki; in fact, many Black and Tans took up their new duties wearing a soldier's tunic and trousers with a constable's cap and belt. Attracted by the promise of high wages and a pension during a time of severe economic recession and mass unemployment, the Black and Tans enlisted in the regular constabulary and served alongside its predominantly Catholic Irish members.
Bonaparte, Napoléon (Napoleon I) (1769–1821)
Authors: Tallett Frank
Published: November 2011

Napoleon's spectacular career, which took him from the ranks of the impoverished nobility on the island of Corsica to ruler of territories that at their height stretched from the Elbe River to the Iberian Peninsula, had profound repercussions for the whole of Europe, including those states such as Britain which never came under direct Napoleonic rule. Like a number of other able military men such as Louis‐Lazare Hoche, a former stable‐boy, and Michel Ney, the son of a cooper, his rise was inconceivable without the collapse of the old regime and the French Revolution, which opened up careers to talent. Alongside his military abilities, it was his intelligence, ruthlessness, and charisma, as well as a sense of destiny, that were the personal qualities underpinning his rise to power.
Boucicaut, Jean
II
le
Maingre (
ca
. 1366–1421)
Authors: Brough Gideon
Published: November 2011

Jean II le Maingre was marshal of France, 1391–1421. He was a Crusader, often portrayed as the perfect embodiment of chivalry. He was also one of the most vigorous military leaders of his era. His illustrious martial career lasted from 1378 until defeat at Agincourt. He was the subject of an anonymous biography, completed in 1409, at perhaps the zenith of his career. He inherited the sobriquet “Boucicaut” from his father, also called Jean le Maingre. The title derives from an obscure fishing term, implying Boucicaut senior's ability to net fame and favor through his diplomatic talents as well as his military expertise (Lalande 1988: 5–6).
Bradley, General Omar Nelson (1893–1981)
Authors: Wells Anne Sharp
Published: November 2011

Omar Nelson Bradley, “the soldier's general,” is best known for his campaigns in France and Germany during the last year of World War II in Europe. A calm, competent master at training and organization, he commanded the US II Corps in Tunisia and Sicily (1943), the US First Army in France (1944), and the 12th Army Group, a force of 1.3 million at its peak, in the final defeat of Germany (1944–1945). He later served as chief of staff of the US army (1948–1949) and as chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff (1949–1953) during the Korean War. In September 1950 he was promoted to the five‐star rank of general of the army.
Brazilian Naval Revolt (1893–1894)
Authors: O'Neill Eoin
Published: November 2011

The years following the overthrow of the Brazilian monarchy in 1889 witnessed considerable political unrest. In February 1891 the first president of the new republic, Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca, was elected. However, in November, after ordering the closing of Congress, he was forced to resign when Admiral Custódio de Melo threatened to bombard Rio de Janeiro, in what became known as the First Naval Revolt. Vice‐President Marshal Floriano Peixoto then assumed the presidency. Since the 1891 Constitution stipulated that new elections had to be held if the president resigned before being in power for two years, Peixoto's rule was regarded by many as illegal; his authoritarian and centralizing tendencies created further discontent. There was also rivalry between the army and the navy, especially because of the superior status of the army in the Republic. Consequently, in March 1892, thirteen generals and admirals signed a manifesto calling for presidential elections in accordance with the Constitution. Peixoto reacted very strongly to this, dismissing or imprisoning the officers.
Breitenfeld, Battle of (1631)
Authors: Bonura Michael
Published: November 2011

The Battle of Breitenfeld represented the beginning of the modern era of warfare. Gustavus Adolphus used discipline and drill to create an army that combined flexibility, firepower, and shock effect that literally swept away the armies of the Renaissance. Not only did the Protestant victory change the balance of power in the ThirtyYears' War, but the Swedish organization and tactics ushered in a military revolution.
Cao Cao (155–220)
Authors: Crespigny Rafe De
Published: November 2011

As the empire of Later Han collapsed in 190, a medley of warlords contended for power. After ten years of confusion, Cao Cao (pronounced as Tsao Tsao) emerged as the dominant figure in north China and founded the state of Wei, which became the greatest of the Three Kingdoms. A brilliant general and a fine poet, he is nonetheless regarded by many as cruel and flawed, and his many victories are overshadowed by his celebrated defeat at the Red Cliffs.
Carter Doctrine
Authors: Klare Michael T.
Published: November 2011

The Carter Doctrine is the term widely given to the US policy of ensuring western dominance of the greater Persian Gulf area and using military means if deemed necessary to ensure the unhindered export of Persian Gulf oil to international markets. This policy was first given formal expression in President Jimmy Carter's State of the Union address of January 23, 1980. In his speech, Carter indicated that the Gulf region represented an area of “great strategic importance” as the source of “two‐thirds of the world's exportable oil,” and so the United States was compelled “to preserve the security of this crucial region.” In the operative passage of his speech, Carter declared: “Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force.”
Cavalry
Authors: Badsey Stephen
Published: November 2011

The broadest definition of cavalry is warriors or soldiers who ride horses and are able to fight from horseback, although some cavalry have also fought dismounted by choice as well. Foot soldiers using horses as a means of transport are not normally considered to be cavalry, although units of mounted infantry have often evolved into cavalry, sometimes in the course of a single campaign. Soldiers riding other animals such as camels, elephants, or asses are not considered to be cavalry; the essential relationship has been between the soldier and his horse. The names given to cavalry formations and individual soldiers, particularly in the modern era, have often reflected their functional or national origins rather than their actual role: depending on date and context, a hussar or dragoon might be anything from a light mounted infantryman to a charging heavy cavalryman. Since the early twentieth century, cavalry titles have also been given to units of tanks and helicopters, and even to some units of infantry.
Chaco War (1932–1935)
Authors: Farcau Bruce
Published: November 2011

As in many conflicts in the formerly colonial world, the roots of the Chaco War lay in the casual demarcation of borders between what had once been provinces of a single empire. The boundary between what would become Bolivia and Paraguay was rather arbitrarily set at the confluence of the Paraguay and Pilcomayo rivers, which caused no trouble since the area comprises some of the most inhospitable terrain on the planet—desert most of the year, covered with thick thorn scrub and populated by scorpions and army ants, and swamp the rest of the year when rains turn the ground into sucking gelatinous goo. Most of the Chaco remained both uninhabited and unexplored well into the twentieth century.
C
harles the Bold/the Rash of Burgundy (1433–1477)
Authors: Bachrach David Stewart
Published: November 2011

Charles the Rash (r. 1467–1477), the last of the Valois dukes of Burgundy, inherited from his father Philip the Good (1396–1467) a wealthy and populous collection of territories along the borderlands of the French kingdom and German Empire stretching from the duchy of Burgundy in the south to the county of Holland in the north. Charles also inherited a tripartite military organization whose origins can be traced back through the French and German kingdoms to the Carolingian Empire.
Chinese Civil War (modern)
Authors: Bjorge Gary J.
Published: November 2011

The war between the Guomindang (GMD/ Nationalist Party) and the Gongchandang (CP/Communist Party) for control of China was a lengthy struggle that, during the years 1946–1949, became one of the major wars of the twentieth century, ranking just behind the two world wars in terms of scale, number of casualties, and political impact. The war also became significant as the original example of Mao Zedong's (Mao Tse‐tung) approach to waging revolutionary war and overthrowing governmental power. By leading the CP to victory, Mao became the preeminent revolutionary war theorist of his time. His ideas inspired revolutionaries in many countries and the path he took to win the war became a model for them to follow.
Clontarf, Battle of (1014)
Authors: Hudson Benjamin
Published: November 2011

The Battle of Clontarf was fought near Dublin on Good Friday, April 23, 1014, between the Irish High King Brian “Boru” mac Cennetíg and an alliance of Vikings from Dublin and the British Isles, and the Irish of Leinster. The clash was a finale to more than six months of skirmishing between the Vikings of Dublin and Brian after the town rebelled against the high king. Although popularly remembered as an Irish victory, the actual outcome was less clear, as neither side, exhausted and decimated after one of the longest battles fought in Ireland to that time, could deliver a decisive blow to their opponents. Reasons given for the battle have ranged from the romantic (Brian's wife Gormflaith had lost his love and wanted revenge) to the economic (a fight to control commerce in the Irish Sea region).
Comnenus, John
II
(1087–1143)
Authors: Dmitriev Sviatoslav
Published: November 2011

The reign of John II Comnenus (or Komnenos) (1118–1143) consolidated the Byzantine Empire, which had been shattered by the defeat delivered by the Turks near Manzikert (1071); by the exhausting subsequent civil war, exacerbated by the Norman penetration of the Balkans and the attacks of the Pechenegs; by the many challenges of the First Crusade (1096–1099); and by Byzantium's uneasy relationship with the Crusader states. Setting out each year on campaigns in different directions, John II regained a bigger part of Asia Minor, successfully fought in the Near East, victoriously extended and secured his borders in the north, and achieved a stable relationship with Venice. He is generally acknowledged to have been the greatest of the Comneni.
Constantine the Great (ca. 271–337)
Authors: JR Michael Dimaio
Published: November 2011

Sometime between 271 and 273
CE
, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, known to history as Constantine I, was born at Naissus in Serbia. He was the son of Helen and the emperor Constantius I Chlorus. When Constantius died in Britain (where he had been campaigning) on July 25, 306, the army almost immediately raised Constantine to the purple. For almost two decades the Roman Empire was embroiled in unceasing civil war until Constantine became sole emperor in 324 by eliminating all his erstwhile rivals. His successful campaigns against his brothers‐in‐law, Maxentius and Licinius, not only made him sole ruler of the Roman world, but also guaranteed an important spot in Roman history. His campaign against Maxentius in 312 was more significant in military history than that against Licinius, which started in either 314 or 316 and ended in 324. In the fall of 312, Constantine, marching on Rome from his headquarters in Gaul, quickly consolidated his hold of northern Italy probably not later than October 24 of that year; on October 28, 312, after an initial loss at the Saxa Rubra, Maxentius died in a rout of his forces in the vicinity of the Milvian Bridge in Rome. His victory over Maxentius was important because he attributed it to the intervention of Jesus Christ by way of a vision, not because of any unusual skill he may have had as a military commander. One source, some twenty years after the event, indicates he saw a cross of light in the sky with the inscription in hoc signo vinces (you will conquer in this sign), whereas a contemporary source argues that the emperor had a dream in which he saw the Chi‐Rho and was directed to have the signum dei (sign of God) inscribed on his soldiers' shields.
Crusade, First (1096–1099)
Authors: Laurence W. Marvin
Published: November 2011

The First Crusade is probably the single most famous military episode of the Middle Ages. One of the reasons for this is the amount of material written by eyewitnesses and contemporaries, and accounts composed soon after. As modern scholars have pointed out, in hindsight, twelfth‐century writers often shaped this material to reflect the Crusade's unexpected, even “miraculous” success.
Dumouriez, General Charles‐François du Périer (1739–1823)
Authors: Tallett Frank
Published: November 2011

France's leading general during the early stages of the Revolutionary Wars, Dumouriez was instrumental in securing two key victories in 1792. The first, at Valmy in September, halted the Allied advance and saved both Paris and the nascent French Republic. The second, at Jemappes in November, led to the acquisition of the southern Netherlands. However, his subsequent defection to the Austrians, coming only months after Lafayette's similarly treasonous action, tarnished yet further the reputation of the high command and threatened to paralyze the war effort. This led to greater political and civilian oversight of military operations, notably through the establishment of the Committee of Public Safety and the use of representatives attached to the armies.
Edward III of England (1312–1377)
Authors: McNamee Colm
Published: November 2011

Edward III's long reign saw the opening and successful prosecution of the Hundred Years' War against France and Scotland. His victories include the battles of Halidon Hill (1333), Sluys (1340), and Crécy (1346). He oversaw remarkable developments in warfare: development of archery into the primary arm of warfare; deployment of dismounted knights; use of mounted raids orchevauchéesto debilitate an enemy stronger in resources; and use of firearms.
Einsatzgruppen
Authors: Ryan Joseph W.
Published: November 2011

Part of Heinrich Himmler's Schutzstaffel (Protection Squads) or SS, the Einsatzgruppen (Action Groups) were special battalions created to kill Jews, communists, partisans, intelligentsia, and other “undesirables” during Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union in World War II. The three thousand men of the Einsatzgruppen followed the German army into the USSR, and with army help and that of local paramilitary groups and civilians, murdered over a million men, women, and children. In one action at Babi Yar, near Kiev, in September 1941, they killed over 33,000 Jews and Gypsies in two days.
Ethiopia—Somalia conflicts (1960
s
–2000
s
)
Authors: Stapleton Timothy J.
Published: November 2011

By 1945 ethnic Somalis lived in five East African states: British Somaliland, Italian Somaliland, French Somaliland, British Kenya, and independent Ethiopia. During decolonization in the 1950s, British and Italian Somaliland united to form the Republic of Somalia, which became independent in 1960. In a 1958 referendum, French Somaliland had voted against joining Somalia and gained independence as Djibouti in 1977. Pan‐Somalism, the desire to unite all Somalis in one nation‐state, gained popularity and prompted armed insurgency along the border with Ethiopia and Kenya in 1963 and 1964. Staging a military coup in Somalia in 1969, Siad Barre aspired to create a “Greater Somalia.” Somalia began to sponsor separatist groups in Ethiopia such as Eritrean insurgents in the north and the Western Somali Liberation Front (WSLF) and ethnic Oromo rebels in the Ogaden Desert to the east. To gain a naval base at Berbera that would threaten western oil shipments, the Soviet Union militarily assisted the Barre regime. By 1977 Somalia's 35,000‐strong army had seven tank battalions with three hundred Soviet‐made tanks, and 22 mechanized infantry battalions with 350 armored personnel carriers. These were supported by 180 artillery pieces and 55 combat aircraft. Training was provided by four thousand Soviet personnel. A 1974 military coup overthrew the Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie, a long‐standing western ally, and created a period of instability in which separatist movements gained strength. This presented Barre with an opportunity to take the Ogaden. Although the Ethiopians outnumbered the Somalis in military personnel, the latter had more tanks, vehicles, and aircraft, which meant greater mobility. Furthermore, Ethiopia's best units were bogged down fighting insurgents in the north.
Falklands War (1982)
Authors: Turner Blair
Published: November 2011

The world awoke on April 3, 1982 to the shocking news that an Argentine invasion force had landed on the desolate Falkland Islands in the far South Atlantic, subdued the small force of Royal Marines stationed at the capital, Port Stanley, and proclaimed the islands
nuestras
—“our”—Malvinas (Argentina would follow up with the capture of a tiny garrison on South Georgia Island that same day). No one except the invasion force and a few planners in the Argentine military staffs knew of the expedition until it was over. There had been long and drawn‐out discussions in the United Nations (UN) and other venues for decades about the contentious issue of sovereign control of the islands. Multiple conflicting claims dating back to the Seven Years' War of the eighteenth century ensured that both sides had established rather rigid positions: Britain in favor of “self‐determination” for the few settlers on the islands (Scots and Welsh) and the Argentines in favor of exclusive sovereignty over islands on the Argentine continental shelf, with guarantees of civil rights for the settlers as Argentine citizens. Even so, the notion of actual hostilities over the islands seemed remote. The Argentine plan was based on forcing a
fait accompli
. That the British would undertake the costly and huge operation necessary to recover the islands some 8,500 miles distant in the coming South Atlantic winter was deemed too unlikely; a negotiated settlement would be reached. Argentine planners understood, however, that defeat was a distinct probability if the British did fight.
Franco, General Francisco (1892–1975)
Authors: Alvarez José E.
Published: November 2011

Spanish general and head of state. Francisco Franco Bahamonde was born on December 4, 1892, in El Ferrol, Spain. The son of a naval paymaster, he aspired to a career in the Spanish navy. The Spanish–American War (1898), and the loss of Spain's overseas colonies, led him to join the army in 1907. Diminutive and underage, Franco endured the hazing of his classmates at the Infantry Academy in Toledo, graduating in 1910, 251st out of a class of 312 cadets. Second lieutenant Franco was assigned to the Regiment of Zamora, in El Ferrol.
Gallic War (58–51
bce
)
Authors: Dart Christopher J.
Published: November 2011

The Gallic War was a series of campaigns conducted by Gaius Julius Caesar as proconsul which resulted in the conquest of the region of Gaul between 58 and 51 BCE. He relied heavily upon a team of senior officers (
legati
), sometimes placed in command of one or more legions, in order to subdue such a large territory. Caesar's conquest laid the foundations of Roman rule in the region for the next four centuries. The principal sources for the war are Caesar's own commentaries. These provide a level of detail that has rarely been preserved in Roman history. They are, however, imbued with contemporary political concerns and omit some key details. Accounts in other ancient sources such as Appian (
B Civ.
2.13–29) and the biographies of Caesar by Plutarch and Suetonius provide comparatively little detail about the Gallic War.
Gallipoli Campaign (1915–1916)
Authors: Bou Jean
Published: November 2011

A naval and military campaign fought between the Ottoman Empire and the attacking forces of the British and French empires between February 1915 and January 1916.
Garibaldi, Giuseppe (1807–1882)
Authors: Di Scala Spencer M.
Published: November 2011

Born on July 4, 1807, in Nice—at the time part of the Kingdom of Sardinia—Giuseppe Garibaldi was the popular hero of the Italian Risorgimento, the nineteenth‐century movement for independence and unity. As a young man, he became a merchant marine captain and later led the most successful military expeditions of the Risorgimento. Because of his radical inclinations, traditional forces regarded him with suspicion, were diffident in accepting his offers of aid, and marginalized him after unification. Nevertheless, Garibaldi remains the best‐known and revered figure of the Risorgimento.
Gaugamela, Battle of (331
bce
)
Authors: Banchich Thomas M.
Published: November 2011

On October 1, 331, at Gaugamela, about seventy miles northwest of Arbela (Arbil, Iraq), the army of Alexander the Great—officially that of the Corinthian League, which had appointed Alexander “Plenipotentiary Commander”—defeated a much larger Persian force led by Darius III, King of Kings. Tell Gomel, on the plain of Nauquûr, north of the Jabal Maqlub range and west of the Gomil/Bumelus River, may mark the site. The Persian command had chosen this location and manicured and mined the terrain to facilitate a coordinated release of scythed chariots against Alexander's center with a massive cavalry envelopment of both Macedonian flanks, the objective being their enemy's annihilation. In contrast, Alexander's immediate goal was to kill or capture Darius. The Persians undoubtedly realized this and, in consequence, anticipated that Alexander would bring the battle to them.
German Peasants' War (1525)
Authors: Vice Roy L.
Published: November 2011

The German Peasants' War of 1525 was the culmination of a series of late medieval revolts, called “Poor Conrad” orBundschuhs(Franz 1965:1–91). The Peasants' War combined the ardent anti‐clericalism of the previous uprisings with the zeal for the evangelical movement of the early years of the Reformation. The Peasants' War was the largest popular revolt in European history before the French Revolution (Sreenivasan 2001:30). The rebellion encompassed central and southern Germany, south of Magdeburg, except for ducal Bavaria, and included part of the present‐day Czech Republic, Alsace in present‐day France, parts of Switzerland, western Austria, and the south Tyrol in present‐day Italy (Scott and Scribner 1991). The most important document produced by the Peasants' War was the Twelve Articles, written by the furrier and lay preacher Sebastian Lotzer in Memmingen on the basis of three hundred articles produced by peasants of the Baltringen Band in Swabia. The Memmingen preacher Christoph Schappeler wrote the preamble and supplied some of the biblical references in the margins. The Twelve Articles called for, among other things: the abolition of serfdom, an end to servile, unpaid labor, the right of each community to pick their own pastor and to control the tithe paid to the pastor, the freedom of poor people to be able to gather firewood in the forests, a restoration of the right to catch fish in flowing streams, and an end to the death tax paid by serfs when a member of the family died (Scott and Scribner 1991: 252–257).
Gordon, General Charles George (1833–1885)
Authors: Green Dominic
Published: November 2011

Legendary commander of the “Ever Victorious Army” (1861–1864), and heroic yet futile defender of Khartoum (1884–1885), the soldier, mystic, explorer, and martyr Major‐General Charles George Gordon was an authoritarian imperialist who loathed authority and empire; a skilled tactician lacking political sense; a mercurial personality suspended between despair and rapture; and an unlikely icon of Victorian empire. The son of a Royal Artillery officer, Gordon trained at the Royal Military Academy, where his anarchic tendencies lost him six months' seniority. Joining the Royal Engineers, a depressed Gordon discovered evangelical Christianity. Posted to the Crimea in 1854, he showed insouciant bravery at the siege of Sevastopol, deliberately drawing Russian fire in order to plot the firing positions.
Greco‐Persian Wars (498–448 BCE)
Authors: Sage Michael
Published: November 2011

The conflicts between Greeks and Persians extended over a period of two centuries from their first contacts with each other in the mid‐sixth centurybceto the destruction of the Persian Empire by Alexander the Great in the 330sbce. The period covered in this article saw a crucial shift in the nature of the encounter. Between 498 and 479, Persian expansion was a serious threat to mainland Greece. However, after 479 the roles were reversed, as the Persians lost control of the Aegean and the cities along the western coast of Asia Minor.
Greek Independence, War of (1821–1829)
Authors: Lekkas Pantelis
Published: November 2011

The Greek War of Independence was waged mainly on the southern tip of the Balkan Peninsula between 1821 and 1829, and ended with the establishment of the independent state of Greece in 1830. It was the first successful war of national liberation in the Ottoman Empire and had a significant impact on the development of nationalist movements in the Near East.
Guerilla warfare
Authors: Heuser Beatrice
Published: November 2011

Since its introduction during the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), the termguerrilla(Spanish for “small war”) has been used for a variety of related phenomena. In 1611, the term meant “feud” or “civil war” (Covarrubias 1943: 666). By the following century it was used also in other languages, e.g., in French asla petite guerre. But now, and up to the French Revolution, it was used exclusively to denote operations conducted by special forces acting alongside regular armies. Such special forces had been employed already by the Roman (including Byzantine) and the late Holy Roman (Habsburg) empires, who recruited them from tribes with special warring traditions, involving reconnaissance, sabotage, and ambushes undertaken by lightly armed units, often on horseback. Other European states began to copy the Habsburg employment of such units for what today would be called special operations from the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) onwards (Selig and Skaggs 1991: 12–14). The units they employed in this way were calledPartheyenin German,partiesin French, and their leader alone was called aPartheygängerorpartisan. Until the American War of Independence (1775–1783), and the French Revolutionary Wars (1792–1802) and Napoleonic Wars (1802–1815), such “partisan warfare” was entirely devoid of ideology, but was warfare carried out by professional units specializing not in regular war and pitched battles but in irregular activities (Rink 1999). These professionals were also called Jäger (huntsmen or foresters) in German and later chasseurs in French; the terms survive in the German‐speaking armies up to the present day. A series of manuals on this type of war was published from the mid‐seventeenth century (Croix 1752; Grandmaison 1756; Jeney 1760; Ewald 1774, 1991; Emmerich 1789, and others) until the 1820s (Decker 1828).
Gulf Wars (1990–1991, 2003–present)
Authors: Estes Kenneth W.
Published: November 2011

Known in the region as the Second and Third Gulf Wars, with the Iraq–Iran War (1980–1988) as the first of the series, these conflicts marked the apogee and nadir of the regime of the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. In the case of the subject wars, each consisted of a coalition war organized by the United States to first limit and then overthrow the Iraqi regime, with the aim of improving peace and stability in the petroleum‐rich region so vital to the economies of most of the rest of the world.
HenryIV(Henry of Navarre) (1553–1610)
Authors: Baumgartner Frederic J.
Published: November 2011

French ruler and commander. Born at Pau in Béarn (December 13, 1553), he was the son of Antoine de Bourbon, head of the House of Bourbon, a cadet branch of the French royal family, and Jeanne d'Albret, daughter of Marguerite d'Angoulême, Francis I's sister, and Henri d'Albret, king of Navarre (r. 1517–1555). At birth Henry stood sixth in line of succession to the French throne. Henry was baptized Catholic, but his mother, who converted to Calvinism, raised him a Huguenot, as French Protestants were known. Too young to be active in the early French religious wars that began in 1562, he was betrothed to Charles IX's sister Marguerite in 1570 in hope of reconciling the two religions. Henry's presence in Paris for his wedding in August 1572 with numerous Huguenot nobles set the stage for the St. Bartholomew's Massacre, in which many Protestant leaders were killed. Henry avoided death by becoming Catholic but remained confined at court until 1576, when he escaped and returned to Protestantism.
Heydrich, Reinhard (1904–1942)
Authors: Ryan Joseph W.
Published: November 2011

SS Obergruppenfuehrer and Reichsprotektor Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich was born in Halle, near Leipzig. Devout Catholics, his father was an opera singer who founded the Halle Conservatory of Music, and his mother, a strict disciplinarian who did not spare the rod, was a classical pianist. While Heydrich grew up in an idyllic setting, he was often teased and sometimes beaten by his fellow schoolboys for his devout Catholicism. Ironically, he was also taken to task for rumors of Jewish ancestry within his family. A natural athlete and competent musician, Heydrich grew to be an award‐winning fencer and a credible violinist. He also became one of the most notorious figures of the Nazi regime.
Hidalgo y Castillo, Miguel (1753–1811)
Authors: Archer Christon I.
Published: November 2011

Revered today as Mexico's “father of the nation,” Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla was born on the hacienda of San Diego Corralejo near Pénjamo, Guanajuato, where his father Cristóbal was the administrator. Although Miguel's mother died when he was only 8 years of age, his father was well off and able to send him to Valladolid (today's Morelia) where he studied with the Jesuits, and later at the Colegio de San Nicolás Obispo. Hidalgo excelled in philosophy, theology, and other subjects, earning his baccalaureate degree at the prestigious Royal and Pontifical University in Mexico City. Ordained as a priest in 1778, he continued his studies and returned to Valladolid where he taught philosophy and theology at the Colegio de San Nicolás. He won recognition as a professor that in 1790 led to his promotion to the prestigious post of rector. Having reached the apogee of academic success and purchased three haciendas, information emerged that altered Hidalgo's fortunes. He overspent the Colegio's budget and mismanaged some accounts. Added to these imperfections, he was a gambler and he sired three children. Some evidence indicated that he was heterodox in his political and religious thinking.
Holy war
Authors: Bonney Richard
Published: November 2011

Holy war, or violence sanctified in the name of a particular religion, has existed in one form or another throughout recorded history. In practice, it may exist in any religion although it may not be “justified” according to the precepts of that religion. For example, the various Buddhist traditions are considered to be pacific because the Buddha told a warrior that those who die on the battlefield will not be reborn in heaven but in a realm of hell. Abstention from killing is the first of the Five Precepts of Buddhism. To inflict pain and suffering, let alone death, on one segment of humanity under the guise of benefiting another can never be part of a Buddhism firmly rooted in the teachings of its founder. Nevertheless, even in the various Buddhist traditions there is a long history of violence, with the promotion of the soldier‐Zen by the Japanese military in the 1930s a particularly severe aberration.
Indian National Army
Authors: Sundaram Chandar.s
Published: November 2011

The armed dimension of the Indian movement for freedom from British imperial rule, the Indian National Army (INA), collaborated with the Japanese against the British during World War II. The INA was formed through the interaction of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), the nearlytwo‐million‐strong Indian expatriate community in Southeast Asia, and the forty‐five thousand Indian troops captured by the IJA in its lightning conquest of Malaya and Singapore in 1941–1942. The idea of inducing Indian troops to turn against their British masters was first proposed to the IJA by the Indian Independent League, a Sikh extremist organization based in Thailand.
Indonesia–Malaysia Confrontation (1962–1966)
Authors: Farrell Brian.P
Published: November 2011

From 1963 to 1966 the Republic of Indonesia waged a military, political, psychological, and diplomatic conflict with Malaysia, which in turn was supported by allies from the Commonwealth: the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. This struggle was an undeclared low‐intensity war. Most military clashes, on land, at sea, and in the air, were small scale and fleeting. Nevertheless, this “Confrontation” — the label applied by Dr. Subandrio, foreign minister of Indonesia, who in January 1963 announced his country would “confront” Malaysia—was a nerve‐wracking and serious conflict, with high stakes, which at times threatened to escalate to open war on a large scale.
Konfrontasi
, to use the Indonesian term, became dangerously entangled with the Cold War. This forced the British, Malaysia's protecting power and strongest ally, to deploy powerful forces, at greater cost than they could afford, to deter further escalation. The causes of the conflict are often misunderstood. Presented as an attempt to abort the consummation of Malaysia, the conflict went beyond this, driven by a deeper dynamic: the struggle to define the nature and future of Indonesia. Because Indonesia was by far the largest state in Southeast Asia, this raised the stakes: the future direction of a post‐colonial Southeast Asia. The war was about Indonesia.
Irgun Zvai Leumi (Irgun)
Authors: Green Dominic
Published: November 2011

Inspired by Vladimir Jabotinsky's Revisionist Zionism, the Irgun Zvai Leumi b'Eretz Yisrael (National Military Organization of the Land of Israel, known by the acronym “Etzel”) was a paramilitary organization active from 1931 to 1948 in British‐controlled Mandate Palestine. Although smaller than its left‐wing rival the Haganah, and lacking the institutional support that the Haganah derived from the Jewish Agency (the Mandate's government‐in‐the‐making), the Irgun attained disproportionate historical influence. By modernizing nineteenth‐century terrorist tactics and successfully introducing them into the Middle East, the Irgun demonstrated not just how asymmetric warfare could be used to challenge much larger conventional forces, but also the political utility of terrorism.
Iroquois Confederacy
Authors: Hall John W.
Published: November 2011

Also known as the Five (later Six) Nations, the Iroquois Confederacy was a powerful alliance of Iroquoian tribes indigenous to New York. By virtue of their location, military might, and diplomatic skill, these tribes wielded tremendous influence in European–Indian relations from the early seventeenth century through the late eighteenth century. The Iroquois Confederacy was a principal party in the seventeenthcentury “Beaver Wars” that transformed the economies and political structures of Native American communities throughout northeastern North America. Whether allied with England or struggling to maintain neutrality, it also played a prominent role in the Anglo‐French contests for dominion over North America. Parlaying its central position between these powers to its advantage, the Iroquois Confederacy remained indispensable to the colonial policies of both regimes until France's decisive defeat in the French and Indian War (1754–1763).
Jellicoe, Admiral Sir John Rushworth, 1st Earl Jellicoe (1859–1935)
Authors: Lambert Andrew
Published: November 2011

The son of a merchant ship captain, Jellicoe topped his class at HMS Britannia in 1874 and saw extensive sea service before entering the Royal Naval College at Greenwich. In 1884 he joined the gunnery school on HMS Excellent, under Captain John Fisher. After service afloat Jellicoe returned to Excellent in December the same year. In 1889 Fisher took him to Whitehall. Promoted commander in June 1891, he was executive officer of HMS Victoria in 1893 when she sank off Tripoli after being rammed. Jellicoe was fortunate to escape: 358 men died. He was immediately appointed to the flagship of Admiral Sir Michael Culme‐Seymour, his model admiral. Promoted captain in 1897, he took a leading role during the 1900 Boxer Uprising. Thereafter, he combined short periods of sea service with longer periods at the Admiralty, working on Fisher's Dreadnought and the naval arms race. In December 1912 he became second sea lord: that year Fisher persuaded Winston Churchill to ensure Jellicoe would be in supreme command in 1914, the year he anticipated war. Increasingly concerned by mines, U‐boats, torpedoes, and Zeppelins, Jellicoe agreed with Fisher that the North Sea was no place for battlefleets.
Kayala River, Battle of (1185)
Authors: Dimnik Martin
Published: November 2011

On Sunday, May 12, 1185, Igor’ Svyatoslavich of Novgorod Severskiy and senior prince of the cadet branch of the Chernigov Ol'govichi, descended from Svyatoslav, the youngest son of Oleg Svyatoslavich (d. 1115), suffered a disastrous defeat at the Kayala River. The nomadic Polovtsy decimated his troops and took him and other princes captive. They there‐with inflicted the most devastating defeat on the princes of Rus' that the latter had ever suffered at the hands of these nomads. The campaign has been popularized through the epic poem
The Lay of Igor's Campaign
(
Slovo o polku Igoreve
), written by an anonymous bard (Zenkovsky 1974: 167–190). Owing to its interpretation of events, the popular image of Igor’ is that of a vanquished prince. This stigma implies that he was an incompetent commander and that he conducted a foolhardy campaign. Chronicle accounts of the battle, however, reveal that the historic Igor’ was different from the one portrayed by the poem.
Kursk, Battle of (1943)
Authors: M. Glantz David
Published: November 2011

The Battle of Kursk on Germany's Eastern Front in World War II was one of the most important battles in world history and a major turning point in the war. While the Germans consider the battle occurred from July 5–15, 1943 and the Soviets from July 5–August 23, 1943, both agree it began on July 5, when Germany launched its third and final offensive during its war against the Soviet Union, an operation code named Operation Citadel (
Zitadelle
). Planned by Adolf Hitler and the German general staff, the offensive sought to destroy Soviet forces in the so‐called Kursk Bulge—a large salient jutting into German defenses the Red Army had seized during the previous winter campaign—prolong the war, and, perhaps, shift the fortunes of war in Germany's favor. The Soviet
Stavka
(high command) also planned their own series of offensives in the Kursk region, which were to begin immediately after the German offensive faltered, and sought to drive German forces back to the Dnepr River.
Leuctra, Battle of (371 BCE)
Authors: Banchich Thomas M.
Published: November 2011

In July or August of 371 BCE, at Leuctra, in the territory of Boeotia in central Greece, the army of the Boeotian Confederation defeated a substantially larger force commanded by the Spartan king Cleombrotus. The formal cause of hostilities was Sparta's earlier rejection of a request on the part of Thebes, Boeotia's most prominent
polis
, to be recognized as the signatory for other Boeotian cities of a Spartanbrokered peace treaty. To accept Thebes' proposal would have contradicted a principle of
polis
autonomy that since 387/6 had been fundamental to what the Greeks called “Common Peace.” At the same time, it would have validated the existence of a Boeotian Confederation of cities—some willing, others unwilling members—headed by Thebes, thereby legitimizing a potential rival to Sparta, to the Spartan‐dominated Peloponnesian League, and to certain other
poleis
, most prominently Athens. The proximity to Boeotia of Spartan forces previously deployed in central Greece, together with personal feelings of insecurity on the part of Cleombrotus, resulted in a decision to march from Phocis into Boeotia, which, in turn, prompted the Boeotarchs—generals in charge of the Confederation forces—to block the expected invasion route.
London Naval Conferences (1930, 1935–1936)
Authors: Kuehn John T.
Published: November 2011

The genesis of the London Naval Conferences, in 1930 and 1935–1936, can be found in the aftermath of the Washington Naval Conference in 1922. The five major naval powers at Washington—France, the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and Italy—were able only to limit the tonnages of capital ships (battleships and battlecruisers) and aircraft carriers at Washington. The United States and Great Britain were particularly interested in extending this promising start either through the agency of the League of Nations conferences on disarmament or through stand‐alone naval limitation conferences.
Mahdist War (1881–1899)
Authors: Stapleton Timothy J.
Published: November 2011

Within the context of Islam, “Mahdi” means “the guided one” and is a person chosen by God to restore the community to its pure form as it was during the days of the Prophet Muhammad. Under the modernizing rule of Mohammed Ali, Egypt conquered Sudan in the 1820s and 1830s in a futile effort to acquire military conscripts and gold. The Egyptians imposed a westernized state that taxed the Sudanese and sent their agricultural and other products north. Sudanese frustrations were increased in the 1860s and 1870s with the start of an Egyptian anti‐slavery campaign that threatened local economic interests and brought Christian Europeans into this Muslim country. On June 29, 1881 Mohammed Ahmed, an increasingly popular Sudanese religious leader, proclaimed himself the Mahdi and organized an army for a holy war against Egyptian occupation. Political turmoil in Egypt itself meant that the Egyptians failed to control the rebellion and more followers joined the Mahdi. The first major victory for the Mahdi occurred in 1882 when his supporters captured the Egyptian military base of El‐Obeid west of the Nile. Although Mahdist forces initially tried to storm the fort and were cut down by breach‐loading rifles, they eventually undertook a successful siege. As a result of this lesson, the Mahdi formed part of his army into a near‐professional infantry corps equipped with firearms. The British occupied Egypt in 1882 to secure the Suez Canal as a vital choke point for shipping to and from India. In November 1883 an Egyptian force of 8,500 soldiers under British Colonel William Hicks, complete with artillery and early machine guns like the Nordenfelt, invaded the Sudan to suppress the rebellion. Letting Hicks's expedition advance in order for harsh desert conditions to take their toll, Mahdists eventually surrounded and annihilated them with firepower at the Battle of Shaykan. The British then decided to pull out of Sudan and in early 1884 sent Charles Gordon, former governor of part of south Sudan, to organize the withdrawal. However, Gordon was not committed to the British government's plan and he delayed long enough to be trapped in Khartoum by the Mahdi's forces. Around the same time, Sudanese leader Osman Digna led a rebellion against Egyptian rule in the eastern region of Suakin. A British column under General Gerald Graham pushed back the rebels at the hard fought battles of El Teb and Tamai but then was ordered to withdraw. A British relief expedition led by Garnet Wolseley failed to break through to Khartoum in time and Gordon was killed when the Mahdists stormed the city in January 1885. Although the Mahdi died in June 1885, a Mahdist state had been established with its capital a few miles from Khartoum at Omdurman.
Marxists on war
Authors: Stone David R.
Published: November 2011

Marxism has had a profound impact on military thought, particularly through its role as the governing ideology of explicitly Marxist states such as the Soviet Union and its satellites and the People's Republic of China. It served as the world's most important revolutionary ideology from its formulation in the middle of the nineteenth century until the collapse of communism at the end of the twentieth century.