Introduction Admiral Sir Charles John Napier KCB GOTE RN (06 March 1786 to 06 November 1860) was a British naval officer whose sixty years in the Royal Navy included service in the War of 1812, the Napoleonic Wars, Syrian War and the Crimean War (with the Russians), and a period commanding the Portuguese navy in… Read More
Events 671 – Emperor Tenji of Japan introduces a water clock (clepsydra) called Rokoku. The instrument, which measures time and indicates hours, is placed in the capital of Ōtsu. 1190 – Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowns in the river Saleph while leading an army to Jerusalem. 1329 – The Battle of Pelekanon results in… Read More
Introduction Jared Christopher Monti (20 September 1975 to 21 June 2006) was a soldier in the United States Army who received the United States military’s highest decoration for valour, the Medal of Honour, for his actions in the War in Afghanistan. Monti was deployed with his unit when they were attacked by a group of… Read More
Introduction Major General Smedley Darlington Butler (30 July 1881 to 21 June 1940), nicknamed “Maverick Marine”, was a senior United States Marine Corps officer who fought in the Philippine-American War, the Boxer Rebellion, the Mexican Revolution and World War I. During his 34-year career as a Marine, he participated in military actions in the Philippines,… Read More
Events 411 BC – The Athenian coup succeeds, forming a short-lived oligarchy. 68 – Nero commits suicide, after quoting Vergil’s Aeneid, thus ending the Julio-Claudian dynasty and starting the civil war known as the Year of the Four Emperors. 721 – Odo of Aquitaine defeats the Moors in the Battle of Toulouse. 747 – Abbasid… Read More
Events 218 – Battle of Antioch: With the support of the Syrian legions, Elagabalus defeats the forces of emperor Macrinus. 452 – Attila leads a Hun army in the invasion of Italy, devastating the northern provinces as he heads for Rome. 793 – Vikings raid the abbey at Lindisfarne in Northumbria, commonly accepted as the… Read More
Events 879 – Pope John VIII recognises the Duchy of Croatia under Duke Branimir as an independent state. 1099 – First Crusade: The Siege of Jerusalem begins. 1420 – Troops of the Republic of Venice capture Udine, ending the independence of the Patria del Friuli. 1494 – Spain and Portugal sign the Treaty of Tordesillas… Read More
Boot Camp & Military Fitness Institute 