“[During the Battle of Stalingrad] The Soviet forces themselves had suffered terribly. In the battle which occupied the winter months of 1942-43, over a million Soviet troops were killed. The life expectancy of a soldier at the front was 24 hours. Yet Stalingrad was singly the most important conflict of the war in Europe.” (Lynch,… Read More
“It was a war of attrition. From near-defeat in 1941 the Soviet Union drew the German forces deeper and deeper into Russia until they were overstretched and vulnerable. The Soviet armies then counter-attacked, pushing the enemy back into Germany until Berlin itself fell in May 1945. Soviet casualties were prodigious. In the worst years, 1941-42,… Read More
“In an word, a good officer realizes that his men will follow his judgment if they are convinced that he too is prepared to risk his life in their defense.” Richard A. Gabriel and Paul L. Savage. (1978) Crisis in Command: Mismanagement in the Army.
Events 295 BC – The first temple to Venus, the Roman goddess of love, beauty and fertility, is dedicated by Quintus Fabius Maximus Gurges during the Third Samnite War. 43 BC – Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus, later known as Augustus, compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul. 947 – Abu Yazid, a Kharijite rebel… Read More
Research Paper Title Cognitive biases in military personnel with and without PTSD: a systematic review. Background Some cognitive biases, such as excessive attention to threat, are associated with PTSD. However, they may be adaptive for military personnel; attending to threat may improve safety for deployed personnel. Therefore, the aim of this study was to discover… Read More
“Certainly a main factor in the cohesion of the primary group in the German Army, namely the company, was the sense of responsibility, performance of duty, and willingness to take combat risks demonstrated by German officers. The data on the readiness of the officers and upper classes to die in battle support this assertion. The… Read More
Events 684 – Battle of Marj Rahit: Umayyad partisans defeat the supporters of Ibn al-Zubayr and cement Umayyad control of Syria. 1304 – The Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle is fought to a draw between the French army and the Flemish militias. 1487 – The Siege of Málaga ends with the taking of the city by Castilian… Read More
