Military Leaders

U.S. Army Pvt. John McGrath survived the bullet that scarred this letter he penned during the liberation of Italy.

The Unprecedented Effort to Preserve a Million Letters Written by U.S. Soldiers During Wartime

A tragedy at home led one intrepid historian to find and catalog precious correspondence for future generations to study

Actress Pauline Cushman (1833-1893) was a Union spy and became a major celebrity.

The Actress Who Left the Stage to Become a Civil War Spy

Pauline Cushman, now featured in a Smithsonian photography exhibition, unexpectedly found herself spying for the Union after accepting a dare

Fleet Adm. William D. Leahy stands directly behind President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who is seated between Winston Churchill (left) and Joseph Stalin (right), at the Yalta Conference during World War II.

The Hidden Power Behind D-Day

As a key advisor to F.D.R., Adm. William D. Leahy was instrumental in bringing the Allies together to agree upon the invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe

View of the National Veterans Memorial and Museum from above.

A New Museum Honoring America's Veterans Opens in Ohio

Personal stories take the place of military artifacts at the new National Veterans Memorial & Museum

The Legendary Sultan Saladin Was Likely Killed by Typhoid

Reviewing historical accounts of his death, doctors and historians believe his sweating fits and weakness were brought on by the bacterial infection

A 1933 statue of Confederate leader Jefferson Davis is removed from University of Texas' South Mall after UT President Gregory Fenves cleared it to be placed in a campus museum.

Are Museums the Right Home for Confederate Monuments?

The idea that once they are taken down, these statues “belong in a museum” doesn’t take into account that museums may not want them. Should they?

Gary Oldman plays Winston Churchill in the new release The Darkest Hour.

Winston Churchill’s Historic “Fight Them on the Beaches” Speech Wasn’t Heard by the Public Until After WWII

The recordings we hear today didn’t air over the BBC at the time, but that hasn’t stopped many Britons from remembering otherwise

A reproduction 5th century Corinthian helmet given by a visiting Greek Army officer. It's become the logo for "The Art of War – Gifts of Peace" initiative.

At an Army Base in Kansas, There's a Secret Collection of Incredible Finds

Are these priceless artifacts or worthless trinkets? No one knows for sure, but a local art gallery is pitching in to find out

Chick Parsons (center and top) was the toast of prewar Manila, a convivial, polo-playing expat businessman with an eagle tattooed across his chest.

Without Chick Parsons, General MacArthur May Never Have Made His Famed Return to the Philippines

The full story of the American ex-pat's daring feats has not been told—until now

Looking at the east frieze of the Confederate Monument at Arlington National Cemtery in Arlington, Virginia, in the United States

The Pernicious Myth of the ‘Loyal Slave’ Lives on in Confederate Memorials

Statues don’t need to venerate military leaders of the Civil War to promulgate false narratives

Plotting a route out? German prisoners in Britain during WWII.

This Newly Excavated Underground Tunnel Reveals How 83 German Officers Escaped a World War II Prison Camp

The POWs burrowed to freedom from a Welsh encampment in 1945

The hilt of Robert Gould Shaw's sword

Civil War Hero's Long-Lost Sword Was Hiding in an Attic

Union Colonel Robert Gould Shaw led the legendary 54th Massachusetts Regiment, one of the first official black military units in the United States

As he led his troops into the mountains, Hannibal vowed: “You will have the capital of Italy, the citadel of Rome, in the hollow of your hands.”

How (and Where) Did Hannibal Cross the Alps?

He pulled off one of the greatest military feats ever. Now new scientific evidence points to Hannibal's legendary route to Rome

In this June 13, 1917 file photo, U.S. Army General John J. Pershing, center, inspects French troops at Boulogne, France

“I Hope It Is Not Too Late”: How the U.S. Decided to Send Millions of Troops Into World War I

The Allies were desperate for reinforcements, but the U.S. wasn’t quite ready to provide them

Howard in 1893 at Governor's Island

The Namesake of Howard University Spent Years Kicking Native Americans Off of Their Land

Oliver Otis Howard was a revered Civil War general—but his career had a dark postscript

Watercolor painting of the Battle of Texel by painter Léon Morel-Fatio.

The Only Time in History When Men on Horseback Captured a Fleet of Ships

A Dutch fleet stuck in the ice. A group of French soldiers sent to capture it. What could go wrong?

Spc. Crisma Albarran volunteered for the U.S. Army. In the future, other women could be required to serve.

Women Won’t Register for the Draft After All

They’re gaining parity within the U.S. military—but women won’t yet be required to register for compulsory service in case of war

Korda captured this iconic image of the Cuban revolutionary by chance.

The Story Behind Che's Iconic Photo

Fashion photographer Alberto Korda took Che Guevara's pictures hundreds of times in the 1960s. One stuck

A new Smithsonian Book by Gus Lee tells the untold story of Norman Schwarzkopf's work with young cadets at West Point.

How the Unflinching Norman Schwarzkopf Became One Man’s Guiding Light

In a new book, the general who successfully commanded one of the largest military operations in the Middle East is remembered by a man he mentored

That Time When Custer Stole a Horse

The theft of a prize-winning stallion gave the famous general a glimpse of a future that could have been

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