In 1773, two years before the American Revolution erupted, Benjamin Franklin, who was in England representing the interests of colonial America, published a satirical essay titled, Rules for Reducing a Great Empire to a Small One. Dedicated to his
Read more…Ever since Andrew Jackson launched his invasion of Florida in 1818 to suppress British assistance to the Seminoles historians have sought to assign responsibility to either the 1815 Hero of New Orleans, President James Monroe, or both men. Prominen
Read more…In 1856, American writer and educator Francis Lister Hawks published a two-volume work on Commodore Matthew Perry’s expeditions to Japan between the years 1852 and 1854. Sponsored by the US government, the expedition’s main goals were to open up th
Read more…The ‘Fainting General’ vs. General Apathy: The 1852 Presidential Election and War of Words
The US Presidential election of 1852 pitted two former veterans of the Mexican-American War (1846–8), and because the platforms of the Democrat and Whig part
Read more…‘Commoner-Knights’ and Napoleonic Spain: The Guerrilla Chieftain El Empecinado
In the autumn of 1809, at an important crossroads in the Peninsular War in Spain (1808-14), Napoleon began considering a complete overhaul of his occupation strategy. Th
Read more…From 'Compliance' and 'Conciliation' to 'Hearts and Minds': The 19th–Century Origins of U.S. Counterinsurgency Doctrine
In 1829, French general Gabriel Suchet published his Peninsular War (1808–14) memoirs and noted that in 1810 he believed the Spa
Read more…Korean origins of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance (1902-1922): Tonghak Peasant Revolt and Sino-Japanese War (1894–5) from an American Perspective (Part 2)
The 1894 Korean Tonghak Peasant Revolt sparking the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–5) was used to
Read more…Korean origins of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance (1902-1922): Tonghak Peasant Revolt and Sino-Japanese War (1894–5) from an American Perspective (Part 1)
In 1884 the Japanese-sanctioned Gapsin Coup (갑신정병) in Seoul failed resulting in the reassertion o
Read more…The Inauspicious Naming of the ‘War of 1812’ and Gulf Theater
In mid-1848 the second Anglo-American war was finally given its name. On June 23 of that year, at the conclusion of the Mexican-American War (1846–48), the Daily Union of Washington DC r
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