Who were the highest ranking Jewish officers in the World War II militaries? [more inside]
posted by Joe Beese on Oct 21, 2009 - 20 answers

Suggestions for a very good one-volume book about World War I. [more inside]
posted by Postroad on Oct 19, 2009 - 18 answers

What resources (films, books, websites) can I share with my 13 y/o daughter who has expressed a recent keen admiration and care for the American soldier from the Vietnam War era to the present? [more inside]
posted by keith0718 on Sep 3, 2009 - 22 answers

I'm preparing for a massive personal archiving/interviewing trip with my grandparents and need advice regarding many aspects of the project. [more inside]
posted by ikahime on Aug 18, 2009 - 8 answers

How long did it take for radiation to fall to safe levels in Hiroshima after August 1945? [more inside]
posted by yclipse on Jul 27, 2009 - 16 answers

What was WWI about anyway? [more inside]
posted by serazin on Jul 24, 2009 - 54 answers

What are the best nonfiction sources about the atrocities surrounding the Mexican-American War and related Native American wars? [more inside]
posted by Bookhouse on Jun 29, 2009 - 12 answers

Names of a few of the best scholarly histories of the Korean War [more inside]
posted by Postroad on May 23, 2009 - 4 answers

Help me identity this 1910s/20s/30s British poet (from precious little information). [more inside]
posted by taramosalata on Feb 14, 2009 - 3 answers

I am looking for the best, most powerful, most engaging stuff on the internets about the Valley Forge encampment. [more inside]
posted by By The Grace of God on Nov 7, 2008 - 2 answers

In short, What are the best books (especially books), movies or other media about Vietnam that you know of? (Including the French War.) [more inside]
posted by MasonDixon on Sep 22, 2008 - 33 answers

When did our leaders stop going to war? [more inside]
posted by ilikecookies on Apr 26, 2008 - 23 answers

What are some objective criteria/metrics by which to measure progress towards success or failure in a war or other extended conflict? [more inside]
posted by EatenByAGrue on Jan 13, 2008 - 18 answers

I'm looking for an instance of a large-scale man made disaster (such as a war) that collided with a large-scale natural disaster (such as a hurricane) in the same territory. Any nation, any era ... as long as it's fact. Thank you for any help you can offer. :-) [more inside]
posted by coizero on Dec 31, 2007 - 31 answers

How was the Civil War .58 Springfield rifle reloaded? I understand that it was a percussion-cap rifle rather than a flintlock, and that it fired a muzzle-loaded minie ball. But what was the reloading process? What did the ammunition look like? There was no metal cartridge involved? How long did it take to reload and fire one of those things? Thanks, from a firearms n00b!
posted by jackypaper on Oct 22, 2007 - 8 answers

Where do I find data about 1940s newspaper circulation? I want to see what was going on with newspaper readership in the 1940s, before, during and after WWII. I think that newspaper readership went up during the war and am trying to find data to prove it! I'm looking for 1940s circulation statistics for some of the big newspapers (NY times, LA Times, Chicago Tribune & Christian Science Monitor). I am finding very little reliable information. Is there a reference librarian in the house who could point me towards a reference book or source?
posted by pluckysparrow on Sep 6, 2007 - 4 answers

How American is the phenomenon of historical re-enacting? [more inside]
posted by Miko on May 11, 2007 - 22 answers

I'm interested in reading about the Cold War, specifically, about Stalin and the Soviet side of things during the early phases of the war. Other topics are fine though. Any book recommendations you have will be greatly appreciated! [more inside]
posted by meta87 on Apr 4, 2007 - 11 answers

Has religion ever helped to end a war? [more inside]
posted by brevity on Feb 21, 2007 - 22 answers

So how close exactly were we to nuclear war? [more inside]
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane on Dec 9, 2006 - 17 answers

Historyfilter: What are the times in history when a major war seemed inevitable, but didn't happen? [more inside]
posted by bigmusic on Jul 27, 2006 - 29 answers

What are some of the most important books about Japan's role in World War II? Read on... [more inside]
posted by Ekim Neems on Dec 17, 2005 - 14 answers

Searching for an ant-war cartoon from WW1 or WW2. Features "Democracy" kneeling in front of Uncle Sam, pleading that he stay out of the war for her sake.
posted by The White Hat on Nov 5, 2005 - 5 answers

What would Lincoln have done if the south had not fired on Fort Sumter? [more inside]
posted by IndigoJones on Sep 28, 2005 - 12 answers

What sort of guns (by model) were issued to United States soldiers in the first world war? Smaller guns in particular.
posted by dagnyscott on Apr 26, 2005 - 10 answers

The British have the histories and diaries of Churchill and Lord Alanbrooke. Whose are the most important American memoirs for the Second World War, shedding light on the American view of events and their opinions of their Allies? [more inside]
posted by alasdair on Feb 19, 2005 - 6 answers

Any good books to suggest on the US-Mexico War of 1846-48? I've recently read (and found very interesting) To the Halls of the Montezumas and Eisenhower's son book. Any other suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks.
posted by matteo on Nov 8, 2004 - 4 answers

Can anyone point me in the direction of an internet site or book that describes history's wars in an objective, detailed, yet concise way? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by Slimemonster on May 18, 2004 - 8 answers

Can a free people in a democratic country that has grown to such an enormous power remain to its historically told ideals of basic human rights, government from and for the people? Could the desire for control of that power be great enough to collapse a free society? Is humankind enslaved to war?
posted by the fire you left me on Apr 30, 2004 - 22 answers