Explore

Delve deeper into stories of the Army and its soldiers, exploring events across the globe and down the centuries.

VE Day celebrations at Nairobi, Kenya, May 1945
War and Peace

On This Day: May 1945

In May 1945, the Allies celebrated Victory in Europe. While the war in Japan was still to be won, attention also turned to the challenges of the peace, not least the return home of millions of soldiers.
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Marengo's skull

Marengo’s makeover

We sent Napoleon's horse Marengo to the Natural History Museum to prepare him for display in the new galleries.

English pot helmet, 1640s

Battle of Naseby

Sir Thomas Fairfax led his troops to victory over King Charles I at the Battle of Naseby on 14 June 1645. His triumph won the First English Civil War (1642-46) for Parliament and ensured that monarchs would never again be supreme in British politics.

Napoleon at Waterloo, 1815

Battle of Waterloo

The Battle of Waterloo was fought on 18 June 1815 between Napoleon’s French Army and a coalition led by the Duke of Wellington and Marshal Blücher. It was the decisive battle of its age.

The defence of Rorke’s Drift 22-23 January 1879

Defence of Rorke’s Drift

This battle took place on 22-23 January 1879. A huge force of Zulus attacked a small British garrison, but was eventually repelled after more than 12 hours of bitter fighting.

Heavy guns on the Somme, 1916

Battle of the Somme

The 1916 Somme offensive was one of the bloodiest battles of the First World War. But it provided the Army with a tough lesson in how to fight a large-scale modern war.

Battle of Normandy

Battle of Normandy

D-Day enabled the Allies to establish a foothold on the beaches of Normandy. But they still faced the task of breaking out, pushing the Germans back and liberating France.

D-Day

D-Day

D-Day, 6 June 1944, marked the start of the Allied invasion of Normandy and was the greatest amphibious operation in history.

A raiding party in a trench, 1916

First World War

The First World War was the first truly global conflict. From 1914 to 1918, fighting took place across several continents, at sea and, for the first time, in the air.

British soldiers watching the bombing of an enemy position in Musa Qala, 2006

War in Afghanistan

Britain's most recent war in Afghanistan began in the wake of the '9/11' terrorist attacks on the United States. It continued for 13 years with the last combat troops leaving the country on 26 October 2014.

Sir William Inglis, 1820

William Inglis: The original die-hard

Major-General Sir William Inglis had a long and successful career. But it was his actions in the Peninsular War, when he showed enormous personal courage and leadership under fire, that earned him national fame.

Thin Red Line, 1854

Battle of Balaklava

The Battle of Balaklava in 1854 witnessed one of the most famous acts of battlefield bravery and one of the most infamous blunders in military history.

A soldier en route to Sicily, 1943

Second World War

The Second World War (1939-45) was the bloodiest conflict in human history. It split the world's nations into two opposing military alliances - the Allies and the Axis Powers.

Stories of alliance

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With friends like these: The Americans

In this video, we look at how changing national interests have affected Britain's military relationship with the United States from the 18th century to the present day.

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With friends like these: The Russians

In this video, we look at how changing national interests have affected Britain's military relationship with Russia from the 18th century to the present day.

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With friends like these: The French

In this video, we look at how changing national interests have affected Britain's military relationship with France from the 17th century to the present day.