Father and Son Command the Same Division

General George S. Patton followed his father in command of the 2nd Armoured Division of the US Army

When Marines Play Video Games

When the Cold War abated, military budgets shrunk. Strapped for funds, the U.S. Marines licensed seminal first-person-shooter (FPS) Doom from id Software and built their own version for soldiers to play. Companies like Sega began designing simulation software for defense contractors, since they could do it more affordably. For …

Served as Chief of Staff of Three Different Army Commands

Lt Gen HRS Mann has had the unique distinction of having served as the Chief of Staff of the Army's Central Command, Training Command and the Western Command, probably the only officer to do so.

When India’s First Woman Photojournalist Documented India’s First Republic Day Parade

Homai Vyarawalla was India's first woman photojournalist.

Agreeing with the KGB ...

Did you hear the old Soviet joke where a KGB director asked one of his lieutenants what he thought of the government. The other nervously said "I agree with you, comrade", so the boss had him arrested.

When Graham Greene worked for the MI6

Graham Greene had continued working for British intelligence into his seventies.

When the South Korean Army Banned Friend by Paek Nam Nyong

Friend by Paek Nam Nyong (translated by Immanuel Kim, published by Columbia University Press) is the first English novel approved by North Korea’s regime. Published in 1988, it is a beloved classic there about characters caught up in marital strife and disappointed by their spouses, based on Paek Nam …

When Sartre Got Conscripted

On September 20th, 1939, Jean-Paul Sartre was conscripted into the French Army.

Bhutan is the only Asian country without formal diplomatic ties to China.

Napoleon's hat auctioned at $2.1M

At an auction in France, a black felt bicorn hat believed to have belonged to Napoleon sold for $2.1 million, fetching the highest price ever paid for one of the 19th-century French emperor’s hats.